I have news. BIG news. I’m going streaking! Run streaking… I’ve never finished (or started for that matter) a run streak. So why now?
February 2020. The month I decided to run streak. I’ve poo-poo’ed run streaks in the past. And frankly I’m not sure how I’ll fare at the end of this thing. Maybe I’ll stick with my original conviction that at least one full day of rest is the key to an injury-free life. Or perhaps this will change my mind and I’ll see all the benefit of some type of cardio activity every day. Time will tell.
A friend posted on her Instagram stories that she was doing a streak in February and for some reason I thought, “sure, why the hell not?” This “why the hell not” attitude is reflective of my current state of being. So here we are. Here I am. Four days in and I’ve realized how good this run streak really might be.
I’ve Never Done a Run Streak. Why Now?
It will help me train my dogs.
I took my dogs out on my second day of streaking. I had just run seven miles the day before and thought a nice, easy 1-2 miles would be good. We ran just about 1.3 miles. On my third day we ran just over a mile. And it was then that I realized one mile a day would be a really good opportunity to work on training my girls for some bigger runs and some road/trail etiquette later on down the road.
They were so jazzed by the prospect of a treat toward the end of that second run that I decided I would bring treats with me on every run from here on out until they listened and followed commands. They’re very well behaved and listen to commands most of the time. But we’ll use our one mile a day to make sure they obey all of the time. I don’t want to be that dog mom with poorly behaved pups on a public trail. So training sessions they shall be!
And it’s a great opportunity to build mileage.
One of the reasons I wanted dogs to run with was to have company on all my runs — not just the short ones here and there. In the past, my fuzzy pupper has run five miles with me and Cujo has run eight. But admittedly, I just haven’t had the time to really train these girls adequately and so we mostly stick to 2-3 mile runs together. But let’s face it, I need a buddy for much longer than 2-3 miles. Especially when I’m training for a full marathon or ultra. A run streak will give me the opportunity to add mileage while keeping it short and easy.
A run streak will help me build a base.
Not that I don’t already have a good base, but it never hurts to keep it up during the off season. The spring months will be busy so it’ll be nice to have a good base of miles going into outdoor track season. I know I’ll still run longer but it will be nice to be able to fall back on a one-mile-a-day routine if I’m in a pinch.
I feel motivated.
I’m not sure what changed, but I’m motivated to complete a run streak. I just jumped on the bandwagon when I saw my friends’ post. I’ve never been interested in a run streak, even when a few of my local friends were all doing those Runner’s World streaks. I just never had any drive or desire. And I was a huge proponent of at least one full day of rest (as I mentioned already). I’m still a big proponent of rest, don’t get me wrong. And I will always encourage my runners to take adequate rest days. But since I’m not doing hill repeats or speed work, or putting up huge miles for long runs, a run streak seems harmless enough. I’ll give it a whirl!
I’m looking forward to my run streak. I think it will be good for me and if nothing else, it will help me build mileage safely for my dogs and work on canine manners!
In semi-unrelated news, I’m thrilled to announce the start of a brand new link up — Runners’ Roundup! This new linkup is a spinoff from the original Running Coaches Corner. It was a good run (almost four full years!) but it’s high time for a change. There are six hosts of the Runners’ Roundup — yours truly from Running on Happy, Debbie from Coach Debbie Runs, Deborah from Confessions of a Mother Runner, Lisa from Mile by Mile, Jen from Runs with Pugs, and Smitha from Faux Runner. It’s a great crew and I look forward to working with these leading ladies. Be sure to check out all the Runners’ Roundup hosts and link up with other bloggers!
xo
Let’s talk!
Have you done a run streak?
How long did it last?
How many miles per day did you run?
