A Month of Running in London
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General
Summer in London is always beautiful, full of sunny days and clear blue skies. This year was even brighter, so I decided to explore the city through a month-long running challenge. Here are some snippets of my runs, including stats, maps, and photos.
First, some stats. I ran for a total of 100 KM in 12 hours at an average pace of 7 minutes per KM.
Map
I mostly ran in central and east London, exploring parks, the Thames, and historical spaces.
Data
Another interesting way to look at these runs is through progress over time. The following plots show total KMs run, duration (in minutes), and pace over time, showing a steady improvement. The first few runs were the most challenging ones, and they gradually became easier.
Health Benefits
Running gave me clear health benefits. I lost significant weight. My stamina improved. I was able to do more of other types of exercises, such as cycling. And I felt pretty good for a whole month and a half. These benefits also showed up on my smart watch numbers. Particularly, my resting heart rate and VO2 Max improved.
Timeline
Finally, here is the timeline of almost all of my runs. After all this experience, I think running is a better way to explore a city than cycling or walking. It is faster than walking and gives one more exposure to the city compared to cycling.
