Running for Grapplers: How to Use It Without Getting Hurt

Apr 10, 2023

Running has a bad reputation in grappling gyms. Somebody read that it kills your strength, somebody else tried it and their knees hurt, and now the whole room has decided that running is for people who do not lift.

Running is a tool. It is cheap, it needs no equipment, and it builds the boring base layer that decides whether you have a fifth round in you. It also breaks grapplers more than it breaks most athletes, for reasons that have nothing to do with cardio.

Why Running Hurts Grapplers More

You are heavier than a runner and you are built to be dense. Every stride puts two to three times your bodyweight through one ankle, one knee, one hip. A 200-pound grappler absorbs a lot more per mile than a 140-pound distance guy, and he has usually never run more than a lap in his life.

On top of that, your hips and ankles have spent years in guard, in half, in scrambles. They are strong in positions that have nothing to do with a running stride. So you go out and run three miles on legs that are strong but not organized for it, and your shins and knees send you the bill.

Running does not hurt grapplers because running is bad. It hurts grapplers because they start at week eight of a program on week one legs.

How to Start Without Breaking

The rule is simple: add running the way you would add weight to a bar. Slowly, and from a low number.

Week	Session	Pace
1–2	Walk 5 min, then 8 x (1 min jog / 2 min walk). Twice a week.	Conversational
3–4	Walk 5 min, then 6 x (3 min jog / 90 sec walk). Twice a week.	Conversational
5–6	20–25 min continuous, easy. Twice a week.	Could talk the whole way
7–8	30–40 min continuous, easy. Twice a week.	Could talk the whole way

That is eight weeks to get to a place most people try to start at on day one. If it feels insultingly slow, good. That is what not getting hurt feels like.

Where to Run

Surface matters more than most people think.

Grass and dirt trails — best option. Softer, and the uneven ground makes your ankles work in more directions.
Track — fine. Switch direction halfway so you are not always turning left.
Treadmill — fine, and useful for controlling pace honestly. Set it to 1% incline so you are not landing downhill.
Concrete sidewalk — worst option, and the one everyone defaults to. If it is all you have, keep the volume low and the shoes fresh.

Hills Instead of Sprints

If you want hard running, run hills. A hill caps your stride and your speed, which means you get a hard effort without the top-end stride length that pulls hamstrings. Twenty to thirty seconds up, walk down, repeat eight to twelve times. That is a real conditioning session and it is much harder to hurt yourself doing it than it is doing flat sprints on cold legs.

Save flat sprinting for when you have a base, a real warm-up, and a reason.

How Much, and When

Two easy sessions a week is the whole prescription for most grapplers. Three if you are only on the mat twice a week. Put them on a day you are not rolling hard, or after you roll rather than before.

Never run hard the day before hard training. That is the single most common way running starts costing you mat performance, and it is why the room decided running was the problem. See Gassing Out in BJJ: Why Rolling Is Not Enough for how running fits with the other three layers of a gas tank.

Easy running builds the base. Hills build the top.

Concrete and impatience build injuries.

Common Questions

Will running kill my strength?

Not at the volumes above. Two easy 30-minute sessions a week will not touch your strength numbers. Six days a week of hard running would, but nobody is asking you to do that.

My shins hurt after every run. What is wrong?

You went too far too soon, or your shoes are dead, or you are only running on concrete. Usually all three. Back off to the week one/two column, get shoes that are less than a year old, and find grass.

Should I run before or after lifting?

After, or on a separate day. Easy running after lifting is fine. Running hard before lifting means you lift badly.

Is rowing or biking just as good?

For the base layer, yes, and they are kinder to your joints. Running is just the cheapest and most available. If you have a bike or a rower, use it.