How many running miles is 10 minutes of unicycling?

Today. my training schedule called for a 4 mile run. Instead I spent my lunch hour playing volleyball and my after-work workout playing basketball. Of course I spent some of my exercise time also juggling but no joggling. I’m getting pretty good at keeping 3 balls going using only one hand.

Unfortunately, I’m not getting the miles in. I don’t really know what the problem is. Perhaps it’s that my legs are tired and sore. Or maybe the siren call of other sports is too alluring. Who knows? But here is a list of all the things I do instead of running. I’ll include what I believe to be the running equivalent.

Activity Time to equal a mile

Basketball – 12 minutes
Volleyball – 30 minutes
Table Tennis – 20 minutes
Softball – 30 minutes
Unicycling – 10 minutes
Bike Riding – 15 minutes
Juggling – 20 minutes
Rollerblading – 20 minutes
Walking – 15 minutes

What do you think? Softball probably is a bit more strenuous than volleyball but it really depends on the game. Unicycle riding is tough! Someday I’m going to ride a unicycle in a triathlon.

In the end, there’s really no substitute for actual running. I’m supposed to get 52 miles in this week. So far, I’ve done 8 miles (without counting my equivalent activities). Somehow I’ve got to get 44 miles in 4 days. Yikes! It’s a good thing I like running, especially when it involves joggling.