Starting to Run, When Should I Rest?

TAMayorga

I never thought I'd say this, but I think I'm becoming a runner. I have a very limited amount of time (1/2 hour) to exercise and I started out walking on my lunch hour. Then I started alternating walking/jogging. Now I'm at the jogging all the time phase. As I increase my speed, I will be able to run further distances, and, depending on my schedule, I might have a longer lunch during the summer. When I was walking or walking/jogging, I didn't feel the need to have rest days. I did this Mon-Fri. So, here's my question: At what distance do I need to start incorporating rest days into my routine? 2 miles, 3, 5, 26 (:laugh: )? Thanks for your help.

_Timmeh_

Do you have a goal in mind?
I would say yes to a rest days, run maybe 3 or 4 days a week. Injuries can happen from doing too much too soon.

justrun52

Yay! I always love it when someone starts to run. This is just from my own experience, but I can normally run 3 miles 4 to 5 times a week. When I was training for my 10k, I was running 4 to 6 miles 3 to 4 times a week, or every other day w/ Sundays off. I'd start at 2 miles 5 times a week and work up to 3 miles, and just see how you feel!

You should download the app: RunKeeper or TrackMyRun- they are awesome phone apps that calculate how far you go via GPS, what your average pace is, how many calories your burn, and your elevation.

mlb929

Only my opinion, although I think it's certainly individual to each person, you can probably run daily for up to one hour with a rest day once per week. If at any time you start increasing your mileage, you will want to incorporate more rest and always rest after your longest running day. Make sure you are also cross training enough to avoid running injuries, like plenty of squats and lunges. If you start wanting to increase your speed and start doing any specific speed work, I always rest after that type of routine as well.

TAMayorga

Thanks, guys! This is exactly the information I was looking for! :flowerforyou: