I LOVE to run and want to continue all my life!!!

workoutqueen628

It is through running that I discovered my passion for exercise and fitness. There's nothing better than hitting the trails in rain or shine!! I want to continue to be able to run my whole life though. I have recently heard of a lot of people who have stopped running due to injuries- bad knees- and losing cartilage in their kness, etc. How do I prevent this from happening to me? What is a good amount of running to do per week and what is too much?!

RunRideRay

Running is a great lifetime challenge. I've been running 15 years with literally 30+ marathons, ultra's, tri's, etc....all without a single injury.

1) Start slow and build your running steady and over time. Rushing quickly into races and straining the body can easily lead to injuries.

2) Listen to your body, and adapt. Be inquisitive about all those ache's and pains and learn about them. Some are remedied by stretching others take some time, or special shoes or equipment.

3) Good gear, shoes, socks. Try to buy 2 or 3 pair of shoes and rotate them.

4) Spend some time on running mechanics. Try to be efficient and keep lateral and unbalanced movements minimized.

5) Stretch and drink water, and drink it all day.

To finally answer the question, weekly distance depends on many things. "Safe" distances can range from 10 to 50 miles per week depending on your fitness level. For beginners, 10 to 20 miles per week is a great place to start.

Hope it helps! Keep going forward.