When considering running plans, one of the questions I get the most as a physiotherapist is “How often should I be running?”. I would love to be able to give a one size fits all answer. However, like most things in the fitness and rehab industry, “it depends”. With this article, my goal is to shed a bit of light on this topic and establish the recommended number of times per week to run.

Our feet are the base of our support system when we walk, run, jump or just simply stand. Yet, time and time again it seems that we neglect them whether this be by wearing shoes that compress our toes or we just ignore tiny little aches and pains until it becomes unbearable. This then impacts the rest of the chain; the knees, the hips even the lower back which can start moving differently and cause us other problems.

Mobility tools such as foam rollers and self-massaging balls have grown in popularity over the past few years. Self-myofascial release is the term commonly used to describe these techniques where you roll out a tight muscle with one of these tools.

I’m all for being efficient with my time, but trust me when I say, warming up is KEY. I promise you will feel the difference in your body once you start making this a habit. The good news is, it doesn’t have to take long or be complicated. Let’s have a look at why we should warm up and what that should look like to better understand the importance.