Buzzapp Master 
The week of workouts below is for SELF’s Learn to Love Running Program, our brand-new, beginner-friendly plan that will get you running 30 minutes nonstop! Here’s what you need to know to get started.
Welcome to Week 9—two months down, just one more to go! Give yourself a huge high five for what you’ve done so far. You’ve crushed eight solid weeks of running, capped off with those two huge 10-minute efforts last week.
Now that you’re in the final month of the program, let’s take a look at just how far you’ve come. In the second week—the first to include both walking and running—you walked for almost 55 minutes and ran for just over 15. At the halfway point, your weekly split became dead even: 35 minutes walking, 35 running. Then by last week, you walked for 22 minutes and ran for a whopping 48!
You might also notice that your runs are starting to click and feel ever-so-slightly easier, making it possible to get closer to that effort level of 3 rather than 4 on a scale of 1 to 10. Usually, it’s around the three-month mark that I see this shift in people—everything becomes a little more natural as your habit sinks in and your true runner identity begins to emerge.
With all that in mind, enjoy this cutback week, the last one of the program before you continue building up to the 30-minute run. You’re also starting a new strength workout this week—the final one of the three-part progression.
Week 9 at a Glance:After your big run last week, today’s intervals should feel super chill—2 minutes of walking, 3 minutes of running. Challenge yourself to really keep your effort level at a 3 out of 10 when you’re running—it should feel much more natural to do so now than at the beginning of the program.
We’ve said it before and we’ll say it again: Pace isn’t at all a goal of this program. But if you’re using an app or watch that tracks it, consider peeking at your pace for this run/walk, just to compare it to your first walk/run of the program. Even considering the different lengths of intervals, chances are your speed at an easy effort level has picked up a bit. That—in addition to the length of your intervals and your ability to finish strong—is another sign of your improving fitness.
Monday: Run/Walk Intervals
5-minute warm-upWalk 2 minutes, run 3 minutes (repeat 4 times)5-to-10-minute cooldownTotal time: 30–35 minutes(back to top)
Tuesday: Active Recovery (Optional) or Rest
Time for a rest day—or, if you prefer, an active recovery day. Again, it’s choose-your-own-adventure here with one of our four routines. All of them are great, but if your hips have been feeling a little extra tight, might we recommend Routine 2? The 90/90 with overhead reach stretch will make those muscles along the sides of your hips and core feel oh so supple!
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Wednesday: Strength Training
Another lifting day! Today, you’ll move on to the final routine of our three-step progression. You’ll notice that the movements steer even more toward the single-leg—hello, single-leg deadlift and single-leg hop!—and others add a degree of difficulty. For example, the bird dog row and Copenhagen plank rank as advanced movements. But you’ve built up and are ready for them!
Remember, you might have to go down in weight or experiment until you find the dumbbell that’s exactly right for each move. Your goal, again, is to finish each set as if you could do just 1 to 3 more reps (1 to 3 reps in reserve, or RIR).
If you find any of the movements too challenging, it’s okay to go back to one from the previous routine. But we encourage you to give them a shot, even if you’re not totally sure if you’re ready. Stepping outside your comfort zone can help you grow—and if it means you can’t quite complete the full 8 reps, start where you are and build up from there!
Wednesday: Strength Training Workout
What you need: A pair of dumbbells, a bench or step, and a mat for comfort. If you have a weight plate to elevate your foot for the calf raise, that’s great, but you can also use a low step, bench, or even a sturdy hardcover book.
Directions:
Do 8 reps on each side for your first exercise. (For moves by time, follow the time allotted in the description) Rest 2–3 minutes. Repeat for 3 times total.Continue on to your next exercise and repeat until you’ve completed the first 5 moves.Do 10–20 reps of the assisted single-leg pogo hops on each side. Rest 2–3 minutes. Repeat for 3–4 times total.Exercises:
Single-Leg DeadliftStep-UpsBird Dog RowIsometric Calf RaiseCopenhagen PlankAssisted Single-Leg HopSingle-Leg Deadlift
Katie Thompson
Stand with your feet together, holding a dumbbell in each hand in front of your legs. This is the starting position.Shift your weight to one leg, and while keeping a slight bend in that knee, raise your other leg straight behind your body, hinging at the hips to bring your torso parallel to the floor, and lower the weight toward the floor.Keep your back flat. At the bottom of the movement, your torso and raised leg should be almost parallel to the floor, with the weight a few inches off the ground. (If your hamstrings are tight, you may not be able to lift your leg as high.)Keeping your core tight, push through your heel to stand up straight and pull the weight back up to the starting position. Bring your raised leg back down to meet your left, but try to keep the majority of the weight on your planted foot.Pause there and squeeze your butt. That’s 1 rep. Complete all your reps on one side, then switch sides.If you’re extra wobbly, you can hold a dumbbell in one hand and lightly touch a wall or other sturdy object for support, or you can try the kickstand deadlift from Weeks 5–8 until you get more comfortable with the move.
Step-Ups
Katie Thompson
Stand in front of a sturdy bench, box, or step, hands at your sides and feet hip-width apart.Step onto your surface with your left foot, then follow with your right foot. Pause for a moment when both feet are on top of the box, hip-width apart.With control, return your right foot to the floor, then step your left foot to the floor to return to your starting position. This is 1 rep. Complete all your reps on one side, then switch sides.This move works your quads and your glutes.
Bird Dog Row
Katie Thompson
Get into tabletop position on a bench. Make sure your shoulders, elbows, and wrists are stacked in a straight line and that your knees are in line with your hips.Hold a dumbbell in your left hand at arm’s length so it hangs slightly below the bench. Extend your right leg back, while maintaining a flat back. Think about driving your foot toward the wall behind you to incorporate more tension in the glutes. This is the starting position.Keeping your body as stable as possible, retract your shoulder blade as you pull the dumbbell toward your ribs to do a row. Hold briefly at the top of the movement (your elbow should be past your ribs; if you’re not able to pull it that far, then the weight may be too heavy).Slowly lower the weight by extending your arm toward the floor. That’s 1 rep.Continue to do all of the reps on the same side, then repeat on the other side.The bird-dog row works your back and biceps, as well as provides a core challenge as your abs fight to stay stable. If you don’t have access to a bench, you could do the bent-over row from Weeks 5–9 instead.
Isometric Calf Raise
Katie Thompson
Place the toes of one foot on a step, weight plate, or other slightly raised surface; your heel will hang off the back of it. Grab a dumbbell in the hand on that same side and hold onto the back of a chair, a wall, or other sturdy surface with your other hand for balance. Bend the knee of the other leg so your heel points to the ceiling.Push through the toes to do a calf raise; you’ll be standing on the ball of that foot.Hold for 20–30 seconds, then repeat on the other side.This isometric exercise hones in on the calf muscles in your lower leg, which help power you through your miles.
Copenhagen Plank
Katie Thompson
Start in a forearm side plank by propping your body up on your right forearm, with your elbow stacked underneath your shoulder and your hand in front of your body. You can place your other hand on your hip or raise it in the air, whichever is more comfortable.Place your left leg on top of a bench, chair, or other stable surface. Hover your right leg slightly underneath.Hold 20–30 seconds, then repeat on the other side.If you find this move too challenging, repeat the side plank from Weeks 1–4 instead. To progress it a bit more, you can add an abduction: Instead of keeping both legs stacked and extended, you can raise your top leg in the air and hold.
Assisted Single-Leg Hop
Katie Thompson
Stand in front of a sturdy chair, box, or step. Place one foot on the raised surface, knee bent 90 degrees. Keep your other foot on the floor.Hop straight up and down with the foot that is on the floor. Aim to land on the ball of your foot and then jump back up again as quickly as possible.Do 10 to 20 reps, then repeat on the other side.This progression of the plyometric hop helps train power, explosiveness, agility, and balance.
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Today’s run/walk is the same as your previous one. Warm up for five minutes with one of our two routines (your pick—although if you’re like us, you might have a favorite already). Then walk 2 minutes before running 3. Repeat 4 times, cool down, and you’re set.
As you move into the final block of the program, do a quick sneaker check. Are your shoes causing any blisters, pinching, or pain in your feet? Comfort is key when it comes to finding the kicks that work best for your running—but sometimes it can take some trial and error to figure out which brand and model truly feels best. If you’re having any issues, you can visit your local running shoe store and try on a few new pairs to find one that best suits you.
Thursday: Run/Walk Intervals
5-minute warm-upWalk 2 minutes, run 3 minutes (repeat 4 times)5-to-10-minute cooldownTotal time: 30–35 minutes(back to top)
Take a load off today—it’s time for a rest! A factor that has a huge influence on your recovery is sleep. This far into your running program, you might find that you’re snoozing more soundly than before—exercise has been shown to improve both sleep quantity and quality. If you still find yourself tossing and turning? Try something tonight that’s super-soothing. Steal one of our editors’ evening routines—mocktail and a face mask, anyone?—and then spritz one of these soothing sleep sprays on your pillow before lights-out.
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Today’s longer effort will likely feel like a breeze after last week’s 10-minute running blocks. After your warm-up, you’ll move through 2 minutes of walking, then 4 minutes of running, 5 times through.
Like we mentioned above, a cutback week is a great opportunity to think about just how far you’ve come. Remember that, in Week 2, your run intervals during the longer effort were 90 seconds. Now, you’re cruising through four minutes at a stretch as if it’s nothing. Give yourself huge kudos for that!
Saturday: Long Run/Walk Intervals
5-minute warm-upWalk 2 minutes, run 4 minutes (repeat 5 times)5-to-10-minute cooldownTotal time: 40–45 minutes(back to top)
It’s time for R&R—rest and reflection. On the final recovery day of your last cutback week, pull out your training plan, calendar, or training app, and check out the workouts you’ve already completed.
At this point, your series of successes is significant. And even the runs (or lifts) that didn’t go great—where you huffed and puffed, or had to walk more than you planned, or just weren’t feeling it—still served you. You proved that you could show up when the going got tough and make it through to the other side. Still think you’re not a runner? We hope you’re starting to believe otherwise!
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Photography: Katie Thompson. Wardrobe styling: Kathleen Thomas. Hair: Walton Nunez. Makeup: Miranda Richards.
Athletes in order of appearance: Morit Summers, a Brooklyn-based trainer and the owner of body-positive gym, Form Fitness Brooklyn, wears: Lululemon top and leggings, Aerie sports bra, and Nike sneakers; Ameerah Omar, city captain and mindset coach for Adidas Runners NYC, wears: Alo sports bra and leggings, Nike socks, and Hoka sneakers; Laura Girard, a NASM-certified personal trainer and founder of The Energy Academy, wears: Alo jacket, sports bra, shorts, and sneakers, and Comme si socks.
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