Own Lane

Starting to run is easy. Carrying on is not.

A plan that reschedules when you miss a day, and steps up or down depending on how it felt. No feed, no kudos, nobody watching.

Download on the App Store Free · iPhone and Apple Watch

iPhone and Apple Watch · No account · No server

01 The problem

1 in 4

finishes a beginner plan

2nd–5th

the week most people stop

Almost always for the same reason: a progression that was too aggressive, or an injury.

Own Lane is built around that problem.

02 How it works

01 What sets it apart

It asks how it felt

No tracking app does. Your watch measures what you did; this measures what it cost you.

If a session feels easy, the plan steps up sooner. If it flattens you, it drops a step. Progressing more slowly is still progressing.

Today screen: the day's session, the week and the goal

02 The plan

Your days, not the ones you're handed

You mark the days you can actually run and the plan is built on top of them. From walk-and-run all the way to 5K, 10K, a half or a full marathon.

Miss a session and it reschedules onto your next day, respecting the rest you need. The final week drops the volume so you arrive fresh at your goal.

Learn screen: articles with their evidence level

Plan screen: the goal, the weeks and the sessions

03 Every run

Every run, explained

GPS, route map, pace, kilometre splits and cadence.

And then, in plain words: whether you slowed at the end and by how much, whether that's normal, and what to do next time.

Run detail: route map, time, distance and heart rate

03 Your progress

What you actually remember

Not the averages or the totals: the first time you last ten minutes. And there is never anyone else on that screen.

Progress screen: minutes running per week — You against you

The milestones, which are what you actually remember: the first time you last ten minutes, your first 5K, your first full month without missing. There is never anyone else on that screen.

An image you actually want to show

Make a card of your run with the map and the numbers. It comes with a switch, on by default, that hides where you start and finish: sharing a route is publishing where you live.

Your shoes, counted

Add the pair you run in and the app counts the kilometres. It warns you when they pass 600, where almost any midsole already cushions less. Without inventing an expiry date nobody has proven.

The switch ships turned on

Sharing a route is publishing where you live. So hiding your start and finish is not an option you have to go looking for: it comes on by default.

600km

the kilometres at which almost any midsole already cushions less, and the app tells you

No feed
No kudos
No followers
No account
No server
No analytics
No ads
Nobody watching

04 No social network

Nobody is watching

No feed, no kudos, no followers. Nobody sees what you do unless you decide to share an image. It is built for people who train alone.

The app has no server. No account, no analytics and no tracking: it doesn't contain a single network call. Your runs never leave your phone.

Read the privacy policy

No account
No server
No analytics
Not one network call

05 Learn

What's proven, and what just gets repeated

Every article cites its sources.

See all

01 Solid evidence

Cadence: the one technique tweak with backing

Forget about how your foot lands. If you're going to change one thing about your technique, make it shorter, more frequent steps.

5 min read

02 Solid evidence

Coming back after time off

You lose less than you think and get it back sooner than you fear. What doesn't forgive is picking up where you left off.

5 min read

03 Solid evidence

The first weeks are the most dangerous

Beginners get injured at more than twice the rate of people who've been at it a while. And the rule everyone repeats to avoid it doesn't work.

6 min read

04 Solid evidence

Go slower than you think

The number one mistake beginners make isn't training too little: it's running too fast every day.

4 min read

05 Solid evidence

How long it actually takes to notice you're improving

In the first weeks you improve and can't see it. Knowing when it shows up stops you quitting just before.

4 min read

06 Solid evidence

Music is the only free trick that works

A little, but measured: you perform slightly better and it costs slightly less. With one condition.

3 min read

07 Solid evidence

Runner's knee: it hurts at the front, it gets fixed higher up

It's the most common injury when starting out, and what works best isn't done at the knee.

5 min read

08 Solid evidence

Running in the heat: drink when you're thirsty

The “drink before you're thirsty” rule has put people in hospital. Thirst works.

5 min read

09 Solid evidence

Two strength days a week

It's the single biggest thing you can do to reduce injury risk. And almost nobody taking up running does it.

5 min read

10 Reasonable

Rollers, ice and compression: what each one actually does

Almost everything sold as recovery improves how you feel. Whether it recovers you faster is a different question.

5 min read

11 Reasonable

Why you get a stitch and what to do when it comes

That stab in your side has a name, two out of three runners get it, and some things do work.

4 min read

12 Reasonable

Sleeping badly injures you more than training too much

It's the part of training you don't train, and the only one you can fix tonight.

4 min read

13 Reasonable

The pain traffic light: when to stop and when to carry on

“If it hurts, stop” rules out half of rehab. There's a better rule, and it comes from a trial.

5 min read

14 Unsupported belief

Running fasted doesn't burn more fat overall

You burn more fat during that hour. By the end of the week, the scale hasn't noticed.

4 min read

15 Unsupported belief

Your first running shoes

They're going to run a gait analysis and recommend shoes based on how you pronate. The evidence that this prevents injuries is far weaker than it looks.

5 min read

16 Unsupported belief