So this morning I ran day 19 of the 30 days of 5K’s challenge. That I gave myself. That I’m doing with no one. And for no particular reason other than seeing if I could. I have honestly hesitated to post because I figure if it went horribly wrong (or I got really hurt or something) if I didn’t say much about it then maybe you all would forget. But there has been one huge surprise that’s making me write this post.

I feel great. Not just a little great. Like, better than I’ve ever felt in my running career. Like as good as the girl in this video:

Even this morning, when I was dreading getting out there, I got into a great rhythm (listening to the Mickey Miles Podcast, thanks you guys!!), lost track of time, and accidentally ran an additional 1.4 miles. Yup. By accident. As in, was literally stunned when I looked at the time and my mileage. I was late to work.

What is happening??? I assumed I would be sore. That my legs would hurt every morning and that it would be a true act of major discipline to accomplish. Instead, I’m finding my 30ish minutes of morning running to be a joy and something I truly look forward to. I am not more sore. I am LESS sore.

Other benefits? My anxiety and depression (which tend to be a major issue) have definitely been affected. I feel more calm and am handling day to day stress much better than usual. And I’m sleeping better and less . . waking up naturally before my alarm goes off. I’ve lost about three pounds so nothing to write home about there, but I definitely feel like my clothes are loser so I’ll take that as a nice side benefit. And some of this may be because the increase running has forced me to be better about taking my supplements (as a vegetarian and a runner, I take an iron supplement and a B12 supplement daily).

But I will say I miss the longer distances. I know, I’m sick. But I really have to get past five miles before I can fully relax into a run and let my mind wonder and my body just do it’s thing. So when this is over, I definitely see myself getting back to 4 days a week, or maybe five, so that I can re-incorporate my long runs into the routine. And who knows if my enthusiasm will stick . . but for now, this former 3 day a week runner is quite amazed at what my body will tolerate.

If you decide to do your own 5K a day challenge just remember to mix it up – easy days, hard days, hill days, run/walk days – and definitely listen to your body! I am quite sure this is NOT for everybody and certainly would be a terrible idea if you’re just starting out. But if you’re in a rut, this might be just the thing to shake it up!! If you do it, let me know!

Happy running.

Jen