How would runners celebrate their own birthdays? Running of course.
The rule is simple:
I.e. I was 45 this year, that is 45 km run on any trail, road, even treadmills
Next year I will run 46km on my bday, then 47, etc…
Anyone else celebrate this way?
If you do, feel free to share any interesting stories of your birthday runs.
I don’t follow a strict distance per-year structure, but I do try to do something big or vacation-y around my birthday every few years. I ran a 40 miler on a whim for one a few years ago, and this year I’m setting off to do a camping/running trip over a long weekend. I was really close to signup up for a 50k on my bday (32) this year, but the logistics just weren’t quite right. I should still be able to get at least that much over a few days though, so I’m counting it
The idea to run my age in miles on my birthday has crossed my mind every birthday for the last 4-5 years, but this year was the first year I acted on it. In the past the timing just wasn’t good with other running plans I had. This year it lined up pretty well for a final long run before a taper for my first race of the year.
I wrote a blog post all about the how and why of it:.