The Marcothon is a challenge inspired by top ultra runner Marco Consani to run 5km or for 25 minutes minimum each day in December. I have completed the Marcothon a couple of times before, although last year I had to give up due to a chest infection.
I have been reflecting on my Marcothon 2016 so far.
There is no such thing as a bad run. Once I have persuaded myself to get up off my chair and go out for a run, even the minimum 5km, I always feel much better for it.
It only takes a few miles to boost my mood. Even when I have been feeling winter blues low, a run helps to make me smile and boost my feel-good hormones.
It doesn’t need to be fast. Just getting out and doing the 25 minutes is enough.
A run mid-bike ride.
Even if it’s late you can still run. I prefer not to run too late in the day but there have been times when work has been too busy to run in the day-time or early evening. I even managed to run after a tough spin session one evening.
I can run first thing in the day even if I think I hate it. I had to get up and run before 10am one day because I knew I’d be out for the rest of the day and I might like to enjoy a drink. So I made myself get up early enough to eat breakfast two hours before heading off for my 5km. I actually ended up a bit lost and did 50 minutes of running but, surprisingly, my body and brain survived!
Making a plan helps. I like other sports, including mountain biking and hill walking, so I have tried to plan to include a run during these activities. Otherwise, I fear I might do my bike ride/ hike and then not bother with a run. Once of my favourite new sessions is an MTB-run-MTB.
Great evening views.
It’s surprising what you can do when you try. On Saturday I joined friends for a 50th birthday celebration ride. This was 50km of mountain biking. Usually that would be enough for me on one day but I still managed to come home and do my run. It wasn’t easy and it felt slow and quite sore but I still did it because I didn’t want to let myself down.
It’s motivating to have friends doing the marcothon, too. I have friends and FB buddies who are doing Marcothon. If they can stay on track then so can I.
It’s easier running with others. Making a plan to run with friends is very motivating and much more fun than running solo.
Bike-run-bike.
Marcothon is mind focusing. I was out on Saturday night until late and stayed away from home in my campervan. I was then due to go out on the Sunday afternoon. So I set my alarm to get me up to make sure I got home in time to do my run before going out. It’s a great way to ensure you do something active every day.
There are always those who are doing far more epic endeavours. My FB friend Katie Hall is doing a bonkers kind of Marcothon. I think she’s running 256 miles in December. I see her posts each day and recon that if she can run all those miles then I can surely get myself together to run 5km. I also interviews Caroline McKay, who ran the full West Highland Way non-stop on Friday-Saturday. If she can do that the 5km is really nothing much at all, is it?
A great run with friends.
It gets easier then more days you run. Yesterday I felt tired and sluggish all day. Yet, when I finally dragged myself out for my 5km I found I ran further and with more energy than I might well have done in November. The accumulative days of small runs has helped to build my general running fitness.
I am looking forward to my Christmas Day run. I always run on Christmas day and I really enjoy passing others as they are walking their dogs and saying a cheery “Happy Christmas”. It’s a spirit-lifting thing to do.
How is the Marcothon going for you?