Every runner you admire today made most of the mistakes on this list first. We did too. Tripping over these early stumbles is basically part of learning to run, but they’re also why so many new running habits die by week three with sore shins and a dented ego.

Here’s the good part: almost every one of these has an easy fix, and none of the fixes require talent, gear, or gritting your teeth through pain. Below are the ten mistakes we see most at our start line, grouped by theme, with a fix for each.

Pacing and Progression Mistakes

Man running outdoors in yellow tank top

Most beginner trouble traces back to one thing: doing too much, too fast, too soon. Enthusiasm is great. Enthusiasm with zero brakes is how new runners get hurt.

Going Too Fast, Too Soon

The classic mistake. You head out fired up, run at a pace that feels like it matches your ambition, and fall apart eight minutes later convinced running just isn’t for you. It is. That pace wasn’t.

The fix: run at conversation pace, meaning you can still talk in full sentences. It will feel strangely slow, and that’s exactly right. Beginners should spend almost all their time at this easy effort, which our guide to zone 2 running covers in more depth.

Increasing Everything at Once

Longer runs, more days, faster paces, all stacked into the same week. Your motivation grows faster than your tendons can keep up, and the American College of Sports Medicine’s updated guidance is clear on this: progress one variable at a time, gradually.

The fix: change one thing per week, whether that’s a bit more distance, one extra day, or a touch more speed. Never all three together.

Skipping Rest Days

Rest feels like wasted progress, so beginners run daily until their body forces a break. In truth, rest is where fitness actually gets built. Harvard Health Publishing puts it simply: your body adapts between workouts, not during them.

The fix: start with three to four running days a week, with real rest or an easy walk in between. Treat your rest days as part of training, not time off from it.

Gear Mistakes

Running needs almost no equipment, which somehow makes the little gear it does need cause outsized problems.

Running in the Wrong Shoes

Group of runners mid-stride, focus on tattooed legs and running shorts

 

Old sneakers, fashion sneakers, or shoes bought because they matched an outfit. Your feet hit the ground thousands of times per mile, and the wrong shoes turn that into a repetitive strain that shows up in your shins, knees, or hips.

The fix: visit a running store where staff can watch you walk or jog and let you test a few pairs. It’s the best money you’ll spend on this sport. Swap shoes once they feel flat and dead, not once they physically fall apart, and skip the marketing hype. A mid-range shoe that actually fits your foot beats a premium one built for someone else’s.

Overdressing

New runners dress for how cold it feels standing still, then spend the whole run overheating with a sweatshirt tied around their waist.

The fix: dress for how you’ll feel at mile two, not minute one. A slight chill in the first few minutes is normal. In warm weather (and Georgia knows warm weather!), light and breathable always beats being bundled up.

Fueling and Recovery Mistakes

What you do around a run shapes how the run feels. Two mistakes show up constantly here.

Running on Empty, or on a Full Stomach

Some beginners eat nothing and hit a wall halfway through. Others eat a full meal twenty minutes before and learn a different lesson at the same pace.

The fix: for short, easy runs, either approach can work if it feels fine. For anything longer, a small carb snack 30 to 60 minutes before, or a full meal two to three hours out, is the standard move. Our full guide to nutrition for runners covers this in detail, including hydration, which most beginners also shortchange.

Ignoring the Niggles

That small ache in your knee that faded, then came back louder a week later? You should address that. Beginners often treat pain like it’s a badge of effort, but be careful. Sometimes it’s actually an injury showing up.

The fix: learn to tell normal soreness (dull, even on both sides, gone in a day or two) from a warning sign (sharp, one-sided, gets worse mid-run). 

Soreness just needs an easy day. Warning signs need rest, and a doctor if the pain sticks around or gets worse. Mayo Clinic is direct about this: running through pain is how minor issues turn into long layoffs. Some basic strength training for beginners also helps prevent these problems before they start.

Mindset Mistakes

Runners passing under orange RUNNINGMAN arch; man in 'KEEP GOING' shirt

The last three mistakes happen entirely in your head, and they end more running habits than shin splints ever do.

Comparing Your Pace to Everyone Else’s

Strava, race results, that runner who glides past you looking effortless. Comparison turns a personal habit into a competition you never signed up for.

The fix: measure yourself against last month’s version of you, nobody else. Try running without your watch sometimes. That effortless-looking runner got passed by someone once too, and it didn’t matter then either.

All-or-Nothing Thinking

Miss two runs, and suddenly the week feels ruined, then the month, then maybe running just isn’t for you. This spiral quietly kills more new habits than injury does.

The fix: follow the never-miss-twice rule. One missed run is just life happening. Two starts a pattern, so make the next one happen, even a lazy ten minutes. A short run protects the habit just as well as a long one does.

Having No Goal on the Calendar

Running “to get fit” sounds nice but stays vague, and vague goals lose to rainy Tuesdays every time. With no date to aim for, every run becomes optional, and optional runs get skipped.

The fix: put something real on the calendar. It doesn’t have to be scary. Choose-your-distance events exist so beginners can commit to a date without committing to a distance yet. The Runningman race gives you a full 8 hours and any distance from 5K to 50K, so it’s a goal worth training for and nearly impossible to fail. September 18 to 20, Kingston Downs, Rome, Georgia. Get tickets and give your Tuesdays a reason.

Made Them All? How to Reset

runners sprinting at the start of an outdoor race

First, welcome; this club has a HUGE membership. Second, resetting is easier than starting cold: take a genuinely easy week, book the shoe-store trip, pick three run days, keep them conversational, and put one low-pressure event on the calendar. That’s the whole reset.

None of the mistakes above mean running isn’t for you. They just mean you had enthusiasm without information, and now you have both.

One warning about the reset itself: don’t try to fix all ten mistakes at once; that’s mistake number two wearing a disguise. Fix your pace first, since it unlocks the rest; add the shoe fix next, and let everything else fall into place over a few weeks. Runners who come back this way often end up more consistent than runners who never stumbled at all, mostly because they finally understand what easy is supposed to feel like.

FAQs

How Do I Know If I’m Running Too Fast?

Use the talk test. If you can speak in full sentences while running, your effort is easy and sustainable. If you can only get out a word or two, you’re working hard, and that should be a small part of a beginner’s routine, not the norm.

Is Soreness After Running Normal?

Mild, even soreness a day or two after a run is normal, especially if you’re new or just increased your training load. Sharp pain, one-sided pain, or pain that gets worse mid-run is a different story, and it deserves rest plus a professional opinion if it lingers.

How Many Days a Week Should a Beginner Run?

Three days is the sweet spot for most beginners, with four as a natural next step once your body adjusts. The rest days between runs are where fitness actually locks in, so they count as part of the plan, not a break from it.

What’s the Single Most Important Fix on This List?

Slowing down. Running too fast is behind half the other mistakes here; it makes runs miserable, raises injury risk, wrecks consistency, and fuels the comparison trap. Fix your pace and everything else gets noticeably easier.

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