I've been running everyday for 45 days

James Clear’s (author of Atomic Habits) concept of 1% better each day aka compounding effect has been bouncing around my mind at this stage of my 1000 days run streak. Compounding effect is quite fascinating when applied to health. Consider this:

• 3x or 4x a week, you eat a bowl of ice-cream or stop by the drive-thru for a burger then look in the mirror the next day, you won’t really see any physical changes from the ice-cream or burger. But after 6 months of doing that regularly, you may notice your clothes getting snug, a more puffy face, or the scale up a few pounds.

• On the flip side, if you workout 3x or 4x a week, you won’t see a difference in the mirror daily. But after 6 months, you may catch a glimpse of a slimmer thigh or chin, lower number on the scale.

Committing to a health journey requires being attuned to the compounding nature of daily positive deposits such as intentional movement and negative daily deposits such as the drive-through habit. Both compound. Choose your compounding effect. Gains and losses will amass.

With 45 days of running under my belt, I am now seeing the compounding effect of running daily. I can run longer and faster. I am heaving and puffing WAY less than I did on day 7. My heart rate doesn’t get as a high. My Strava app analyzed my running pace, heart rate, and mileage and confirmed that I am actually compounding…getting fitter.