Who ever said that in order to run fast you need to run tons of miles week in and week out. As the famous Oregon coach Bill Bowerman once said, "The magic is in the man not the hundred miles". How could anyone object to such a brilliant concept. Sometimes the key to running fast isn't necessarily pounding in 100 mile weeks, sometimes the key to running fast is within yourself. I believe that running fast is 40% training your butt off, 50% mental toughness, and 10% luck. This formula revolves around Bowermans' concept of "The magic is in the man". Anyone can be your typical beast practice hero who runs 100 mile weeks, and amazing splits during workouts but if you dont have your head on right for the race and the tools to over come the mental factors of a race, you will never run fast.
The last time I checked, the starting official of the race does not come out and ask each runner how many miles you ran this week before you can start the race. I am not saying running heavy milage is bad, I am saying it is not for everyone. There are people out there with freakishly amazing gifts who can go out and win a race after only running a mere twenty or thirty miles in a week.
My advice to someone who may be pounding the miles and not seeing any results wouldn't necessarily be to run even more miles, I would tell them opposite, back off the miles a little, and take the time to reflect on the training they have been doing and believe in it. Believe in your training, believe in your own abilities, and when it comes race time there is no holding back. Even when the pain is at its best, you convince your mind to be better. That is what makes fast races and fast runners, you try to find the magic in yourself.
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