Everything You Need to Start Trail Running

The Expert: A competitive trail runner since 1994 and co-owner of the trail running tour company Adventure Running Co., Andy Holak has been running trails for nearly three decades. Through their company, Andy and his wife, Kim, help runners of all abilities venture out onto trails confidently and enthusiastically.

So, you’d like to take your running off-road and onto the trails? It’s a lot less complicated and intimidating than you might think. Although trail running is natural and intuitive—it’s something humans have been doing for millennia—there are tips and tricks to help make it easier to start.

Trail running is simply running on any unpaved surface, and it combines the physical act of running with the enjoyment of your natural surroundings. As a former road runner, I was drawn to trails nearly 30 years ago because while I really liked to run, I liked getting out in the woods and enjoying nature’s beauty just as much. When you’re running trails, you’re forced to be agile. Navigating around and bouncing past rocks and roots is less repetitive than road running, but you still get in a great workout.

If you’re new to the sport, find yourself a pair of trail shoes that fit your feet and match your anticipated conditions (for a few recommendations from our gear team, check out the 2022 RW Shoe Awards). I began trail running before there were trail running–specific shoes, and lacing up my highly cushioned road shoes often resulted in a sprained ankle. When I finally found a good pair of low-profile trail shoes with less cushion, allowing me to feel the ground, I found my stride and flew down the trails with abandon. Trail-running shoes have larger lugs for improved grip, toe bumpers for when you inevitably kick a rock, and sometimes a rock plate to protect against sharp pokes underfoot. It’s important to find a shoe that can lock your foot into place with a solid lacing system or grippier footbed. This increases your agility while keeping your toes from smashing into the front of your shoe on downhills.

More Trail Running Advice: Prepare Your Body and Mind for Your First Trail Race • Ask The Gear Team: Should I Upgrade My Trail Shoes? • A Runner’s Guide to Animal Encounters

Ankle stability is also crucial for increasing agility. Although you can’t strengthen your ankles (there aren’t muscles in them), you can improve proprioception. Proprioception is basically the signal your nerves send to your brain that your ankle is turning or unstable on uneven terrain. I’ve used balancing exercises like single-​leg squats (try them with your eyes closed) to help improve my proprioception. This can help you reduce ankle sprains, as well as run with speed, stability, and confidence in rough terrain.

Trails don’t have to be steep and rugged; they can be as simple as the dirt path in your local park. In fact, that local park is a great place to start. Practice picking up your feet a bit more to avoid ground obstacles. I generally think of it as lifting my heel toward my butt in rougher terrain while striding forward. Although it might feel different at first, with time, you won’t be thinking about it all. And be prepared to walk more. I tell myself when trail running or racing, “Walk where you have to and run when you can.” This might mean walking steep uphills and really technical sections, where a strong power-walking stride can be more efficient than running, and then running where the trail flattens out or tips downhill.

Most importantly, take time to enjoy the views. Whenever I get tired, focusing on the scenery is a welcome reminder that there’s likely not a better place I could be at that moment than on a trail enjoying a run.

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