100 runs | 100 days.

well it's the off season, otherwise known as the what-the-eff-am-I-supposed-to-do-with-myself season.

and then: yay ! a challenge !

email from ironman buddy:

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The goal of this entire thing is to lay down a solid run base by doing volume through frequency in short bursts of running. It can be outdoors or on a treadmill, but it must be running (no water running, no elliptical trainer...). Walking does not count...there must be 2 feet off the ground at some point in every stride (the difference between race walking and running) and there must be forward motion.

DO'S AND DON'TS
You can take days off =
You can double, triple (or more) runs in a day
You can take rest days
You get no credit for going longer than 20 minutes, however it will help your distance/time totals
You can go as slow as you want provided both feet leave the ground on every stride
Listen to your body if you need to take a day off…don't get too sucked into what the other geeks on the 'standings' are doing (who am I kidding….talking to a bunch a type A tri geeks)
By all means, use the overall standing as a motivator to push you up a level, but don't put yourself in the injury/hurt locker in the middle of winter
Don't sprint out of the gate in the first 3 weeks....easiest way to get injured...if you make it through 10 weeks (70 days), pour it on in the final month when your body and mind can take it.

WHAT COUNTS AS A DOUBLE RUN? For a run to count as a double, it must be separated by at least 1 hour. I have to pick a duration to separate 2 runs and it can't be 1 minute or 5 minutes, and putting 1 hour in between means that I will allow you to count a run-swim-run, run-bike-run, run-wts-run, run-XC ski-run, run-McDonalds-run as 2 sessions as long as the thing in between lasts for at least 1 hour (be it 40K on the bike, or a session at the donut shop).

WHAT ARE THE VARIOUS LEVELS While some might go for 100 runs, the reality is that unless you are already running 4-6 hours per week, this is not a realistic goal.
For most a realistic goal is to start at Bronze "club pace" and then see how things go.
Platinum Club = 100 runs in 100 days (March 24th)
Gold Club = 90 runs in 100 runs in days
Silver Club = 80 runs in 100 runs in days
Bronze = 70 runs in 100 runs in days

It is great training for anyone doing a spring marathon or an early season triathlon, and you'll be shocked by how quickly you accumulate mileage, all without getting injured...because the focus is keeping them short and aerobic. By all means feel free to run longer than 20 minutes, but the main goal here is to get you out the door, 5-7 times per week, especially given that the weather is generally nasty for riding.

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I am, of course, aiming for Platinum. right now I am at 9/ 12 but I hope to get in a few double runs with the furlough week coming up [yay government].

oh, for those of you who love audiobooks: I highly recommended The Help by Kathryn Stockett. It's a fantastic story the the narration is top notch.

hope everyone had a fantastic holiday !