Maintaining the Streak!

Yes, I did it! Amazed? I am.

Almost immediately during conversations with fellow shipmates, it was revealed about my running attempt and my thoughts to maintain it throughout the week. Everyone else on board (which consisted of a captain, first mate, and two other couples) were very encouraging and adamant about me maintaining the running pledge, and were very accommodating at ensuring a block of time was reserved each day for me to get my run in. One of the couples, Molli and Tony from Southern CA, even ran half of the days with us.

Molli took a camera and as soon as I get pictures of some of the runs, I will get them up. Essentially, the runs consisted of running through residential areas on St. Martin, on the beach, past a group of nudists on Tintinmar, through the upscale shopping district on St. Barths, and up a crazy steep hill on Anguilla (but we were rewarded with a spectacular view of the bay area, marina, and Caribbean Ocean once we reached the top). On a run in St. Barths, a local dog found us early on and ran along side us, ensuring we maintained pace, throughout the entire run.

I am not sure I could have maintained it without having the support I did. And knowing I have people now across the globe routing for me really secures my interest in ensuring I complete the resolution through 2008. If I can find 10 minutes while on a catamaran cruise to run for a week, I can find 10 minutes anywhere.

Maintaining the Streak?

First of all, a big thank you to all who participated in the 1st Annual National Naked Running Day! The weather was definitely not on our side, but I hope everyone got something out of it. I decided to make a pact to leave the iPod at home for any run under 3 miles, but the watch I need (sorry...even I found myself struggling with that one).

Now on to the real task at hand...in 48 hours, Ted and I will find ourselves in St. Martin. We will be spending the week on a catamaran, enjoying islands and the sun and whatever other surprises may meet us there. It should be a great time.

There's just one thing.

I'm supposed to be maintaining a running streak this year. I made a pact to run at least a mile a day, and to this point, I have done just that. So what should I expect next week? Ted and I will try to run a mile every morning...but if I miss a day?

If I miss a day, I guess I miss a day. I can't let it ruin the vacation. But then what's the point of trying to maintain a streak if I shrug it off when it gets a bit complicated to fit into a schedule? Isn't that the main reason why a streak is so impressive--that it isn't always easy to fit a run into your day?

Believe me, I've gone through the scenarios plenty of times. What if I do 20 minutes of bicycles in our little room on the boat? What if I do 100 sit-ups and push-ups? What if I blow this week off, pick up when I get home and begin my "streak" over?

But nothing seems to sit right with me. The only scenario that will bring me peace is that I run a mile a day. In the morning. Before breakfast.

Time will tell how convenient this will be for me. I will be sure to let everyone know how that goes, and if the next title has an explanation point or a "not" in it...

Old School.

Running is a simple sport. That is one of the reasons many of us chose it--we don't have to lug a bike around. No hockey equipment, no need to find a pool, no expensive helmets or padding (although I've determined maybe that should be necessary for some of us). We can just go out the door and there is our habitat--the open road, and we can go.

Oh...but wait. We need those special sneakers, designed for stability or motion control or low arches or high arches. Now we can run, right?

Oh, what about that shirt. You can't run in cotton--we need the really nice technical shirts. And we can't forget to make sure we eat our Cliff bar, and be sure to grab those gels...can't do the run without the gels. We can keep those in our water belt, which we absolutely need. And the expensive watch or other GPS device...we can't run without that.

Now we can run. Just go out the door and there is our habitat.

As runners today, we have it pretty good. We have alot working for us, and races cater to us, as well. They make sure there are water stops set up, snacks at the end, music, and how many of us complain about a race if the goody bag isn't up to par? I'm guilty of it.

Sometimes I wonder if I've forgotten the reason I started to run in the first place. Okay, the reason I started running seriously is because I got jealous of a runner Ted was eyeing up years ago and wanted to show him it was no big deal; that I could do that. But in high school, running was simple. I could do it. I didn't need special skills, I didn't need expensive clothes...I had a pair of sweatpants and I had a sweatshirt and I had sneakers, and so I was good to go. I didn't even time myself or keep track of how far I ran. I just went. Trust me, I love the perks running has now. I have no intention to give up any of the products that make me run well, prevent blisters, prevent burn-out, and all the other aids we have. But when you think about what we have now, and what runners had years ago, it really makes you appreciate their talent.

The other day, I was re-reading some of my previous blogs. I noticed that I had mentioned meeting Amby Burfoot at the Lehigh Valley Half Marathon and wishing I had asked what shoes he wore. Most likely he would have told me, we would have laughed, and I would have walked away shaking my head, wondering "How can you run in those?"

Truth is, he did. And so did everyone then. And not only did they run in shoes we scoff at today, they did it faster than many of us can imagine running today, and without energy bards and energy gels and water stops and iPods and Garmins. They ran because that's what they did, and their shoes weren't all kinds of supportive and they weren't pumped full of Red Bull and they weren't waiting for the next Gatorade stop or band along the course.

I have somewhat of a challenge for everyone. I'm making Monday May 12th Maggie's National Naked Running Day. Okay, not really, but let's all try something...when going out for our run Monday, let's leave the watches behind. Let's leave the iPods behind. Let's dress as simply as we can--an old T-shirt and shorts will do just fine--and just enjoy the run for what it is.

Let's just go out the door and into our habitat--the open road, and we can go.