2026 1,000 mile running challenge (Page 1 of 34)
Posted: 12/31/2025 2:14:18 PM EDT
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Welcome to the new thread, everyone! 2025 was a great year for us that brought new members and new PR's in distance and race times from returning members. The rules are simple: Just pick a mileage goal (1,000 is just 19.23 per week) and post your daily and total mileage. The typical format you'll find here is "miles ran today" / "total yearly miles". Feel free to list rucking, hiking, or walking miles if you like as well. No worries if you find the thread or start running well into the year - go ahead and join rather than wait for 2027. Feel free to ask your running questions here - there's a lot of experience in this group. We also have Garmin Connect & Strava groups you can join to follow along with as well. In previous years the idea has been floated to try arranging a race we could try meeting at. Speak up of anyone wants to try fitting this into your schedule so we can try finding a location (or locations) so we don't have to travel all across the country to do it - maybe Cola Warrior-style regionals. Best of luck to us all! |
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For any beginners out there, here's a list of recommendations to help you get started. This isn't exhaustive by any means, and I may add to this throughout the year as things come up, but feel free to ask the veteran runners around here if there's anything more about which you have questions. •Just get out there. Running doesn't take much at all, and whatever pair of shoes and shorts you have will get you started. Legit running shoes do make a difference. Go to a running specialty store (NOT a general sports store like Academy) and tell someone there you want to be fitted for some shoes. Yes, you'll pay more than you would at Amazon but it's worth it at least once. They'll provide you with a service in the form of looking at your stride and running motion and recommending specific shoe models based upon that. Get your first pair there, then you can order them cheaper elsewhere if you like. •Forget about pace! I can't stress this enough - don't worry that you aren't "fast enough". Most runs should be at an intensity that's low enough that you can have a conversation while running. You should be able to say 3-4+ sentences without needing to stop to breathe. If you're running easy enough that you could sing show tunes you can pick it up a little. Particularly if you're first starting the paces associated with this may be quite slow, but that's fine. It will build your aerobic base (the key to running fast and/or far) and you'll naturally get faster at the same effort just as you rack up miles. •Most people, when first starting, aren't running miles at a time without stopping. It's totally OK to run for a bit (even just 30 seconds or so), walk a bit to recover, then run again. As your fitness builds you'll be able to increase the "run" portion of the interval and decrease the "walk" portion. •Build up slowly - consistency is key. You'll make much more progress getting out there for 20-30 minutes every other day (for instance) and adding on 5 minutes to each run every other week than if you try adding a bunch of time too early and you wind up injured because you're trying to do more than your body can handle. •Contrary to what Runner's World and others tell you, for most runs you don't need to specifically "fuel" before, during, or after. Your body has more than enough energy stores to get you through most any run. Fasted runs are great for the metabolism and if you're looking to shed some fluff. •Pick a goal and set a reward for it. Maybe you want to run 3-4 times per week for a month or do your first 5k and then get yourself some new running clothes. Just something definite and achievable that you can use as motivation to get yourself out there. •NEVER bail on a run before at least starting it. If you don't want to run get out there anyway but make a deal with yourself that you can quit after the first 5 minutes or after you've gone a mile. Here's the secret: Once you're out there you almost certainly will finish the run you had planned anyway, and I can't think of a time I've forced myself out on a run and regretted it. I'll also toss out another offer to pace or crew an Arfcommer for a race (marathon, ultra, whatever) within a 3-4-ish hour drive from the OKC metro area. Just PM me here and I'll see if I can make it happen. |
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Love this thread. Goal for 2026 is 3,000 miles. Little bit less than 2025 but keeping it realistic and manageable. Still plan to run every day and keep that streak going for a second year. |
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6.2/6.2 First sunrise of the new year Attached File |
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2 / 2 I think the steroids the doc has me on are bringing me up past the point the antibiotics are bringing me down. I only have one or two of those left, though, so I'm sure I'll crash back down in a few days.  Goals and such coming later. |
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4/4 Main goal this year would continue to be as consistent as possible and build on the momentum from last year. 9 months ago I weighed 45 lbs more than I do now, felt gross, and decided I wanted to make a change. I saw the 2025 thread and thought it was cool, and started running, or mostly walking with a little running mixed in. I lived a very sedentary life for the past 20 years. Definitely appreciate everyone who posts, gave me the motivation to keep going. I’m planning on signing up for my first half marathon at the end of April, then if that goes well and I keep with it, possibly do a marathon in October. |
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Originally Posted By steel_buckeye: 4/4 Main goal this year would continue to be as consistent as possible and build on the momentum from last year. 9 months ago I weighed 45 lbs more than I do now, felt gross, and decided I wanted to make a change. I saw the 2025 thread and thought it was cool, and started running, or mostly walking with a little running mixed in. I lived a very sedentary life for the past 20 years. Definitely appreciate everyone who posts, gave me the motivation to keep going. I’m planning on signing up for my first half marathon at the end of April, then if that goes well and I keep with it, possibly do a marathon in October. That was me in 2023. Lost 40lbs just from running and rebuilt my mental endurance. No reason to stop now. Keep pushing, go one more mile, and you will crush your goals and races. |
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11/11 Signed up for MOS 100 at 12:01 am last night. There are already 20+ people on waitlist. My main goal this year is just to finish this race as I DNF last year. I will just toss out 2380 as my goal as that’s what I ran in 2025. Good luck everybody and keep on posting your mileage. It is awesome to read everyone’s different stories and goals. |
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10.7/26.71 Tried out a new pair of Mizuno Neo Vista. Hated almost every step in them. Took several miles to figure out a comfortable stride in them, they felt heavy and squishy with almost zero responsiveness which caused an higher than normal HR, and the lockdown wasn’t great. I’ll adjust the lacing and plan to use them for very slow shorter runs. |
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| The Cliftons felt great in the store, but they really did a number on my ankles and achilles after I pushed too far on a long run. I moved over to Novablast 5's and it was amazing how much better my feet felt. They are suppossed to be similar to the Cliftons, but it was night and day for me. A good all-around shoe, but probably not great for fast guys. Im 171 lbs, have a 180-185 cadence, a 1 meter stride, no real pronation and run a 8 minute tempo and 7:15 PB mile. Its a great shoe for me for everything I do, I cant reccomend it enough for slower guys like me. |
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Originally Posted By bip_master: 10.7/26.71 Tried out a new pair of Mizuno Neo Vista. Hated almost every step in them. Took several miles to figure out a comfortable stride in them, they felt heavy and squishy with almost zero responsiveness which caused an higher than normal HR, and the lockdown wasn’t great. I’ll adjust the lacing and plan to use them for very slow shorter runs. I thought I read in last year's thread that some members loved those shoes. But we all have individual preferences. Had a few recent experiences like that. First with the Adidas Adios EVO SL. They felt fine in the store, but did one easy run for 6 miles in them and had instant shin splints. Dick's gave me a slight hassle on return but it worked out. I've currently on my 7th pair of Brooks Glycerin GTS's. Thought I'd try out the new Adrenaline since it was advertised as being more responsive and marginally lighter. The Adrenaline felt good at first but the responsiveness fell off a cliff after 50 miles. Now my watch thinks I'm in worse shape since the same pace is causing higher HR, or slower pace for constant HR days. My calculated VO2 max took a 1.5 point nose dive over the last month. Now I just use them for easy runs. Can't wait to use them up and just convert them to recreational shoes. I've heard decent things about Fleet Feet and their return policy but have never tested that policy out. Also, I dont know if anyone has any feedback on the Saucony Tempus 2s. I've been looking for a lighter and more responsive stability shoe. The Glycerins have been great, but they are pushing 11 oz and supposedly on the lower end of responsiveness. |
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Originally Posted By PaleRider227: I thought I read in last year's thread that some members loved those shoes. But we all have individual preferences. Had a few recent experiences like that. First with the Adidas Adios EVO SL. They felt fine in the store, but did one easy run for 6 miles in them and had instant shin splints. Dick's gave me a slight hassle on return but it worked out. I've currently on my 7th pair of Brooks Glycerin GTS's. Thought I'd try out the new Adrenaline since it was advertised as being more responsive and marginally lighter. The Adrenaline felt good at first but the responsiveness fell off a cliff after 50 miles. Now my watch thinks I'm in worse shape since the same pace is causing higher HR, or slower pace for constant HR days. My calculated VO2 max took a 1.5 point nose dive over the last month. Now I just use them for easy runs. Can't wait to use them up and just convert them to recreational shoes. I've heard decent things about Fleet Feet and their return policy but have never tested that policy out. Also, I dont know if anyone has any feedback on the Saucony Tempus 2s. I've been looking for a lighter and more responsive stability shoe. The Glycerins have been great, but they are pushing 11 oz and supposedly on the lower end of responsiveness. Originally Posted By PaleRider227: Originally Posted By bip_master: 10.7/26.71 Tried out a new pair of Mizuno Neo Vista. Hated almost every step in them. Took several miles to figure out a comfortable stride in them, they felt heavy and squishy with almost zero responsiveness which caused an higher than normal HR, and the lockdown wasn’t great. I’ll adjust the lacing and plan to use them for very slow shorter runs. I thought I read in last year's thread that some members loved those shoes. But we all have individual preferences. Had a few recent experiences like that. First with the Adidas Adios EVO SL. They felt fine in the store, but did one easy run for 6 miles in them and had instant shin splints. Dick's gave me a slight hassle on return but it worked out. I've currently on my 7th pair of Brooks Glycerin GTS's. Thought I'd try out the new Adrenaline since it was advertised as being more responsive and marginally lighter. The Adrenaline felt good at first but the responsiveness fell off a cliff after 50 miles. Now my watch thinks I'm in worse shape since the same pace is causing higher HR, or slower pace for constant HR days. My calculated VO2 max took a 1.5 point nose dive over the last month. Now I just use them for easy runs. Can't wait to use them up and just convert them to recreational shoes. I've heard decent things about Fleet Feet and their return policy but have never tested that policy out. Also, I dont know if anyone has any feedback on the Saucony Tempus 2s. I've been looking for a lighter and more responsive stability shoe. The Glycerins have been great, but they are pushing 11 oz and supposedly on the lower end of responsiveness. That was me, at least. I loved how the Mizuno Neo Vista, Zen, and Rebellion Pro 2 felt when I got the footstrike down, but that required hitting further back on my foot than was natural for me and I never got more than the initial pair of each. |
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Originally Posted By PaleRider227: I thought I read in last year's thread that some members loved those shoes. But we all have individual preferences. Had a few recent experiences like that. First with the Adidas Adios EVO SL. They felt fine in the store, but did one easy run for 6 miles in them and had instant shin splints. Dick's gave me a slight hassle on return but it worked out. I've currently on my 7th pair of Brooks Glycerin GTS's. Thought I'd try out the new Adrenaline since it was advertised as being more responsive and marginally lighter. The Adrenaline felt good at first but the responsiveness fell off a cliff after 50 miles. Now my watch thinks I'm in worse shape since the same pace is causing higher HR, or slower pace for constant HR days. My calculated VO2 max took a 1.5 point nose dive over the last month. Now I just use them for easy runs. Can't wait to use them up and just convert them to recreational shoes. I've heard decent things about Fleet Feet and their return policy but have never tested that policy out. Also, I dont know if anyone has any feedback on the Saucony Tempus 2s. I've been looking for a lighter and more responsive stability shoe. The Glycerins have been great, but they are pushing 11 oz and supposedly on the lower end of responsiveness. Originally Posted By PaleRider227: Originally Posted By bip_master: 10.7/26.71 Tried out a new pair of Mizuno Neo Vista. Hated almost every step in them. Took several miles to figure out a comfortable stride in them, they felt heavy and squishy with almost zero responsiveness which caused an higher than normal HR, and the lockdown wasn’t great. I’ll adjust the lacing and plan to use them for very slow shorter runs. I thought I read in last year's thread that some members loved those shoes. But we all have individual preferences. Had a few recent experiences like that. First with the Adidas Adios EVO SL. They felt fine in the store, but did one easy run for 6 miles in them and had instant shin splints. Dick's gave me a slight hassle on return but it worked out. I've currently on my 7th pair of Brooks Glycerin GTS's. Thought I'd try out the new Adrenaline since it was advertised as being more responsive and marginally lighter. The Adrenaline felt good at first but the responsiveness fell off a cliff after 50 miles. Now my watch thinks I'm in worse shape since the same pace is causing higher HR, or slower pace for constant HR days. My calculated VO2 max took a 1.5 point nose dive over the last month. Now I just use them for easy runs. Can't wait to use them up and just convert them to recreational shoes. I've heard decent things about Fleet Feet and their return policy but have never tested that policy out. Also, I dont know if anyone has any feedback on the Saucony Tempus 2s. I've been looking for a lighter and more responsive stability shoe. The Glycerins have been great, but they are pushing 11 oz and supposedly on the lower end of responsiveness. I do love the Adidas Evo SL. On my second pair. They fit my stride and work well for uptempo and moderate pace runs. |
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Originally Posted By Commander_Keen: That was me, at least. I loved how the Mizuno Neo Vista, Zen, and Rebellion Pro 2 felt when I got the footstrike down, but that required hitting further back on my foot than was natural for me and I never got more than the initial pair of each. Originally Posted By Commander_Keen: Originally Posted By PaleRider227: Originally Posted By bip_master: 10.7/26.71 Tried out a new pair of Mizuno Neo Vista. Hated almost every step in them. Took several miles to figure out a comfortable stride in them, they felt heavy and squishy with almost zero responsiveness which caused an higher than normal HR, and the lockdown wasn’t great. I’ll adjust the lacing and plan to use them for very slow shorter runs. I thought I read in last year's thread that some members loved those shoes. But we all have individual preferences. Had a few recent experiences like that. First with the Adidas Adios EVO SL. They felt fine in the store, but did one easy run for 6 miles in them and had instant shin splints. Dick's gave me a slight hassle on return but it worked out. I've currently on my 7th pair of Brooks Glycerin GTS's. Thought I'd try out the new Adrenaline since it was advertised as being more responsive and marginally lighter. The Adrenaline felt good at first but the responsiveness fell off a cliff after 50 miles. Now my watch thinks I'm in worse shape since the same pace is causing higher HR, or slower pace for constant HR days. My calculated VO2 max took a 1.5 point nose dive over the last month. Now I just use them for easy runs. Can't wait to use them up and just convert them to recreational shoes. I've heard decent things about Fleet Feet and their return policy but have never tested that policy out. Also, I dont know if anyone has any feedback on the Saucony Tempus 2s. I've been looking for a lighter and more responsive stability shoe. The Glycerins have been great, but they are pushing 11 oz and supposedly on the lower end of responsiveness. That was me, at least. I loved how the Mizuno Neo Vista, Zen, and Rebellion Pro 2 felt when I got the footstrike down, but that required hitting further back on my foot than was natural for me and I never got more than the initial pair of each. I think I am so accustomed to a midfoot strike that anything pushing me to a heel strike just doesn’t feel right. |
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Originally Posted By bip_master: That was me in 2023. Lost 40lbs just from running and rebuilt my mental endurance. No reason to stop now. Keep pushing, go one more mile, and you will crush your goals and races. I’m at 190 and have been for about the last 15 years. I started running 2 years ago and am still at 190. I remember you saying you weighed around 150. It’s nice to see that wasn’t your natural normal weight and you put in the work to run the mileage you do! I need to stop the junk food! |
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Originally Posted By Trod7308: I’m at 190 and have been for about the last 15 years. I started running 2 years ago and am still at 190. I remember you saying you weighed around 150. It’s nice to see that wasn’t your natural normal weight and you put in the work to run the mileage you do! I need to stop the junk food! Originally Posted By Trod7308: Originally Posted By bip_master: That was me in 2023. Lost 40lbs just from running and rebuilt my mental endurance. No reason to stop now. Keep pushing, go one more mile, and you will crush your goals and races. I’m at 190 and have been for about the last 15 years. I started running 2 years ago and am still at 190. I remember you saying you weighed around 150. It’s nice to see that wasn’t your natural normal weight and you put in the work to run the mileage you do! I need to stop the junk food! I’m down to about 143 now. Somewhere between 140-160 is probably my normal weight. Got up to 184 and it showed. |
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2.0 walk / 2.0 yesterday 9.0 / 11.0 today I’m going with an 800 mile goal this year. I’ll adjust upward if reasonable throughout the year. As mentioned, I signed up for The Woodlands Marathon to do a half. My wife is much more supportive of doing destination half marathons on vacation. So, I might get in a couple of them. I _might_ have a chance for a bib for the Chicago marathon later in the year. TBD |
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Originally Posted By bip_master: I think I am so accustomed to a midfoot strike that anything pushing me to a heel strike just doesn’t feel right. Originally Posted By bip_master: Originally Posted By Commander_Keen: Originally Posted By PaleRider227: Originally Posted By bip_master: 10.7/26.71 Tried out a new pair of Mizuno Neo Vista. Hated almost every step in them. Took several miles to figure out a comfortable stride in them, they felt heavy and squishy with almost zero responsiveness which caused an higher than normal HR, and the lockdown wasn’t great. I’ll adjust the lacing and plan to use them for very slow shorter runs. I thought I read in last year's thread that some members loved those shoes. But we all have individual preferences. Had a few recent experiences like that. First with the Adidas Adios EVO SL. They felt fine in the store, but did one easy run for 6 miles in them and had instant shin splints. Dick's gave me a slight hassle on return but it worked out. I've currently on my 7th pair of Brooks Glycerin GTS's. Thought I'd try out the new Adrenaline since it was advertised as being more responsive and marginally lighter. The Adrenaline felt good at first but the responsiveness fell off a cliff after 50 miles. Now my watch thinks I'm in worse shape since the same pace is causing higher HR, or slower pace for constant HR days. My calculated VO2 max took a 1.5 point nose dive over the last month. Now I just use them for easy runs. Can't wait to use them up and just convert them to recreational shoes. I've heard decent things about Fleet Feet and their return policy but have never tested that policy out. Also, I dont know if anyone has any feedback on the Saucony Tempus 2s. I've been looking for a lighter and more responsive stability shoe. The Glycerins have been great, but they are pushing 11 oz and supposedly on the lower end of responsiveness. That was me, at least. I loved how the Mizuno Neo Vista, Zen, and Rebellion Pro 2 felt when I got the footstrike down, but that required hitting further back on my foot than was natural for me and I never got more than the initial pair of each. I think I am so accustomed to a midfoot strike that anything pushing me to a heel strike just doesn’t feel right. Stick to what's comfortable and natural for you - no sense in rocking the boat. |
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6 / 10 Definitely feeling better overall. I might get back to things a little faster than I originally thought. I figure I'll tell my coach I'm just going to play it by ear this next week and mostly stick with easy runs, but might toss in a workout if I'm really feeling up to it. |
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