Can You Stay in Shape Running Once a Week?

According to the University of Maryland Medical Center (UMMC), running is a high-intensity aerobic exercise that healthy people do at most every other day. Running once a week may help you stay in shape if it's part of an overall fitness program that includes low impact or moderate intensity activities.

running helps to maintain a normal weight. According to the UMMC, it's good to run for only one hour a week or other aerobic exercise, but three to four hours a week is the best. Most people need 30 minutes of moderate vigorous exercise, such as walking, cycling or swimming, almost every day to help reduce the risk of health problems such as heart disease, stroke, diabetes, dementia and some cancers. If your goal is to lose weight, it's best to focus on the calories you burn each week, rather than the time you spend running or exercising. It's not necessarily a monotonous chore to keep fit. Mixing things up helps to avoid doing the same thing day after day. The combination of high impact and low impact activities is most conducive to overall fitness. For example, if Wednesday is your designated running day, go swimming on Tuesday and Thursday, dance class on Monday, and long-distance bike riding on Saturday. According to the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center, it's a good idea to take a day off after three or four days of continuous exercise. If you can't keep exercising for 30 minutes, it's OK to shorten the exercise time a little. Consider running for 15 minutes in the morning, another 15 minutes in the evening, or cycling for 20 minutes at lunchtime, and then swimming for 20 minutes. Don't forget non structural exercises, such as parking away from the door, or taking the stairs instead of the elevator. If you haven't been exercising, start running or any type of aerobic training. You can start setting new, more challenging goals as your fitness level improves. Before starting a new exercise program, consult your doctor, especially if you are older or have health problems.