How to run 20 miles

You might be thinking about now that 20 miles seems nearly impossible, I am here to tell you that I have done it and teach you how to do it.

Incremental growth 
here's what I did. when I first started I set my timer for 15 minutes, put on my thrift store running shoes, And hit the start button. Go! from that second on, I took off running and all I wanted to do was he just how far I could get before the time ran out. at 15 minutes the alarm would go off and then I would run back. this is how I started, doing only 15 minutes a day, fallowed by a return for the first week. when I was no longer suffering at 15 minute, I increased it to 18 mins 3 days later, then 21 mins after 3 more days, then 25, 30, and so on until I got to 1 mile. that's when everything changed I started using Googles's pedometer, now I was I was going for distance. every other day I was increasing my distance, 1 mile became 1.5, 1.5 became 2, 2 became 3, and after a few weeks 13 miles became a comfortable distance, my new minimum.

Pushing yourself
every day I was running faster, stronger, and having more fun with it! the ability to challenge yourself will make the ultimate difference. You have to be your own competition! no matter how tired I got, I refused to stop, I needed to this, I needed to be better then I was yesterday. Sometime it was a fast run, sometime it was a slow crawl but it was still a run worth running.

Variety in the run
there was one hitch in the gears, at some point I realized that everything after 16 miles was agony, the real point of challenge and growth. To reach new heights I needed to mix it up. So I started varying my run, one day I would do 13, the next I would do 16+, the day after that I would rest with 4. after a few weak of alternation my runs look more like this 13-19-6, then 13-20-7. I had reach my goal of being able to being able to run 20 miles but I wanted more, I wanted to run a full marathon in a day. sadly on the day that I was attempting my 22 miler, I broke my shoes and my foot along with it, so I am working back up my 20 mile status, but I will get there again!

Find a time that works for you
The secret to running great distance consistency. I had to dedicate a few hours to the run every day. for me, what worked best was going in the morning :)

consistency
the reason I share this story, is because it shows the shear power of consistency. I went from a guy who never ran a day in his life to running almost a full marathon, in less then 6 month. And what ever your goal in life is, it's possible... but has to start small... and with time, it will become amazing!    

Ps: remember to hydrate and feed that body. I ran with a camel pack and lots of snacks :)