Running Without Injury: How Should Beginners Get Started?
All you need to run is a comfortable pair of shoes and the street, yet many beginners get injured when they start out. We explain the three most common injuries, how to prevent them and a week-by-week plan to get started safely.
What Running Does for You
Running trains your heart and lungs. It also strengthens your bones and legs. As an estimate, a person weighing 70 kilos burns around 550 kilocalories per hour.
A study of 55,000 adults linked jogging for five to ten minutes a day with lower cardiovascular mortality. What's more, you don't need any special equipment: a comfortable pair of shoes and the street are enough.
The Cost: Impact, Injuries and Their Common Cause
Every stride comes at a cost. If you weigh 70 kilos, your leg absorbs up to 170 kilos of impact with each step. According to a 2007 review, between 19% and 79% of runners get injured every year.
The three most common beginner injuries share a cause, and it isn't the impact: it's rushing. Your heart adapts within weeks, but tendons and bones need months.
Running does not wreck your knees. A 2017 meta-analysis found hip or knee osteoarthritis in 3.5% of recreational runners, compared with 10.2% of sedentary people.
1. Shin Splints
You feel it as pain along the inner edge of the shin. It occurs because the tibia takes more impact than it can repair between sessions.
To prevent it, never run two days in a row. If your shin hurts when you press on it, swap that session for cycling or a walk.
2. Patellofemoral Pain, or Runner's Knee
This is pain around the kneecap that is most noticeable when going down stairs. It is associated with a weak hip, which lets the knee cave inward.
To prevent it, two days a week do three sets of twelve squats in front of a mirror, keeping your knee pointed toward your toes. Add three sets of twelve glute bridges: lie on your back, lift your hips and hold for two seconds.
3. Plantar Fasciitis
This is the injury that makes itself known when you get out of bed: a stabbing pain in the heel during your first steps. The fascia is a fibrous band located under the foot. It becomes irritated by overload, and tight calves put it under tension.
To prevent it, stretch every day. Place your hands on a wall, step one leg back and keep the heel on the ground and the knee straight. Hold for 30 seconds on each leg.
Week-by-Week Plan to Start Running
Before you start: if you are very overweight or have knee pain, begin by walking or cycling. During pregnancy, run only if you were already running beforehand. If you have any medical conditions or previous injuries, are pregnant, or are over 40 and inactive, check with your doctor first.
Run three non-consecutive days a week, at a pace that lets you hold a conversation. Each session alternates minutes of running with minutes of walking.
Weeks 1 and 2: 1 minute running and 2 walking, 8 times. Weeks 3 and 4: 2 and 2, 6 times. Weeks 5 and 6: 4 and 2, 5 times. Weeks 7 and 8: 8 and 2, 3 times. Weeks 9 and 10: 15 and 2, 2 times.
After that, move on to running 30 minutes nonstop. Three sessions a week exceed the 75 minutes of vigorous activity recommended by the WHO.
If a pain gets worse while running or persists the next day, stop and repeat that week. Running is for almost everyone, but at the pace of your tendons, not your lungs.
Frequently asked questions
Does running wreck your knees?
No. A 2017 meta-analysis found hip or knee osteoarthritis in 3.5% of recreational runners and in 10.2% of sedentary people.
How many days a week should a beginner run?
Three non-consecutive days, at a pace that lets you talk. Never two days in a row.
Why do so many beginner runners get injured?
Because they rush. The heart adapts within weeks, but tendons and bones take months.
What should I do if something hurts when I run?
If the pain gets worse while running or persists the next day, stop and repeat that week of the plan. If your shin hurts when you press on it, swap the session for cycling or walking.
Informative article written with the help of AI tools from the verified script of the video. The video is in Spanish.