You most commonly hear about the base building phase (hereinafter, BBP) when it comes to training for marathons and half marathons. But, it actually makes sense to include base building in ANY run training cycle.
Running is stressful on your body-point blank. This does NOT mean you should shy away from it. I sure don't! And, the myths about running being bad for your joints and knees has been proven wrong over and over again. (In fact, running can actually strengthen your bones & joints). But, we can't deny that it is hard on your body. So, if you want to have a long, enjoyable running career (or even just long enough to get through a race), you want to create the strongest, most durable body you can.
Think of a ship at sea; you'd want the best built ship out there when a storm comes, right? Or a house in a tornado or hurricane; you'd want the best build house to withstand the winds and rain, right? Same thing for running. You want to build the best body to withstand the miles, however many they might be. This means improving your muscular, skeletal and cardiovascular systems.
The best way to build your foundation is with slow, easy miles. (Strength training is also important-but we're going to focus on running in this article). There is no set amount of days/weeks/months you should be in a base building phase. But, I will say this: you can't really be in one for TOO long; and I'd err on the side of longer, than shorter, whenever possible.
An optimal base building phase will increase weekly mileage gradually; it's a balance between doing enough that you're increasing your base and reaping the physical benefits. But, not doing too much that you're overtaxing your body, risking injury or early burn out.
Base building can feel slow and boring. Last year, I actually hated it. This year, I'm embracing it-plenty of hard miles ahead. Enjoy the 'down time.' I encourage you to try to remind yourself that it's going to pay off in huge dividends down the road. Take in the scenery. Try out new routes. These miles should be easy enough that you can catch up with friends in person or on the phone (using headphones, of course). They should be at an effort level 3-5 out of 10. If you like using heart rate to gauge things, we're talking Zone 2 miles here.
As you increase mileage, you'll want to take 'step-back' weeks every so often. Even though these are easy miles, too much too soon is never good. So, every few weeks, cut back about 25%. And then go ahead and add some extra miles where you left off on the following week.
There's no exact formula. Use your biofeedback as your guide. How is your recovery? Your sleep? Your strength? Your hunger? You mood? All those things are your body talking to you--telling you: we're good or we're doing too much.
How you break up your mileage throughout the week is also up to you. However, I would refrain from having any overly long runs-maybe capping them at 90 minutes or so. Again, everyone is different and this will depend on factors specific to you!
I know you probably wanted a solid formula here. But, it really is best to take it day by day, week by week.
A solid base for one person will be built differently than a solid base for another person.
But, either way, I highly encourage you to begin any training cycle with a BBP, by gradually building your mileage with nice, easy miles. This will put you in a much better position to work on speed and pace, for any distance race.
Time invested in a BBP will pay off big time when you enter more race specific training.
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