My running word for the first quarter of 2024: Consistency

Posted on by Vanessa Junkin (She Runs by the Seashore)
Selfie of Vanessa Junkin holding ice cream with the text "January 101"
Selfie of Vanessa Junkin holding ice cream with the text "February 101.21"
Selfie of Vanessa Junkin holding ice cream with the text "March 101.3"

I’ve been having a super busy year so far, and just when I was finally starting to get caught up on the blog, I ran two more races. But since I’ve missed my last few monthly roundups, here’s my recap of the first quarter of the year — January, February and March. When it came to these three months, “consistency” was the word to describe my running, as I ran almost exactly the same amount each month, and my fast runs were close in pace.

  1. I hit the 100-mile goal each month. I set a goal to run 100 miles each month of 2024, and I’ve kept that up so far, even with a week off at the beginning of March because I was recovering from a cold. I ran 101 miles in January, 101.21 miles in February and 101.3 miles in March. I also decided to enjoy a different ice cream flavor at the end of each month (some of which I’ve had before).
  2. I also kept up my fast 1600s. I ran my January 1600 in 8:10, my February 1600 in 8:14 and my March 1600 (halfway through the month due to how I was feeling) in 8:22.
  3. I ran two races during this time frame. I ran the Orlando Magic 5K at the beginning of February, where I was happy with my time of 29:01, and at the end of the month, I ran the Maryland-D.C. RRCA Club Challenge, at which I ran my slowest 10-mile race ever while I had a cold. I also finished the Winter Tour.
  4. I volunteered at two races. I volunteered with the Eastern Shore Running Club at an Algonquin 50K aid station and as part of the Tim Kennard River Run committee on the Tim Kennard course.
  5. I went to the Olympic Marathon Trials. This was definitely a highlight of the quarter and I assume for the year — it was fun to see the pros race and be surrounded by the running community. Read more about my experience here.
  6. I did lots of fun runs. In addition to plenty of fun runs with the Eastern Shore Running Club, I took part in three fun shape runs with Delmarva She Runs This Town — “Happy New Year 24,” “Love (heart) SRTT” and “Cup of Ambition” — and a run with the 11:30 Club. I took part in an ESRC Mardi Gras run planned by Bob that ended with jambalaya, and I ran 2.9 miles on Leap Day (even though during that run I felt awful with my cold).
  7. I was re-elected president of the Eastern Shore Running Club. This is my third year as president of this amazing Road Runners Club of America club, based in Salisbury and serving the Lower Shore area. Learn more about us at esrclub.org.
  8. I ran in fun places. I finished the Winter Tour in January, and during this quarter, I also ran in Washington, D.C.; New Smyrna Beach, Fla., Pocomoke City, Md., and Ocean City/West Ocean City, Md.
  9. I improved my two-mile time. I ran some of my fastest non-race two-mile times in years, running 17:54.7 in January and then 17:54.0 in March.
  10. I joined a gym. I’ve never been amazing about going to the gym, but I think I’m doing better this year than I ever have in the past. After hearing my boyfriend, Mike, talk about stair climber workouts, I decided to join Planet Fitness and give them a try. The stair climber is TOUGH! I went to the gym five times in January, zero times in February and once in March.
  11. I broke my DribbleUp streak. I was doing well with my monthly DribbleUp classes and made it up to a 41-week streak, but I forgot to do a class while I was sick in February. Unfortunately, I haven’t done a class since, but there’s a monthly fee — I need to get back to it!
  12. I did a little less yoga. I did some yoga, but not as much as I’d like, getting five classes in during this quarter.

April has continued the trend of being busy! Stay tuned for recaps of my two races this month.