A 1000 Days of Running
Today me and Colin celebrate a 1000 days of running everyday.
It all started in November 2012, more exactly on November 22nd 2012. We read about a running challenge in Runner’s World where the goal was to run every day from Thanksgiving to Christmas. We thought it could be fun to give it a try.
We ran for a week. And another one… After a month, it was part of our lives. By Christmas, we decided to try to keep our streak going for a full year.
We found out about the Running Streak Association. A group of people who run every day, at least a mile before midnight. We joined the Facebook group, which was (and still is) great motivation.
Months passed by. It was still pretty easy to fit the run in our daily routine. The Mission, our neighborhood in San Francisco, has the Dolores Park nearby. Most days, we would run in the streets. We know exactly how far one mile is from home, in any direction.
We ran sick in the rain, drunk in the Panhandle, at Burning Man as unicorns.
We achieved 365 days of running. And decided to go for another year.
Following a long time dream of ours, we left our apartment in San Francisco in May 2013, sold everything expect the very essential — what would fit in 2 carry-on luggage — and became digital nomads.
For a year, we changed location every month while working remotely, Colin as software engineer and me as blogger.
The daily run became part of our traveling adventures. We ran in Berlin between Sisyphus and Berghain, on the beaches of Croatia, Morocco, Goa and Mexico. We ran at 3am before taking long flights, we ran among locals under the eye of Ho Chi Minh in Saigon, in the rice fields of Ubud in Bali, under a rain of cherry blossoms in Tachikawa near Tokyo.
We ran at festivals, trying to not kill any buzz, negotiated the use of treadmills in hotels when running outside was not an option.
And achieved year 2 !
1000 days later…
After a 1000 days of running, we are both stronger. My body changed and I can now say I actually love to work out (it took me about a year).
Our running streak taught us resilience. No matter what, we motivate ourselves and make room in our day to go for a run. This 20 minutes daily run is just like having lunch or brushing your teeth. Needed and appreciated.
It also seems that the run helps us get over cold and small illnesses faster. I’ve never been less sick than in the last 2 years.
But what this running streak really keeps reminding us is that today is what matters. Every day is an important one.
Going outside, breathing and taking a moment to appreciate life is a gift that makes this running streak such a motivating one.
To more great days.
