Why Don’t You Just Have a Day Off?

November 21st 2023 marked my 2000th consecutive day of running or “streaking” as it’s known. When I first started running with Hyde Park Harriers I didn’t even know what a run streak is, thankfully this form of streak does not involve running around a sports pitch with your giblets on display! Through chatting while out on Tuesday runs I started to hear about a couple of members that had started a streak (former member Aron Fulton wrote a blog about his streak which you can read here Aron Hinds – Why I run every day – Hyde Park Harriers – my blog is unintentionally very similar but I’m not rewriting it now!), at that point I had no intention of starting a streak of my own, it sounded too time consuming and like too much effort! Sooooo, without meaning to reinvent the wheel or rewrite Aron’s blog, here are some of the questions I get asked most frequently, along with more coherent answers because I’m not trying to maintain 7 minute miles!

What made you start?

Food (mainly biscuits) and beer. I was going on holiday and knew that I had to do some exercise to avoid a new, larger, running wardrobe. After 5 days, Strava or Garmin (can’t remember which) informed me that it was my longest running streak. I decided to keep it going during the holiday and it expanded from there (the streak, not my waist).

What is the shortest distance to count?

I decided on a distance of 1.6k/1mile but a streak is very personal, it’s up to the individual to decide a suitable minimum distance and speed. I tried to maintain 5k per day in 2020 since I had more time available than normal (who didn’t), but this started to become a logistical nightmare and it was almost a relief when an injury forced me to knock it down to 1 mile for a couple of weeks.

How many miles have you covered?

The obvious answer is 2000 but that is very much over-simplified! As above, the minimum would be 2000 miles overall, but I aim to cover about 62k a week (sounds random but 62k x 52 weeks = 3224k per year or 2000 miles) so I have covered much further in this time (19,508k or 12,117 miles according to Garmin).

Are you ever tempted not to run? 

Yes, frequently! I’m the same as most others and would far rather sit on the sofa in the warm with a cup of tea rather than head out in to the rain; this year has been particularly difficult because it has been so wet and generally miserable. It really helps running with others; I also motivate myself by running routes that I have never covered, a habit that any regular Group 7 & 8 runners will be familiar with!

What’s the hardest thing about doing a streak?

If I just stick to 1 mile it’s pretty easy, I just need to find 10 minutes in the day to get out for a run (so first thing) but that’s not much of a benefit fitness-wise so I try to do at least 5k (ie if it’s shorter it’s because I’m short on time, injured or saving my legs for something else!). The hardest thing is trying to find a time to fit in longer runs and placating a wife that doesn’t approve of me running so often (but I love her because she is awesome and is a fantastic cook and did I mention I love her? 😘 ).

What was the hardest streak?

Most people might assume that the Bob Graham Round was my hardest streak but that would be wide of the mark! After all, I only had to get a mile out of Keswick before the streak was accomplished, then I could have turned back and gone to the pub. The day after the BG was a different story, just walking on that day felt like an accomplishment! I managed a mile that felt like the longest mile I have ever run. The pace was understandably very slow; thank God there were people that witnessed it, otherwise anybody looking at Strava would never have believed that it was a run at all, although I’m not sure that any of the witnesses would classify my movement as running that day either.

Of course, last year there was the “streak” that spawned the term “Garratting” from Lizzie Coombes. The Yorkshire 3 Peaks race on Saturday followed by Around the Park, Around the Clock on Sunday – absolutely not a recommended recovery run or streak by any terms!

There have been a few other occasions when just running a mile (let alone 36) has felt like an accomplishment…

Have you had injuries?

Yes, loads! Most of the time they are just niggles, sometimes a bit more serious but with slight adaptations to my technique I can run without causing further damage. 

Two injuries spring to mind instantly. In 2019 I tripped and fell very heavily while running at speed down the Chevin resulting in a separated (dislocated) shoulder joint. A trip to A&E seemed to confirm the end of my streak, but with a bit of experimentation I discovered that I could almost completely immobilise my arm by tucking it in to my running belt so off I trotted for a very gentle 1 mile run.

Then in 2020 while competing in one of Tom Thomas’s brilliant LURGY challenges I discovered a hidden metal stake under a pile of leaves by crashing my foot against it at full speed. I didn’t bother with A&E this time but as I had done my run for that day I had a bit longer to experiment and find a way alter my stride and foot placement without causing further damage.

I cannot emphasise enough that this is NOT the recommended approach to injury! One day I’m sure I will injure myself seriously enough that even I will throw in the towel and have one or several rest days. I have been relatively lucky so far in that the injuries I have had have not been completely debilitating.

How did you get around COVID?

Luck? I didn’t get COVID until late 2022 and didn’t feel too unwell. By then there was no requirement to test (although we still had to test for work) let alone isolate, so although I stayed in doors for 99% of the time, I devised a route on wide roads where I knew there was very little chance of meeting anyone that I couldn’t steer well clear of.

What is the best thing about doing a streak?

Well, as I said, it gets me out of the door and is almost certainly the reason I was able to increase my mileage to its current level and beyond. It’s very tempting to take a rest after a long or hard run but getting out for a shortish, easy run massively helps my recovery (No Garratting!) and I can be back running normally within a couple of days, despite the protestations of my wrist-based fitness judgement (at the time of writing it’s telling me I can run again in 34 hours time). A fast-paced run is also a good way of letting off a bit of steam after a harsh day, as long as shouts of “Run Forest!” are kept to a minimum.

Any advice about doing a run streak? 

A run streak is a very personal thing, they are not for everyone, in fact they are probably not that wise for anyone as rest days are important. I continue my streak because it is what motivates me to get out of the door most days. Once I get going and warm up, what started off as a 1 mile run can and has extended to well over 10k. 

If you are thinking of doing a streak, think seriously about why you are doing it, what your targets are and what you hope to achieve from it. I do my streak to ensure that I continue to get my bum off the sofa and do enough exercise to offset the number of biscuits I polish off, as I said, it’s the reason I even leave the house on some days. Find a distance that is going to be of benefit to your fitness but not so great that it breaks you, run a range of paces and above all take it very easy if/when you get tired! 

Whatever your reasons for doing a run streak, do it for you!

Richard

P.s. The one question that I haven’t directly addressed is that of the title “Why don’t you just have a day off?”, the question that I get asked the most often, nearly always by my awesome wife (a bit more sucking-up there). I’ve pretty much answered the question in the body of the previous text but I have not yet tested what might happen if I take a day off; it might tear a hole in the fabric of time, space and reality, so I can’t risk that.