How to come back to running after a break

Whether you stopped for an injury, a baby or a long winter, the way back is the same. Slower than you would like.

Elin Nyström

, 1 min read, in running

A man balancing on one foot on a birch step, holding a wall rail

The hardest part of coming back to running is not your lungs. Your heart and lungs return quickly. Tendons and bones take weeks longer, and they do not tell you until it is too late.

Start with strength

Two weeks before your first run, start calf raises, squats and lunges. If you cannot do fifteen single leg calf raises on each side, your Achilles is not ready for running yet.

Walk and run

Begin with one minute of running and two of walking, repeated eight times. Do it three times a week, never on two days in a row.

  • Add one minute of running each week
  • Keep the pace easy enough to talk
  • Hold the same plan for a week if anything aches the next morning

The ten percent rule, loosely

Increase your weekly time by around ten percent. Some weeks you will want to do more. Do not.

When to get help

Pain that changes the way you run, or that is worse each time, needs a look. It is much quicker to fix a niggle than an injury.

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