I will reach my goal of three easy 3 mile runs and three hard 3.5 mile runs later this week. But now I am wondering why I picked that mileage? Before I tore my left knee menicus in 2010, I considered a run of 3 mi as too short to give me any pleasure or benefit. Then I was training for marathons, now I just want to be able to run for my daily exercise. Biking, swimming, walking and working out on my Bowflex do not give me the same enjoyment as running. Mike Sandrock, the Boulder Camera running columnist, says "Every day is Earth Day to a runner." He is right and I want to be a runner. I read that 3 mi runs are only good for maintaining the runner's fitness level. I have found it is the maximum distance I can run and not aggravate my knee. The hard run of 3.5 mi does aggravate my knee but it does increase my fitness by a modest amount as I have seen while slowly adding distance beyond 3 mi. Running 3.5/3 mi or 19.5 mi/week appears to be the furthest I can run without getting injured at this point. This is assuming I can actually reach 3.5/3 mi without mishap. Below is my next week's schedule.
Mon-Off, Tue-3 mi, Wed-3.5 mi, Thu-3 mi, Fri-3.5 mi, Sat-3 mi, Sun-3.5mi.
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