Running every day?

[Whatsthekey]

I used to run 5k 3x a week pre children. Now i find i can't motivate myself and start doing it for a bit and then if i miss a couple of sessions i'll let it lapse again for months. I've been doing 2.5-3k every day for the past week and find if i tell myself i have to go every single day it's easier to get out of the house because i treat it like brushing my teeth! Is it bad to run every day or because it's only a short distance would it be fine to go 7 days a week? I'm feeling pretty good so far.

Place making as this is a very similar situation to me!

I’m better doing a little and often. I can go out and aim for 3-4km every day and feel pretty good but that’s only 20 mins or so activity

I would work up to it and run very gently most of the time or the risk of injury is high!

Depends on distance/type of run and your propensity for injury, running comes with a fairly high risk of injury in itself, you would be better swapping out some days for cross training/strength work.

Maybe i'll stick to running every other day and walking 5k on the alternate days with some strength training. Thanks for the advice.

It is possible to run every day, as long as your weekly mileage doesn't put too much physical stress on you. Make sure you warm up properly and do a cool down and stretch after. You could build up to it by alternating fast walking and running. And have some days where you do a run/walk, similar to couch to 5k. So you could run a 1k then walk for two minutes and repeat.

It’s totally possible to run every day (or almost every day). I do it, and haven’t had a serious injury yet.

That said:

• Do strength work.
• Warm up and cool down! I do dynamic stretching and quite a bit of walking beforehand, and stretching and walking afterwards.
• get your gait and running stride checked, and buy running shoes accordingly. I bought a pair specifically designed for cushioning while road running - weirdly I don’t find them as fast as my regular pair, but they do cushion well.
• Take a rest day if you need to! Learning the difference between fatigue, niggle and potential injury is really key - listen to your body.
• Manage mileage: for example, if I do more than 40k a week, my knees will feel it. So I don’t. Otherwise I won’t be able to run the next week.
• Not every run needs to be a marathon, or a sprint. Sometimes I phone it in - have a leisurely, short jog admiring the scenery and listening to Britney.

Hope this helps!

I do Run Everyday January.
"Rest" days are a slow, gentle mile.
Lots of other cross-training.

Keep the milage within what you are used to, but little and often.

Generally, when training it is really important to understand and follow the equation: stress + rest = adaptation. So you develop resilience and don't get injured from doing too much too soon. Many people overlook the fact training includes allowing for adaptation and don't factor in rest days. You can gradually build up the length of runs and then add days in over time as long as you follow the 10% rule: don't increase load by more than 10% week on week. Also, allowing for a 'down' week every 3-4 weeks is a really good idea to make sure you don't over stress the body. I know many runners who don't rest or cross train enough/at all and they never seem to improve in fitness or speed as they just do the same thing day in day out. Even if you aren't aiming to be competitive, our bodies are all building to adapt the same way and need the same treatment.

If you are after a daily outing to develop the habit then you could walk on alternate days. Research shows that walking is as good as running over time for boosting general fitness and doesn't have the accompanying injury risks. The key is to be consistent in your exercise habits. Good luck!

As long as you feel okay - go for it! Just listen to your body, and rest or reduce the run to a walk if needed.
You're doing fab - well done x

Thanks everyone. I've been doing run/walk on alternative days with some HIIT or pilates on the walk days and it's going well so far. Thanks for all of the helpful advice.

I do HIIT every day now, and I walk 12-15k steps daily, but find I can only run every other day to avoid injury, my runs are between 5k and 15k each time. Everyone is so different, you'll soon find whatever works for you :)

@Whatsthekey

Thanks everyone. I've been doing run/walk on alternative days with some HIIT or pilates on the walk days and it's going well so far. Thanks for all of the helpful advice.

Well done. Just remember that on alternate days when you do HIIT your body won't be getting the same rest as when you do pilates - it is still high impact but in another form. If you start to feel any sign of a niggle, then I would suggest opting for pilates on non-run days to give your musculoskeletal frame a rest and avoid injury.