The balance between too little and too much lies somewhere between running 0 hours and 168 hours a week. But how much should we really run to reap the benefits of running?
I want some level of running so it is beneficial, but I don’t want running to overwhelm my life. I’m not trying to break world records or win competitions, but I’ve heard about the benefits of running.
I analyzed different potential benefits of running to see how much is the “right” amount of running for that benefit to appear. I also added some personal thoughts which may help get a better idea of how much running you need.
The following are 8 common benefits of running, and how much you should run to reap that benefit.
1. Mental Benefits
With age, I expect myself to get dumber. I just hope I can maintain a sufficient level of mental well-being before I pass away, and running is one of the solutions.
Researchers from Korea experimented with some mice. They found that a 12-week treadmill running program reversed the impaired cognitive declines and significantly reduced the chance of Alzheimer’s disease. The program involved 30 minute sessions of moderate running (at a human equivalent speed of 7.5 miles per hour (12km/h)) 5 times a week.
There’s also proof that aerobic training significantly increases hippocampal volume which boosts memory. Moderate/high levels of leisure-time physical activity also reduces cognitive decline and dementia.
I have also been active with Orienteering, which requires navigation while running. I suspect this trains my brain to function efficiently even with a lower oxygen supply. That’s a hypothesis I have not proven yet.
Verdict:
How much should you run? A moderate level of physical activity already boosts our mental health. This level equates to brisk walking. It seems like as long as you get out of the door to have some form of exercise, you’ll be mentally healthier. The more the merrier.
The mice experiment of 30 minutes of running for 5 days a week seems to be a good standard for reference.
2. Emotional Benefits
Runner’s high, sense of achievement, show off medals/pictures
As little as 10 minutes of physical activity per week or 1 day of doing exercise per week might result in increased levels of happiness according to the Journal of Happiness Studies.
Moderate aerobic exercise may also help attenuate negative emotions by another study.
Another potential emotional benefit of running is the famous Runner’s High, a sense of euphoria, which can be an addictive positive feeling.
While it is still not definitive why and how we get it, it seems to relate to a long workout at moderate intensity.
I’ve only truly experienced this during a 10k or a marathon. I think it’s likely you’ll need to work on a 10k plan to get your first experience, which would generally require various intensities of running at around 1 hour a day for 5 days a week.
One other obvious emotional boost is from completing a goal, whether it is your first 30-minute run, or a champion in a 100-mile ultramarathon. This varies from person to person, but it seems like 5km races would be the minimum for getting those fancy medals to show off to your friends.
If you can only feel a sense of satisfaction by winning a Major Marathon gold medal, you would need to commit to 120 miles a week of training. (I’m guessing that’s 10-15 hours a week at his impressive pace)
Verdict:
How much should you run? You’ll get some form of happiness from 10 minutes of exercising a day, and that could be enough for you.
But I think a runner’s high is something worth experiencing once in your life, so go train for a 10km at least! (around 1 hour a day for 5 days a week)
3. Physical Benefits
Bone strength is a suspected benefit from running. The Journal of Bone and Joint Surgery found that active marathoners don’t show a higher risk of hip and knee arthritis. I guess the myth that running damages your bones may not be true.
In fact, running likely strengthens your bones. There’s a lower risk of osteoarthritis and hip replacement risk for runners, even though the real reason is from runners having a healthier BMI.
Heart health is a topic of concern for runners. There are studies that suspect too much running may cause a strain to the right chamber, scarring on muscles, and abnormal rhythms. You may have even heard of marathoners getting a heart attack during the course as well.
Too much running seems to be quantified as over 50 minutes daily over many years.
However, there still isn’t persuasive evidence for this harm. Runner’s World did a great article on running and heart health debating the different viewpoints with inconclusive results.
The conclusion? It’s agreed that some running of 10+ minutes a day helps the heart. Whether too much running is harmful remains unsure and varies by person. The biggest risk lies on people with pre-existing heart conditions, so check with your cardiologist if you are concerned.
Weight loss and a healthier BMI is the big reason why people start running. A 155-pound person burns 372 calories for a 30-minute run at a 10-minute-mile pace (that’s double the calorie burn of just walking!). A rough theory is burning 3500 calories equate to a 1-pound lost in weight. This means that every 10 days of an extra 30-minute run will help you lose 1 pound
Of course, reality gets a bit more complex. The reaction of your body as your body gets fit, the dietary change from extra exercising, and the change in activity after a tiring run are all variables to the calorie calculation.
Therefore, the number of runs you need per week depends on how quickly you want to slim down while not overrunning to cause injury or overeating. 30-minute runs for 5 days a week seems to be a good standard to start off with for weight loss purposes.
If your goal of running is for toned abs, then you should expect to run at least 3-5 times a week for a minimum of 20 minutes
I will have a post for a more in depth discussion on “How to Lose Weight By Running” .
Verdict:
How much should you run? There doesn’t seem to be a limit for too much running as long as you don’t get injured, which relates more to how rapid you increase your training than how much you train.
I’m trying to be weight steady, so to compensate for a daily pint of beer (208 x 7 = 1456 calories), I should have a 30-minute run for at least 4 days a week (372 x 4 = 1488 calories).
How much you should run depends on your needs.
4. Financial Benefits
Yes, there’s a way for you to cover the cost of your new running shoes!
The 3 major ways that running can save you money.
Fewer doctor visits
Generally, the healthier you are, the fewer doctor visits you need, the less money you need to spend on medical expenses.
According to a Scientific Report for the Department of Health & Human Services, you will become healthier even at minuscule amounts of exercise, but the most significant drop in Risk of All-Cause Mortality appears at 60-120 minutes of easy running (5 miles per hour) per week.
On the other end of the spectrum, there is a slightly increased risk of upper-respiratory infection if you run over 20 miles per week as your running system starts competing with your immune system for resources.
Therefore, the healthy dose for your immune system to function best lies somewhere between 120-200 minutes per week.
So 30-45 minutes of running for 4-6 days a week will likely improve your immune system and reduce your medical costs. This is also assuming you don’t run at a level that will cause an injury.
Save in transportation costs
The average speed of a bus in a city is around 10 miles per hour. Your running speed is close to 6 miles per hour. Including a typical wait time of a bus of 10 minutes (my personal unluckiness), I can run to a destination 3 miles away faster than a bus.
You can apply this logic to other forms of transportation. From my experience in traveling to different cities, running is a good alternative to public transportation for a 3-mile radius.
Therefore, to save in transportation costs, a body fit for a 3-mile run would be ideal. This can typically be accomplished with running 30-45 minutes for 3-5 days a week.
Replacement of entertainment costs
An hour out on your run is an hour less for you to find alternative entertainment. Typical daily non-free entertainment activities include movies, bars, sport events, shows, etc.
These activities take 1-2 hours, so to replace these activities, you will have to be able to enjoy running consecutively for 1-2 hours.
For me, that translates to roughly an hour a day for 3 days a week plus a longer 2-hour session at the end of the week.
Verdict:
How much should you run? 45 minutes a day for 3-4 days a week is my determined sweet spot if you are running to save a few bucks. (No doctor visit: priceless!)
5. Travel Benefits
Traveling is harder to quantify.
But from the 60 countries I have traveled to, I think that the ability to run 10km seems to be the ideal stamina for best results.
Within most cities, tourist attractions are 1-2 miles apart, a busy ambitious tourist like me that’s short on time usually covers 5 of them a day. This would equate to 5-10 miles of walking, roughly a 10km run fitness level.
Most tourist attractions designed for day trips with no vehicle access would be about 3-5 miles away from the road. An ability to run 10km could complete this trip in half a day, saving half a day for other activities.
Many day hikes are also designed at a 6-mile length, which equates to 10km.
For farther distances, there are usually overnight options or alternative methods of transportation.
Verdict:
How much should you run? I will cover a lot more by being “10km-fit”. Some training as a beginner will be required to build up to this fitness level. To keep this level of fitness, I find running 45 minutes to an hour a day for 3 days a week is the minimum. Ideally, I’ll also add a long session and a speed session.
6. Social Benefits
There are a few major ways for running to help your social life. Of course, supporting a runner with zero running is also a method, but it’s hard not to be influenced by the runners themselves!
First, by joining running groups. Most running groups meet weekly, some groups are hardcore enough to have 2 sessions per day, some are drinking groups that have a running problem (I enjoy this style). For all these groups, the minimum expectation seems to be a 2-3 mile run per week. (If you love the group a lot, you can definitely increase your participation)
Second, by training together for a competition. From 5Ks to Ultramarathons, the training can be lonely and most look for friends to run with them. Any level of running would find some partners.
Third, by running in team competitions such as Ragnar Relays. I have been in 3 different relays and loved every moment of them. The Ragnar Relays I have run are 200 miles long split in 36 legs for teams of 12, to be covered in 2 days. The distance per leg ranges from 2 miles to 11 miles, and the total miles per person ranges from 9.7 to 22.1 miles. A 10km-equivalent fitness level would be ideal for participation.
Verdict:
How much should you run? Entry level is at 2 miles a week, but this can go up to an unlimited level depending on your friends. My goal now is to maintain a body fit enough to run in a Ragnar Relay, which is roughly a 10km-fitness level. (Training around 1 hour a day for 5 days a week)
7. Longevity Benefits
As discussed above, your immune system improves with running, does this also translate to a longer life? Apparently yes according to studies.
Runners have a 25%–40% reduced risk of premature mortality and live approximately 3 years longer than non-runners. Even for middle and older ages, running is associated with reduced disability in later life and a notable survival advantage.
There are claims that each hour we run may translate to an additional seven hours to our lives. The relationship caps off at 3 years (Sorry this isn’t a path to immortality). It also suggests the life expectancy improvement levels out at 4 hours of running per week, but anything more than 4 hours doesn’t hurt.
Verdict:
How much should you run? Health authorities generally suggest at least 75 minutes of vigorous activity (aka running) per week for substantial health benefits. This puts the amount of running for longevity purposes at 75 minutes to 4 hours a week, just don’t get hit by a car during your run.
8. Productivity Benefits
My mind likes to wander when I run. In fact, a big chunk of this blog was inspired from my regular runs. I’m not alone. Writers have found that running improves creativity and people become more productive on exercise-days compared to non-exercise days.
Verdict:
How much should you run? To be productive from running, you’ll be running at the level when you can run relaxed. This is achievable after you go through How to Become a Runner: A Comprehensive Guide for Your First Two Months.
Conclusion
How much should you run?
Depending on the desired benefit and your current state, there are different answers to how much you should run. The ideal amount to reap most of the benefits is in a range of 3-5 days a week at 30-60 minutes per day. Increase the intensity of running to the ideal level gradually to avoid injury.
I focus more on the physical and travel benefits, so my ideal running amount is 45-60 minutes a day at 5 days a week with varying intensities. I use this as a reference but I’m not asking for strict requirement.
The worst thing you can do to running is making it a chore, so don’t stress about 2 fewer runs or running too much for the week (except for injury prevention purposes)
And another note, it takes 7 to 14 days before your aerobic fitness starts declining and you’ll retain much of your aerobic fitness for several months. Missing a few runs isn’t that devastating!
What are your thoughts on these benefits and my verdicts? Have you experienced these benefits differently? What is your idea of the right amount of running?
I’m happy to hear from you in the comments!
And finally, a quote that’s quite true to my heart.
Most runners run not because they want to live longer, but because they want to live life to the fullest. If you’re going to while away the years, it’s far better to live them with clear goals and fully alive than in a fog, and I believe running helps you do that.
Haruki Murakami, What I Talk About When I Talk About Running
Related Reading:
If you want to become a runner: How to Become a Runner: A Comprehensive Guide for Your First Two Months
If you are still finding reasons to run: Why Should I Run? 9 Reasons to Persuade Yourself And Your Friends
If a running shoe is stopping you from running: How to Choose Running Shoes for Beginners in 2020?
