Thirty six days ago, I had just come home from an amazing Memorial Day run. I had pushed myself harder than I had in months and it was great weather. I had some coffee and scrolled through Twitter where folks were mentioning this Runner's World Run Streak. I had never heard of it before but it explained that it was 36 consecutive days of running from Memorial Day to the 4th of July.
Still on my runner's high, I said "I'll do it!" to no one in the room. And off I set on my first ever #RWRunStreak adventure, vowing to run at least a mile every day. I rationalized to my husband that I walk at least that far with the dog pretty much every morning, so I'll just throw on my running shoes and make it a run. Every time I mentioned what I was doing to people they said "why? I mean...whats it for?" and my answer was always "for me!" Look, I don't run to impress anyone, I just do it for me. And despite the very long time it took me to get back into running after the half marathon, those days during training I felt unstoppable and strong. Its hard to explain how running feels to me when I'm really into it and I did miss it for a while. I knew this was going to be just what a I needed!
If you've been following along with me, you know I've had my tough days and good days. But all in all, it really pushed me to keep going even on the days that I really wanted to skip. Any runner knows that going beyond that mental fight is half the battle.
The last time I posted an update was on Friday, so here's how I did on the last 3 days of the streak.
Saturday, July 2
Day 34/36: 1.02 miles
It seems as though the tides are shifting in my house on the weekends because I've been able to sleep in a little while my husband wakes up with the kids. Its been really nice! However, this morning I had breakfast plans with my mom and woke up about an hour before I needed to leave the house. I almost used this as an excuse to skip the run completely but I thought, I've come this far, I need to squeeze one in. So we laced up and did our loop around the college. It was nice, great weather. I didn't have time for strength training afterwards but the run made up for the sticky buns my mom and I had. :)
Sunday, July 3
Day 35/36: 2.5 miles
I was pleasantly surprised with myself this morning! I hung out to watch fireworks the night before with my sister and her fiance and of course we grilled cheeseburgers, corn on the cobb, chips, pasta salad..the works. I had a heavy stomach going to bed and I thought for sure I would be sluggish again the next morning. But, once again, I was able to sleep in a bit. I woke up about 8 a.m. and once I had my orange juice, we were on our way. It was a nice easy run and I felt well enough to head back out without my buddy. I went for my longer distance AND and I'm finally getting my momentum up for not stopping at all during my runs. YES! I finished up with some strength training exercises. I felt great.
Monday, July 4
Day 36/36: 1.02 miles
Well, I had all of these visions for how this last day would go. I pictured myself like Rocky when he runs up all those museum steps and throws his fists in the air and is bouncing around in glory. Buuut, no. I got my period during the night and just woke up with crazy cramps. WAAAHHH. We made it out but barely. I was very disappointed with how this ended and I was texting my friend about it and she said "You just ran 36 days in a row!". Well, why didn't I look at it that way? I was so hard on myself for not feeling good, which is something I didn't even have control over, that I couldn't even feel accomplished afterwards. But she's right! I did it! It's so done!
How It Helped
Overall, this is just what I needed to get back into a running schedule. There was a point a couple of months ago that I thought I would never run again. I know that sounds dramatic but I had nothing in me after the half marathon. And then once you've been off from running for a while it sucks when you're getting back into it. I felt like I knew what I wanted to do but I just needed to mentally get there and this challenge was something I could focus on. It made me bring back running as part of my morning routine. There's no better accomplishment, to me, than knocking out a workout first thing in the morning. I'm really happy to be where I am with running.
It also made me focus on other things besides running. It really helps me make sure I'm eating better and that was something I was lacking as well. I also started to want to tone my arms and abs a little better and have tried out different ways to incorporate those moves onto the end of my runs.
So Now What?
I'm back, baby. Back into craving going for a run and needing to be on a workout schedule. However, I'm definitely not going to be running everyday. For now, I've decided on a little schedule that works for me and I'll adjust accordingly as I try and up my miles.
Monday: Rest day/ walk with Remus
Tuesday: Easy run with Remus & strength train
Wednesday: Walk with Remus & strength train
Thursday: Easy run with Remus & strength train
Friday: Rest day/walk with Remus
Saturday: Long run & strength train (for now, until the runs gets longer)
Sunday: Walk with Remus & Bike ride with my husband
That's what I'm looking at for my weeks! I want to be able to run 6 miles for my long runs by the end of the summer which I think is an attainable goal. I've been up to 2.5 miles lately and now that I'm not running everyday, I can easily up that a little each week. I think Remus will be happy with this as well.
There is a holiday running streak from Thanksgiving to New Year's Day that I may try at the end of the year. But I don't know, its harder for me to run with the days being so short in the winter and I haaaattteee treadmills. So we'll see. I'll definitely be doing this next summer, though!
Thanks for your encouragement and support!
Til next time
xoxo
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