What happens if i run a mile everyday

The goal took me places I never thought to run before. I once ran in circles in parking garages at least 18 times. I once paid for a one-month membership at a gym in Atlanta while traveling for business.

I was only there three days, but the hotel gym was being remodeled, and it was the only option I had in cold, rainy Atlanta. I once ran in jeans. The TSA staff looked at me with indifference as I passed them for the fifth time in ten minutes. I was able to run in some of the most beautiful places and cities on Earth. Kitts and Nevis, and Reykjavik among others. Along the way, as I mentioned above, some folks continued to say, a mile is no big deal.

Many days, I put in a lot more than a mile—some days, however, I just put in the minimum. No matter how far I ran, as long as I hit that one mile mark, I met my goal. I'll admit, sometimes committing was hard. Some days I was tired, maybe I met a friend for drinks and now I don't feel like it, I had a cold , I have work, and all that nonsense.

But as I told myself in the beginning, either commit or don't—and I was committing. I learned in this journey that commitment is all about consistency. Most of it is not very sexy—simply me, alone on the streets where I live, or on a treadmill watching the same reruns of SportsCenter and Seinfeld. I completed my day commitment on January 1, with a 5K run on the beach at Kiawah Island just outside of Charleston, South Carolina.

My family was there with me, and my wife ran one mile of the 5K with me. My wife supported me the entire time, always giving me the freedom to reach my goal, even if that meant more work for her. The greatest impact of this commitment was to challenge myself to consider where else I could commit.

I was reinvigorated at work with my team , and I committed to be more present with my kids and wife. Not so much.

Before you vow to lace up your running shoes seven days a week, consider this: "If you don't run regularly and begin running every day, the steep increase in stress and impact puts pressure on your joints and ligaments. This could lead to potential injury," Kennedy says. So, if you don't have a current running routine , start with just one day of running per week and work yourself up to every day over the course of several weeks, she recommends.

Still, though, "running daily is not for everyone, just like power lifting every day isn't advisable," Kennedy says. So don't feel like if you haven't tried running a mile a day that you're missing out. There are plenty of other ways to reap similar benefits. One of the biggest things to keep in mind is that, while you can totally build a tolerance to daily runs, switching up how you move from day to day can keep you feeling fresh, both in body and in mind. Kennedy says her go-to way of incorporating a one-mile run into daily exercise is as a finisher.

Whatever gas you've got left in the tank, burn through it in that mile. Or, if you take your daily mile at an easier pace, it works well as a warm-up, too. The bottom line: Running a mile a day can support your overall fitness and cardiovascular health, but don't expect it to build major muscle or eliminate the need for other types of exercise. Weight Loss. A review of dozens of scientific trials found that "exercise is moderately more effective than a control intervention for reducing symptoms of depression.

She points out that moderate aerobic exercise has been shown to increase the amount of deep sleep an individual experiences, and helps to "stabilize your mood and decompress your mind," allowing for more restful sleep.

This is true of those who take part in moderate amounts of exercise—Gamaldo says just 30 minutes of aerobic exercise may be needed to see benefits at bedtime. She points to a study that found running for 20 minutes a day improved sleep quality and decreased the amount of time people spent awake after they initially fell asleep.

This one might also surprise you, especially if you've heard that running can be tough on your knees. But according to Todd Buckingham, exercise physiologist at the Mary Free Bed Sports Rehabilitation Performance Lab , the assertion that running is bad for your joints "is a complete myth.

In fact, runners have healthier knees than non-runners," he says. Two years before, the European Journal of Applied Physiology published findings that running appears to improve the biochemical environment of the knees, decreasing the protein cytokine that causes inflammation that has been connected to degenerative joint disease.

So, you must be smart about your running," adds Buckingham. You can think of your capacity to perform aerobic activity like any other skill — the more you practice, the better you'll get. The main thing to remember: If you put in the work, your endurance can greatly improve via Runners World.

From a physiological standpoint, your body's ability to intake and utilize oxygen will become more efficient. This is called your VO2 Max. As your body becomes more efficient at transporting oxygen, your ability to go farther for longer and with less effort increases, Healthline detailed.

Even if you decide that long-distance running isn't your jam, these fitness benefits are still within your reach. You can still challenge your system into adapting over one mile! By increasing your pace or sprinting up hills, your body will have no choice but to adapt. If you implement a new running routine of 1 mile per day for a whole year, your heart and lungs will be working more efficiently by the end of the year.

We'd say this happens whether you want it to or not, but it's hard to think of a reason why anyone would want to have less functional hearts and lungs! Nearly all forms of physical activity boost your mental health.

When you take the time to get sweaty every day, your body reacts by producing endorphins and serotonin via WebMD. Both of these brain chemicals lead to feelings of well-being. But that's not all! Running can also help reduce stress and anxiety because it triggers the release of endocannabinoids. This biochemical substance is not all that unlike cannabis. When it floods your bloodstream, it can lead to short-term feelings of calmness, explained WebMD.

Consistent running has also been proven to increase the quality of your sleep. Other brain chemicals that are released after a run encourage your body into a deeper sleep.

Deep, consistent, and restful sleep has been proven to increase your mental health. It's also super important for supporting brain function! WebMD also revealed that running outside can reduce your feelings of loneliness and isolation. As we get older, we start to lose bone density. This is especially true for women via Johns Hopkins.

Thankfully, running is one weight-bearing aerobic exercise to help slow the loss of bone minerals. Runners World reiterates what exercise physiologists know to be true: There are a few ways to increase your bone health. One of the best ways to increase the strength of your bones is to engage in quick, jarring movements. These types of movements stress your bones, which encourages them to get stronger, just like your muscles!

It is important not to overdo high-impact movements, making running a mile every day a great choice via Runners World. The other main way to increase bone density is to engage in weight-bearing resistance training.

A combination of one mile per day and some resistance training can help keep your bones nice and strong. A strong ticker is the foundation of a long and healthy life.