2019 Year in Review

ORN:
2019 distance run:   1,538 miles
Total distance run since 2004:   21,538 miles

The year was an interesting one, with some real highs and some forgettable moments. 

First, the numbers.   My miles for each month in 2019. 

Yikes!   Look at those ups and downs.    This captures the year.   The first three months were in final preparation for the Boston Marathon...March's 200+ miles was an all-time monthly record for me.  And I ran Boston on April 15. 

And then looked what happened.  A total falloff. 

In retrospect, it's not surprising.   I had shot for Boston for eight years.   Finally making it, I fell into a strange sense of goal-lessness.  I didn't even grasp it at the time but I really had a hard time dragging myself out of bed to train on way too many mornings through the summer and early fall.   October really wiped things out as I ended up with a nasty flu bug for three weeks. 

Remarkably, I re-calibrated in late November via a curious observation.   I shifted a habit I've held since beginning this era of running in May, 2004, specifically getting up at 5:15am to train.   This just got harder and harder.   I started trying running in the afternoon, instead...taking running gear to work, changing around 5pm in our small locker room, heading out on our city's running trails which go right by our plant and getting in my miles.   Remarkably, it seems to work.   I got the miles in, ran a 50K trail race comfortably on December 28 and I may well continue with this through the spring.   Summertime??  I'll need to get up early. 

Amazingly, 2019 was an improvement in total miles over 2018.

2018 had a time of injury from Plantar Fasciitis.  I'm pleasantly surprised 2019 improved over that.   And I'm hoping for more consistency in 2020, for sure.

Without a doubt, though, the highlight of the year, perhaps the highlight of my running hobby all-time was running in and finishing the Boston Marathon.  Two pix to wrap up the year of that special day. 

Have a great 2020, folks.

Persevere. 

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