There is a great app that I found that has run/walk workouts built in and that you can customize timers for. Scroll to the bottom of the post if that interests you.

Run/Walk is a Great Start

If you have every researched beginning running, you probably have encountered the Run/Walk method. Many coaches and plans use this training to teach the body the mechanics of running while also taking it slow and steady as you ease into a new sport.

My experience was the same, although I had never heard of Run/Walk (or really…Run/Walk/Run™) as a training program or Jeff Galloway. Jeff is really the “father” so to speak of this method.

Back in the days when I started running, I was just trying to get in shape. I was approaching my 40’s, and decided I needed to lose some of the weight that I had gained in my 30’s.

Since I was never an active person before this, I didn’t know anything about running and had to start from scratch. The only way I could get through a run was to run a bit, walk a bit and then run again and build it up from there.

The internet was a “thing”…after all is was only 13 years ago that I started running…but I didn’t do much research and the resources that are available now weren’t as easy to find.

Jeff Galloway and the Run/Walk/Run™ Method

If you are new to running, I recommend this route to get you started.

Jeff’s website is a great place to start. There is a ton of information that you can peruse.

The basics are simple…you run for a set amount of time, walk for a bit and then run again!

This schedule will take you from “couch to 5 or 10k”, and is a great introduction to this method. By the way, there are runners who utilize Run/Walk/Run™ to do whole marathons!

You will be running minutes for most of your runs during the week, with mileage on Sundays as your long run.

Jeff uses a Magic Mile to figure out what your run/walk intervals should be. You can find the calculator and an explanation for it here.

Using The Run/Walk in Practice

My husband is also one of my clients. As a run coach, I use what I have learned in my coach training to help him get ready for the half marathons he likes to do.

This past year he has had some challenges. We narrowed his issues down to trouble with exercise induced asthma, and a trip to the doctor confirmed that he was having problems.

Now he is on an inhaler, which he only uses before running. If he uses it about 30 minutes before a run, it works wonders!

He has spent most of the past year not able to fully enjoy his runs, or get to the fitness level he was at before this became an issue.

We needed to get him back to a good base.

For him, I started him on a minutes instead of miles program…and also paid attention to his heart rate. He knew that once his heart got above 150, he would start to have what he could only describe like a panic attack.

His form would start to deteriorate and he just felt all around awful.

Run/Walk for him meant two things. I started him off at 10 minutes on (run) and 2 minutes off (walk)…which was fine for him since he has run before and has completed half-marathons.

So he is not a beginner.

It also meant that when his heart rate got to 141 (well below where he starts to feel yucky) he was to stop and walk until it went down to 130.

The numbers weren’t magic…I didn’t use a formula to get them. I just wanted him to complete a run not feeling like he wanted to die or quit.

The intention was for him to build back up to a good base.

It is hard to think about losing fitness and we always want to start where we WANT to be (or where we were at one point in our lives)…not where we are. This can be a recipe for many things…including low motivation (because we can’t be where we were, so we lose the desire to get out there). It can also cause injury and burn out.

Yesterday he was able to run for 8 miles without having to stop. The inhaler has helped immensely. He is also not feeling sick and out of breath when his heart rate approaches 150.

The Master Runners Continuity Plan

A “Master” runner is anyone over 40 who is a runner. That includes me and then some. I was a master runner the year I started to run!

For those of us who are older, we will eventually have to come to the realization that we will slow down.

The Run/Walk can be a great way to stay in the sport and keep racing well into our advanced ages.

Do You Need a Base?

If you use a Run/Walk method to begin running, at the end of the training you should have built up a good base.

If you are a complete beginner start with the Galloway Run/Walk/Run™ method-5k to get used to running.

If you haven’t even walked in a while, make sure to start out by being able to walk for up to 20 minutes before starting right in with running.

Of course, make sure any new exercise attempt is cleared by your doctor first.

A good goal is a 5k race where you plan to run the whole time. This helps to motivate you and get you out the door, even those times you may not want to!

(Obviously the above paragraph was written pre-coronavirus. There aren’t many 5K’s to sign up for at the moment)

If you have run before and are trying to “get back into it”, the Run/Walk method can also help you.

Since all the plans I’ve ever seen use time over distance, there is the benefit of not having to worry about paces or how many miles you’ve covered.

You can also use the RRCA Run/Walk training for beginners.

This organization is the one I used to get my coaching certification, so the training is one that I recommend to my clients who are beginners with no running experience OR (for example) one of my clients who just had a baby and even though has run before wanted to get back into it slowly.

Racing with the Run/Walk/Run™

Jeff Galloway and his wife talk about racing marathons almost every weekend in this podcast on Run to the Top.

They complete marathons in under 5 hours!

Twice I have seen how run/walk works in action.

During my first half marathon there were a few runners that were in the vicinity of me that used this method.

I ran except for a horrible time at the last mile when my legs cramped up and I had to physically pick up my leg and throw it forward for it to work.

Those that did the run/walk would surge past me during their run. I would run by them during their walk. We were really head to head most of the time…but in the end they beat me!

Another example was in a run just a few weeks ago. A group of women were running and then walking around the track and they consistently would pass me during their run.

The client who just had a baby a few months ago is going to run/walk a half marathon soon (provided it isn’t cancelled) and I can’t wait to hear the results!

App to Use for Run/Walk- INTERVALS PRO

I am linking to an app that I use for interval training that you could use for a run/walk program. I need to update the post as a tutorial to reflect changes in the app (all of them good), but the post or YouTube video will give you the gist of how it works.

This app (Intervals Pro– there is a free version, but I have the paid version) even has a Run/Walk Workout included.

If you are new to running, there are 2 training programs…a 9 week 5k run/walk program and a None to Run 12 week program.

In the new version of this app, when you open it you will see a list of Timers and a blue circle with a plus sign in the bottom right corner.

Click the plus sign and it will take you to the Add Timers section. Scroll down to the Workout Templates section to find the Run/Walk Workout (that you can play with by changing the interval times) or down the scroll even further you will find the training programs.

Until I have time to update the post and the video about this app if you have any questions about how to use it just drop me an email or use the contact form and I will record a video of what you need help with and email it back to you personally.

Any other questions you may have about running I am happy to answer as well. Email sherry@wrinkledrunner.com