1 Year Milestone Club

Finished Get Running? Tell us how you did, and chat with other Get Running graduates about what to do next!
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mikel
Posts: 7
Joined: Wed Feb 10, 2010 8:31 pm

1 Year Milestone Club

Post by mikel »

Today is my 1 year milestone since I started running.

- I have run over 650km.
- I have done in excess of 120 runs.
- I have managed to run over 10km in a single session.
- I have done 4 fun runs ranging from 4km up to 9km.
- On average I run 3 times a week.
- I have run every week other than a few weeks where I have been injured.

All of this would not have been possible without the guided advice that Get Running provided at the start.

When I started Get Running, I had not done any exercise in at least 15 years. I was not overweight, but I was certainly unfit. I struggled to be able to even complete Week 1 Day 1 and had to stop after the 6th interval to rest.

I don't think any of my family or friends expected me to have stuck with running for so long and I even had doubts about how long I would stick with it. However, once you reach 5k and realise the amount of effort you have put into it, you have no interest in losing that level of fitness and having to start again. That knowledge combined with running statistics, fun runs and the support of other runners has kept me motivated.

I thought I might share my some of my methods to keep myself motivated and interested in running.

1) Statistics
My main running app is Runmeter and find it provides the tracking to let me know how decent my run was. Without having a comparison, you do not have a measurement of improvement. Knowing you have beat a personal best will give you weeks of extra motivation. I also use Nike+ with a footpod but while it can be slightly more accurate, the Nike+ site is terrible (even when using the external site Slowgeek). I have also tried Runkeeper Pro but Runmeter really does seem to be the best app out there.

2) Fun Runs
These provide medium term goals. They also provide a different environment to your traditional run which keeps things interesting. It doesn't have to be about getting a decent time either, the enjoyment of running with a huge crowd is pretty special. It is hard not be excited before a fun run and after you have attemped one, you will always want to do them. They are that addictive.

3) Friends
Having other friends who are running provides a massive motivation especially when you have a bad run (or sequential bad runs). You don't even need to be running with them, you just need a way to be able to discuss each others runs. Runmeter has direct support for Twitter which means that the information about my run is broadcast to my followers. They can see my run in near real time and any messages they send to me are spoken to me while running (epic when its during a fun run). At the end of the run, the route, time and a comparison to my previous runs is displayed in the feed. This allows them to ask what went right (or wrong). I also have the ability to do the same to them. No matter where they, they can have a connection to me without having to physically run with me.

I am hoping this thread could be used by those that have been running for a year and started with Get Running. A way to show others what you can hope to achieve if you stick with the system. If you have reached the same milestone, please post your achievements and thoughts. Would be great to hear what others have done in the same time period.
Tidwell100
Posts: 3
Joined: Tue Feb 08, 2011 5:04 am

Re: 1 Year Milestone Club

Post by Tidwell100 »

Just completed my first half marathon 9 months after starting the program. I never thought it would be possible for me to run for over two hours without walking! The Get Runnin program really works!
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