For new runners this is a tough question & for experienced runners its just as hard to answer. Depending on your fitness level and goals, the following advice can help.
If you’ve never run before, and don’t have much experience recently with other sports that involve running like soccer or rugby, you should start gradually. Your first run should be 1 to 3 km at most. The goal isn’t to “get fit” or run fast, but rather to see how your body responds to running with the smallest risk for running injuries.
Run as comfortably as possible; keep the pace easy, and stop before you’re really tired. Walking is not a crime so if you feel like a walk would do you go then do that. If you jog for a bit walk for a bit, then that’s a great way to start. You’ll likely be sore the next day so you don’t want to make things too hard on yourself.
If you consider yourself an athletic person and have played sports or stayed active recently, you can be more aggressive with your first run. Aim for 3 to 4 KM at a comfortable effort. Just like a total beginner, you want to make sure you’re not too fatigued. Once again nothing wrong with a run walk strategy.
How much should I run each week?
Beginning runners should start with two to four runs per week at about 20 to 30 minutes (or roughly 2 to 4 Km) per run. You may have heard of the 10 Percent Rule, where you add 10% more every week, but a better way to increase your mileage is to run more every second week. This will help your body adapt to your new hobby so you don’t get hurt.
After a few weeks, you should focus on adding 5 to 10 minutes to one of your runs so that once per week you’e doing a “long” run. This is the best way for new runners to gain endurance and become a faster runner overall (even if you’re training for a short race).
Those who have a background in sports can be more aggressive with their mileage increases, but it’s still helpful to increase volume every two weeks rather than every week.
Once you are happy and feeling strong then why not try out your first 5km. You can join a club run or even the Parkruns that they offer on a Saturday morning in most areas. From there its up to you on how far you would like to go.
They say that after 20 days it will be a habit. So keep going and keep trying! Running should be a not a task or hard work, it’s a lifestyle. At Kyalami we are like a family, a place where everyone knows your name. Need more info contact us🙂