Forget the Peak, Climb the Mountain — How I Break Down Big Running Goals Into Daily Steps

It is week three of summer running, and this is the biggest training opportunity we athletes have all year. After identifying weaknesses from last season and setting new running goals, I set some running goals that feel massive, like mountains off in the distance. But I have learned that if you just stare at the peak, it looks impossible. The key is to keep your head down, focus on the ground under your feet, and let each step carry you closer. In this article, I am breaking down each of my mountainous goals into small, actionable steps I can take every single day this summer.

Goal One: Run a Sub-Four-Minute Mile

My current mile PR is 4:02, and the gap between 4:02 and 3:59 feels enormous. It is the difference between being good and reaching a level that most distance runners dream about. To close that gap, I have been focusing on one specific daily habit: running strides after every single easy run. Every morning after my easy mileage, I do six to eight strides of about 100 meters, focusing on quick turnover, relaxed arms, and smooth acceleration. The idea is to train my neuromuscular system to feel comfortable at faster speeds so that when race day comes, running under four minutes feels like second nature rather than an all-out effort.

I have also been incorporating short hill sprints twice a week. The hill near the LSU track is about 80 meters long with a moderate incline, and I do eight to ten repeats up it after my afternoon doubles. Hill sprints build the kind of explosive power that translates directly to the closing kick of a mile race, which is exactly where my 4:02 fell apart last season. I was dying over the final 200 meters, and that is where the race is won or lost.

Goal Two: Drop My 5K Under 14 Minutes

Last season I ran around 14:20 for 5K, and my target is to get under 14 flat. The daily actionable step for this goal is simple but demanding: building consistent mileage. I am targeting 70 miles per week as my base this summer, up from the 45 I started with in week one. The research and my own experience both show that the single biggest predictor of 5K improvement for a distance runner is consistent aerobic volume. You cannot fake fitness in the 5K. It rewards the athletes who put in the work day after day, week after week.

My coach has me building the mileage gradually, adding about five to seven miles per week. The morning runs are usually six to eight miles easy, and then I come back in the afternoon for another three to five miles. Some of those afternoon doubles are on the track just to keep my legs used to the surface, but the effort is easy. The goal right now is volume, not intensity. The hard workouts will come later once the aerobic base is solid.

Goal Three: Break Eight Minutes in the 3K

My current 3K PR is 8:02.8, so I need to shave nearly three seconds to break that barrier. The daily step I have committed to for this goal is tempo work. Once a week, I run a sustained tempo effort at what I call my comfortably uncomfortable pace, usually around 5:15 to 5:20 per mile for 20 to 25 minutes. This trains my body to clear lactate more efficiently and sustain a hard effort for longer, which is exactly what the 3K demands.

I have also been paying close attention to pacing in all of my workouts. One of my biggest issues in racing has been going out too aggressively and then dying in the second half. So in training, I am deliberately practicing even splits and negative splits, teaching my body to hold back early and finish strong. It sounds simple, but it takes discipline to not chase your training partners in the first rep of a workout when your legs feel fresh.

Goal Four: Fix My Running Form

This is the goal that does not have a clear finish line but might be the most important of all. When I watch race footage of myself, I can see my form breaking down in the last quarter of every race. My hips drop, my arms start swinging across my body, and I look like I am fighting the ground instead of flowing over it. The daily actionable step I have been taking is a ten-minute movement routine before every run. It includes hip circles, leg swings, single-leg glute bridges, and A-skips. The point is to activate the muscles that keep my form together when I am tired.

I have also started filming myself during strides once a week to check my mechanics. I set up my phone at the side of the track and run four to five strides, then watch them back immediately. It is a quick feedback loop that helps me see whether the drills are actually translating into better form. So far, I have noticed my arm carriage getting cleaner, but the hip drop is still there at fatigue. That is going to take months of consistent glute and core work to fix.

The Recruiting Advice I Wish I Had Sooner

While documenting this summer training block, I also want to share something that helped me get to LSU in the first place. Between my junior and senior year of high school, I emailed hundreds of college coaches. I kept everything organized in a spreadsheet with the coach’s name, email, and notes on any conversations. The single most important piece of advice I can give to any recruit is to personalize every email. I wrote a base draft that I could copy and adjust, but every single email I sent had something specific to that program. Coaches receive hundreds of generic emails, and the ones that stand out are the ones that show you actually researched their team.

If you are a parent of a recruit, please do not email coaches on your kid’s behalf. Coaches want to hear directly from the athlete. It shows maturity and initiative, two things every college coach values. The summer between junior and senior year is the prime window to start those conversations, so if you or someone you know is going through the recruiting process right now, do not wait.

Achieving Running Goals Through Mentality

My fourth unofficial goal this summer is to toughen up mentally. I do not have a perfect system for this yet, but I have been experimenting with introducing more challenging stimuli into my daily life. Cold water immersion after hard runs, waking up earlier than necessary, and running some of my easy miles without music or podcasts. The idea is to practice being uncomfortable in low-stakes situations so that when the real discomfort shows up in a race, my brain has a reference point for pushing through it.

I also just completed concussion testing at school, which is one of those annoying but necessary tasks that comes with being a college athlete. The test involves repeating strings of numbers backwards, memory recall, and reaction time drills. It is not exactly mental training, but it is a good reminder that being a student-athlete means a lot of small responsibilities stacking up alongside the training.

Setting and tracking running goals is a theme throughout my training. See how I approached it when building back for track season.

Chasing Running Goals and Moving Forward

As week three wraps up, I am also in the process of packing everything I own into a five-by-five-foot pile and a suitcase to head home before the next phase of summer training. The season is long, the goals are big, and the daily steps are small. But that is the whole point. You do not climb a mountain by sprinting to the peak. You climb it by putting one foot in front of the other, trusting the process, and never looking up too long. I am three weeks in, the mileage is building, the habits are forming, and the mountain is getting a little smaller every day.