Map Your Run: Find Routes and Distance for Your Fitness Routine

I hate to be bound by roads or paths or mile makers, I like to make my own route, my own course.... which is great, except for the fact that I am than not really sure how far I have run. There are two main types of training, running for distance, and running for time. The best way to train is to use a combination, so weather you are running for distance or running for time it is often important to know how much ground you have covered. And even if you are a "time runner" like myself, it is good to do a distance run every once in a while to see where you stand and have an idea of how you will do in a race situation.

While I do run for over-all enjoyment, and usually just pick an amount of time to run, it is nice to know the mileage I have covered, that is why I wanted to share this great resource with all of you. It is an online program called Map My Run (www.mapmyrun.com). You start by entering an address, once the map opens you picks points on your running route (using the symbol that looks like a dot), once you have picked all your points simply click the stop button (the button that looks like a stop sign) and it will tell you the distance at the lower right hand corner of the screen. This has been great resource for me, and allows me to easily make up 1 mile, 5 mile, 10 mile route, ect.

You can also add aid stations that you know about, or bathrooms, or places to get water. That way you can print your map and have all the information you need on it during your run. This information can keep you safe if there is an emergency took, it is especially important to put this information on the map if you plan on going for a long run- and always remember to tell someone before you go out for a run. Of course, wherever you run please always remember SAFETY COMES FIRST- you don't need to cross a busy street just because the route you maps says to- and that actually is the joy of this program because you can just pick another route and create the same mileage a different way.- actually, I have become a little addicted to it, once you start playing with it, it is hard to stop!