Crossing 100 and Carrying It Into February

With another five miles logged on the treadmill this morning, I officially pushed past the 100-mile mark for January, while also eclipsing the combined mileage of my last two Januarys. It took a little while this morning to get rolling, but after a couple of miles I settled into my familiar 9:10 pace, and by mile three I felt like I could have kept going indefinitely.

My average heart rate for the run was 132 bpm, and more than anything else, it’s the ease and restraint that I’m most proud of right now. The fitness feels real, but so does the discipline.

I still catch myself wincing a bit at the pace, knowing I could run faster. But pace is relative, and in the grand scheme it’s arbitrary anyway. The goal isn’t to chase ego metrics—it’s to stay consistent and deliberate, and to keep stacking work that actually matters.

There are still a few days left in January, and at least one of them will probably be a day off. After that, it’s time to build on what this month has established with a strong, steady February. The plan is simple: more of the same. Lots of time on feet. Lots of easy miles.

Right now, 6.5 MPH feels like the true sweet spot on the treadmill for easy running, so that’s where I plan to live. I’ll do my best to stick with it—and if, someday, 6.5 starts to feel too easy, I’ll inch it up to 6.6 and call that progress. I’ve had success in the past by adding mileage patiently, and I’ve read (and reread) plenty about the benefits of a deep aerobic base. This time, I’m not just nodding along—I’m committing to it fully.

Quiet miles. Consistent effort. Let the fitness come on its own terms.

Finding Flow on the Treadmill

 After another solid weekend, I’m now sitting at 97 miles for the year with five days left to sneak in one more run and push past the 100-mile mark. I’m feeling good overall—keeping the pace easy, staying consistent, and not forcing anything.

Sunday’s run was a standout. I logged 8.25 miles on the treadmill and felt particularly strong throughout. I set the speed to 6.5 MPH (9:13 pace) and just cruised. It was one of those runs where everything clicked—I felt smooth, relaxed, and honestly like I could have kept going for quite a while longer if time hadn’t cut me off.

That run has me toying with the idea of leaning into more longer efforts at that 6.5 MPH pace. The tradeoff is obvious: slower pace means fewer miles when I’m time-crunched (which is almost always). But there’s something appealing about how sustainable and repeatable that effort felt, especially this early in the build.

With consistency now feeling locked in, my plan is to head into February with a slightly different focus—longer runs. It’s a short month, but there’s still plenty of time to hit 100 miles again, and I think stretching the duration a bit will set up a strong foundation for whatever comes next.

For now, the goal stays simple: keep showing up, keep it easy, and let the fitness continue to stack quietly in the background.

January Check-In: A Quietly Good Start

Twenty-two days into January, I think I finally have enough data to say—confidently—that I’m off to a good start this year.

After taking January 1st off, I’ve run 17 of the last 21 days, putting me just over a 75% run rate for the year so far. That lines up closely with what I was doing back in 2020 and 2021 during some of my strongest training years, which feels like a meaningful benchmark.

Mileage-wise, I’m sitting at 79.05 miles, which puts me on pace for about 111 miles for the month. One hundred miles is clearly within reach, with room to exceed it if things keep trending the way they are. Pace has been respectable too—averaging a little over 8:30 per mile. I’ve mixed in a few quicker efforts, kept plenty of easy days easy, and tried to stay focused on consistency more than anything else.

Every run this year except one has been on the treadmill, thanks to a brutally cold January. That’s been fine overall—it’s allowed me to stay consistent and catch up on a few TV shows—but mornings have been the biggest challenge. I was waking up at 5:45 and still not getting on the treadmill until after 6:30. I moved my alarm to 5:35…and still didn’t get on the treadmill until 6:30. Time pressure has been my biggest obstacle lately, with nearly every part of the day feeling fully booked.

Today was a good example of how unpredictable motivation can be. I woke up tired and unmotivated, with the modest goal of just getting through two miles. Five and a quarter miles later, I had doubled my energy level—and my sense of accomplishment. Most of the run sat around a 9:15 pace, but I finished the last 1.25 miles at 8:00 flat, which felt strong and controlled.

I still haven’t fully captured that light, effortless feeling of peak fitness, and maybe that’s just part of getting older. But I’m starting to appreciate a different perspective: the ability to run 5.25 miles at all, to finish stronger than I started, and to feel better afterward than before—that’s worth acknowledging. Even if it’s a little slower and doesn’t feel quite as easy as it once did, it still counts. And right now, consistency matters more than anything else.

For now, the plan is simple: keep showing up. The focus over the next few weeks is on maintaining consistency, letting the mileage build naturally, and resisting the urge to force fitness before it’s ready. If things continue to feel stable, I may start to layer in a small amount of intentional structure—but only if it fits cleanly on top of what’s already working. There’s no rush. This is about laying a foundation that lasts, trusting that sharper fitness will come as a result of steady work rather than chasing it outright.

January Course Correction

22.5 miles over the last four days has more than doubled my mileage for 2026, and suddenly I’m back on pace to clear 100 miles in January. Even better, despite the uptick in volume, I don’t really feel any worse for the wear. I eased off the gas in November and December and coasted a bit, but it looks like I mostly held onto my gains and am ready to start building again.

One of the first tools I used when I got back into running was the Nike Run Club app. I logged my first run on the last day of 2018 and have been recording miles ever since. NRC assigns “run levels” based on lifetime mileage, and after cycling through yellow, orange, green, blue, and purple fairly quickly, I hit Black at 3,106 lifetime miles. That was back in early 2021, and I’ve been sitting there ever since.

The highest level—Volt—requires 9,320 lifetime miles. I’m now just 1,205 miles away.

At my current pace, I’m barely on track to reach it by the end of 2026. It’s one of those silly goals that won’t actually mean anything when I finally get there—but it’s still fun to chase. And when it happens, I’ll probably reward myself with a new pair of shoes or a t-shirt at the very least.

Whatever it takes to stay motivated—but the real goal is simply maintaining my health and fitness. The levels, miles, and streaks are just tools. The best reward is being able to head out the door for a run with my daughters and share the love of it with them.

Hello 2026

I wrapped up December with a respectable 77.9 miles—a huge contrast to the 2 miles I ran in December of 2024, the zero I ran in December of 2023, and even the 38 miles I managed in December of 2022. The data is pretty clear: Decembers are historically rough for me. Still, despite that pattern, I hung in there.

Those December miles were just enough to push me past my big goal for the year. I finished 2025 with 1,007.32 miles, which is more than I ran in 2023 and 2024 combined. That fact alone makes the year feel like a real turning point.

January hasn’t exactly been a fireworks show either—but again, I’m still showing up. Five runs in the first eight days, totaling 18.38 miles. Not spectacular, but consistent. And consistency is doing the heavy lifting right now.

I did gain some weight over the holidays, which is discouraging—but not surprising. Short, cold days mean less incidental movement, more hunger, and an endless supply of holiday junk food. Not a great combination, just the reality I’m working through.

As for 2026, the main goal is simple: beat last year’s 1,007 miles. I’m a little off pace so far, but still well ahead of where I was this time last January. Ideally, I’ll aim for—and often hit—100 miles per month. No guarantees, just steady work.

For now, the theme continues: not crushing it, not quitting—just hanging in there. And that’s been enough to get me this far... and come spring I hope that the fresh air and sunshine will kindle this fire and I can take it to the next level.