How to return to running after injury

It can be tricky to safely return to running after injury, but you can avoid re-injuring yourself by following this progressive run-walk programme.

In this article:

1. Why the walking component is important

2. How to play it safe (and smart)

3. Run-walk programme for return from injury

4. Building your full running volume

5. Download run-walk programme as PDF

Why the walking component is important

I’ve written in detail about how injuries heal, so I’ll keep this brief. The main thing to understand is that when you injure a body part, its strength drops significantly. That means it can’t handle the usual forces from running or other activities.

It can take several months for your body to rebuild that strength, and it’s easy to overdo it if you jump straight into continuous running – even if it feels easy. The walking breaks give your tissue a chance to recover between running bouts (similar to when you rest between sets in the gym) and help you build strength gradually without pushing things too far.

🙌 That said, most of my patients can work up to running continuously for 20 minutes within about three weeks of starting the programme.

How to play it safe (and smart)

I find that my patients make the smoothest transition and experience the fewest flare-ups when they follow these guidelines during their return-to-running plan:

1️⃣ Only start this programme if you can:

• Walk briskly for 30 minutes and

• Hop 10 times on your injured leg

  …without experiencing a significant increase in discomfort during or in the 24 hours after. Being aware of the injured area (a slight niggle) is usually OK, but it shouldn't feel very uncomfortable or painful.

2️⃣ Your first session should include just 5 minutes of running. Think of it as a test – keeping it short means that if your injury does flare up, it usually won’t be too angry and should calm down quickly.

You never know exactly how your injury will react when you start running again – keeping the first session short and easy is a great way to test things without risking a flare-up.

3️⃣ In the sessions that follow, first increase the number of run intervals while keeping them short, until you reach a total of 20 minutes (10 minutes running, 10 minutes walking) for the interval section. Then, start increasing the length of the running segments – but keep the total interval section time at 20 minutes.

4️⃣ If you feel more than slight discomfort during the running segments, stop and complete the rest of the session by walking only.

5️⃣ Only increase the overall session time or the duration of the running segments if you didn’t experience any increase in pain (beyond slight discomfort) during or after the session – including the next day.

6️⃣ When coming back from injury, it’s usually best to run-walk on alternate days. Add more rest days between sessions if you feel you need them.

7️⃣ If a session felt absolutely fine, you can progress it in your next session. If it felt like hard work or aggravated your symptoms, it’s best to repeat the session a couple of days later until it feels easy and there’s no lingering discomfort.

8️⃣ Keep your pace easy – you should be able to have a relaxed conversation without getting out of breath.

Run-walk programme for return from injury

💡 The aim of the warm-up and cool-down walks is to increase the total time you spend on your feet during a session and to make the transition to longer running sessions easier.

	Warm-up	Interval section	Cool-down
Day 1	Walk 10 min	1 min Run / 1 min Walk x 5 = 10 min in total	Walk 10 min
Day 2	Rest
Day 3	Walk 5 min	1 min Run / 1 min Walk x 6 = 12 min in total	Walk 9 min
Day 4	Rest
Day 5	Walk 5 min	1 min Run / 1 min Walk x 7 = 14 min in total	Walk 8 min
Day 6	Rest
Day 7	Walk 5 min	1 min Run / 1 min Walk x 8 = 16 min in total	Walk 7 min
Day 8	Rest
Day 9	Walk 5 min	1 min Run / 1 min Walk x 9 = 18 min in total	Walk 6 min
Day 10	Rest
Day 11	Walk 5 min	1 min Run / 1 min Walk x 10 = 20 min in total	Walk 5 min
Day 12	Rest
Day 13	Walk 5 min	2 min Run / 1 min Walk x 7 = 20 min in total	Walk 5 min
Day 14	Rest
Day 15	Walk 5 min	3 min Run / 1 min Walk x 5 = 20 min in total	Walk 5 min
Day 16	Rest
Day 17	Walk 5 min	4 min Run / 1 min Walk x 4 = 20 min in total	Walk 5 min
Day 18	Rest
Day 19	Walk 5 min	9 min Run / 1 min Walk x 2 = 20 min in total	Walk 5 min
Day 20	Rest
Day 21	Walk 5 min	Run 20 min	Walk 5 min

Building your full running volume

Once you can jog for 20 minutes, you can gradually start increasing your total running time.

When coming back from injury – rather than training purely for fitness – I find it’s best to stick to the 10% rule: don’t increase your total weekly distance by more than 10% per week.

High-intensity runs (like hill repeats, tempo runs, or sprint intervals) place much more strain on the body. It’s usually best to keep your runs easy until you’ve rebuilt your previous slow-running capacity.

👉 If you’re looking for a running plan to help you safely build your volume after an injury, check out the Injury Comeback plan in the Exakt app. I’ve helped design the app and all the running and strength and conditioning plans.

🥳 Claim a discount with code: Maryke

Download run-walk programme as PDF

👉 You can download the run-walk plan and instructions by clicking this link.

How we can help

Need more help with your injury? You’re welcome to consult one of the team at SIP online via video call for an assessment of your injury and a tailored treatment plan.

We're all UK Chartered Physiotherapists with Master’s Degrees related to Sports & Exercise Medicine or at least 10 years' experience in the field. But at Sports Injury Physio we don't just value qualifications; all of us also have a wealth of experience working with athletes across a broad variety of sports, ranging from recreationally active people to professional athletes. You can meet the team here.

About the Author

Maryke Louw is a chartered physiotherapist with more than 20 years' experience and a Masters Degree in Sports Injury Management. Follow her on LinkedIn and ResearchGate.