Beach Running Tips: The Ultimate Calorie Blasting Workout

Vacation often means, sun, sand and a few too many hours relaxing near a table of drinks and eats. But of course you’re a runner and you’ve seen some many photos of people beach running…it looks fun.

It is fun and seriously hard!

Easy is just about the only way to go when you hit the beach for a longer run. According to an article in Experimental Biology “running on sand requires 1.6 times more energy expenditure than does running on a hard surface”.

In layman’s terms that means it is harder and burns more calories!

Who doesn’t want their run to burn a few more calories, especially while on vacation?! But of course all that extra effort means we need to know a few things to prevent injury and serious muscle soreness.

Is running on the beach bad for you?

No. I know I just mentioned all the ways in which it’s harder on your body, but beach runs are a great way to build leg strength and improve your runs when you use it correctly as part of training.

Running on the sand can make you faster as well! Below I’ll provide some workouts and ideas to maximize the benefits.

Beach Running Tips

No one wants to come back from vacation injured, so take a few minutes to recognize that this is a DIFFERENT run and you may need to make adjustments.

• Hard packed sand is going to be more like normal, but you’ll still be working extra stabilizer muscles
• Soft sand forces all kinds of muscles you never use to get activated, these will get sore if you over do it
• Sand is going to clear skin off your feet, which can actually make them tender in your shoes later
• It could be hotter and the sun is reflecting off the water, so recognize your body is working harder

People frequently asked me about beach running during our time in Miami, so here are a few reason to hit the beach for a run and a few tips to make it more enjoyable.

“Another benefit is it forces you to run on feel so you’re not relying on a watch or obsessing about particular paces.” says Benita Williams a 2014 World Champion

Beach Running Benefits

• The view <<obvious right?!
• It’s like running with ankle weights
• Building strength in small unused muscles
• It’s a strength workout, which leads to more leg power
• Increase strength in ankles for those who have ankle pain while running
• Chance to improve your stride (you tend to do less overstriding)
• Reduces impact stress of running on joints
• Faster running later!
• Free post run bath – the salt and cold are perfect for recovery!

“There’s more drag on your feet as you’re doing that training, so when you’re in an environment where there’s not that drag, your legs will not fatigue as easily, ” according to Dr. R. Amadeus Mason, a team physician for USA Track and Field.

Should you run in a swimsuit?

The first question is should you try for the Baywatch look running barefoot in your swimsuit? Or play it safe by sticking to your regular gear?

• Triathletes run in their swimsuits, so it’s certainly not an issue if you have enough support.
• I prefer running in my gear and then just dunking in the water wearing full gear after.
• Keep a change of clothes in the car and voila, dry again.
• Here’s my favorite summer running gear (including the sunscreen you need!)

If you’ve been curious to test out barefoot running, the beach is one of the best places to do it.

The surface is soft, you can take it easy by enjoying the view, and with the right surface there is nothing to puncture your foot. Plus you get to avoid that whole weird sand in my running shoe feel!

However if you’re doing a longer run, start with your shoes and only do the last 15-20 minutes without shoes to ensure you don’t overtax new muscles. Even in your shoes the sand will require an additional amount of stability from your core to your knees to your ankles.

Should You Do Long Runs on The Beach?

Just as those who are transitioning to barefoot running are cautioned not to over do it, the same can be said for beach running.

If you’re lucky enough to find a hard packed beach you can do a fairly long run without any extreme soreness the following day. However, the loose sand will work small muscles in your knees and ankles that are often unneeded in road running.

Do we want to use those muscles? Yes.
Do we want to be so sore you risk injury? No.

For a loose sand run where you’ve not spent much time running on trails, keep it short and easy.

Beach Running Workouts

Deciding what type of beach workout you want will impact how you use the sand.

Recovery Run
If you’re looking for a recovery run, then plan to go at a pace slower than normal focusing on just stabilizing your body in the uneven surface.

• Keep the pace easy
• Think about landing with your feet under you
• Think about engaging your core
• Think about landing soft and allowing your feet to move with the sand

Interval Workouts
If you’re looking for a more intense session, stay away from focusing on speed and instead use the softer sand as a resistance workout. Just like running hills this will build more power in your legs.

Start with an easy run off the beach and then try one of these in loose sand:

• 5 x 30 second hard efforts with up to 2 minutes walk in between
• 7 x 1  minute half marathon effort with up to 2 minutes walk in between
• 20 minutes at marathon effort
• Mix it up doing push ups, sprints, jump squats, tricep dips, etc

Running Drills
It’s also the perfect time to throw in running drills like skips and jumps because it will cushion your landing and force you to contract your abs for stabilization.

Heading to the #beach for vacation? Checkout these beach running tips! Click To Tweet

Buddy up to your beach

A few extra minutes of scoping out the area can make big difference in your workout. It will help you decide on shoes, route and added opportunities for working out.

Tide: Checkout the tides in advance to find out when low tide arrives because that will provide you with the best hard packed surface for running.

Slope: Additionally it may provide more of a flat area to run on as opposed to a slanted run which just like a slanted road can aggravate injuries.

Shells: If a quick walk of the beach shows lots of shells or rough surfaces, it may answer the barefoot question for you!

Wind: If you hit the beach on strong wind day like we did remember to start running IN to the wind. It’s going to slow you down adding more resistance {strength training} to your workout. You want to do this when you have the most energy, so that wind can help propel you on the way back!

Waves: Create a little interval workout by dashing down to the water and then getting out before the waves come back!

Of course beach running also usually means you’ll be tacking some HUMIDITY on to the run, so checkout these tips for running straight through hot summer runs.

And of course while I want you to get your run on…it is vacation and we all need to learn to relax without the guilt!

Are you a beach runner???

What’s your best ever beach run?  My most memorable beach run will always be the morning of our wedding!

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