We all know that consistency is key to improving at anything that you set your mind to and trail running is no different. The more often you head out onto the trails for a run the quicker you improve. If running more often is the path to improvement, is there a point where more often becomes too much? What about every day? Does going for a trail run every day become too much trail running or is it still safe?
It is safe for experienced runners to trail run every day as long as they keep their run volume within their limits. Beginner runners should start with running 3 days per week and build up to daily running over a period of months.
Let’s take a closer look at how you can increase the consistency of your trail running to the point of being able to run daily without risking any over-use injuries.
Is It Safe To Trail Run Everyday
As to whether it is safe to trail run every day, my answer is an undoubted yes. The reason why I can be so confident in my answer is that a couple of years ago I was able to go approximately two and a half years straight of trail running every single day.
In order to be able to continue trail running every single day I had to plan my running so that I did not pick up any overuse injuries. I would have continued trail running every single day had it not been for one unfortunate incident where I tripped over a rock and landed awkwardly on another rock fracturing a rib. That certainly brought an end to my 900-plus day trail running streak and forced me into a layoff from trail running for a couple of weeks.
Therefore, based on my experience it is completely safe to go trail running every single day. Just don’t go out and attempt to complete an ultra-marathon distance every single day otherwise you will be setting yourself up for an injury if you have not built up to that level over the course of a number of years.
How Often Should You Run Trails
If you are new to the world of trail running then I would suggest that you limit yourself to heading out onto the trails three or maybe four times per week. From there, you can build up your distance and frequency gradually to the point where you can safely head out of the trails every single day.
If you are new to running and start with that training load of three or four trail runs each week, begin by making each run just a few miles in length and then gradually build up the distance week on week. Ideally, you would want to increase your run volume but no more than 10% each week. I am not saying that you need to increase the distance of each and every run of the week by 10%, but rather look at your total training volume for the week.
Using that as a basis, this is how I build up my running frequency. If you start by running 4 times per week and have increased your distance to the point where you are running 6 miles on each training day on average, you can then add an extra day of running to your schedule in the following way. What you do is cut each run by 1 mile, giving you 4 runs of 5 miles each, and then you can have an additional fifth day of running where you do 4 miles. You will have the same total distance of running for the week but have increased your frequency by adding an extra day of running.
When I did this I used this new frequency of 5 runs per week as a new training baseline and then slowly increased my training volume by 10% each week to the point where I could add an extra day of training by cutting miles from my other runs and still keep my progression at a sustainable rate.
Can You Trail Run Every Day
The way you get to increase your fitness level while trail running is by maintaining consistency. For example, if I went out and did a 14-mile trail run tomorrow morning with zero base fitness, my legs would feel broken for the rest of the week. Alternatively, what I could do is head out on a two-mile run and I’d be able to recover enough to repeat that every day of the week. My run volume for the week would be the same 14 miles, but my consistency would give me a bigger step up in my fitness.
So, what I’m trying to say here is that you can get far more of an overall fitness benefit from running more frequently than you will from starting with a single distance that is way further than you’re able to cope with and then not being able to do anything for six or seven days after that. Doing massive distances on unfit legs is a recipe for injury, which will sideline you for even longer.
You can trail run every day, just make sure that the distances that you choose for each trail run are distances from which you will be able to recover within 24 hours. This will allow you to be able to head out the next day and keep doing it all over again for a consistent fitness increase. It is better to be consistently good than occasionally great when it comes to building the strength and fitness you need to run long distances on the trails.
How Long Should A Trail Run Be?
People often ask me how long a trail run should be, expecting some sort of a magic answer in miles that will be true for all runners. They also hope my answer will be distance-based because measuring running volume in miles is what they are used to doing when training on the road.
However, it is difficult to translate the miles that you run on a road to the miles you run out on a trail simply because that trail might be having steep hills to go up and down or a rocky technical section of single-track that will all slow you down.
So, when it comes to deciding how long my trail run should be I prefer to use time as a metric, rather than distance. That way the distance that I run will always vary based on both the trail itself and my fitness level. When suggesting a run to a trail newbie I will usually start them on a 30-minute run which is what I do on my recovery days.
Strangely, I have become so accustomed to measuring my runs by time, that the training plan that I follow for an event on the road will be based on time and never distance. I always note down the distance covered in my training log but never have a distance in mind when I head out.
This strategy also works very well if I go for a run with someone faster/slower than I am. If we are running out and back on the same trail, we pick a turnaround time so that we can finish the run together irrespective of how different our speed on the trail is.
Try this for yourself when you plan your next trail run and just choose a time-based goal for your run. That way you won’t be tempted to maybe push too fast over a technical piece of terrain and risk twisting an ankle or tripping over something just because your watch says that your pace is slowing. I speak from experience. I tried to run too fast on a rocky section of the trail and ended up falling and breaking a rib.
What’s A Good Pace For Trail Running
The question of what is a really good trail running place is a really loaded question because that is heavily dependent upon how technical and tricky the trail is underfoot. Added to that trails tend to be a lot steeper both on the up and downhill. If, however, the trail that you happen to be running on is not too Steep and not too technical then, in general, the speed that you run on trails will typically be somewhere between 10% and 20% slower than what you are able to do on the road.
In its own way, this makes trail running an excellent way of being able to gradually build your aerobic base level of fitness. This means that you can then sharpen up with any specific speed sessions if you want to transfer that trail running base fitness to a specific event that you want to do on the road.
At the same time if you’re relatively new to trail running then I would strongly suggest trying to keep away from nailing a specific pace when you’re trail running and rather look at going for a run for a specific length of time irrespective of the amount of distance you cover over the course of that run. To my mind, trail running is less about nailing a specific running pace and more about enjoying the nature around you. Enjoy the scenery and pay attention to the trail so that you don’t trip over anything and forget about the number of miles that you are able to cover in a specific block of time.
A spin-off from this mindset is exactly what can make trail running a superb way to help train for your events out on the road. On the days when you need to do your slower recovery runs or your longer endurance runs at a slower pace than what you will be racing at, switch to the trails and let the terrain slow you down.
This is to give yourself a sufficient recovery so that when you head out on key speed and power training sessions you can do those at the utmost of your ability without having carried any fatigue into those key sessions. To learn more about this have a look at this post that I wrote about why it is important that you do not do all of your training at your race pace.
Does Trail Running Make You Slower?
I haven’t seen any definitive data that makes any indication that trail running makes you a slower runner. What I will say is that trail running for your long endurance runs as well as your slower recovery runs is an excellent choice.
I will admit that when I run on trails, it will always be at a slower pace than what I’m able to do out on the road. However, this does not make me a slower runner. What it does is make sure that I do my slow runs at a pace that is slow enough to give me the adequate recovery that I need to be able to run my speed or hill sessions hard enough to be able to gain the most benefit from those key sessions.
I would say that with a properly structured training plan running trails will actually make me a faster runner and not a slower runner. I understand if you don’t want to base your choices on my slower-than-average performances as a runner. Instead, look no further than the types of running performances that Iliud Kipchoge is able to do. He was able to run the marathon in under 2 hours based on a training plan that incorporated more than 80% of his total training volume being run on dirt and not pavement.