203. Run Streaks: the good, the bad & the ugly

Run streaks! Maybe you have seen people on social media talking about their 1000 day run streaks or maybe you have no idea what a run streak is. Today we are going to talk about the topic of ‘run streaking’. Before we dive into this topic, we wanted to define a run streak. A run streak is simply running every single day (no days off from running) usually defined with a minimum of 1 mile per day and the streak continues on ‘forever’. Maybe people participate in the shorter runner’s worlds run streaks every year over the holiday season. These types of run streaks are a little different because they have a defining end point… But what about the streaks that don’t end? We are going to break down this topic into a few parts

Sharing some stats about run streaks

Runeveryday.com

What is the longest streak for a man? John Sutherland - Ron Hill retired his at 52 years

For a female? Lois Bastien of Florida

Are these people slower than they could potentially be?

Why would someone start a run streak? What are some of the potential benefits of a run streak?

Helps with consistency which can make you faster

Building endurance/used to running on fatigued legs

Gets you outside/moving

What are some of the potential downsides to a run streak?

No rest days is problematic

Define rest days & why no taking them can be a problem

Benefits the metabolic systems such as fitness, threshold and vo2 max.

Benefits structural systems such as muscles and tendons and neuromuscular coordination

Not resting can lead to OCD tendencies or feeling the need to run through injury or illness which can result in poor performance or being forced to take extended time off.

Mental & physical burn out

Sometimes you might lose the joy without that mental break!

Your performance might suffer if you’re always worried about mileage and not as focused around a polarized training approach.

Longer you go, the harder it is to break

Viewing ‘rest’ as ‘failure’ has potential long term issues

Biggest issue is the view of rest as ‘bad’/’breaking’ your healthy habit

Too much of a good thing

People who should avoid run streaks

Anxiety or OCD tendencies

If you feel like you don’t have ‘other coping strategies’

What are some healthy coping strategies for stress besides running?

Someone who has impending medical needs or wanting to have children

If you avoid having kids or having a surgery because of a run streak