Weclome to the boards.

30:00 of comfortable, sustained, slow running is definitely a great place to be. Are you running 3x per week?

I group speed and hills together as Intensity, and distance and time as Volume. Stay away from increases to intensity until you feel you've gotten to a weekly voume you are happy with. That could be 30:00 3x per week, or some other regimen. What it looks like is different for everyone.

When I first started running 6 years ago, I stayed at 2 miles, 3x/wk for almost a year, and got into really good shape. My goals and aspirations changed after about 18 months, and I decided to up my mileage significantly. My first try at upping it from 2 miles to 3 had been a disaster. 18 months later it was painless.

I would not recommend intentionally increasing your speed any time soon. If you can carry on a conversation with the person on the treadmill next to you, you're not going too fast. If you can't, you are.

bty

There is a somewhat fundamental rule of thumb that says when you want to increase the volume, do so at a rate of increase of no more than 10% per week. Increasing all 3 of your weekly runs by 3:00 each, or one of your weekly runs by 10:00 or less is a safe way to "ramp" up your mileage. Think of it as a moderately inclined ramp, and not a stairway. One week per month, step back to where you were the previous week. Then start ramping up where you left off.

Running will become easier and you will become fitter, and you will mitigate your risk for injuries.

bty

Thanks for the replies guys - I didnt know about the easier week a month so thats really useful - thanks!