Is It Ok To Run 3 Miles a Day? Pros, Cons & What Runners think | Underdog Running (2024)

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People love things in threes, and running is no exception. I generally like running further. But when I started working a 9-5 it got to the point where running three miles a day was all I could fit in. Luckily for me, it still felt great. However, today I found myself wondering, is it ok to run three miles a day?

It’s generally fine to run three miles a day. However, beginners may want to take some time building up their endurance before running as consistently as three miles a day. The benefits of running three miles a day can include better mental health, significant weight loss, and better overall health.

With this being the case, I decided to look into some of the pros and cons of running three miles a day as well as what other runners feel about it.

By the way, if you’re seriously interested in running every day, I’ve also written articles on running one mile a day and two miles a day.

What Runners Think

With all the different distances to choose from, I carried out an online poll that asked runners what their favourite distance was to run between 1 and 5 miles. The 279 runners who voted had this to say:

From looking at the data, it seems that three miles have won by pulling in almost 50%.

One of the runners who voted on my poll had this to say:

“3 miles is enough to warm up/ give a boost and not tire me out in any way. And could be done under 30 mins, so fits nicely around a morning 1 hour routine.”

With this in mind, I decided it might be time to look at some of the pros and cons of running three miles a day.

Pros

Strength

If you’re looking to build up strength alongside your running, choosing to run three miles a day can certainly help with this.

According to LiveStrong, running every day can help to build muscles around the lower section of the body such as the glutes, quads, and hamstrings.

This is because the runner’s legs produce power mile after mile, which can require a lot of strength.

Endurance

Running 3 miles a day is by no means a small distance. In fact, running this sort of distance every single day can significantly help improve a runner’s Endurance.

Simply put running can help strengthen the heart by increasing its capacity and ability to do things like use oxygen which is supplied by red blood cells.

In turn, this helps runners train for longer.

It’s Recommended (sort of)

According to the American College of Sports and Medicine, anyone between the ages of 18 to 65 who is healthy should be aiming to to run for around 30-minutes a day for 5 days a week which is not too far off off-road running 3 miles a day depending on your current level of fitness.

Weight-loss

There’s no denying that running is something that can significantly help with weight loss. Typically runners will burn around 100 calories per mile that they run. However, this can change depending on things like age weight, and intensity.

As a general rule, this means that for every 3 miles you run you will burn around 300 calories. So at the end of the week, if you were to run 3 miles every single day, you would have burned approximately 2100 calories. In a month that is equal to burning around 2.4lb of fat.

Stress Management

I personally use running as a way to help manage stress. On average I will generally run a few miles every day of the week as well as doing a big run on a Sunday. So I can say from personal experience that it works. But you don’t need to take my word for it.

According to WebMD, running regularly can provide consistent boosts to your overall feeling of happiness.

If that wasn’t enough running can also help reduce stress by releasing endocannabinoids into the body which act as a natural version of cannabis – allowing you to feel calm for a short amount of time.

If you’re also somebody who suffers from anxiety or depression, blood circulation around the brain increases when you run, which responds to stress and improves your mood. This can help temporarily change your reaction to these kinds of emotions.

Cons

Too Much Running

I love running every day, so this is a difficult pill for me to swallow. However, evidence suggests that the health benefits that most people get from exercise begin to diminish if you begin running over 20 miles a week or more than 6 days a week.

This means that if you were to run every single day of the week you would be running 21 miles and technically that would be too much for you to receive any more health benefits.

If the reason that you’re running 3 miles a day is to get as healthy as possible then it may be better she give it to rest after day 5 or 6.

Injuries

There’s no denying it, the more you run the higher your chances of picking up injuries. Generally speaking, injuries are always a part of running and every time you run there is some risk of picking up an injury.

However, The problem with trying to Run 3 miles a day, every day is that by doing so you aren’t giving yourself a chance to recover. Every time you run there are likely to be small tears within the muscles that you’ve trained.

This itself isn’t a problem because these tears are what help make muscles stronger. However, if you continue to run on these muscles before they’ve had time to naturally repair then it makes the chance of injury a lot more likely.

Some of the most common injuries that runners will pick up include Runner’s Knee, Achilles tendinitis, shin splints, hamstring injuries, and plantar fasciitis.

You can read more about how to run through injury in managing pain by checking out this article I wrote. You can also learn more About running injuries in general by checking out the video below.

Still wondering whether or not running three miles a day is for you? Check out this video from Rockentry who managed to run three miles a day for 30 days straight!

Running 3 Miles a Day Vs 5K

Running 3 miles a day is actually very similar to trying to run 5K a day because 5 kilometers is actually only 3.1 miles. If you’re curious about how often I would recommend running 5K check out this article I wrote.

If you just starting out and running, I wouldn’t recommend running a 5K more than once a week. However, depending on your level of experience, this can be built up.

If you are planning on running three miles a day then it only makes sense to push a little harder so that you can complete a full 5K. Doing this will give you a better chance of competing in races as well as park runs.

5K is also largely recognized as a staple distance for new runners who are getting into distance running.

I’ve written this full article on the main benefits that running 5K can have on a person. When asking runners why they like to run a 5K, some of those who weighed in had this to say:

“It’s the perfect distance for me. Enough to make me feel good about myself, yet not long enough where it takes up too much time or I feel spent after.”

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“It’s a good quality speed workout that won’t impact your other training much.”

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Just like running 3 miles a day, running a 5K has been associated with being quick and easy, helping with weight loss and improving overall fitness. A 5K is also a great opportunity to socialise with events like Parkrun which take place all around the UK and the US.

How To Prepare To Run 3 Miles a Day

When compared to distances like 10K, half marathons, and full-blown marathons, running 3 miles a day might not feel like that much of a task.

That being said, I would always recommend that runners spend some time getting prepared.

Get Ready The Night Before

Most of the time, I like to run in the morning before I head out to work. Doing this lets me feel energized and ready for the day. You can find out more about how to run before work here.

Needless to say, if you’re planning to run in the morning the next day, it helps to have all your clothes out and a bottle of water ready.

I even like to sleep with my alarm clock out of arm’s reach, so that I physically have to get up to turn it off. Doing this helps me make the time for my run.

Plan Your Route

One of the biggest mental blocks to running 3 miles a day is that it can feel tedious. This is especially true if you’re running the same route every day.

Try using an app such as Strava to find different and exciting 3-mile routes that you can run around your neighborhood. I would advise using a minimum of three different routes and switching them up as you go along.

Furthermore, you don’t always need to have a route planned out in your mind. By using a GPS tracker, runners could choose a spontaneous direction that they haven’t traveled before and then double back when the app alerts them that they’ve run half way. You can read more about how to measure running distance here.

Eat Plenty

But not too much. You want to make sure that you have enough energy to finish your workout. But you don’t want to eat so much that it goes against your plans for weight loss (if you have any)

One of the biggest mistakes I see in runners who are attempting to complete 3 miles a day is that they have a tendency to refuel after a workout with sugary drinks that are high in calories and will give them an immediate burst of energy, but leave them feeling tired later.

I actually carried out an experiment where I tried to find the best thing to drink after running. Spoiler alert – it was chocolate milk! You can find out why and read the full article here.

Set Goals

Another thing that can make running 3 miles a day less tedious and more motivating is by setting yourself goals.

One way of doing this is to try to shave a few seconds of your finish time each time you run. Whilst the differences in this will start small, it will help you to achieve amazing things further down the line.

If you’re set on getting as good a time for your 3-mile run as possible, I would reccomend trying out some interval running. You can learn more about interval running from the video below:

Times For Running 3 Miles a Day

If you’re looking for specific times for completing 3 miles a day it might be best to look at the official times for a 5K. I’d reccomend checking out this article I wrote on the average 5K time.

As a general guideline, running beginners should expect to complete 3 miles in anywhere between 20 and 30 minutes. Factors such as age, gender, and current level of fitness can have an impact on finish times. Runners should also bear in mind that average times may become slower if they run daily and don’t give themselves enough time to recover.

Gear To Consider

The beautiful thing about running 3 miles a day is that you really don’t need that much to get started. That being said, it always helps to get hold of some basic kit like this stuff below so that you feel as comfortable as possible.

Reebok Men’s Running Two-in-One Shorts in Black Size 2XL – Running Clothing
Reebok Men’s Floatride Energy Grow Running Shoes in Non-dyed/Core Black/Pursuit Pink Size 9.5 – Running Shoes
Reebok Men’s Running Graphic T-Shirt in Semi Orange Flare Size L – Running Clothing