Return-to-Run Program

A graded walk-to-run progression with criteria at each step, built for runners who have been told to rest three times and want a plan instead.

Rest is not a plan, it is a pause. The relapse loop happens because the runner comes back at the volume that hurt them, minus a couple of weeks of fitness.

The progression is criteria-based: you move up when you can complete the current step pain-free and pass the strength check, not because it is week three. Slower on paper, faster in practice.

What it changes

  • Criteria at every step instead of a calendar
  • Strength checks built into the progression
  • Ends at your previous volume, not below it