Running Surfaces

Really it makes little difference IMO. You'll here conflicting opinions on both sides. I run on both roads and a lot of trail and the beach. My main advice would be just to take it slowly when you start running and as your legs will take a little while to get used to the stresses of running. My personal opinion is to run on a variety of surfaces and a variety of conditions that way your body doesn't get used to doing the same repetitive thing all the time so that way is likely to cope with change a lot better

I'm not a trainer or expert, I'm sharing what has worked for me: I just completed week 4 of couch to 5k (I did week 1 twice) and I run on a variety of surfaces. My right knee and left hip were giving me a lot of pain after runs so I now alternate days, 1 on dirt road, 1 on grass, 1 on asphalt, 1 on grass. So basically my "grass" day is between the hard surface days. I also have good running shoes which absorb some of the impact, Asics Gel Contend 2s. I love these so much, I went back and bought 2 more pairs. I found them at my local running store for under $50 which is a steal!

A few other things that have worked for me: do a good walking warm up, I do 10 minutes before I start my running, do a good cool down, again 10 minutes after I'm done running and a gentle stretch of your legs afterwards. I found a yoga for athletes video online that I do on my off days to keep up my flexibility.

I highly recommend C25K as I helped me get into running, I never thought I'd be a runner!!!

Listen to your body and take things at your pace to prevent injuries.

Sláinte :drinker:

I run sometimes on asphalt roads, and sometimes at a high school rubber track (recycled tire materiel)

I can definitely feel a difference in my knees and hips. When I run on roads, my knees and hips are sore for a couple days. When I run on the track they are tired but not sore. SO I run on the track as much as possible (though it is boring)

Now; I have just been running for a few months. It may be that as I get stronger, I wont feel the pain after running on the roads as much. But I can definitely feel the difference now.

I've heard that if you're running on an outside track of asphalt, the shock of each step can be very wearing on your arches and legs, so that a dirt path is better. But then I've been told that you run a greater risk of injury on dirt/grass with a possibly uneven surface and in some cases the hard ground can be harder on your body than the asphalt.

Not so much a question of better or worse, just different risks. It's worth mixing the types of running one does, to ary the stimulation.

I find that road running; concrete, tarmac, paving etc is much more repetitive so the motion is predictable. trail running on the other hand is quite dynamic, the surface orientation varies and the surface quality varies. That presents more risk of a fall, but the variety of stimulation can help to strengthen the working of the joints.

Noting the discussion upthread around shoes, it's worth noting that dedicated trail shoes tend not to have the same subdivision as road shoes; motion control/ stability, neutral or cushioned.

Personally I've found that trail running has really helped my road running and I'm now less affected by having the correct shoe. I am an overpronator, so need a stability shoe. Since starting trail running I'm more comfortable in a neutral shoe than I was. That said I'd still hesitate to do more than 10K in neutral, or even to use neutral regularly.

In essence, don't worry about it.

I'm nowhere near running even half a marathon, but if you run on sand roads, trail, treadmill, etc. only, don't expect to perform well in a city marathon. In fact you might not even make it to the end if things get really bad. Mix up as much as possible at least out of a physiology standpoint. Balance is part of physiology, too, and both trails and rocky environments are good for challenging the musculoskeletal system out of a balance perspective.