10 miles

Time has no divisions to mark its passage, there is never a thunderstorm or blare of trumpets to announce the beginning of a new month or year. Even when a new century begins it is only we mortals who ring bells and fire off pistols.

-Thomas Mann, novelist, Nobel laureate (1875-1955)


As such, I realized that while others make and break New Year’s Resolutions, my own personal resolution to run harder, longer and smarter started a week early.

On Christmas day I ran 10 miles in 1:16:53. The next day it was in 1:15:33; the next in 1:15:44. This three days of double-digit running so astounding me that I blogged about it.

Well today, I ran 10 again but this time in: 1:09:49. I am pretty sure I am running 15 on Saturday and another double-digit day on Sunday, which will bring my total to 6 straight days of such running. But more importantly is the 10 miles today.

For one, it is the only run that matters. Yesterday is gone and I never know if. I will have tomorrow. So I sucked the marrow out of this run. I waved to people, congratulated those I passed and nodded to those I saw twice as they headed back to where they were coming from when I did the same. On a nearly 50-degree day in the greater DC are in the dead of winter, I wore shorts.

Also, today on this one Friday, I ran 10 miles straight. In all of 2006, I ran 10 TOTAL miles on days named “Fri”. Yep. Five runs. Each 2 miles. Ten miles total.

It looks like Christmas Eve is when the ball dropped on my fitness.