Sometimes training isn’t about making gains, it’s about protecting the fitness you already have. When you’re fit, you want to make sure you actually get to enjoy that fitness in your goal race and that means staying healthy! There’s nothing worse for an ambitious runner than being super fit and injured on race day.

I’m always talking about how running is a high impact sport and really hard on the body. Injuries are so common in running, and little niggles are pretty much to be expected so when it comes to races and achieving goals, half the battle is just getting to the start line fit and healthy. So how do you know if you should just ignore that little sore spot, power through that tightness and get ‘er done, or go into protect fitness mode (rest/ take the day off)?

Here are a few questions that were on my own checklist as a professional athlete, and that I now discuss with my clients when something pops up.

The Start Line:
A great place to be when you’re healthy.

Make sure you get there By being smart about your training and any pain you encounter.

Q1: What is the level of pain?
On a scale of 1-10, my general rule is you can probably run through a 1 or 2, maybe even 3, but it’s totally dependent on the person, location of pain and situation. Any higher on the pain scale and the best bet is to be conservative. Skip the run, get treatment, and cross-train if appropriate. But we can’t expect to feel perfect all the time, nor can we expect to make gains if we take a day off every single time we feel a tiny niggle. If the pain is very low you can maybe still train. Proceed to the next question.

Q2: What kind of pain do you have?
We runners tend to learn over time and by trial and error the difference between soreness pain and injury pain. Pain we are familiar and comfortable with versus pain that is unfamiliar and concerning. This is different for each person. I always encourage runners to be conservative when they are unsure. If the pain is just soreness, you are probably fine. Try running for a few minutes and evaluate. If the pain might be injury pain or something that could turn into an injury, proceed to the next question.

Q3: It the pain getting better, relatively steady, or getting worse?
This is my go-to questions whenever a runner has some sort of pain and is trying to decide whether or not to stop running. If the pain is low and is lessening, you’re probably fine to keep running, it may even go away completely. If the pain is very low and not getting worse, but it’s staying the same, you can probably keep running as long as you’re not compensating your stride or form in any way due to discomfort or pain. If the pain is getting worse, you should definitely stop. This is the only part I am certain of: if the pain is getting worse, you should definitely stop running.

So the pain is getting better or going away, there’s a good chance you’ll be fine to keep running. If it’s very low level pain and staying constant, you can probably keep running. Proceed to the next question.

Q4: How will you feel tomorrow?
Of course you can’t know for sure, but ask yourself this: “what do you think will happen if you were to run or workout with your current level of pain? Do you think it will feel worse later on, or worse the next day?” We can never know for sure without actually doing the workout but very often we have a gut instinct telling us not to run the workout. Don’t ignore that instinct. Proceed to the next question.

Q5: Can you make adjustments?
Training doesn’t have to be “all or nothing.” For example, if you have some pain and a big workout on deck, it’s probably not a good idea to do the workout. But can you possibly do an easy run instead? Or some cross training? Very often there are alternatives available that won’t cause pain and will allow you to rest your injury while still doing some work. If you make adjustments to your training as soon as you notice something amiss, you will often be able to prevent a niggle from becoming a full blown injury.

Q6: What treatment do you need?
All pain should be respected whether it’s a 1, a 10 or somewhere in between. Rest alone very rarely solves a problem. Seek professional medical advice and guidance sooner rather than later.

Gaining fitness and staying healthy is a juggling act. It’s always a tough call to delay or skip a workout but remember that the goal of your training is not to simply get as fit as possible, it is to get as fit as possible and get to the start line feeling great. Ultimately, it’s hard to make gains if you are constantly managing an injury or managing pain. Do whatever you can to move past an injury and get to the start line 100% healthy even if that means missing some training time. You will perform better at 90% fitness and 100% health than the other way round. When in doubt - be conservative!

Check out my other resources on how to stay healthy and survive your training.

Nicole Sifuentes is a former professional runner and 2-time Olympian, a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist and full-time Running Coach for adults of all ages and abilities. Read more about her services, and schedule your free coaching consultation.

Protect Your Fitness