My 10th Winter Run Streak: a few highlights

A decade of winter run streaking...whodda thunk?

I recently finished my 10th consecutive Runner's World Winter Run Streak. Truthfully, this is a feat I never, ever, would have imagined happening 11 years ago. 

Why? I'm constantly paranoid of injury. Often times, I err on the side of low-mileage instead of risking too many miles on a tired body. And, although I sometimes run on back-to-back days, I seldom exceed a 3-day jaunt in doing so.

But, here I am. 

It's been two weeks since this 10th streak party ended, and I have a few thoughts to share...

First off, I am amazed how, each year, this winter run streaking gig (from Thanksgiving through New Years Day) gets easier and it seems to go quicker. Also, each year, while I look forward to the Winter Streak arriving, I am also very content to end the streak runs come January 1st. A lot of run streakers (especially first-time streakers) feel compelled to keep going - almost to infinity and beyond - but not I.

This year's streak was done very conservatively, due to the PT I was undergoing for the hamstring/glute discomfort that had been plaguing me for a few months prior. Thus, I knew it was in my absolute best interest to keep the mileage low. As a result, 47 of the cumulative 76 miles, came from 1-milers (17) and 2-milers (15). Coincidentally, there weren't any of the routine weekly #5at5 runs this year.

another 2-miler done!

As in years past, I made it a goal to try to wear a different outfit for each run (no repeats!), preferably in holiday-inspired gear. At the very least, there had to be either red or green (if not both, LOL). Also, I made every attempt to run as many different routes (or variations thereof). A new thing I discovered, quite by accident, was the benefit of running through alleys. Alleys afforded me some decent wind shelter (due to trees, shrubbery, and garages or sheds being much closer to the "backyard" property lines (along the alleys) than they were to the sidewalks in the front yards. A definite bonus on those especially windy days!

give me shelter....

An unexpected twist to the 2022 Winter Streak was the bomb cyclone that hit us a few days before Christmas. Unlike a typical blizzard, this didn't bring much snow along with it, but it did gift us extremely cold conditions and insane wind (which dropped the feels-like temps to dangerous levels, well below ZERO). For the past eight years of winter streaking, I've been able to do every run outside...but, after 330 continuous outdoor streaking runs, that outdoor winter streak came to an end on December 22nd. What then began was a brief 5-day treadmill streak instead. Ironically, that first treadmill run was 4-mile run, and it really wasn't as bad as I'd anticipated it to be. The only other 4-miler was the full moon run, on December 6th.

With the exception of the 10 days in and around the bomb cyclone's arrival, December was pretty mild (by Midwest standards). There were even a few days of unseasonably warm weather, allowing me to make a few appearances in shorts! Believe me, if the temps are in the mid/upper-40F's, I'm going to take advantage!

Shorts in December? Yes, please!

This Winter Streak, as in years past, had me weather stalking a lot. Admittedly, I stalk the weather anyways (what runner doesn't?), but when there are daily runs to be done, it's important to capitalize on the sunshine, the least amount of wind, and the optimal temps. Quite often, the most ideal time of the day was over my lunch break...so that's when some of the runs happened (all told, there were 10 runches over the course of the 41 days of run streaking).

gotta love all the noontime sunshine!

It's a given I'm an early-riser...so a lot of my runs happened in the wee hours, often times after a bike ride or elliptical workout. There even were a couple of times I did brick workouts (biking, then running, then biking again). Anything to make it interesting!

Yes, I sometimes streak before daybreak

 

A unique feature this year was the addition of two "bonus" days. I'd run a 2-mile run on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, but I also ran an extra 2-miler on January 2nd because it was  Monday...and I never miss a Monday. What can I say? Both had to be done, LOL.

the final streak run, on January 2nd

A lot of non-streakers wonder what the allure is with streaking. I can only answer for myself, but I like breaking up the monotony of my routine. Don't get me wrong, I love my usual regimen of running, biking, strength work, and extra cardio as my schedule allows...but it's nice to mix things up once in awhile. Typically, this time of year doesn't have any big races in the near future and my off-season is just around the corner (after the new year arrives). Why not have a little out-of-the-ordinary fun? Besides, all these streak runs get me through the busy holiday season, as well as the Winter Solstice. It may be self-fulfilling, but I swear I can already notice a difference in daylight when the Streak ends. I ask you, who doesn't look forward to that?!

So yeah, another Winter Run Streak is in the vault, and I have another one to look forward to in another 10 months. Bring it!

A few related posts:

The '22 Streak is a GO!

A No-Stress (stress fracture) Streak

20 Days of Awesome

Have you ever done a run streak, even for a much shorter time span? Do you have any tricks to get through the holiday season? How soon until you start to notice the daylight increasing?

 I'm linking this with Kim and Zenaida for the Tuesday Topics Link-Up

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