PayDay 2015

Once again, it's that time of year, Peeps-- Running Payday!

Umm. . .No.  Not this kind of Payday.

This kind.  Where I get cash money.

This is the time where I tally up my miles, my racing miles, and my PRs and I PAY MYSELF FOR THEM!!!  This is how it works:

I pay myself $.50/running mile, $1.00/racing mile, and $5.00/PR.  The catch is that I deduct all racing fees and babysitting fees for racing.  The good news is that I didn't need a babysitter this year because my kids are finally old enough to watch themselves.  Envy me, mothers of young kids.

Here are the numbers:

105.3 racing miles

1158 overall miles

6 PRs

I subtract the racing miles from the overall miles:

1158-105.3= 1052.7 non-racing miles

I multiply the money amounts by each mile.  In this case, I just needed to divide the running miles by two (since it's 50 cents/mile).  Then I add the dollar amounts together:

1052.7/2=  $526.35 + $105.3= $631.65

Looks awesome, right?  Except now I need to calculate my racing fees:

racing fees= $585  OUCH.

I subtract the racing fees from the overall pay:

631.65-585=  $46.65

Then I add my PR bonus:

6 PRs x $5.00 = 30.00 + $46.65 =  $76.65

This is about half of what I earned last year, even though I ran more miles, because I also ran more races, and some of them (I'm looking at YOU, Ragnar Trail WV) were expensive.  That's ok, though, because any year that I break even is a good year.

What do I do with the money?  I have a special running savings account where I stash the money, and I plan to use it someday for the Paris Marathon.

Someday this will be me, running down the Champs-Elysées.

My annual payday is a nice little incentive I use to get through those days when running isn't my favorite thing to do.  Also, it is a great way to invest in my health, physical and mental.  I am worth the time and effort I spend to run, and finishing in the black at the end of the year proves it to me.

How do you reward your fitness?

Happy New Year, Peeps!  Run happy!

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