Home Fitness Running : New Year, New Challenges – 2020

Running : New Year, New Challenges – 2020

by Alfredo Miranda

A new year begins…..a year goes by….we are done with our last long run of the year…and while you were savoring every bit of this last long slow distance run, I can bet you couldn’t stop thinking of your run ambitions for the upcoming year.

As a runner and a mentor, am always thinking of better plans, infact better possible plans and then I came across this challenge of doing either 2020 miles or kms during the coming year 2020. And I wanted to know more about it, so I had a chat with the promoter…..

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn

Q: How the challenge came about?

Well, 2020 is a round number… so it invites to do something like a challenge of sorts. But the core of the issue is that I always wanted to help runners to understand that the stamina for long distance running is built up through constant and persistent work, not just the blast of few weeks before an event.

With this in mind, I thought of doing this challenge emphasizing the concept of “weekly mileage”.

Q: So, the scoreboard will be weekly…

Yes, that’s the idea. Similar to tennis, on Monday’s we will publish the standing position comparing it to the expected distance as per the “weekly-average-required”, so that each runner can knows if it is “on target” or with some deviations.

For example, for the 2020 kmers the average per week is 40 km. The week 3 should be finished with 120km, all runners with more than 120 will be marked in green, runners who have done 110 to 120 will be mark in yellow: they are below average but still under control… And runners with less than 110 will be mark in red: they are lagging behind and should start recovering little by little.

Q: But it can turn into a competition of who does more km’s in the year?

No, because once you complete the distance you will be out of the challenge, moved to the “achievers” list and your kms will stop counting. There will be no difference between someone who does it by 31st of August or 31st of December.

Q: And how demanding is this? Do you need to run every day?

Demanding or not… it will depend on your level… For a Half marathoner the 2020 kms is quite doable and for marathoners the 2020 miles is also very much at hand. In average, the weekly requirement is 40 and 63 km respectively. A week of “5 day running” can look like:

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • LinkedIn

If we think of a marathoner, 2 months before the event the mileage can easily reach 80 km, so there will be some extra distance, which will compensate the recovery weeks after the event. In periods of “off season”, by adding 1:30 minutes to the marathon pace, a marathoner can run those 63 km without much trouble getting the crucial benefit of the aerobic training: it is a win-win situation.

Click here to join the challenge!

I wish you an injury free year, a steady year with its highs and lows. Remember, it is the lows that urge us to come back on the road stronger and smarter. The highs are a result of many things done right.

See you on the road.

Author

  • Alfredo Miranda
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • LinkedIn

    Warmly known as Alfie by runners in the NCR Region, Alfredo is a mentor and a guide, par excellence, to many fledgling and mature runners. A super marathoner himself, he helps runners with their running plans for various events and most importantly always keeps their morale high up! Alfie lives by the philosophy – The Killing is yet to come, you will see how well you push yourself… He is reachable at [email protected].

You may also like

Leave a Comment

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish. Accept Read More

Pin It on Pinterest

Shares
Share This