Personalized distance coaching rooted in the science of running. Built on proven methodologies used by the world's best coaches and delivered with direct, one-on-one attention.
Racing for
Saint Joseph's University · NCAA Division IGreat distance coaching is not guesswork. Every plan at Crimson Mile is grounded in decades of peer-reviewed exercise science and refined through the methodologies proven at the highest levels of the sport. Your training will have a reason behind every workout.
Training paces derived from your current race performances using Dr. Jack Daniels' VDOT methodology. Easy, threshold, interval, and repetition paces are calibrated precisely to your fitness so every workout delivers maximum benefit at minimum risk of overtraining.
Borrowed from the training systems behind Jakob Ingebrigtsen and Norway's world-class distance runners. High volume, lactate-controlled threshold work designed to build an enormous aerobic engine without accumulating excessive fatigue.
Roughly 80 percent of volume at genuinely easy effort, with high-quality intensity sessions reserved for the remaining 20 percent. Research consistently shows this distribution produces better outcomes than moderate-intensity training for endurance athletes.
Arthur Lydiard's macro-periodization model structures training in distinct phases — aerobic base, anaerobic sharpening, and peaking — ensuring you arrive at goal races at the right time having done the right work in the right order.
Systematically increasing training stress over time while building in recovery weeks to allow adaptation. The result is consistent long-term improvement without the injury cycles that derail most self-coached runners.
Every training block is built backward from your goal race. Tune-up races, taper protocols, and sharpening workouts are planned in advance so your body peaks at exactly the right moment, not two weeks before or after.
Fully customized training built around your current fitness, goal race, and weekly schedule. Grounded in VDOT science, Norwegian threshold principles, and Lydiard periodization. Every workout has a purpose.
Strategic race selection and periodization built into your training calendar from day one. Know exactly when to tune up, when to peak, and how to arrive at your goal race sharp and ready.
Direct communication with your coach throughout your entire training block. Ask questions, report how workouts feel, and get real feedback from someone who has competed at the collegiate level.
Schedule a free 15-minute consultation. Tell me about your goals and where you are in your training right now.
Receive a fully built training plan with races planned inside, synced to your Garmin, Coros, or Apple Watch.
Complete workouts, log your data, and message your coach directly. Your plan adjusts in real time as you improve.
Arrive at your goal race sharp, confident, and peaking at the right moment with a coach in your corner.
Not sure if coaching is right for you? Start with a free 15-minute call. No commitment, no pressure. Just a real conversation about your goals and how Crimson Mile can help you get there.
Responses within one business day. All inquiries are confidential.
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Former NCAA Division I distance runner at Saint Joseph's University. USATF Level 1 certified coach. Built Crimson Mile to make elite-level, science-based coaching accessible to every runner who is serious about getting better.
I'm Jay Shanahan. I competed as a distance runner at Saint Joseph's University in the NCAA's Atlantic 10 Conference, where I trained under Division I coaching staff and developed the technical foundation that informs every plan I write today.
I've spent years studying the science behind the world's most effective training systems, from Jack Daniels' VDOT methodology to the Norwegian double threshold approach that has produced some of the greatest distance runners of this generation. I built Crimson Mile to bring that level of thinking to athletes who don't have access to a college coaching staff.
I work with a small number of athletes at a time to make sure every athlete gets real, individualized attention. Not a template. Not a generic plan. Coaching that actually responds to how you are feeling and what your data is showing.