A Running Journal

I’m keeping one now. And it’s fun! The heart and soul of this pre-made journal I’m using is the two-page weekly spread:

 

 

 

It’s the Believe Training Journal from Lauren Fleshman and Roisin McGettigan-Dumas. My wife was probably not wrong when she said its teal cover and graphics could have earned it a spot at a junior high girls retreat, but I’m okay with that. The journal itself is great. It’s got:

• the above shown two-page (undated!) spread for tracking run details each week
• “this week’s focus” for each week: such a helpful exercise to think this through before running
• a week-end “rundown”–an act of reflection I haven’t otherwise been doing with my running apps
• quotes from various runners to inspire
• a guided goal-setting section
• race logs
• short articles on various topics throughout: e.g., racing, recovery, community, setbacks, and more

This is easily the best running journal there is, if a pre-made/lightly guided running log is what you’re after. Check out some more of the inside:

 

 

(Click/tap on any of the three below to enlarge)

 

 

There are “check-in” pages throughout:

 

 

Here’s an article:

 

 

The whole thing is undated (a year’s worth of pages) and includes an annual calendar. I was going to start in 2019 but couldn’t wait, so for me this is a November 2018-October 2019 journal.

 

 

The cover is “flexi-bound synthetic,” which is a little stronger than softcover, but still can easily get banged up in a backpack (if you just toss it in, as I have been):

 

 

There certainly are simpler journals on the market, but the articles here have drawn me in, so that this is kind of a souped-up, one-stop shop for my year’s running annals. The size is just about perfect (6″ x 7 ½”), and the included ribbon marker can go in at my current week.

You can find the journal here, with other color options available, as well.

 

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Thanks to the great folks at VeloPress for the review copy.