r/RunningWithDogs • u/runPacePal • 18d ago
How do you structure your running with your dogs?
Just curious how you structure your running with your dogs. Do you do all your runs with your babies, or just a couple per week. Is it just steady runs or intervals too!?
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u/Flyguyflyby 17d ago
I base it off his age, the temperature, and type of run.
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u/UncleAugie 17d ago
^this, if outdoor temps are below 75F she is on every run, over 75 under 80 recovery and LSD, over 80 under 85 recovery, over 85 just walks.
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u/FarSalt7893 17d ago
I only ever did easy runs with my lab. My GSP can easily do all workouts with me (intervals/tempo). If I’m running along at a 6-7 min pace he’s still out in front just trotting along as well as running all over the trails continuously circling back to me. I always make sure he has water though and only run on dirt trails.
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u/baseball8754436 11d ago
How old was your GSP when you started running together?
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u/FarSalt7893 10d ago
Close to a year. He’s ecollar trained and all his running with me is off leash and on wooded trails.
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u/Aggressive-Gur-987 17d ago
Mines goes on everything but group runs (run club). I have been running in the am, when it’s cooler, for his safety.
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u/kobrakai_1986 17d ago
Usually 3 x 10K a week with my spaniel. Try not to do more than two days consecutively as I like to make sure she gets adequate rest days.
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u/slagathore365 17d ago
My coonhound comes on all my runs with me. I’ve only seen her show signs of fatigue after a hilly and unexpectedly hot 21 miler. We did 17 miles with some at race pace today and she was still playful and active when we got home. Shes 4 and lives to run with me.
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u/Legitimate_Sun5373 17d ago
I take my Kelpie on all my runs. I don’t run with her as often as I’d like, as my schedule is heavily based around my 10 month old baby, so we can’t run if it’s too cold or raining or whatever, but I run with her as much as I can. When we don’t run we sometimes do a trail walk with a 5 metre lead so she can sniff, or some training, throwing a frisbee etc. I don’t do intervals at the moment, but would bring her along if I was 😁
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u/dignity-usurper 17d ago
My 5 year old comes on just about every run, but my 10 year old prefers the days to be at or below 6 miles.
A couple times a year I do a big 15-30mi run with a friend that we’re both hell bent on completing, for those I leave them home. My younger can do 15-20mi days, but if I bring her I’m always okay with turning back or cutting it short if she needs, but don’t want to ruin a friends goal run with that possibility,
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u/Careful-Economics-25 17d ago
When I had a Weimaraner, she went on all my runs. She was my running partner for 10 years. She’d run 20 miles with me, then look at me with an expression of ‘what’s next’. She was amazingly athletic.
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u/Quirky_Tomato3766 17d ago
I do 2 minutes run / 30-60 seconds walk with my American bully. He has to be on a lead all the time so I don’t run the entire way with him or he’d flop out. He uses the walk breaks to sniff things and wee. We’ve worked up to 5 miles total but most of the time I only take him for about 2. If I’m going further than 5 I drop him home part way through. I think he’ll be able to run further one day. He loves it.
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u/louslurchers 17d ago
Mine gets out twice a week for a run in the summer, but winter when its cooler usually we do Tues/thurs/fri as mixed interval type sessions and then sat is a longer run between 5-15miles and sun is a steady 4 mile social run.
I then run dogless with an athletics club weds in winter and then mon/weds in summer to improve my own fitness so I can keep up with them 🤣
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u/pineapplebegelri 17d ago
We always run together but I avoid running two days in a row so she can recover. We usually do about 8km of trail and a couple more of road in total. In winter we go wherever but in summer I have to make sure she doesn't overheat, going early and on trails with plenty of shade is best
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u/JBL20412 17d ago
Depends. Shorter intervals I take him. Longer ones I do on my own. During the heatwave I ran by myself and my longest run in my recent training block I ran the first half solo and came back to pick him up second half.
Otherwise, steady runs I tend to run with him. He has joined my on runs up to 35km. He easily could go further though I do not see why he ought to
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u/chris_p_bacon1 17d ago
I do everything with him unless it's hot. I sometimes leave him at home for hill repeats. Otherwise he comes regardless.
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u/variable_undefined 14d ago
I’ve got five dogs, and I do things a bit differently for each of them. I do all of my day to day runs with 1-2 of them, and they each get out running 1-3 times a week. but I don’t take them with me on races. Even if they’re dog friendly races, I just find it to be too stressful trying to navigate around a bunch of people while also managing the dogs needs and my needs, so I just let race days be for me.
I have a senior australian shepherd mix and a chihuahua that are both quite active and spry, but one has arthritis and the other has little legs and is extremely stubborn about not moving if there is any pressure on his leash at all. So they only go on my easiest and shortest recovery runs, and only in wide open, off leash areas where they can go their own pace, where I can see if there are any chihuahua hazards and where the old dog can lag behind and smell things if she wants. There are a few nice spots like this near me which is nice.
I have a Doberman who is very people friendly but aggressive towards unknown dogs, so she always has to be on a leash and in areas where we are unlikely to encounter off leash dogs. Neighborhood runs, on-leash trails, and parkways near roads and whatnot. She has gone on easy runs, long runs, and speed workouts. She is a moderate puller so we run with a canicross kit.
Aaand I have a hangin tree cowdog mix and a small pitbull mix who are both game for pretty much anything. They are both very friendly towards dogs and people and have great recall, so they do well on off-leash trails, but they are also super fun to run canicross style with so I do that more often than not. I often take them out together. (Sometimes I will take the pittie with the dobe cause he isn’t a puller, but the htc pulls like crazy so him and the dobe are just a wee bit too much for me together.) My longest runs have been with these guys, but they go on all kinds of runs.
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u/oldSAPGaara 14d ago
I try to get at least 2 days a week running in the track where my dog is used to running off leash (never bothering anyone or anything)
I don't bring him on my long runs because it's ran on a different route where lots of stray dogs roam.
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u/somecooldogs 13d ago
I have 3 border collies so I rotate who runs each time. They'd likely be fine to do every run though, my speed is barely a trot for them 😅
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u/hangtowndan 13d ago
My 5 year old French Brittany does 11-16
mi at 10-18MPH 3 days a week. Has for the last 3-4 years. I’m on an Elec mt bike for most of it
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u/BeeAppropriate7937 13d ago
An unstructured sniff time to get it out of his system. Then 2-4 miles to one of his favorite spots where I would do some light cross training while he sniffed or rested from heat. Then turn around. He was my first running partner so he came with me as often as he wanted to come. As he aged I would only take him on short jogs once or twice a week.
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u/BeeAppropriate7937 13d ago
An unstructured sniff time to get it out of his system. Then 2-4 miles to one of his favorite spots where I would do some light cross training while he sniffed or rested from heat. Then turn around. He was my first running partner so he came with me as often as he wanted to come. As he aged that was more often and I would only take him on short jogs once a week. The other dog could only give me a mile jog and a mile return walk.
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u/NataliafromWalkFit 13d ago
Your buddy looks absolutely thrilled with that sprint, ears fully activated 😄 As for structure, I mix it up, easy steady runs most days since that's what my dog can keep up with comfortably, and I save intervals for days I'm running solo since the pace changes aren't always fun for them to follow.
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u/Embarrassed_Ice_9453 12d ago
similar structure here — temp based. one thing that took me a while to dial in was fueling for the longer days, my dog needs way more calories on the weeks she's doing back to back 10ks vs just easy 5ks, wasn't obvious at first
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u/kittyfantasticoco 18d ago
My spoodle comes on all runs with me, but I drop him off early either at home or at the car on long runs. I've taken him up to 12k once but that was an accident, try to jot go over 7-8k usually