Celebrating 3 Years Of Running: My Progress and Revelations

In a surprise to everyone and me in particular, I’m still a runner and still loving it! I went from despising running more than anything, to finishing a couch to 5K program twice and now I have been running regularly for 3 years straight. Absolutely ridiculous 🙂 .

If someone asked me what the most surprising thing about my retirement was: This is it. I never would have imagined that I could go from absolutely loathing something to loving it, but here we are. So let’s see how I’ve improved and what I’ve learned about running in the last year.

Progress

First some context. I talked about how I started running and what my first two years were like in these posts:

• From Hate To Love: How I Became A Runner
• Celebrating 1 Year Of Running
• Celebrating 2 Years Of Running

But if you’re looking for the TL;DR it’s this:

• When I started my Couch to 5K program 3 years ago, I was running 18 minute miles
• By the end of Year 1, I was down to an 11 minute mile if I pushed really hard
• In Year 1, I ran a slow 5K (3.1 miles) for the first time and shockingly found it easy
• In Year 2, I started trying 2 mile runs and hit 14 minute miles on average
• Also in Year 2 I ran a 10 minute mile for the first time

So now we’re in Year 3! And because I’m a huge nerd, you know I have a chart for you 🙂 . Since I started running, I’ve been charting my times to make sure I’m trending in the right direction: Faster! And I’m happy to say that I am! Here is my trendline for 1 mile runs:

I’ve read in a few places online that 10 minute miles are kind of standard when you’re “competition” ready so that was a vague goal I’ve had and I’ve hit it a few times (though rarely) in previous years, but this year it’s happened more than a few times. I’m so happy that my trendline overall is definitely getting faster and that I’m hitting my 10 minute mile goal fairly often and running 12 minute miles if I’m going ‘slow’.

I also started doing longer runs in Year 2 so here is my chart of 1.5+ and 2 mile runs:

The trendline is what I always look at on these charts because I know that physical improvement isn’t a steady line and that it’s affected by many factors, so all I care about is that overall, I’m trending faster even if I have an off day now and again. Overall I’m super happy that I keep getting faster even on longer runs when my overall pace is understandably slower.

All this tracking is very helpful for me to see that even though it’s a slow process, I am getting considerably faster even at longer distances. I’ve also been running farther distances more. Wins all around!

Equipment

My running equipment is similar to last year. I’m still using the free Strava app to track my runs and Powerbeats bluetooth headphones for music.

Clothing

I’m still in the same awesome sports bra, racerback wicking shirts and sweet leggings I’ve been using since starting this hobby. Though to clarify, my leggings are a second generation. I wore them so much that they got holes that I couldn’t repair and I ended up buying the exact same leggings again. They lasted for almost 3 years of tri-weekly runs keeping my thighs from rubbing together (hard work 😉 ) so I think that’s fair and a great shelf life.

Socks

I’m also still loving my Bombas Running Socks so much that I wrote a whole post about them 🙂 . I switch which type of these socks I use based on the weather and know my feet will be appropriately cared for.

• Review: Bombas Running Socks

For example, I got my first blister when I was walking all day in the hot and muggy weather of October in Puerto Vallarta, México. I reached out to y’all for tips and a few of you suggested running in my wool socks, which sounded counterintuitive to me since I think of wool as a winter fabric.

• Slow Travel Review: Puerto Vallarta, México – The Land Of Beaches And Birds

However, I was completely wrong 🙂 . The wool is phenomenal at wicking moisture so I would return from a long run in the humid heat and my feet were the only part of me that was bone dry. And since there was no moisture + friction from my run, I never got a blister again. Fantastic!

However, I did notice that my Bombas are understandably starting to show their age as well, and thinning where my feet meet my shoes. As a precaution, I bought a few of these Saucony ankle socks to try out and have been enjoying running in them as well. They’re surprisingly awesome for how much they cost – I got that 8 pack of socks for the same price as one pair of Bombas Running socks. I love you Bombas, but I love Saucony too because of reasons I’ll get into below.

Saucony Guide 15s

I talked in a previous post about how I bought Saucony Guide 15s in August 2022 after having my feet analyzed at a local running store.

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Well since then, I was curious about when I needed to get new shoes, which was a new thought for me. I usually wear shoes until they’re literally falling apart 🙂 . But I was told that I need to switch out running shoes regularly to protect my knees and general body by making sure they had the proper cushion, which wears down with time.

I wasn’t sure if this was marketing nonsense or the real deal so I asked y’all and you delivered! The general consensus was that after about 400 miles, a running shoe needs to be replaced. Well I hit that limit with my running this past year and I had been walking in them a fair bit as well. So it was time.

Shoes From Amazon

However, when I started looking to buy another pair of Saucony Guide 15s, I discovered something unfortunate. Saucony no longer sold them 🙂 . They had already moved on to making Guide 16s and 17s, both of which had changes to the shoe construction. But I don’t like change and when I find something I love, I stick to it. So I started asking around for solutions.

And one of you readers very kindly mentioned that I could buy brand new models of ‘old’ running shoes on Amazon – and it’s for a discounted price. Despite my contentious relationship with Amazon, I was intrigued.

In the end, I bought new Saucony Guide 15s for $60.74, which is 56% less than the $139.95 I paid for my first pair. Nice 😉 .

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Trainer Armour

The other amazing thing I discovered in the last year were Trainer Armour Toe Hole Preventers. Basically:

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Before I replaced my old shoes, my toe holes were becoming annoying, so I looked for a solution and found one on Reddit. I then bought these toe hole preventers and they were absolutely amazing at stopping those holes from growing.

And as I mentioned above, I also bought them when I got my new pair of shoes and might write an entire post gushing about them because I love these little guys so much. But to give you a preview, after 3 months of running in my new shoes with the toe protectors, I’ve not even seen a hint of toe holes forming.

By this time with my original shoes, those holes were already well underway. So I’m going to call these a smashing success because of how effective they are, how easy they are to install, how unobtrusive they are (I literally never remember they’re in my shoe) and the cost: $9.52 USD a pair on their website. Phenomenal!

Trainer Armour also makes Heel Hole Preventers if that’s more your speed as well as just left feet or just right feet toe hole preventers directly on their website.

Yoga

I was having a hard time with tense calves on my runs for a while so I started stretching and foam rolling when I had one available. I also took a lot of hot baths. Then we moved and I traveled with a tennis ball for a while and used it to roll out my muscles. I also asked y’all for any recommendations you had for tense calves.

A few people suggested Running Yoga so I checked it out and I’ve been HOOKED for 7 months and counting. In fact, I had a streak going in there where I did yoga at least once a day for 2.5 months. I fell in love with Yoga With Adriene’s Pre-Run and Post-Run Yoga routine. So much so that I’ve memorized them both.

I started doing the above routine before my runs and the one below after. And I haven’t had tense calves since. Even when I had to take a break from yoga because I had an injury (that I’ll talk about below), I was surprised to see when I got back to yoga that I hadn’t lost my progress. I still had my hard fought balance and flexibility that took me about a month of daily yoga to build up. I went from hobbling and laughing at myself to standing on one foot for prolonged periods of time and folding my body like a pretzel.

After I healed up and was able to do yoga again without messing with my wounds, I did at least my post-run yoga to stretch my muscles after every run and have continued that routine to this day. At times I also do yoga on days I’m not running. I find it really helpful if I’m feeling stressed about something and can’t go for a run. Even one of these quick 7 minute yoga routines is enough to get my heart and blood pumping enough to calm me down in those moments. Magic 🙂 .

I also acknowledge how hilarious it is that I now want to run or do yoga or really any exercise to RELAX. My retirement self really is a different person than I was when I was working because Young Purple would never dream of saying that. Madness.

Anyway, I’ve also continued using my yoga tip of putting my knee that has to hold my weight, on top of my Travel Towel for cushion if I’m in an apartment without rugs. It’s way more space efficient than adding a yoga mat to my packing list and I’ve found that my knees have been getting stronger in general. The other day I did yoga without my towel as a cushion because I forgot and didn’t even notice until I was almost done.

Injury

So I totally ate it in February while running in Costa Rica. Like an idiot I was sprinting on a trail (yes the ones with tree roots poking out waiting to trip people), and I went down hard. I bloodied up my knees and as a result, had trouble walking let alone running or doing yoga for a while.

So I’m not going to do that again 🙂 . However, I did learn a few things besides not to mess with tree branches. I ran out of the bandaids I bring with me everywhere for the first time and headed to a pharmacy in Costa Rica. There I learned that they sell bandaids individually (smart!) and that the word for bandaid is different across Spanish speaking countries. Very interesting.

• Slow Travel Review: San José, Costa Rica – The Land Of Pura Vida

I also put another item I always have with me to good use: Vaseline. I like to use it for my lips if they’re particularly chapped, but I looked up alternatives for things like neosporin and learned that apparently, vaseline works just fine. So I used that to help my wound on top of cleaning it and changing the bandage regularly. Now I can barely see what used to be large scars on my knees. Nice 🙂 .

Treadmill Tips

I lived in a few Airbnbs this year that had gyms with treadmills and I tried them out. My preference is running outside, but sometimes that’s not the best idea if it’s during a heatwave or raining for example. So I turned to the treadmill and learned a few things that helped me get through this less than ideal activity:

• Set the treadmill timer: If I don’t set a timer on the treadmill and then stop looking at it, that’s all I’m looking at – the seconds ticking by while I’m literally a hamster in the wheel 🙂
• Set the treadmill pace: Similarly, I also set the pace (once I figure out the km/hr to miles/min conversion in Montréal 😉 ) so then I don’t have to focus on anything except not falling off the treadmill
• Bring a phone eBook: I bring an eBook, usually nonfiction, on my phone that I can change the font of to enormous so I can read it from afar while it’s placed on the treadmill. Then I get to learning whatever the book wants to teach me while my legs pump until the timer goes off and I’m done! If I don’t have a book, I find treadmills super tedious since there’s only a static window to look out of instead of the world going by like when I’m running.

Reflections

Minimum Distance

About a year ago I realized that instead of feeling like I was on the struggle bus from the minute I started running (like I did when I started the Just Run Couch to 5K Walk/Run program), I didn’t feel much at all until I was 0.5 miles in. At that point, my breathing increases and my heart rate noticeably increases.

Well this year I discovered that that point had moved to 0.75 miles into my run. Cool!!! Up until that point I felt like I’m just chilling and happen to be running. It’s wild. If this keeps increasing and gets to a mile next year, I’ll have to permanently up my minimum miles for a run (which is currently set to 1 mile).

Body Changes

My body continues to get stronger in noticeable ways and I love it. My lungs are stronger, which is awesome and helpful with my asthma. I noticed this when I walked quickly up an entire steep hill and looked behind me to see my (I thought more fit) friends huffing and puffing while I wasn’t out of breath at all. Huh!

My back and abs continues to be stronger than ever, which means that I rarely slouch anymore. I don’t even notice that I’m sitting up straight all the time when in the past it would be a difficult thing that I would have to actively make myself do. Now I automatically do it without thinking. Sweet!

Also related is the weight loss I’ve been experiencing not as a result of running, but because I’ve been intentionally eating keto way more this year than I have since before the pandemic, eating at a deficit and counting my calories with Cronometer.

• Cronometer: The Best Free Food Tracking App

As a result, I lost 23lbs as of the end of June and I suspect more since then, but I haven’t had a scale to check. It’s obviously easier to run with less weight on you so I suspect that has a little to do with my increased speed as well.

Music & HIIT

I used to absolutely need upbeat music to help me keep going while running. The one time I tried listening to more chill beats, I both went super slow and was suspiciously thinking often “I could just walk instead…” 🙂 . So I stuck to fast tracks with a clear beat I could hit the pavement to.

However, this year something changed. My pace has been improving so much that I often feel like I’m just chilling and running leisurely and I’ll hear my pace in my ear, since Strava announces it every half mile, and I’d be surprised at how fast I was going. Instead of running feeling like a struggle, it felt like a default. This also might have to do with the minimum running distance thing I talked about above.

So I tried listening to chill beats on longer runs when I intentionally go slower because I’m trying to conserve energy and it was awesome! I didn’t feel the urge to stop and I enjoyed listening to my regular/less pump up music. I also was surprised once again to see how fast my pace was despite the chill beats.

I have fun looking around, doing a tour of a new street, and just happen to be running and am making new PRs all the time. Sensational! So I’m going to start listening to more chill music and maybe one day I can run in silence like my Partner does. In the meantime, here are a few of my favorite running songs of the last year:

• “Takeover” by NightOneBeats and Nat James
• “BOTH – MK & Sonny Fodera Remix” by Tiesto, 21 Savage, BIA, MK & Sonny Fodera
• “Run Free (Countdown)” by Tiësto and R3HAB

And this is the song I use to sprint every time the beat drops:

Inspiration

As you probably know, I’m a black woman. And like a lot of black women, I’m told by doctors that I weigh more than I should based on BMI (which is total bullshit btw).

However, since I don’t look like most of the people I see running out in the world because of the color of my skin and the shape of my body, I was self conscious about that for a long time while I ran.

However, last year I read the phenomenal book Running While Black: Finding Freedom in a Sport That Wasn’t Built for Us by Alison Mariella Désir. It helped me identify a few of the things I was feeling and acknowledge that I wasn’t just making up the other-ness I sometimes feel doing this sport.

Then I learned about a black female ultramarathon runner named Mirna Valerio who isn’t thin and she’s become a big inspiration for me. I heard about her through this amazing article by the sensational Bitches Get Riches: How Saving Money Is Like Losing Weight… And How It’s Really Not.

So whenever I’m feeling a bit out of place, I think of Mirna, turn up my pump up jams, and just pound that pavement.

Conclusion

And that’s how my last year of running went! I’m excited that I already have a whole three years of this new hobby under my belt and that I’m still improving my pace and loving it!

I’ve kept up this hobby while moving all over the world and running in different climates and at different altitudes. It’s been a fantastic time and I’m excited to see what the next year brings. Running at 5,315 ft elevation in Zermatt, Switzerland this fall is going to be a special treat 😉 . Until next time!

What was your favorite exercise this year?