Being told to stop running is one of the hardest things for a runner to hear. It's the thing that clears your head, manages your stress, keeps you fit, and makes you feel like yourself. Take that away, and the impact goes well beyond fitness.

As both a physio and a runner, I get it. I've pushed through discomfort I shouldn't have, told myself I'd feel better after one more run, and tried to come back too fast because I missed the routine. So when I say returning to running is rarely just about waiting for pain to settle, it comes from experience on both sides of the clinic table.

It's about rebuilding confidence, not just waiting

Most runners fall into one of two traps: pushing back too soon because they're feeling better, or avoiding running altogether out of fear of flaring things up again. The best results almost always happen in the middle, a gradual return that rebuilds trust in your body, not just tolerance for pain.

Why load matters more than your pain level

Pain dropping doesn't automatically mean your body is ready for the distance, speed, or frequency you're used to. The tissues still need time to build tolerance. I put it to patients this way: your body doesn't just need to heal, it needs to adapt.

A recent example: a patient came in six weeks post-injury, pain-free walking and even jogging lightly, convinced she was ready to jump back into her old training block. We held her at short, easy runs for another two weeks while she rebuilt calf and hip strength. It felt slow at the time. She's now back at full mileage with no recurrence, something that wasn't the case the first two times she'd tried to return on her own.

Managing flare ups without panicking

A flare up doesn't mean you've caused damage or gone backwards. Usually it's your body telling you the current load is a bit more than it can handle right now, from ramping up distance too fast, adding speed work too early, running too often, or not recovering well between sessions.

Most runners either stop everything the moment pain returns, or ignore it and push through. Neither tends to work long term. The better move is to adjust: reduce distance for a week, slow the pace, add a recovery day, or scale back the gym session. Small, early adjustments usually prevent the bigger setbacks.

Six things to get right on your way back

These aren't a strict sequence. Start with whichever feels most relevant to where you are right now:

• Increase only one variable at a time: distance, speed, or frequency
• Track symptoms over the following 24 hours, not just during the run
• Keep easy runs genuinely easy
• Prioritise sleep and recovery as much as training
• Keep up strength work even once symptoms improve
• Don't ignore small warning signs that keep coming back

Balancing running, rehab, and gym work

Runners tend to focus on the running itself, but strength training is what keeps the body resilient enough to handle it. In rehab, I focus on calf strength, hip control, single-leg stability, and overall lower-limb capacity which are often through exercises as simple as calf raises, glute bridges, step-ups, and single-leg balance work.

The goal isn't zero discomfort. It's building your body's tolerance to load in a controlled way. Sometimes that means easing off running while building strength in the gym; other times it means running slowly while keeping rehab work alongside it. It's rarely all-or-nothing.

Recovery isn't always linear

Small flare ups during rehab don't mean you're back to square one, they're usually just feedback that something needs a slight adjustment. The part of this work I enjoy most is watching someone regain confidence in their own movement: not just pain-free, but back to running without fear of what might happen next.

Staying healthy enough to keep running long term will always matter more than rushing back for one good week.

Common questions

How do I know when I'm ready to run again?

Pain settling isn't the signal on its own, your tissues need time to build tolerance for your old distance, speed, and frequency, even once it stops hurting.

Does a flare up mean I've made things worse?

Not usually. It's more often a sign the current load is a touch more than your body can handle today, not always evidence of new damage.

What should I do when symptoms come back?

Adjust, don't panic; cut distance, slow the pace, add a recovery day, or scale back the gym. Stopping everything completely rarely helps in the long run.

How quickly can I build my running back up?

One variable at a time; distance, speed, or frequency, and judge your response over the next 24 hours, not just how the run felt in the moment.

Do I need to keep doing strength work once the pain is gone?

Yes. It's what keeps you resilient enough to stay injury-free, not just what got you back running in the first place.

Should I be aiming to run completely pain-free?

Not necessarily, the aim is building tolerance in a controlled way, and accepting that the process won't always be a straight line.

If you're working back from a running injury and want a plan built around where you are now, not where you used to be, book an assessment at our Elsternwick clinic.