Go on anyway.

Something I have learned when I am on one of these running streaks, is that I can talk myself into delaying my run to maybe not run early in the morning, I always find however that at some point in the day the feeling to go run will be strong and I will go out. It will sometimes mean that the weather may be worse than it was earlier, but that has never really stopped. Usually my muscles are looser when I run in the afternoon or evening, but then when you run multiday races you get used to running with tight or sore muscles to start with.
This time next week if I make it I will reach 700 days and will of course report it here.

Recently

Last week just before I traveled to Ljubljana by bus I started have some major pain in my right hip, but it didn't bother me when I walked or ran. My experience has been that this usually means there is an in balance in my hips. I tried doing an exercise that usually corrects this but it didn't do anything, so it persisted for about a week and then started to get better. Near the end there was also some stiffness in my lower back, but all the time I managed to keep running. So sometimes you just have to see how things go when you have an apparent injury, but still want to run. 

Friday and Sunday.

On Friday as I tied up my running shoes to go out for a run I was still a little sick from some flu bug and it was raining and cold, but the desire to run was there and as it happened the run would mark 20 months without missing a day.
On Sunday when I went out for my run my legs felt a bit like the 3rd day of a 6 day race, but I managed my usual run. I noticed that there was a guy with some tables and and paper cups at the bridge near where I finish my run. Remembering that  the Sarajevo Half Marathon was happening I realized that this was an aid station.and decided to return there later to watch part of the race.The running conditions where good, about 11 C and sunny and I quickly found out that the aid station was at the turnaround. I got to see the leaders and check out what there times were at the halfway point. The race is fairly new, just a few years old and there were just over 300 runners. My friend Amur came from Banja Luka, but I somehow missed him when he ran by. There were a few Americans, who I assume live and work in Bosnia and others from Serbia and Slovenia, but the race was won by a Bosnain in a time of 1:06. Maybe I will run next year.

600 Days

With this mornings run I have now completed 600 days without missing one.There have been a few when it was a struggle to get in the minimum 1 mile requirement I set myself, but the desire to go out and run has always been there. It had just stopped raining when I went out this morning, so it was like a blessing to mark the occasion. I usually don't count days in my streaks after the first 50 or so, but do to a project involving the first 80 I have kept tabs on the days. I am also approaching 20 months, which as I have stated before is my second longest streak. I hope this inspires others to be a bit more consistent in their running. It really helps.

World Harmony Run

From August 10 to 16 I was part of the World Harmony Run in Bosnia and Hercegovina and also Croatia.It is always interesting to be part of the run and since the Olympics had just finished people are reminded of it when they see us running with a torch.. As part of the team you go out and run your shift. sometimes in the countryside sometimes in Cities.The average distance per runner per day is around 10 km, but some like to add to their daily stint but joining others on their shift.The official meetings we have are sometimes quite simple and other times involve traditional dance and local or national TV. If you ever get a chance to participate take the chance.

Bastille Day

Yes today is Bastille Day and when I ran this morning it completed 18 months of my running streak which actually equals my second longest of all time.The longest of course is the four and a half years I did from March 1997 to September 2001. As I have said before I never force myself to go out and run, but when I am in one of these streaks it becomes the natural thing for me to do everyday., the consistency of running everyday  becomes the thing to do and makes the day complete.

Fragrance

most mornings in Sarajevo I run from the apartment where I am staying to the river and run on the sidewalk, it is lined with Linden trees, which at this time of the year are full of flowers.The flowers are very fragrant and on occasion I am reminded of a few tree lined streets in Queens, New York where I would run and I would have the same experience.

Update

This past weekend I was on the Dalmatian coast, mostly in a place called Biograd. I got to swim a lot, which in the mornings was preceded by a nice run by the sea. On Sunday I ran a 2 mile race, which it turns out was a little short since my time was 14:03, which would have been my fastest for about 2 years. Since I moved to Sarajevo I have lost a little weight, I think from the good food here and my reduction in junk food.
A few weeks ago my friend Nataliya from the Ukraine won the Edinboro' marathon in 2:39:46, which was 26 seconds slower than when she finished 2nd in Utrecht 6 weeks earlier.
Finally it is nice to be able to go out and run in just T shirt and shorts now that the weather has warmed up ;)

500 Days

This morning in Sarajevo was a little cool, but dry. On my current running streak I have now completed 500 days. When I was here in October/ November there was  smoke in the air from fires to keep houses and such warm, so I did notice some slight breathing problems, but now in the Spring everything is much better, I have to look at the chance to run a race somewhere I am kind of still settling in as far as that is concerned.

In Bosnia

I am managing to maintain my running streak. I traveled by bus overnight to Sarajevo where I will be living for a while. When went out for a run a few hours after my arrival I noticed some quite painful tightness in my lower back on the left side and this was repeated this morning when I also ran. It was similar to what I experienced  when I was here in October last year, I persisted in running every day then and it went away so I fully expect it to do the same this time. I am 10 days from completing 500 days having just completed 16 months at the beginning of the week.
On Tuesday some friends of mine finished the Unix 6 day race in Hungary, with my friends Wolfgang Schwerk and Andrea Accorsi finishing 1st and 3rd in the Man's edition and Monica Barchetti ( Andreas wife ) wining the woman's race. Congratulations to them all.

Marathon friend

Last week a friend of mine from the Ukraine ran 2:39:20 in the Utrecht marathon, it was a personal best for her and she finished second among the women. I first met her and her brother 3 years ago and 2 years ago she came to Ljubljana and finished 10th in the city marathon, with a time of 2:46. Last November she ran 2:43 finishing 3rd in the Podgorica marathon in Montenegro. I talk with her from time to time and she tells me how things are going in her training and also smaller races that she does, usually in Poland. Because of her improved times she is now being invited to races with expenses being paid, which is a big improvement..

Half Marathon

After a 12 hour overnight bus ride and around 26 hours recovery, I ran a 2:29:08 Half Marathon last Sunday. As a multiday runner I am always a little torn between wanting to run a shorter race faster and getting more time on my feet for training purposes. Last year I ran 2:29:36 in cold conditions. This year the temperature was a comfortable 6C on a bright sunny morning, run on a loop that was just over 1km long, in a nice park in Nish, Serbia. I started my year with this race last year and after 414 days of running have used it to start my racing year again.

Another milestone.

Yesterday I reached another milestone in my current running streak. 400 days is where I am at now. For a week I have had a persistent cough, but it does not seem to bother me when I am running. It does sometimes rear it's ugly head when I finish. We are also getting temperatures above freezing these days, so hopefully I can shake it out soon.

First snow

It is February and we finally have some snow on the ground, well there was snow yesterday when I went out to run, but it was still kinda wet and blowing around. This morning it is still -7C there is no wind and the snow makes crunchy sounds as you run on it. There is only about 1cm of snow, but it looks like it will stay around for a while.

Cold Mornings

There have been some quite cold mornings here in Ljubljana since I got back fro the UK, where it was quite mild. This morning was the coldest so far, with the digital temperature gauge flashing -7C. There was also a strong wind which of course makes it feel much colder. Through my years in New York I have probably run on colder days in windier conditions, but it has been a while and I need to get used it.

1 year done

So 2 days ago on January 14 I went for a run in the countryside it was my 365th day of running. It didn't seem any different than all the others, it was a beautiful sunny day and the air was really fresh. I was running on muddy trails and about 10 or so minutes in I slipped and fell sideways onto the dirt. I ran for about an hour and was rewarded with a hearty vegetable stew and a relaxing afternoon.

Almost a year

Today I ran my 364th straight day, so of course tomorrow will be 1 year. I did not run 1 multiday during that time in fact the longest race I did was a 12 hour race. I don't think that I have had as many injuries as in recent years. I think that is mostly due to consistently running, your body sort of gets used to the regularity,

Yesterday

Just 2 days ago it was raining quite hard all day, but at one point in the afternoon I had the feeling that it was time to go out and run. so out I went. It just happened to be the 350th straight day of running.