How Much Should I Run?

Hi there, I'm currently hitting the treadmill for fitness and weight loss, but I don't want to overdo anything, so I was wondering if there were some good guidelines to follow for running.

I'm 5"2, 125.5 pounds, and I run either in the morning or the night for 24 minutes, roughly 5mph. That's 2 miles a day and it's the only thing I do in the gym. I warm up by stretching for about 2 minutes or so.

My question is, in terms of safety how often should I do this a week? What's the maximum speed I should go up to? When's the best time to go running without hurting yourself? Is it okay to just run, or should I mix it up a little?

Thanks, guys!

Congrats on running!  I'm working my way back into running steady.   My personal trainer wanted to only run 3 days a week, but historically I have run 5 days a week.  I changed the runs up though.  Sometimes I would run 1 mile as fast as I could just to see how fast I could and I would walk the next mile.  Sometimes I would run 5 miles just to see if I could.   Changing helped cut the boredom too.

I have read that you shouldn't increase your running more than 10% per week.   So if you were running 2 miles, you could run 6 miles per week, you could run 6.6 miles per week. 

If all you are doing is running eventually your muscles will get use to it and you will being using less energy to run the same amount of time and distance.  So you will want to mix it up.   Intervals are good for that and actually will increase your calories burned faster.

You might want to read about weight training on this site as muscles burn more calories so most people should do both cardio and weight training. 

Enjoy your workout. 

J

You've echoed my thoughts exactly.  I currently run 4 miles 1-3 x's a week and mix that with some kick boxing.  I notice that if I run too fast, the treadmill's heartrate monitor says my bpm are too fast and it wants me to slow down.  How does one increase their maximum heart rate?  I don't want to subscribe to Runner's World for the next two years just to get a couple of running questions answered.  Anyone know of a good site or book?