Coach Budd: I'm a freshman in high school and as far as I know I'm the second best distance runner on my team. The events I'm interested in are the mile and the two mile. At my first meet I clocked a 5:04 for the mile and 11:12 for the two mile. The minute I walked into school the next day, I was told that I'm not doubling up on the two events. My coach's reason was he didn't want me to "burn out." I've been running all winter doing 40-45 miles per week. What should I do to try and convince him that I'm able to do these events?—Joe

Hi Joe. You are one lucky athlete. Your coach isn't limiting your races because he doesn't realize how talented you are; he's limiting them because he knows how talented you are.

You're a young, developing athlete and running two mediocre races rather than one good race is more valuable to your future. Mentally, it allows you to concentrate on one goal and learn to keep your focus on the task at hand. Physically, you enter one race fresh and ready to perform rather than one fresh and one tired. When doubling in the two-mile and one mile, that second race can lead to extreme fatigue and injury. Long-term fatigue and/or injury will hamper your performance late in the season, or at worst end your season early. No one remembers a good early season double but everyone remembers a great performance in those post-season invites.

Many coaches will have athletes double and even triple in an effort to put points on the board. In a few cases, the right combination of events (one long race and one leg on a relay, for example) can benefit the athlete. But as stated earlier, combining longer races is just too much.

Please tell your coach he's doing a great job.

Have a question for Budd? E-mail him at askbudd@rodale.com