How to start running: a simple guide for complete beginners

To start running, mix short stretches of easy running with walking, go out two or three times a week, and run slowly enough that you could still hold a conversation. A good first session is a 5-minute walk, then 1 minute of gentle running and 2 minutes of walking repeated six or seven times, then a 5-minute walk to finish. Each week the running bits get a little longer and the walks a little shorter. Most beginners who keep at it can run 25 to 30 minutes without stopping within two to four months.

That’s the whole method. The rest of this guide is about doing it in a way that feels good, so you’re still running in three months’ time.

What do you need to start running?

You need comfortable shoes, clothes you can move in and about 30 minutes, two or three times a week. Everything else is optional.

• Shoes. Running shoes are nice to have, but any comfortable trainers will do for the first few weeks. If you get hooked, a running shop can help you find a pair that suits your feet.
• Clothes. Anything that doesn’t rub. Sports fabrics dry faster than cotton, which helps on longer or warmer days. If you have a chest, a supportive sports bra matters more than any shoe.
• A way to time your intervals. A phone, a watch or a running app that tells you when to run and when to walk, so you’re not staring at a clock.
• Somewhere easy to run. A park, a quiet street, a track or a treadmill. Flat and familiar is best at the start.

You don’t need a heart rate monitor, energy gels, special socks or a gym membership.

How should a complete beginner start running?

Start with run/walk intervals instead of trying to run non-stop. Running for a minute and then walking lets your legs, lungs and joints get used to running a little at a time. It also means you finish feeling like you could do more, which is exactly how you want to feel. Our guide to the run-walk method explains why it works so well.

Here is a first run, step by step:

1. Walk briskly for 5 minutes to warm up.
2. Run gently for 1 minute. Slower than you think.
3. Walk for 2 minutes and let your breathing settle.
4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 until you’ve done six or seven rounds.
5. Walk for 5 minutes to cool down.

That’s about 30 minutes in total, with only 6 or 7 minutes of running. It might feel too easy. Good. Easy is what you can repeat next time, and the time after that.

If even one minute of running is too much today, start with 30 seconds, or spend a week or two just walking briskly for 30 minutes. Walking is not cheating. It’s the first rung of the ladder.

What does a beginner running plan look like?

A beginner plan slowly stretches the running and shrinks the walking until there’s no walking left. Here is a gentle example. Treat the weeks as a rough guide, not a deadline: move on when the current stage feels comfortable, and repeat it when it doesn’t.

Stage	Each session, between a 5-minute warm-up and cool-down walk	Roughly
1	Run 1 min, walk 2 min, 7 times	Weeks 1–2
2	Run 2 min, walk 2 min, 6 times	Weeks 3–4
3	Run 3 min, walk 1½ min, 5 times	Weeks 5–6
4	Run 5 min, walk 1½ min, 4 times	Weeks 7–8
5	Run 8 min, walk 1 min, 3 times	Weeks 9–10
6	Run 12 min, walk 1 min, twice	Weeks 11–12
7	Run 20 minutes without stopping	When you’re ready
8	Run 25 to 30 minutes without stopping	Your 5K goal

Some people race through this in eight weeks. Others take four months. Both are doing it right. If you’d like a plan built around what you can do today, try our free running plan generator or see how the beginner 5K plan works.

How fast should a beginner run?

Run slowly enough that you could talk in full sentences. This “talk test” is the simplest pace guide there is: if you can only manage a word or two between breaths, slow down, even if that means you’re barely faster than walking.

Nearly every new runner sets off too fast, is out of breath in 40 seconds and decides they “can’t run”. Most of them can. They just need to go slower. Our guide on how slow you should run explains why easy really should mean easy.

Forget about pace numbers for now. Your speed will improve on its own once your body gets used to running.

Where should a beginner run?

Run somewhere flat, safe and close to home. The best route is the one you can reach in a couple of minutes, because a long trip to a perfect park becomes a reason to skip. A loop around your neighborhood, a local park, a school track or a treadmill are all great. Softer paths like packed gravel or grass are kind to your legs, and a track or a treadmill makes timing your intervals easy.

Avoid big hills, busy roads and uneven trails for the first few weeks. They’ll still be there when you’re ready for them.

How often should a beginner run?

Two or three times a week is the sweet spot, with at least one rest day between runs. Your legs get stronger while they recover, not during the run itself, so rest days are part of the training. A simple week might be Monday, Wednesday and Saturday. There’s more on this in how often beginners should run.

On rest days, walking, cycling, swimming or yoga are all fine. Just skip the running.

How do you avoid getting hurt when you start running?

Go slowly, add a little at a time, and listen to your body. Most beginner aches come from doing too much too soon, not from running itself.

• Always warm up and cool down with 5 minutes of walking.
• Change one thing at a time. Longer intervals or an extra run, not both in the same week.
• Keep the easy pace easy. It’s kinder to your joints as well as your lungs.
• Choose softer, flatter ground when you can: park paths, tracks, treadmills.
• Expect some normal muscle soreness for a day or two after your first few runs. That’s fine and it fades.
• Stop if something hurts sharply. Pain that is sharp, gets worse as you run, makes you limp, or lasts more than a few days is a reason to rest and see a doctor or physiotherapist.

What should your first runs feel like?

Your first runs should feel comfortably tiring, not exhausting. On a scale of 1 to 10, where 1 is sitting on the sofa and 10 is an all-out sprint, aim for about 4 to 6. You want to finish thinking “that was work, but I could have done one more round.”

If a run feels like an 8 or more, make the next one easier: shorter running bits, longer walks, or simply a slower pace. If a whole week felt hard, repeat it instead of moving on.

In the Run app, the plan does this for you. You rate how tiring each run felt from 1 to 10, and if a run was very tiring, the next one gets lighter straight away. Good weeks move you up a level, and tough weeks let you repeat. You can read more on how it works.

How do you keep going when it gets hard?

Make running easy to start and hard to skip. Motivation comes and goes; habits stick around.

• Put your runs in your calendar like appointments, at a time you can actually keep.
• Lay out your kit the night before, so the morning version of you has no excuses.
• Pick a small, clear goal, like running 10 minutes without stopping, or a local 5K in a few months.
• Keep a record of every run. A growing list of finished sessions is surprisingly motivating.
• Accept bad days. Some runs feel heavy for no reason at all. Repeating a week isn’t failing; it’s training.
• Find some company. A friend, a local club, or just telling someone what you’re doing.

If you miss a week, don’t try to make up for it with extra runs. Pick up where you left off, or go back one stage and build again.

How long does it take to run a 5K as a beginner?

Most beginners go from not running at all to running 5K (3.1 miles) in about 8 to 16 weeks. The range is wide because everyone starts in a different place: someone who already walks a lot will move faster than someone starting from the sofa, and that’s completely fine.

The usual milestone is running 25 to 30 minutes without stopping. Once you can do that at an easy pace, running the full 5K is mostly a matter of going a little further, at the same relaxed speed. And at that point, whatever your pace, you’re a runner.