Lessons from Streak Running - #runeveryday
Just in Time #277
The hurdle of deciding to go for a run, no matter the distance, is a binary decision. Either you do it, or you don’t. Making that decision repeatedly is exhausting. Instead, make it once.
It takes less energy to make up your mind once than it does to make up your mind every day.
While running the iconic Growler through the Johannesburg city centre, I congratulated a fellow runner on completing a thirty-day running streak and encouraged her to keep going. Her running partner (who may have been her boyfriend) wasn’t impressed and told me, “YouTube says...blah, blah, blah.”
Yes, Coach Parry (the YouTube running coach) will tell you to rest and that you shouldn’t run every day. You will be hard-pressed to find someone other than a committed streak runner who will tell you that there is anything good to be gained from running every day.
A commitment to streak running is a commitment to consistency.
Showing up every day is challenging, and being consistent requires mental resilience. You might ask what comes first, mental resilience or physical resilience?
In the beginning, streak running is all a mental game until one day, you become emotionally committed, and the mental anguish melts away.
In his book Atomic Habits, James Clear talks about removing elements of resistance that might prevent you from starting a new habit. Having someone in your life who doesn’t fully support you in your streak running effort is a sure sign that your habit won’t stick. You need a cheerleader on the side!
The ultimate benefit of streak running is the physical and health resilience that builds over time. Many will argue that you can get these benefits without running every day. However, the daily dose of post-run dopamine is truly magical and addictive. I choose to get my fix every day.
The international streak registry (runeveryday.com) consists of 4,274 active streaks that are longer than a year. Until you have been streaking for more than 365 days, you are not considered to be serious about your streak-running endeavours.
The longest active streak, held by Jon Sutherland, is 19,636 days, just over 53 years. Sutherland is one of four active streaks that are longer than 50 years.
When I consider the achievement of 50 years of running every day, it feels overwhelming. However, the only way to build a streak that long is to go for another run tomorrow. That’s manageable; anyone can do that.
Justin Spencer-Young