How to use the weekly mileage ramp planner
- Enter your distance in week 1, which is your current weekly total, and choose miles or kilometers.
- Enter the percent increase for each week and the number of weeks in the plan. Add a cap if you do not want the distance to pass a certain weekly total.
- Open Advanced options to schedule a lighter week every few weeks and set how much lower it should be.
- Read the week by week table, the highest week and the total distance. Use Copy, Print or CSV to keep the plan.
Formula
Normal week = last normal week x (1 + weekly increase)
Lighter week = last normal week x (1 - reduction)
Distance after n normal weeks = week 1 x (1 + increase)^(n - 1)
A lighter week does not change the build. The week after it continues from the last normal week, not from the lighter one. A cap holds the distance at the cap once the build would pass it.
Twenty miles rising 10 percent a week
Start at 20 miles and add 10% a week, with a lighter week 25% lower every fourth week. The weeks are 20, 22, 24.2, then a lighter week of 18.15, then 26.62, 29.28, 32.21, a lighter week of 24.16, then 35.43, 38.97, 42.87 and a lighter week of 32.15 in week 12.
The highest week is 42.87 miles and the total over twelve weeks is 346.05 miles, an average of 28.8 miles a week. Without lighter weeks the first eight weeks are 20, 22, 24.2, 26.62, 29.28, 32.21, 35.43 and 38.97 miles, a total of 228.72 miles.
How growth adds up
A fixed percent increase compounds. Ten percent a week sounds small, yet it multiplies your distance by about 2.6 after ten weeks. That is why many plans pair a percent rise with a cap and with lighter weeks, so the rise flattens before it becomes too large to be sensible.
The percent is a planning number you choose. Neither this tool nor any single percent knows your fitness, your injury history or how you recover. Use it to see the shape of a plan, then adjust by how you feel.
Related tools
Once you have a plan, track what you actually run in the running log, and work out pacing with the pace calculator. To change units, the steps to miles converter helps with walking totals.
Changing from miles to kilometers only changes the labels. The plan itself is the same numbers, so enter your starting distance in the unit you chose.
Assumptions and limits
- Week 1 is your starting distance exactly as entered, and the increase applies from week 2.
- Lighter weeks are measured from the last normal week and the build continues from that normal week.
- The increase is a percent of the previous normal week. Fixed additions, such as one more mile a week, are not modeled.
- The plan is arithmetic only and is not medical or coaching advice.
Frequently asked questions
Is a 10 percent weekly increase safe?
This tool cannot say. A 10% rise is a popular rule of thumb, not a guarantee, and people differ widely. Choose a percent that suits you, and ask a qualified coach or clinician if you have concerns.
How does a lighter week work here?
Every chosen week is set to the last normal week reduced by your percent. The following week resumes the build from the last normal week, so the lighter week acts as a rest rather than a step back.
What does the cap do?
When the next normal week would go over the cap, the distance stays at the cap. If your starting distance is already above the cap, it stays at the starting distance.
Can I plan in kilometers?
Yes. Choose kilometers and enter the starting distance in kilometers. The table and totals use the same unit.