How far you should be able to run, according to your age

In 2025, National Quitters Day is January 10. Every year, the second Friday in January marks the day when many people give up on their New Year Resolutions. So, if this year you decided to take up running, and are still going, well done for not giving up. If you have quit, there's always tomorrow to try again. But if you’ve decided to become healthier, you may already have a goal in mind – but exactly how long should you be able to run for, according to your age? (Picture: Getty)

There is a lot of information out there telling you to run X amount of miles in Y amount of time. However, let's keep things to what science knows. The scientific tool known as The Cooper Test is designed to measure how much oxygen your body uses while exercising, known as the VO2 max in a 12 minute run. Basically, the higher your VO2 max is, the more efficiently your heart is pushing blood out to your organs and tissues. And this suggests that the organ is healthy (Picture: Getty)

You don’t have to go outside to try the Cooper Test, as it can also be done on a treadmill. The idea is to walk, run or jog as quickly as you can for 12 minutes without stopping. And then by measuring how many meters you’ve covered – through using a running app or running track - you can see what level you are at for your age. And the best bit is it only takes 12 minutes to get a result (Picture: Getty)

Ages 20-29

For women aged between 20-29, the distance covered in 12 minutes should be between 1.8km to 2.2km - a distance defined as average by fitness website Very Well Fit. For men,it's 2.2km to 2.4km. A result considered 'excellent' for women would be covering over 2.7km, and for men it would be going beyond 2.8km. A poor performance at this age would be under 1.5km for women and under 1.6km for men (Picture: Getty)

Ages 30-39

For men in their 30s, the distance they should be able to cover is 1.9km to 2.3km – which is over a mile. For women, the distance they should be able to cover is 1.7km to 2km. An excellent result is over 2.7km for men, and over 2.5km for women. A poor result is under 1.5km for men and under 1.4km for women (Picture: Getty)

Ages 40-49

For women in their 40s, they should be able to cover 1.5km to 1.9km on average, whereas men should be able to cover 1.7km to 2.1km. Excellent performance for this age range is over 2.3km for women and over 2.5km for men. A poor result is considered under 1.2km for women and under 1.4km for men (Picture: Getty)

Age 50

Men who are aged 50 should be able to cover on average 1.6km to 2km. For women, this average is 1.4km to 1.7km. An excellent distance for this age range would be over 2.4km for men and over 2.2km for women. A poor distance is under 1.3km for men and under 1.1km for women (Picture: Getty)