How and Why to Run a Thousand Miles in One Year

It is January and traditionally we are supposed to make a resolution, which will change us for the better.  Actually, it is the middle of January and that resolution is already broken.  If you are a runner and you are looking for one, may I suggest running a thousand miles in a year.  I tried that one year and have done it every year since, and find that it is very effective in keeping me focused on my fitness.

Even if you are a runner, you may not really think about how far you go in one year.  You usually have a somewhat regular weekly routine and don’t think beyond that.  I know the first year I did this I realized that even though I exercised and ran, getting to a thousand miles would mean that I had to be more consistent with my runs and exercise.   No more skipping my run because I was tired and slept late. I barely made it the first year but now I make with ease.

Here are a few pointers about how to accomplish this.

Find a Group Online that is Focused on this – I use ilovetorun.org because they have a way for you to track your miles both with downloads and manually.  They also have a discussion feature and I have people I regularly share my experiences with. Everyone is very encouraging.

One thing. Don’t compare yourself to others. Trying to get to a 1,000 miles in one year is not a race!  This is about you pushing and challenging yourself.  So don’t get caught up in the leaderboard and your ranking. 

It is all about the Math – When you break it down, a 1,000 miles a year is only about 2.8 miles per day or about 19.2 miles per week.  This does not seem so bad until you figure that you are most likely not running everyday so those numbers are a bit larger daily if you are only running three or four days a week.  Than your run has to be over five miles on average.

When I started I shot for closer to twenty five miles a week or one hundred a month.  That gave me a cushion in case anything went wrong (Which it did!) and it also got me to the 1,000 miles if I was a little short on my weekly goals.

So before you start, layout a basic plan for your miles goal both weekly and monthly. Then after a few months review your progress and make adjustments if necessary.

Time is Your Enemy – I found that sometimes even though you are motivated that finding the time to get in a run or walk is the biggest challenge.  If you have kids, there is a good chance that your schedule, is built around their schedule.  Then there is work obligations or a long commute, which was my dilemma that makes the hours available for a run very limited.

You have to plan your time and make running, walking and fitness more of a priority.  That may mean other things fall down on the list.  In my case, it was cleaning the house. (Hey, we all have to make sacrifices!)  In reality, I became more efficient with my time in my life because I had to lay out my day including my run so it was a mental to do list.

Running or walking needs to be a priority on your “to do” list like other tasks.  Let your friends and family know that your regular run is a priority so they do not try to get you to do other things. My family now accepts my morning run rituals (Especially on weekends) as everyday life. While I know things come up, that may force you to give up your run but if these interruptions become the norm pretty soon your goal will seem insurmountable.

Need a Cushion for Murphy’s Law – If we learned anything in 2020 it was that the best laid plans can go to pieces.  If your plan to get to a 1,000 miles included going to your local fitness center a couple of days a week, that plan fell apart.  On the other hand, as in my case you can come down with COVID-19 and not be able to run for a month.   

Even in a non-COVID world, things will go wrong.  I have suffered my share of leg injuries, which have laid me up for a week or more.  I have also had work events or social events that fall on the weekend taking away my long run days.

Because of Murphy’s Law I recommend that you build in a cushion and when you calculate your monthly miles do it for eleven months or there about, so you budget in things that go wrong from the start.

Push Yourself Just a Little – You may be very comfortable with your running routine and find the miles you do come easy.  Another way to build your cushion and increase your mileage just add a small distance to your regular run.  For example if your regular run or walk is three miles add two or three-tenths to your run.  Adding additional mile or two might be tough mentally but adding a third of a mile is definitely doable since it is only an additional block or two to your run and does not add that much extra time either.  The other benefit to this is that probably like me you get used to this new distance and soon you will be adding another short loop. Before you know it your regular run is now longer.

Just Keep Moving Forward – A year is a long time so you can make up for lost days if you persist and stay positive.  There is no shame in walking.  Many a time I have had a nagging quad or hamstring which means no running for a while.  I can however walk a few miles easily so I can still add to my miles albeit not at the same rate but it still kept adding up and more importantly, it kept my mindset positive.

The first time I attempted to get to a thousand miles I injured myself playing volleyball in July and I had given up hope of ever getting to a thousand miles, because I had lost so much time.  However, despite losing a little over a month I kept going just to see how close I could get and soon realized I was going to get there albeit with only a week to spare.

Need Long Run Days – If you realize that during the work week your time is limited; or you realize that things will go wrong; then you need to realize the way the math works, is with a long run day.  A day where you put in extra miles.  For me that was the weekend.  So if something kept me from running during the week my weekend long runs made up for it. I also took advantage of holidays and even vacations when I had more time.  Long run days are a solution to solving the math issues, time issues, and Murphy’s law.

While I am not a great fan of virtual races, this yearlong challenge whether it is 500, 1,000, or 1,500 miles is great challenge.  Because unlike training for a specific race which is short term goal and it is easy to ease up on your fitness after the race. This challenge changes your daily and weekly routine so that you focus on your overall fitness and are always in good shape.

I almost forgot one other hint - order your medal or shirt for accomplishing your goal.  We all know that we runners love our race bling so if you ran for a year you deserve it too. 

On one of my long trail runs I had on my “1,000 Miles in a Year” shirt which is not unusual because I almost always have a race shirt on.  As I ran down the trail two separate people I came upon commented “Wow you did a 1,000 miles?”  I have to say that really pumped up my ego.

A journey of a thousand miles starts with your first step but it does end with a feeling of joy and accomplishment when you reach your goal. Go ahead start your journey.