In January I came across a post in one of the running groups I belong to on Facebook. It was a woman documenting one of her 10k races in pursuit of her goal to run 50 10ks before she turned 40. She mentioned the number of months she had to reach her goal and it got me thinking… how close am I to being 40 months away from turning 40? And what kind of running goal could I challenge myself to in that timeframe?
Today is February 29th, which is 41 months away from July 29, 2027 – my 40th birthday. It is also the last day of February (and leap day), which means that March will be the start of my 40 month challenge. With the help of my friend Kirsten, who serves as one of the best and worst influences I have in my life, I came up with the goal to run 400 racing miles in 40 months before my 40th birthday.
This is a big goal. It’s a long-term goal. This goal is a marathon, not a sprint. I think it’s exactly what I need. I’ve mentioned in blogs and conversation over and over again that I just don’t feel like myself. I haven’t felt like “Megan” in a long time. Part of that is normal, it’s natural, it’s healthy. If we never change, we’ll never grow. Growing and learning is what makes us human, and it’s what makes life interesting. I feel too different from who I used to be, though, in an uncomfortable way.
Today I met with my friend Maggie, who is also a registered dietitian and distance runner (like Kirsten). Our almost two-hour conversation was one of the most refreshing and inspiring ones I’ve had in a long time. It got me really thinking about what matters to me, what makes me excited, what my passions are, and what my goals are. It reminded me of the conversation I had with Kirsten in January about this challenge for myself. It inspired me to sit down and write this blog.
One of the topics Maggie and I covered today was planning and having more of a set schedule, with flexibility built in. This is easier said than done, we both admitted. Too much rigidity and you want to break free. Too much freedom and you lose motivation. Although I won’t “officially” be 40 months away from my 40th birthday until March 29th, I decided to start this challenge at the beginning of March. I wanted to start with a fresh month, a clean slate, a blank calendar. I am going to start building a plan of attack to reach my 400 mile goal.
Kirsten and I joked back and forth about how difficult or how easy I could make this goal. It might look something like…
- Run 3-4 5k races every month.
- Run 2-ish 10k races every month.
- Run a 10 mile race every month.
- Run a half marathon every 40-ish days.
- Run a marathon every 3 months (this is where I start to go “nah fam, I’m good”).
The reason I chose 400 racing miles as opposed to a number of races or overall mileage is because as you can see, running the same distance race to reach a goal gets repetitive and overwhelming. I wanted a challenging but doable goal, and a goal that wouldn’t seem so hugely impossible at the beginning. Yes, 400 racing miles is a lot, but when you break it down, it’s not bad. It’s an average of 10 racing miles a month, which some months will be easy (if I run a half marathon or more) and other months it might be challenging (in the winter when there aren’t as many race options or the weather is less than ideal). I don’t want to run a half marathon almost every month, but I can see myself doing 1-2 half marathons a year with 5ks, 8ks, 10ks, etc. thrown in.
Here’s what I have planned for my future as of right now:
- Shamrock 8k in March 2024 (4.97 miles)
- Thumb Coast Ultra in April 2024 (8.9 miles)
- Fast & Furriest 5k in April 2024 (3.1 miles)
- STFU in June 2024 (5 miles)
- Crim in August 2024 (10 miles)
- Woodstock in September 2024 (5 miles)
- Bonfyre in November 2024 (5 miles)
- Possibly a marathon in fall 2024 (26.2 miles)
- Possibly a 50k in 2024 (31 miles)
Right there I have almost 100 miles planned – that’s 1/4 of my goal! Even if I don’t do the marathon or 50k, I’ll still definitely be at least 1/8 of the way to my goal by the end of 2024. I hope to document my journey to 400 miles here as much as possible, and I hope that will help inspire me to write more, too because writing brings me so much joy.
RD on the Run 