**UPDATE (November 8th 2021)**
I thought I unscheduled this, but I messed up I guess! I probably won’t be doing this challenge on my birthday due to a recent injury I got while running. Got some pretty nasty discomfort in my hip/knee on Friday doing a 5k. I think it might be IT band related or hip bursitis which means it’s not super serious. That said I can barely walk right now, let alone run for 20 hours. Have a physio appointment on Friday so we’ll see how bad it is, so I will probably do the challenge at some point after I get better!
On the bright side, I kept pretty healthy the last year. Almost went through an entire calendar year without needing physio (last visit was December 2020) which is impressive seeing I typically have 2-3 issues per year since 2011!
For now, lots of rest and mobility work with that lacrosse ball… 😦
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I’m taking this month off in terms of trips, due to my annual (okay, I only started last year haha) birthday running challenge!
This challenge is inspired by Beau Miles – run a mile every hour for some number of hours. Beau did a full 24 hours (and did a bit more than a mile per hour to hit the full 26.2 miles for a marathon), but I’m making it birthday themed. In two weeks, I will run a mile each hour, until I hit the same number of kilometres as years I’m turning that year. Yes, I’m mixing the metric and imperial systems! The horror…
I’m turning 32 this year, so that equates to ~20 miles (32km) ran in 20 hours. I plan to do this every year (adding one km per year) so eventually I’ll have to tinker with the game plan since more than 24 hours is crazy. I will probably always run the same number of km as years I’m turning, within a 24 hour period.
The plan, which I also did last year, is to finish the last few meters of my last mile right when the clock rolls over to midnight on my birthday (Nov 22), so I will start at 4am on the 21st. Thankfully, the 21st is on a Sunday so I will more or less be able to stay on my work schedule – I will work from home on the 22nd for sure! As for where I’ll run, I will try and go to a few different places around Toronto, and if the weather permits, bring a book and food to relax outside between some of the pieces.
Last year it was pretty tough, but I also went a bit harder starting out than I’d like, so I plan on taking it easier off the bat. Looking to run about 7:20-7:30 per mile on average for the day, may sprinkle in some faster pieces here and there. I will probably also shower a couple times throughout the day and like last year have a few sets of clothing to cycle through to avoid rashes. For most of these I’ll just be running, but I may pull out the gloves and garbage bags and do a bit of plogging as well!
Here is a list of run locations I might hit up:
- Crothers Woods
- Leslie Spit
- Durham Forest
- Martin Goodman Trail
- The Beaches
- Beltline Trail
- Riverdale Park
Interested in joining for a run or two? Any location recommendations? Let me know! I’ll also be posting periodic updates on my Instagram, @veg_n_hike !
Veg 'n' Alpine 