Thursday, April 11, 2013

2013 24 Hour Challenge


Due to the snowstorm hitting the area May 2-3, Mr. Parry's 24 Hour Run/Walk has been moved to Thursday, May 16th at 8am - Friday, May 17th at 8am.

The 2013 version of Mr. Parry's 24 Hour Endurance Challenge takes place from March 1st through May 17th.  Participants are asked to exercise in any form for a total of 24 hours over those 8 weeks.  For my part, I will be getting ready to complete my 24 hour continuous run/walk around Stewartville from 8am on Thursday, May 16th through 8am on Friday, May 17th.

See the tabs to the right for information about this challenge in years past.

Sign up here to show your commitment to an active lifestyle.
https://docs.google.com/forms/d/1N8hlcHuYUKKJT1hKLO8gqYy8e5l7G20s8t2H8Yd_rwY/viewform

Those of you who are planning on joining me during my run and walk for a while will be able to indicate when on this form as well.


LIVE TRACKING IS BACK!!!...you now have the option to track my exact whereabouts in real-time during my 24 hour run for Mr. Parry's Endurance Challenge.  Go to the following link or click on the RunKeeper icon on the left. http://runkeeper.com/user/JimParry/activity/
Satellite and hybrid views tend to work the best.

Stewartville Star article from April 16th, 2012 about last year's event:
http://www.thinkstewartville.com/main.asp?SectionID=7&SubSectionID=18&ArticleID=5795

The 2013 version of my challenge will have me again attempting the 24 hour/100 miles format.  Students and others are again challenged to complete 24 hours of exercise over an 8 week period. That works out to only 3 hours of exercise per week for 10 weeks!  Everyone should be able to do that!

My 24 hour run/walk around Stewartville will take place from 8:00am Thursday, May 16th to 8:00am Friday, May 17th, 2013.  If you are in the area, please consider coming to run with me...evening, overnight, and the early hours on the 2nd day are always the most difficult, so I could use the encouragement of company.

The challenge itself is easy.  Get out and complete 24 hours of exercise over 8 weeks.  All movement counts, including running, walking, biking, walking to school, walking the dog, sports practices, etc.  Again, that is only 3 hours per week.  Hold yourself accountable and keep track of what you are doing.
Printable log here:    https://docs.google.com/file/d/0B-xFX5JuL4fDcmhRcW56XzQ2RzQ/edit?usp=sharing   Print this and fill out what you are doing to keep active, the number of minutes, cumulative totals, and any comments on that day. This log is for you to keep and does not need to be turned in to me.  Use it to hold yourself accountable.  You could also use a calendar or create your own log if that is easier for you.  I will have a follow-up Google Form that can be filled out at the completion of the challenge to tell me how it went for you.

Be sure to check back here often for updates and to fill out the follow-up Google Form at the completion of the challenge.



This run starts at 8:00am on Thursday, May 16 and will continue until 8:00am on Friday, May 17. Stewartville Middle School address is 500 4th St. SW.  My run begins and ends here and will be passing by the school during each of my 4 mile loops.  This 4.01 mile loop will be run counter-clockwise.  I will have my aid station in my vehicle set up in the MS gym parking lot behind the school (NW side of the building).  I will again be keeping a log of my miles and the time of day I last stopped by my vehicle on my last lap.  See this log on the front passenger seat to figure the approximate time of my next return.

At some point soon after 6am, I will be switching to this shorter loop near the HS/MS.  This 1.5 mile loop will be run clockwise.  This will keep me away from traffic and will allow me to be closer to aid the last couple of hours.


TEACHERS NEEDED!!!
If you are a teacher and would like to share this challenge with your students or team, or organize a run at your school, please contact me at runjimparryrun@gmail.com.  I would like to expand the 24 hour challenge on to students in other schools.  There are already several around the country that will be doing their own challenges.  The best way for me to do this is to get other teachers involved.  Challenge your students to complete 24 hours of exercise over an 8 week period.  Sign up yourself, print out a log, fill it out, and keep it posted in your classroom for your students to see.  You can have your students sign up individually, or sign up as an entire class - see the form link above for information.  Finish it up with a run or walk as a class, grade level, or school to celebrate.  It would be great if this were to follow the timeline of my challenge here in Stewartville, following the dates listed above.  Let's see how many students we can get out, being active, and doing something good for themselves!

Aside from the known benefits of exercise on brain function, as well as the physical benefits, I try to focus on a few lessons that can be learned from this challenge.
1.  How to set a goal.
2.  How to make a plan to get ready to accomplish that goal.
3.  Preparation to accomplish that goal.
4.  Time to prove yourself - performance, contest, game, test, etc.
5.  What happens if you succeed?  Are you all done then?
6  What happens if you fail?  Are you all done then?
7.  Finding an activity that you are passionate about to do the rest of your life.

All of these apply to school, relationships, etc, as well as athletics!

More details to follow...

See the tabs to the right for information about the 2009, 2010, 2011, and 2012 versions of this run.