Right now the one global way we have measured ourselves as runners has been taken away. Races across the world have been cancelled. Training plans tailored up to race day no longer lead to anything. A lot of us are at a loss. What’s the point in running without measurement?
I’ve always found that I enjoy tracking my own progress in mini goals. Often these get designed while I’m working towards a bigger goal, such as a race, but they keep me determined to get out for my training runs even when the weather is bad/I’m feeling tired/I’d rather not run. Recently, I spent a lot of time logging hours on a treadmill. To keep things interesting - or as interesting as they can be on a treadmill - I would vary the incline and speed, record my new mini route and try to repeat it a week later with steeper inclines or faster speeds. For instance, a new favorite of mine is to run for 30 minutes, 4 minutes at 10kph and 1 minute at 14kph, rotating through six times. It was a way to spruce up my run and keep things interesting because by that fifth or sixth minute of 14kph things suddenly feel tough. Or at least they did for a while, but over the course of a few months that pace got increased to 15.5kph. Now I know the speed to beat but I could always up my default 10kph to 11kph. There are so many variables and once you figure out your framework you can decide what to aim for next.
What I’m saying is that you should design your own “race.” And by race I mean any way of measuring yourself that will feel like an accomplishment to you. Sadly my treadmill at home only goes up to 14kph so I will not be testing out my 30 minute mini goal anytime soon. But there is a 5 mile loop that I run outside my house by default if I’m on autopilot. And I’ve been thinking maybe it’s time to see how fast I can do that loop. I haven’t trained for a five mile race before so it would be interesting to give it a go and track my progress week by week. My only suggestion is that if you are going to try to run fast outside then just try to find a time when no one else is out, as there’s nothing worse right now than a sprinting runner invading your 2 meter space bubble so don’t be one of those!
Another way I enjoy measuring my runs is by increasing my mileage. You’re no longer focusing on time but on distance which feels like an immediate accomplishment, particularly if you hit a mileage you’ve never run before, or have only run a few times in your life. This might be a good idea for new runners since now is not the time to be aiming for that marathon distance! But a 10k - go for it.
A final thought is to find some hills nearby if you can. You probably know where they are because you might plan your routes to avoid them (well, I do at least). This might be a less appealing option but seeing how many times you can run up a hill continuously or with a set rest interval could be another achievement. It’s something I’ve thought of doing when training for alpine races but I’ve never gotten up the courage to do hill repeats in public, I guess now could be my time...and they might have less people!
The key in all of this is to find a new reason to run that motivates you when you get up. With every day feeling like Groundhog Day it can be easy to lose your routine and your purpose. We all seem to have more time now so use it to your advantage and get creative. Now is the time to set your own measurements and hit those smaller achievements, which, in light of the current climate, are pretty massive when you start to think about it!
