2022 in Running
04 Jan 2023In 2020 and 2021 I found it useful to reflect on my running and set new goals, time for 2022.
My 2022 goals:
get out 156 times - 3 times/week - and cover 1200Km (100Km/month). Both are only incremental improvements on 2021 and that’s OK. Locking in the habit of regular outings is the top goal (presumably around a busier calendar with fewer lockdowns), distance and speed are secondary. Still, a sub 2 hour half marathon would be a nice bonus if I can manage it, as would shaving some seconds off my 5km and 10km PBs.
I managed to hit my main goals - 183 runs in total (3.5/week), and 1596 Kms (133/month).
I also ran my first marathon (Melbourne, 04:35:44), two half marathons (1, 2, both sub 2 hours), and a handful of solo long runs over 21Km. A solo highlight was 31Km from Stawell to Halls Gap right at the end of the year.
With my top goal being regular outings and habit building, I like that my cumulative distance chart is relatively linear. Two spots of COVID and some minor overuse injuries are visible in the occasional plateau too.
New PBs:
Parkrun continues to be a useful part of the routine. I walked or ran 25 over the year, volunteered a few times, and passed the 50 walk/runs milestone on Christmas Day 🎁. Merri Creek Running Club provided excelent motivation to get up early once a week, and the Coburg Harriers middle distance group added some friendly variety to my training schedule.
No significant change in my gear this year, still using the Garmin forerunner 245 music, my phone for music and podcasts, a flip belt, and various Vivo Barefoot shoes. I did manage to drop a headphone down a drain, and I replaced them with a pair of Jabra Elite 4 Active’s.
2023 goals: Cover 2023Km (168Km/month). This feels ambitious and I’m not sure I’ll hit it. It’s an increase of ~26% on 2022 and I’m confident I could do it physically, but it’s about 38 Kms and 4 hours/week. Fitting that in around work and family logistics every week of the year might be a challenge. We’ll see.