While I’m on my training runs, I like to know what sort of pace I’m running and, which when combined with my heart rate, tells me if I’m working hard enough, or too hard. I’m not lucky enough to own a GPS-enabled watch, so I’ve had to resort to other methods to tracking my distance on the run.
Early in my running career, I used to get in the car and drive my regular routes, which gave me a good idea of the distance. Not to mention being environmentally unfriendly, the big problem with this method was that a lot of my runs included trails and off-road areas. While I was tempted to try to drive these routes too, I figured the chances of my little Japanese-made sedan surviving the bumps and hills were pretty low, so I settled for taking a guess. 🙂
A couple years ago, I found a great website which let me plan and and calculate my running routes online. Check out: www.gmap-pedometer.com, a nice, easy to use program that lets you plot a series of points. It is built on top of Google Maps, so the interface might be familiar. You can use the Satellite and Hybrid views to zoom in to street level, and for most major cities, the resolution gets high enough that you can even follow your favourite trails through the woods! I also try to make a mental note of where the kilometre markers are located (or mile markers, if you prefer), and use these to help work out my pacing on the run.
This little tool (www.gmap-pedometer.com) has been a great benefit to me over the last couple years, so if you’re looking to calculate how far you are running, check it out!!
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