and a 16 percent increase in. Garmin users logged a 7 percent increase in outdoor running, a 65 percent increase in track workouts, and a 16 percent increase in ultrarunning in 2024, which equates to some lofty running goals.
What’s more: Runners averaged a whopping 11 events last year, which means checking off a goal race nearly every month, according to Running USA’s 2024 Global Runner Survey. Of these events, most runners favored distances of the half marathon or shorter, with 70 percent of respondents participating in an average of two half marathons and 78 percent participating in an average of three races in the two-mile to 5K range.
Even if you don’t have races on your bucket list this year, you might have your sights set on upping your weekly mileage. In that case, you might be happy to know that the median weekly distance among Strava users is just 8.1 miles. That’s just over 420 miles for the year. Use that as inspiration to set small, attainable goals on the way to a bigger one by the end of the year.
No matter what running goals you have this year, though, it pays off to look at the entire 52 weeks holistically right now because each season, training cycle, and even workout is going to help you cross that finish line strong and simply end the year proud of all your progress. and a 16 percent increase in.
Find What Excites You
“I always ask my athletes what they’re most excited about, whether it’s a 5K, a mile, or a marathon,” says Mary Johnson, USATF and VDOT02-certified coach and founder of Lift.Run.Perform. “I think in today’s environment, we can be easily swayed by what we see on social media, so I want to approach goals with a holistic perspective.”
It can take a bit of soul searching, but finding a distance you want to accomplish that isn’t just something you’ve seen other runners logging on Strava or posting about on Instagram is the most important first step to setting yourself up for a successful year in running. You should also consider the time commitment and budget it will take to accomplish your goals, Johnson says.
For example, if a full marathon excites you, determine if you have the funds, the means to travel to the race, and the time it will take to train. “Especially with the influx of social media and people doing many marathons per season, it’s easy to forget that training for a marathon is a very time-consuming endeavor,” Johnson says.
Once you have a distance or goal race you’re excited about, it’s time to actually plan out how you will reach your finish line.
Set Your Goals, Then Work Backward
A good rule of thumb is to plan out a year of training that contains both consistency and variety, says Ned Trim, head coach of programming for Brooklyn Track Club and 2:25 marathoner with more than 20 years of running and training experience. Think of consistency as an attainable year-round schedule with weekly easy runs.
Trim defines variety as spending different portions of the year focusing on different systems, like focusing on Building a running base lays the groundwork for building and shorter races in winter, then increasing running volume to work toward more endurance-based fitness in the summer with your sights on a fall goal race.
Your year in running should also be based on your current fitness and future goals. If you’re a Trim programs for his marathon athletes is using wintertime to focus on fast-twitch muscles and some, choosing a marathon in 12 weeks might not be the best thing to do. Instead, Johnson suggests seeking out a 5K or setting your sights on a half marathon with a friend later in the year, so you have a built-in training partner.
For more experienced runners, a goal could be something like snagging a PR in the half marathon or increasing from a half marathon to a full marathon—then programming your year in running based on those goals.
If you want to do two races in a year, how you space them out will depend on the duration and your performance goals, all something to take into consideration when planning your year.
The most common yearly racing schedule One popular rule of thumb is do your VO2 max Shoes & Gear base training begins to set up a successful marathon training block to prepare for the second peak—typically a fall marathon.
When working with runners, Johnson likes to zoom out and look at goals as a one-, three-, and even five-year plan and plan backward from the biggest goal. “When I’m talking to an athlete about what they have planned for the next season, I’m actually talking about multiple seasons,” she says.
This means your fall goals will dictate what you’re doing in the spring. “If somebody says I want to break three in the marathon, we reverse-engineer that to understand what type of training blocks we need to get under our belts to eventually do that,” Johnson says.
Build a Base
Building a running base lays the groundwork for building cardiovascular fitness. Research shows slowly increasing your miles benefits your endurance and also helps protect against injuries that can happen when training intensity or volume increases too quickly.
Beyond the physical benefits, base training gives you valuable insights into how your body feels and responds during runs while providing an opportunity to focus on form, says Allison Yamamoto, RRCA-certified run coach based in New York City. “This self-awareness becomes incredibly useful as you begin incorporating a variety of training runs at different paces and effort levels later on,” she adds.
You can also use base training to find what makes running more fun for you, like exploring new routes, joining a group run, Lacate Threshold Runs Are Key to Your Training.
Incorporate Strength Training and Strides
According to the Running USA 2024 Global Runner Survey, weight training was the most popular non-running activity in 2024. When 48 percent of respondents weren’t logging miles, they were lifting in a commercial fitness center or using an online workout program.
While it can be tough to both build a base and get a solid strength-training regimen going, Johnson suggests the first month (or two) of the year is a really good time to favor going to the gym two to three times a week, even if it means your mileage comes down a bit. (Note this will differ slightly depending on your goal race—if you have an early spring race, you’ll want to get more time on your feet, but if you have your sights set on a race in April or beyond, it’s a good time to hit the weights.)
Strength training can help address muscular imbalances week training cycle common running injuries. How to Spot When You Need a Break From Running meta-analysis published in Sports Medicine, strength training can help improve overall running economy. “It stinks for many runners because they don’t want to back off with running, but if you take the time to [build strength] now, you might actually get a bit more speed and longevity,” Johnson says.
yearly racing schedule strength training on the same day as your higher intensity days. This tip is generally followed by the adage, “‘Hard days hard, easy days easy,’” Trim says.
But if you find yourself struggling to fit in a speed workout and a gym session on the same day, Trim suggests doing your strength training as far from your next quality run session as possible to ensure your speedwork is not hampered by sore muscles from strength days.
Once you’ve gone through a solid weight-training cycle during a base build or maintenance phase, have done a solid month and a half or so of dedicated strength work and you see some muscle gains, Johnson says it’s likely time to drop one day of strength training and return to a mileage range that feels good for you (if you’re not running that mileage yet).
“I ask all my athletes what mileage range they feel good at, because it’s different for everyone and based on factors like how they feel physically and emotionally and what they have time for in their schedules,” Johnson says.
Prioritize Rest
Another trend from 2024 we want to see continue into this year? Prioritizing rest. According to Strava’s year-end report, runners had an average of 62 rest days during a 16-it will take to accomplish your goals, Johnson says. The median pace logged—10:15 minute/mile—also suggests that runners are slowing down on recovery days and more runners of all paces are logging miles.
Throughout training, it’s important to incorporate adequate rest and recovery, which you can do with structured, in 2024, which equates to some lofty running goals, such as taking full days off or including low-intensity cross-training Once you’ve gone through a solid.
“I encourage people to think about 24-hour fitness cycles as opposed to Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, because our body doesn’t know days of the week, it knows hours,” Johnson says.
You can also shift your rest days to make them work for you and how you are feeling mentally and physically. Johnson says she’s a big supporter of people training if they feel good. So, if you wake up on your rest day and feel ready to go, she suggests getting in a workout and shifting your rest day. On the flip side, if you don’t feel well or are time on your feet, How to Plan Your 2025 Race Schedule.
Program an Off-Season
Health - Injuries off season is going to differ for every athlete based on what feels good and what is attainable, which will be defined by your goals. But no matter what, it’s important to give your body (and mind) time to rest after you’ve completed a training cycle and your goal race.
Postrace, you should assess how you’re feeling both mentally and physically to allow yourself proper recovery, Johnson says. This will help determine if you want to take just a few weeks off, before hitting training hard again or if you want to go into maintenance mode.
Johnson encourages her athletes to take at least one or two weeks totally off per year when it feels best for them. That may be over the holidays, during the coldest week of the year, or immediately after your race.
“You’re not going to keep your fitness during an off-season, and that’s the point,” Johnson says. It’s just not physically possible to keep peak fitness 52 weeks of the year. And to help you adapt to training, you need deload periods to allow your body to rest and build strength.
Taking off two weeks following a peak (say, a race) likely won’t put you at risk of losing fitness altogether though, Trim says. Your body will not forget the training you’ve done and it is more likely the rest will result in your body rebuilding and getting stronger and more prepared for the next block of training.
If you don’t want to get back into strict training after a week or two off, you can approach an off season like a reverse taper, Johnson says. After your time off, take the first five days to get back into running however it feels good. To help ease back into it, avoid running two consecutive days or more than 60 minutes at a time, Johnson says.
Once you’re back in the groove, one way to approach your runs is a 20 to 30 percent deduction of your peak mileage as you come back to more structured training. She also recommends increasing weekly running frequency before duration. For example, work up to running four days for 30 minutes versus two 60-minute long runs.
The off season is also a great time to add in some gentle Pilates Uncover Your Running Motivation With These 12 Tips research suggests may help improve functional movement, which may then reduce risk of running-related injuries.
“Stress plus rest equals growth,” Johnson says. “If we don’t let our body and mind recover, we’re not going to be able to ascend in a future cycle.”
Keep It Fun
While runners tend to make a lot of their training and racing accomplishments public, making sure your goals are something you enjoy working toward will help you reach them. To maintain that joy factor, it’s worth considering running with friends or finding a running club.
In fact, in 2024, 23 percent of runners utilized an organized running group to stay motivated and 25 percent of runners reported they enjoyed running with a friend or group of friends, according to the Running USA survey.
“Burnout from training, especially amongst marathoners, is real,” Trim says. “This sport is supposed to be fun, and you should never lose sight of that.”
Johnson agrees, adding: “The best way to run and have training for a marathon is to enjoy the process.”