Thursday, December 11, 2014

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.

 photo Vikings-Season-2-Episode-1-Brothers-War-Main_zps0df5d7cb.jpg

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.

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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?

7 comments:

  1. I was thinking about you today and wondering if you were still doing your streak! I am happy you are liking it and it's getting you out there! I totally get you on feeling like a mile is a waste - that is why I did 3.1 a day when I did it. A mile seems so silly (but is perfect when you can fit it in after teaching!).

    And I like the goals and community part. But not the part about being pompous. Sorry, I just... sigh, lol. Have other thoughts on my mind lately about people being pompous about their sports or what they do (that's a draft blog post in my mind...). Too many times this year, I heard "xyz event is harder than your event." Not the same thing, just reminds me of that attitude.

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    1. I see what you are saying about pompous, and it probably didn't come out the best way. I think it makes me feel better about myself - in a "I'm doing something cool" way but not necessarily better or harder way. Does that make sense? Maybe, it helps me feel like I'm proving myself? I can see, too, where a lot of people can get very smug and feel the need to one up everyone. I don't want to one up but be on par.

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    2. Ahh, yeah. I see what you are saying. Thanks for explaining. Cause of course, I put my own spin on it based on what is going on in my mind (and on some other streakers I know). I think it's awesome to have something like that that makes you feel like you are doing something good and challenging for you, especially in the time of year (the holiDAZE!!!!) when people struggle to work out, at all ;)

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  2. "I friggin' love it." YES!
    ::drops mic and walks away::

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  3. I love that you're still streaking! I think it's awesome. Being a part of something bigger like that is fun. I came home and walked for 10 minutes in my PJ's and slippers on my treadmill just so I could hit my 10k steps for the day. So yes, I understand the attractiveness of PJ's. haha.

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  4. You totally verified why I don't streak. "A mile is hardly worth it". Thank you.

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  5. I like Wendy's comment! (above) I don't do the streaking because i think that it is a waste of time to get dressed (and since it is winter--many more clothes get dirty) and then i have to take another shower. If i were to do it...it would be like you...before or after what ever other work-out i was doing!! :)
    Good job! Keep it up!! Like you said your pace is the same but who cares you aren't worried about a race or anything up and coming!!

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