Typically, you would run a recovery run on the day after a speed workout or long run.

That’s where the recovery run comes in: it allows you to increase your total weekly mileage without increasing your risk of injury. To get in enough mileage, you will likely run most days of the week, including the day after a speed workout or long run. Mileage comes with a risk of injury, so to mitigate that risk, most of those runs should be done at an easy running pace. While this will vary for every runner, an example is that recreational marathoners may run faster if they train at 40-45 miles per week instead of 30-35 miles per week. One of the most significant predictors of running performance is overall training volume (how many miles or kilometers you run per week). So, if you have your sights set on a personal record or a marathon, recovery runs will likely be part of your plan. Why even do a recovery run? Why not cross-train or rest instead? As implausible as it may sound, recovery runs can play a vital role in performance. Since the goal of a recovery run is adding mileage without prolonging recovery, you want to cap recovery runs at approximately 60 minutes in duration.

This is why you usually feel better after doing a recovery run! However, a recovery run will pump oxygen-rich blood into damaged muscles. Lactic acid typically clears shortly after a hard workout. Instead, recovery runs allow you to get in your miles without prolonging recovery from previous training.Ĭontrary to popular misconception, recovery runs do not flush out lactic acid. You cannot go on a recovery run instead of taking a scheduled rest day, for example. Recovery runs are aerobically easy enough not to elicit any muscle damage or need for extra recovery. Typically, you do these runs when your legs are tired from previous training, but you want to get in more mileage for the week. Recovery runs are easy runs that you do at a very light, controlled effort. As counter-intuitive as it sounds, if you want to run faster, sometimes you have to run slow – such as on recovery runs. One of the most common mistakes runners make is running too fast all the time. However, not every run can be fast or long! Slow runs have their place in training also. Speed workouts and long runs are the exciting part of training for a race.

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