There's a clear caveat missing here and that is if you are really sick, rest. Like, truly rest, sans shame — streak be damned, missing more than two days in a row be damned. I have had colds that kept recurring for 6+ months and I think a lot of that was not letting myself truly rest (also: I have discovered that I have a version of asthma that really only is an issue when I am sick). Since then, I have found that actually letting myself do nothing but drift in and out of sleep all day and eat when I'm hungry has allowed me to get over illness in 2-3 days; covid maybe more like four. And of course, there are people for whom covid has been a total disaster, even when they did fully take care of themselves.
You have a footnote, but it reads like you "pushed through" even though it was "difficult" and maintained your streak of running every day even when you were legitimately ill. I'm not sure that's the message you want to send, if the theme of your substack is ultimately about taking care of oneself so that one can do the important work.
Yes awesome, but... from my personal experience I would recommend you slow down. Why? What you overdo today will come up later in your life and haunt you. I climbed the Kilimandjaro with a 75 year old man who barely was able to climb. His knees were shot. He was a downhill champion skier during his University years. Every day on the Kili was as painful as doing a marathon for him. Now I am 75 years old myself. I jogged a lot, played baseball excessively when I was a teen and played tennis most of my life too. Today, I would like to continue to play tennis, but it is very painful and I have to have 3 days of rest between matches. The knees and my right shoulder just can't take it anymore. I wonder how it would be like today if I had not gone overboard when I was younger. Food for thought and good discussions.
Being one of Gretchen's questioners, I love to customize a rule.
My rule, and what I've used to finally maintain a consistent pushup/situp routine for 10 months, is that these are 'weekday' exercises and that is what I'm tracking. I, on purpose, am trying to separate the weekdays from my weekend (although I desperately need to rein in my weekend work habit!) and tend to do a lot more physical exercise on the weekend. Thus, the pushups/situps and now squats belong to weekday morning before coffee.
what an awesome accomplishment! over 5 years is a feat. and i love the call to focus on not perfection, but resetting after a day off- it's more human and sustainable.
Never miss twice in a row has been very helpful for me as well. I've used it in dieting definitely, as in never do two unhealthy meals in a row. But also in any habit I'm trying to build. It's incredibly helpful, and so simple.
been running and hiking consistently for 62 years...yikes that's a long time. What did I learn? persistence will get you somewhere ...it was really not that hard ONCE I figured out that running & hiking contributed to my mental health, my physical well being, my creativity & i love doing it. Exercise is a great way to start my day. I go out 5 days a week & I have a set amount of miles for the week but don't necessarily spread those miles out equally esp. when hiking.... I live at the base of the largest cluster of 14,000' peaks in CO so hiking is extraordinary, stunningly beautiful and amazingly immersive.
I love this! Funny enough your happiness of pursuit book is the inspiration of 2 streaks in my life 10 years later. I am on my 3448th consecutive day of meditation - I have meditated through some wild life seasons, peaks and valleys - divorce, single momhood, housing insecurity, rebuilding my life, attaining my life goals etc. (I also wrote a haiku a day for several years. I have thousands written now now) Your impact, lens and journey continue to revolutionize my life Chris! I can not thank you enough for being you!
There's a clear caveat missing here and that is if you are really sick, rest. Like, truly rest, sans shame — streak be damned, missing more than two days in a row be damned. I have had colds that kept recurring for 6+ months and I think a lot of that was not letting myself truly rest (also: I have discovered that I have a version of asthma that really only is an issue when I am sick). Since then, I have found that actually letting myself do nothing but drift in and out of sleep all day and eat when I'm hungry has allowed me to get over illness in 2-3 days; covid maybe more like four. And of course, there are people for whom covid has been a total disaster, even when they did fully take care of themselves.
You have a footnote, but it reads like you "pushed through" even though it was "difficult" and maintained your streak of running every day even when you were legitimately ill. I'm not sure that's the message you want to send, if the theme of your substack is ultimately about taking care of oneself so that one can do the important work.
Yes awesome, but... from my personal experience I would recommend you slow down. Why? What you overdo today will come up later in your life and haunt you. I climbed the Kilimandjaro with a 75 year old man who barely was able to climb. His knees were shot. He was a downhill champion skier during his University years. Every day on the Kili was as painful as doing a marathon for him. Now I am 75 years old myself. I jogged a lot, played baseball excessively when I was a teen and played tennis most of my life too. Today, I would like to continue to play tennis, but it is very painful and I have to have 3 days of rest between matches. The knees and my right shoulder just can't take it anymore. I wonder how it would be like today if I had not gone overboard when I was younger. Food for thought and good discussions.
Being one of Gretchen's questioners, I love to customize a rule.
My rule, and what I've used to finally maintain a consistent pushup/situp routine for 10 months, is that these are 'weekday' exercises and that is what I'm tracking. I, on purpose, am trying to separate the weekdays from my weekend (although I desperately need to rein in my weekend work habit!) and tend to do a lot more physical exercise on the weekend. Thus, the pushups/situps and now squats belong to weekday morning before coffee.
That’s some great advice. I love the never miss twice in a row approach.
It’s a great feat but I would advocate for rest days to ensure you get a good recovery in.
There’s a danger if you do the same low intensity each time that you fall into a rut.
I love this idea! Once I ran 6 miles a day for 748 days in a row. I had to stop because my Achilles tendon could no longer take it. I miss it..
The never miss two makes a lot of sense. Thanks for sharing!
what an awesome accomplishment! over 5 years is a feat. and i love the call to focus on not perfection, but resetting after a day off- it's more human and sustainable.
I’ve been running 1 mile or more everyday with my dogs 🐕 🐕
First year we logged 385 miles. Year 2 we ran 425. 3rd year 510 miles!
This year we were on target to beat last year but Weasel has an injury so it’s been putting a little damper on our streak. We’ll figure it though.
The longest streak I maintained was almost 4 months of fasting and not consuming meat.
Never miss twice in a row has been very helpful for me as well. I've used it in dieting definitely, as in never do two unhealthy meals in a row. But also in any habit I'm trying to build. It's incredibly helpful, and so simple.
been running and hiking consistently for 62 years...yikes that's a long time. What did I learn? persistence will get you somewhere ...it was really not that hard ONCE I figured out that running & hiking contributed to my mental health, my physical well being, my creativity & i love doing it. Exercise is a great way to start my day. I go out 5 days a week & I have a set amount of miles for the week but don't necessarily spread those miles out equally esp. when hiking.... I live at the base of the largest cluster of 14,000' peaks in CO so hiking is extraordinary, stunningly beautiful and amazingly immersive.
I love this! Funny enough your happiness of pursuit book is the inspiration of 2 streaks in my life 10 years later. I am on my 3448th consecutive day of meditation - I have meditated through some wild life seasons, peaks and valleys - divorce, single momhood, housing insecurity, rebuilding my life, attaining my life goals etc. (I also wrote a haiku a day for several years. I have thousands written now now) Your impact, lens and journey continue to revolutionize my life Chris! I can not thank you enough for being you!