#RWRunStreak {Numbers + Final Thoughts}

I'm in the back row, far left. Blue jacket. Black ninja hat.

At 10 a.m. New Year's Day, I met 20 like-minded folks. People who wanted to run. Many of them were kicking off 2015, others were clocking a training run for a spring marathon. Some were running for the first time as a community team member, some starting back from injury. All were beginning something.

For me, though, I was ending something. It was the last day of the #RWRunStreak. The miles I would log would mark 36 consecutive days of running. And, the next day, I would sleep in. I would shower at home. I would go to work with finished makeup and done hair.

I wasn't expecting much out of the run. My legs have felt tired for some time, and I have lacked some enthusiasm. The weather, though, better than last year seemed uncooperative. Mid-20s with comparable wind, bringing the real feel down to zero. And, I have had a good run this pregnancy but I am feeling slower.

But I ran. Five miles, some better than others, and enjoyed the company of those around me. I relished falling into pace with another the last mile, someone who wanted to walk every so often. It was welcome as the wind thwarted any efforts to keep up with those ahead. (My normal buddies were running 8 miles, not 5.)

When I got back to the store, it was a relief to be done — with the run and the streak. They were nice challenges, and I was glad to have gone on the run and taken them on. I liked the success. I liked putting it in my running log. I liked saying I did them.

And did them I had.

Here's how the #RWRunStreak shook out for me:

36: Number of runs
146.43: Number of miles covered
8: Number of early morning runs
10: Number of runs less than 2 miles
10.05 miles: Farthest run
1: Number of runs I did in my pajamas (Christmas morning)

Final thoughts:

• It was nice to have a challenge outside of a training plan. It felt like I had something to work toward, a goal to accomplish. It was also good motivation on days that I would have deemed unsuitable — like, say, New Year's and NYE when it was just frigid.

• I liked adding a fifth day of running, a shorter run of 3 or so miles. It was usually in the early morning, on Wednesdays. It's something I can see myself keeping it on the schedule.

• The streak reminded me that exercise doesn't take an hour, it doesn't have to, but you do need to work it in. I can easily take advantage of the time while Mark bathes Miles or as dinner is cleaned up.

• Before the streak, I thought running a mile was stupid. And, guess what? I still do. The only place that it seemed OK was doing a quick treadmill run before teaching barbell class. My hips are tight and squats can be challenging, and the mile warm-up helped get blood flowing to the joints.

15 Days In: Thoughts on the #RWRunStreak

I was tired. Grumpy, even. I moved with apathy and fatigue. Even the sight of my beloved BRF failed to bring a smile to my face. I blamed the weather. It was 21 degrees, real feel 10 degrees less than that. The day before had been in the 30s and on Tuesday night when I ran, it was nearly 40.

What the hell were we doing? What the hell was I doing?

"Do you even want to run today?" Tami asked jokingly as we greeted each other underneath the yellow glow of the parking lot lights.

"I have to run a mile for the streak at least," I said, shrugging my shoulders. "But, I mentally told myself 5."

And so we ran 5 miles — not because of the streak. We ran because we were there, awake (sort of) and dressed the part. We ran because it's what we do and a chance to chat child-free about whatever we think of. We ran because, let's be honest, after the polar vortex, 21 degrees with no snow is really not that bad.

Forty-eight minutes later, give or take a few seconds, I was done. I was happy. I was awake. And, by proxy, I had completed #RWRunStreak Day 15.

I'm a bit surprised — and not — that I've made it this far. I am not a quitter so once I say I'm doing something I do it but I'm busy. I work. I'm a mom. I am obsessed with the second season of "Vikings," which is now on Prime.

Sorry. I had to take a moment for that. I would recommend that you do the same.

OK. Back to the streak — and the point of this post. It's been 15 days and, though not life changing, it's been a bit interesting.

A few takeaways:

‣ Running every day isn't that  hard, at least physically. Thus far, I haven't felt as if I needed a complete rest day nor overly tired from running the extra mile — literally. The challenge is fitting it on days that were typically not running days, such as those when I teach.

Quick upside: I'm on the gym floor and get to interact more with members when I run a mile on the treadmill before class.

‣ It makes me run when I normally wouldn't. Duh, right? But take Tuesday. I had planned to run in the 5 a.m. hour but turned off my alarm at 4 a.m. after getting up with Miles and being unable to fall back asleep. (My issue, not his. I was glad to soothe him after a nightmare.) My back-up morning run is after dropping off Miles but I was behind on my column and needed to go in early. So I ran in the evening after dinner. I did not want to, not at all. (I swear there's not a theme!) I wanted to eat more tuna casserole and sit on the couch. But I got out there, and I did feel more accomplished for it. I like the streak for that.

‣ Running a mile is hardly worth it. I feel like by the time I get dressed and find a groove, I'm home again. I almost always go over, even just a bit, if I'm not on the treadmill. Partly because my reliable mile loop is off limits after the dog attack, partly because I want to be out for at least 15 minutes.

‣ The temptation to run in pajamas is great.

‣ It's hard to keep the 10 percent rule in mind. We've all heard it — increase your mileage only 10 percent a week. Well, if you are a recreational runner in the off season, you might not be running 30 miles a week over four to five days. Adding just one mile a day, three days a week will boost your mileage significantly. I think it's more important to worry about increasing long run distance but there's something to be said for weekly mileage.

‣ Need more room! I track my mileage in a Google spreadsheet, and copy it for the next year. Well, I'm not even two weeks into December, and I only have eight rows left.

Not really worth it's own bullet but I sort of hate how the streak lowers the average miles I log per run. In November, my average run was 5.86 miles and in October, it was 5.88.

‣ Speaking of the miles, it's a lot of junk. I'm not gaining fitness (though possibly preserving it), building endurance or getting faster. I'm running the same routes at nearly the same pace, day after day. The streak makes it difficult to do much more than that.

‣ I friggin' love it. I love feeling somewhat pompous when I let it slip that I joined in (so sorry, so true). I love that my friend is doing it. I love that there's a community. And I love that it gives me an attainable goal at a time when major feats are a while away.

So, who's streaking? How is it going?

#RWRunStreak: Let's do this?

To streak or not to streak, that is the question.

I've long been outspoken against running streaks. I thought them unnecessary, at best, and risky at worst. Running seven days a week was sure to open one up to injuries, burnout and fatigue at a time when added stress is the last thing a person needs. (Kim had a great post about why not to streak last year!)

Yet, when Tami posted on her Facebook page that she was taking on the holiday challenge from Runner's World, I surprised myself by thinking about it. I think it was because she was putting her own spin on the streak — one didn't have to run every day but should do something every day from Thanksgiving to New Year's, whether it was cycling, yoga, PiYo, running or aerobics. I exercise six days a week out of habit so adding another day wouldn't be so bad. If anything, it might give me the incentive to incorporate the PT hip exercises I've been talking about for the past two weeks.

Note: I don't need to do the hip exercises but I've noticed the pregnancy hip spread, some general weakness and change in my gait. I think stronger hips could help the latter two. 

I thought and thought about it but never made it official. I considered myself a silent observer/participant in the madness. I ran on Thursday but I would have done so anyhow. It was an arduous way to kick off whatever I was thinking about — 5 miles around the west side of Cincinnati during which I stopped on hills to catch my breath, curse the terrain, get frustrated with my watch that hadn't picked up satellites and bemoan my growing belly.

On Friday, my grandma kept Miles while Mark and I went to a cycling class at the Y. The class was OK but I felt bored through much of it even though I was working and liked the music. Had it not been rude, I would have chatted with Mark the whole time but instead, I found myself thinking about the streak.

"I could run one mile after class," the wheels turned. "It wouldn't be so bad." And so I did. I ran a mile on the treadmill after class while Mark did core work. The exercise once a day streak was looking to become a full-fledged #RWRunStreak.

I had planned to run both weekend days, logging 5 miles after we got home Saturday and doing 8 with my friend on Sunday.

Four days in and completely uncommitted, I was still streaking.

I figured today would be the test. If I ran today, I would do the streak. Yet, after logging a mile before teaching Rip because I had time, I'm feeling just as ambivalent as I had before. I can't put my finger on why but I am.

The pros:

• It will help me keep up weekly mileage while dropping back some of my weekday runs.
• It might be nice to have something positive to focus on during the holidays, which can often be a hard time for me. 
• It gives me a good reason to get out with Denali.

The cons:

• I am not training for anything and haven't for some time. The idea of having to do something is not always fun.
• I'm halfway through pregnancy and need to start thinking about if and when I need to cut back, even if it's just a smidge, Now is not the time to add things to my plate!
• It's cold outside, and it seems silly to get all dressed up to run a mile.

I have a run date tomorrow, which will bring me to day 6, so the next test is Wednesday. 

What are your thoughts? Are you streaking?