First, as a reminder and to serve as a comparison, here are my numbers from 2014 (two years ago):
Number of Runs: 246
Time: 371:41:52
Distance: 2,111.06 miles (3,397 km)
Elev Gain: 219,441 feet (66,886 meters)
Avg Pace: 10:34 per mile (6:34 per km)
Avg Time per Run: 1:30:37
Avg Miles per Month: 175.92
Avg Miles per Week: 40.60
Avg Miles per Day: 5.78
Avg Miles per Run: 8.58
Avg Elev per Month: 18,287 feet
Avg Elev per Week: 4,220 feet
Avg Elev per Day: 601 feet
Avg Elev per Run: 892 feet
To be honest, I think back to when I hit "enter" on my keyboard to get some of these numbers last year and I was truly surprised. My photographer and I guessed what elevation gain would be. I think I was around 125,000 and she was slightly higher. When the total came out to 219,441 feet I actually felt a sharp pain in my knees as I thought of what they'll feel like 30 years from now when they get replaced with plastic look-a-likes. When I did the math for 2015 it was easy to identify that we brought a child into the mix, endured a PCS move and a change of landscape, and I suffered through an injury and took 4 weeks off during the summer. Here are 2015 numbers:
Number of Runs: 272
Time: 223:57:47
Distance: 1,539.59 miles (2,477 km)
Elev Gain: 83,024 feet (25,306 meters)
Avg Pace: 8:44 per mile (5:25 per km)
Avg Time per Run: 49:26
Avg Miles per Month: 128.30
Avg Miles per Week: 29.61
Avg Miles per Day: 4.22
Avg Miles per Run: 5.66
Avg Elev per Month: 6,919 feet
Avg Elev per Week: 1,597 feet
Avg Elev per Day: 227 feet
Avg Elev per Run: 305 feet
A few drastic differences between 2014 and 2015 stand out at first glance:
- I ran 600 more miles in 2014
- I ran a ton of mountains and elevation in 2014 (in Virginia) than in 2015 (in North Carolina's swampy flatlands...)
- My pace per mile was about 2 minutes faster in 2015 due to less elevation gain
- My average time spent per run was nearly twice as long in 2014 (90 minutes) than in 2015 (49 minutes), mostly because I wanted to hurry home to see Little Man
Am I surprised when I compare the two years? Not particularly. Camp Lejeune and the surrounding area is flat. Very flat. For instance, my 10- and 12- mile routes on base consist of 58 and 74 feet of elevation gain, respectively. Also, I took 4 consecutive weeks away from running to recover from a foot injury in July. We also spent about 3 weeks living out of boxes as we transitioned to another new area, new job, and new culture, all with a 6 month old. To top it off, my current job has demanded more time, effort, and emotion than any job I've had so far, and hours spent "working" each week usually add up to a number higher than 70. When I'm not in Camp Lejeune working 14 hour days, I'm traveling and working 16 hour days. In fact, I'm traveling today and as I'm typing this blog post my Blackberry is vibrating with work requirements every few minutes. Maintaining any sort of routine, especially a running routine, has been nearly impossible. During the entire month of February I ran between midnight and 0200 every night because that was the only time I could squeeze it in. That was neither desirable nor healthy, but damnit I'm dedicated.
That's all I have time for right now. I'd like to dive deep into this and write another article like I did last year, and again compare this to Gladwell's 10,000 hours study, but I'll save that for another time.
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| Little Man is no longer little. Eli is now a walking, talking, 15-month old human with the coolest personality ever. He's got the greatest Mama and she deserves all the credit, especially for his good looks. |
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| This is appropriate. I'll be gone a lot over the next year but I won't forget where I was raised and what I'm coming home to... |
