Whether it’s a new job, moving locations, an injury or something else it is so easy to slip out of your running regime. A thought that has often crossed my mind and I’m sure many others is “I need to start running again”. Then we forget that its been a while since we last went for a run and go straight back out there and punch out 5 kilometres. Your body, however hasn’t forgotten this and attempts to wake up all of the muscles that have been dormant since you last went running. The end result? You pull up really sore the next day and it takes you a week to recover before you can go running again and/or you pick up and injury on your run.
This is something that Justin and I often come across while we are in the clinic. To counteract this, we have devised a return to run program for you that is easy to follow and will decrease the likelihood of you experiencing that soreness and an injury from occurring. This particular program is designed for those who have a goal of being able to complete a 5km run.
Return to run program – complete this 3-5x per week, the progress to following stage the following week
Stage 1: Walk 2km à Run 1km à Walk 2km
Stage 2: Walk 1.5km à Run 1.5km à Walk 2km
Stage 3: Walk 1.5km à Run 2km à Walk 1.5km
Stage 4: Walk 1km à Run 2.5km à Walk 1.5km
Stage 5: Walk 1km à Run 3km à Walk 1km
Stage 6: Walk 500m à Run 3.5km à Walk 1km
Stage 7: Walk 500m à Run 4km à Walk 500m
Stage 8: Walk 500m à Run 4.5km à Walk 500m
Stage 9: Walk 500m à Run 5km à Walk 500m
N.B. From stage 7 onwards the amount of walking does not decrease as studies have shown that walking a short distance to warm the muscles up before you run decreases your likelihood of injury.
It is also really important to point out that this is not an individualised running program. You may find your muscles and joints are feeling quite sore at the end of Stage 1. My advice is to always, always, always listen to your body. You may need to repeat stage 1 for three weeks and then find that your body has adapted more to running and be able to progress through the following stages quicker.
If you would like us to develop an individualised return to run program for you or have any questions, as always feel free to come and see us in the clinic. Give this a try and let us know with a comment if this was useful to you.
Happy running and have a great day 
Richard – Sole Lution Podiatry
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