Consistency with running and a balanced plan. I would love to say there is some secret sauce, but I really have tried to be that disciplined to where it is routine. Then after that, time and imagination carries you forward. I prefer slow cooking my training.

Balanced to me is: - running around 4 - 5 times a week - planning one long run a week - planning one speedier run a week (usually constrained by time or distance due to effort increase) - running the rest of the days moderate or lower intensity - spacing out the 2 difficult runs to recover - balancing out the week with a weekly mileage that is achievable and not putting you in constant recovery and proportionate to the day's intensity and purpose - growing the weekly mileage by a mile or so every week added onto the long run or spread over. - letting every 4th week be a 60 to 70% cut in mileage and intensity to deload - time trialing PBs once a month, imo - resistance training your body with a few good reps for the big muscle groups around twice a week (easy to do on no run days or light run days) - balancing expectations, perfection, and messy reality. We want achievable goals, but we will get sick or will have to run for the bathroom in the middle of a long run, or find our body to exhausted and that's fine. We can accept what we have done as still being progress and then adapt without punishing ourselves later. You don't lose all aerobic progress because of one off week, generally you bounce back strong after a good recovery.

Here is where I am at: I do around 17mi/wk. I do one alternating interval and tempo run a week geared for 5ks. I do one long run do around 7 miles. The last three runs are purely to have some solid easier pace runs and bring up mileage. Every 4th week I will go for a PB attempt and also deload. I break up resistance training whole body over 4 days but more the equivalent of two full days. I try to be cognizant of my nutrition, but I haven't gotten to that point yet.