I hit a couple of milestones this week with my run streak. First, today was my coldest run yet since I started the streak. When I got back inside after my run, my AccuWeather app said that the temperature was 9ºF outside and that it felt like 7ºF. It was chilly, for sure–one of those days when you feel the contents of your nose freeze during each inhalation if you breathe with your mouth closed. But it really didn’t feel as bad as the other day’s run did when the temperature was higher but there were 20+mph winds. See my selfie after today’s run below–I left my frizzy hair down for extra insulation, and I don’t know if my face was actually that color (I should have used a filter, I suppose), but it was cold for sure:
We had our first real snow of the winter the other day, too–hardly enough to measure, but enough to make the roads a little bit slippery. And I still did my mile outside that day, too. Actually all of my runs since I started the streak in May have been outside except maybe three or four when the Bearded One and I went on a trip to California. I took advantage of the hotel treadmill then, mainly because I just wanted to knock the runs out so we could go on fun California adventures. But I feel so much more attuned to my surroundings than I did before. I notice the little trails that animals leave in the long grass of the ditches, I’m familiar with more people in my “neighborhood” because of my daily runs (and walks with the dog), and I’m very aware of the weather–it’s been great!
My other run streak milestone of the week is that I hit six months. Six whole months of running at least a mile each day. According to MY calculations, half of a year would be 182.5 days (or 183 days if it’s a Leap Year), but my StreakTrackr app said 6 months was 184 days.
Either way, I made it. And I don’t really feel any different. I don’t know what I thought it would feel like. I guess I expected to have a sense of accomplishment, and I did a little bit, but it was brief. A few seconds of pride, and I immediately moved on, thinking about the next streak milestone. In some ways, I feel like the streak has served its purpose–I’ve shown myself that I can be consistent with something, and I feel better physically than I did when I started. But if I stop without a real reason, THEN what am I showing myself? So I feel it must continue. More than thinking about the run streak, though, I started thinking about other areas in my life that I want to improve. What other habit do I want to develop or streak could I put into place? I run every day now, I blog once a week, but there are SO MANY other things that would make me better if I started doing them consistently. I just have to decide on one and get after it. (I’ll keep you posted.)
I think I said something in my first blog post about how my main goal in life is to always be working on improving myself somehow. I definitely fall into stretches of complacency sometimes, but the desire to be better always comes back. And the fleeting sense of accomplishment I had about reaching six months in my running streak was a good reminder that, no matter what I achieve, there’s always something more to strive for. It’s a little daunting to think about that: no matter what I do, I’ll never be done. But it’s also exciting to think about: no matter how many things I do, or see, or accomplish, there’s always something else to do, or see, or accomplish. It’s not always going to be something grand, but that’s okay. I’m just grateful to have the opportunity to experience so many things, big and small. And I think it’s great to acknowledge little markers of success, as long as you also recognize that you won’t really find happiness just by reaching a single goal. Merriam-Webster defines “milestone” as:
Definition number two is the important one here–goals and milestones aren’t where you hope to end up, they’re just “a significant point in development”. Your work isn’t done when you reach them–it’s really just beginning. But when you reach a milestone, and you get that little boost of confidence they can bring, you’re just setting yourself up for so many more opportunities to learn and grow and find joy.
As Brené Brown (an author whose books I enjoy and who, according to her website, has “spent the past two decades studying courage, vulnerability, shame, and empathy.”) once said in an interview with Gretchen Rubin (another author whose books I enjoy, and who, according to HER website, is “one of today’s most influential and thought-provoking observers of happiness and human nature.”), “I don’t have to chase extraordinary moments to find happiness – it’s right in front of me if I’m paying attention and practicing gratitude.“
growingmoxie.com 