Have you ever looked at your schedule and thought, “I only have 20 minutes, so it’s not even worth running”? I get it. As runners, we can easily fall into the trap of believing that a run only counts if it’s long enough, fast enough, or fits perfectly into our training plan. But in this episode, Kevin and I are kicking off a new series where we bust some of those common running myths, starting with the idea that short runs aren't worth it.

I actually got a real-life reminder of this when a few short 20-minute run/walks with our rescue dog, Jasper, ended up having more of an impact on my training than I expected. It made me think about how often we dismiss the training we can do because it doesn't look like the training we think we should be doing. We talk about the mindset traps behind this, including all-or-nothing thinking, comparison, productivity, and even the hassle of showering and doing more laundry.

We also dig into what the research tells us about maintaining fitness when you have less time to train. The goal isn't to turn every short run into a hard effort. It's to understand that shorter runs can still provide a meaningful stimulus, and sometimes a little running is much more valuable than skipping it altogether.

01:37 – Why We’re Busting Running Myths

02:28 – Are Short Runs Actually Worth It?

03:56 – My Short Runs With Jasper

07:17 – What My Garmin Data Taught Me

10:00 – Why Running Isn’t the Same as Walking

13:23 – The All-or-Nothing Trap

16:54 – When Showering and Laundry Become the Barrier

18:12 – Consistency Over Distance

19:45 – Can Long Runs Increase Injury Risk?

20:59 – What the Research Actually Says

23:19 – What the Hickson Study Says About Frequency

25:39 – What Happens When You Reduce Duration?

26:56 – Why Intensity Still Matters

30:00 – How to Add Intensity When Time Is Short

31:04 – Short Runs Still Count

32:12 – The Jasper Principle

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