How often should you run is one of the most important questions to consider before you start any training.
Frequency—or how often you run—is one of three fundamental
variables of training. The other two are duration (how far you run)
and intensity (how fast you
run). Research shows a person needs to run
at least a couple of times a week to get any progressive benefit from
it. Many elite runners run as often as 14 times per week. How often
should you run?
There is no single right answer to this question. While
considerations such as your goals, life schedule, and running experience
can and should be used to establish boundaries of too much and too
little running frequency for you, within these boundaries you can choose
any of a number of different running frequencies based on personal
preferences and needs and get the results you seek.
The Minimum
Let’s first consider the boundary on the bottom end. The most
important piece of advice I can give you in this regard is that it is
necessary to do some form of exercise almost every day to optimize your
general health. Every man, woman, and child on earth, whether a
competitive or recreational runner, whether a runner at all or a
non-runner, should aim to exercise every day. The research is very clear
on this score. If you exercise daily you will have lower risk of
chronic disease, be leaner, and live longer than if you exercise just a
few times a week.
This doesn’t mean you have to run every day, however. If you care
about running enough to seek some form of progress, you need to run at
least three times per week. On the other days you can swim, do yoga,
lift weights, whatever. However, if you choose to run only three times
per week—and if, again, you care enough about your running to want to
improve—you need to make those runs really count. Most weeks those runs
should be a tempo run to develop intensive endurance, a speed workout to
build speed, and a long run to increase raw endurance. The popular
FIRST marathon training program developed at Furman University
prescribes a weekly training schedule comprising the three types of runs
just mentioned plus two cross-training workouts. In my opinion this
system defines the minimum effective training protocol for runners.
The primary reason to run only three times per week is to
minimize injury risk. As we all know, running has a high injury rate,
and the rate of injury increases with running volume. Many runners
cannot run every day without getting injured. If you are such a runner,
or if you simply fear getting injured if you run daily, then stick to a
schedule of three to four purposeful runs plus a few cross-training
workouts per week and feel confident that you are not sacrificing any of
the performance you would get from running daily (presuming you
actually could run daily without injury).
The most common running frequency for non-elite competitive
runners is six to seven times per week (that is, daily with one
scheduled day off or daily with rest days taken only as needed). I don’t
know of any research addressing the matter, but my experience-based
belief is that some runners are better off running daily and not
cross-training, others are better off running three or four times a week
and cross-training on non-running days, and many runners are able to
fare equally well on either schedule. Use factors such as your
durability (can you handle daily running?) and your personal preferences
(would you rather chew glass than do any form of exercise besides
running?) to set your personal routine.
Running Twice Per Day
Only the most serious runners habitually run more than seven times
per week, which necessarily entails a certain amount of doubling, or
running twice a day. Personally, I think more runners should consider
it, as some magical things can happen when you push your running volume
beyond the amount you can practically squeeze into one run a day.
There’s a simple rule that runners can use to decide whether or
not they should double: If you plan to consistently run more than 70
miles per week, double at least once or twice a week. The rationale
behind this rule is that every runner’s training schedule must include
some easy runs, and if you try to pack more than 70 miles into just six
or seven runs each week, none of those runs can be very easy. You can
double if you want to on a schedule of fewer than 70 miles per week, but
it only really becomes necessary when you run more.
As you continue to add mileage to your weekly schedule, continue
to add doubles as necessary to keep your average run distance from
creeping above 10 miles. So, for example, if you run 100 miles a week
you should run at least 10 times.
Ease into doubling by inserting one or two very short, easy runs
into your schedule. Gradually increase the distance of these runs and
add more doubles until you reach your weekly mileage target, but keep
the pace easy in all of these extra runs. Never try to perform two hard
runs in a single day.
Some runners do an easy run in the morning and a longer and/or
faster run in the evening. Others do the opposite. It’s a matter of
personal preference.
Cross-Training
Just as a casually competitive runner can exercise more than three or
four times a week without running more than three or four times a week,
a serious competitive runner can exercise twice a day without always
running twice a day. The question is, should he or she? While there are
many examples of very successful runners who run 14 times a week and
never cross-train, I believe that in most cases, runners who train nine
or more times a week are better off running seven times and lifting
weights and doing plyometrics two or three times than they are making
every workout a run.
RELATED: The 8 Basic Types Of Runs
In fact, there’s research proving this. In a famous Norwegian
study, elite runners improved their 3K race times by replacing 30
percent of their running with plyometrics—not adding plyometrics to the
running they were already doing, but replacing a chunk of their running
with plyos. Based on such evidence, I advise runners who train nine to
10 times per week to perform two or three strength/plyo workouts and run
the rest of the time. There’s no need to do strength and plyometrics
training more than two or three times per week, so if you add any
workouts beyond 10 per week, the rest can and should be runs or
non-impact cardio alternatives to running such as cycling.
What’s the absolute maximum amount of training any runner should
consider doing? Many elite runners thrive on a schedule of two runs per
day every day plus three strength/plyo workouts per week. If you can
handle all that, more power to you!
