Customers often ask us “is running everyday bad for me” and the obvious answer would seem to be “yes”; however there is a lot more to consider than just the obvious. Many of us would love to run every day, but it’s common knowledge that you should always have at least one rest day a week; what’s right and what’s wrong? Let’s look at this controversial subject in more detail.
Why Run Everyday?
The first thing to consider on this subject is why would you want to run everyday? Having a day off each week will boost your physical recovery, gives your mind a break from running and makes you appreciate running.
On the other hand, for many, the thought of getting to do what they love everyday is an alluring one. They believe that even a small run everyday is fine. Most runners know about Ron Hill MBE (pictured above), the incredibly experienced ex-olympian runner who has run everyday since 1964 and has clocked up an impressive lifetime mileage of over 160,000 miles (and counting!). For many the man is an inspiration and in fact he has inspired the upcoming #runeveryday campaign from the Ronhill clothing brand. So that’s food for thought.
Is Running Everyday Bad for me?
OK so let’s get to the nitty gritty of whether running everyday is bad for you. Consider this; when you perform any exercise you will cause cellular damage to muscles. Normally this damage actually creates a stimulus that forces the body to repair and (in doing so) improve the muscles and supporting systems. However this relies on having sufficient time and nutrients to recover and repair. The harder you exercise, the more damage you cause. No matter how good your equipment, technique or ability; you’ll cause cellular damage. If you were to run hard everyday, you would soon burn out and your body would not allow you to run much more (you’ll get injured or ill). So in this case running would be bad for you and it would soon even become counter productive.
Can Running Everyday Be Good for you?
However you don’t have to run hard everyday. If you were to have a rest day where you still run, albeit gently and for a short distance, then the negative effects of overtraining are unlikely to come into play. This is the key to Ron Hill’s incredible running streak; even when he was recovering from bunion surgery, he ran 1 mile a day at a very slow pace with a crutch; just to log the run for the day.
As to whether running everyday is good for you, well that’s debatable. There is no evidence that it can be beneficial, or even have a positive effect on your running ability. However if done intelligently and correctly, there should be no negative health effects so the choice is ultimately up to you. If it gives you a psychological boost knowing that you are running everyday, then that can only be a good thing!
So with this in mind, why not start your own run everyday streak? See how long you can keep it up for, and keep an eye out for the October Ronhill run everyday campaign, tweet your results using the #runeveryday tag and you could feature on the Ronhill page. If you’re still not sure, why not check out the video below for some inspiration?
