12 Reflections on 1200 Straight Days of Running

It started off as an ordinary February day. To be honest, I don’t remember much about the day itself, but looking back now I wish I’d paid more attention. On a typical week, I’d hit lift weights at the YMCA and find time to run 2-3 times during the week. This day was like most Friday’s, but 3 years later, Feb. 15th, 2013 is the day this whole madness started.

Today marks day 1,200 of my Running Streak – meaning I’ve run every day for the last 3+ years (minimum of 2 miles). I never planned this; it just sort of happened. I guess I thought I’d try to run every day for a week. That week turned into 2, then 3, and before I knew it, I was approaching 100 days of running.

So here we are 171 weeks later still going at it, and not knowing how to quit. Looking back, here are 12 takeaways from the last 1200 days.

1. You have to be intentional.
2. Some days are easier than others.
3. The best way to run in the morning is to set out your clothes the night before.
4. My wife deserves 95% of the credit (She’s a saint!).
5. Habits – good and bad – are hard to break
6. Cruise ships are much more fun to run around than hotel parking lots.
7. Texas summers are miserable.
8. I’m a much more pleasant person when I run in the morning.
9. “What we’re doing here is not a mark of intelligence.”- Jon Simpson
10. I’m very thankful for hotel treadmills.
11. My dad is my hero – at age 73, he’s averaged 3 miles a day for the last 365+ days.
12. Set goals and celebrate milestones.

    

    Lily deserves a gold star for joining me on most early morning. 

It’s not an exhaustive list, but it’s a quick snapshot of observations over the last 3 years. I never set out to take on such an endeavor, but now that I’m here, I suppose we’ll keep going.

Over the next 100 days, I’ll probably complain about the heat and humidity of Texas summers for 90 of them. And for the other 10, I’ll most likely be on a treadmill somewhere.

So bear with me as my twitter feed is 90% running, and the next time you see my wife, make sure to congratulate her for enduring and supporting such nonsense.

Happy Streaking!