Where to find races

I just signed up for another sprint!

I like having a race in my future - something about a date and a commitment keeps me on track. When I don't have a specific goal, it's easy to skip workouts, slack when I am working out, and kind of wander aimlessly through a fitness routine... so having a goal for a race (whether it is a specific time goal or simply to complete it without dying) keeps me motivated.

There are several places I go to find races, some are run specific and some are tri specific, but they're all fun to browse :)

http://www.runnersworld.com/race-finder

https://runsignup.com/

http://runningintheusa.com/Race/

http://www.active.com/

http://www.racetri.com/



Anyone want to join me for the Salem Sprint in May??? :)

Another year, another adventure!

A brand new year! What a time for reflection, progress checks, and planning.

I got my new planner (adore), signed myself up for some challenges, and set some goals.

One concept that's been going around is to choose one word that will define the next year. I chose "Free." I want to be free from doubts, free to pursue my goals and dreams, free from chains that bind, free to do what I want and love within my career, free to make choices, free from negativity, free from bad habits or addictions... I just want to be free :)

I also set some goals, breaking them into smaller pieces, to help me improve physically, spiritually, academically, and in my career and marriage. I love the planning stage, where I get to think about an area in which I would like to improve (for example, building my endurance and physical capacity), set a measurable goal (complete an olympic triathlon), make myself accountable (sign up for the race, tell my family about it), break it into achievable pieces (sign up for a sprint halfway through training season, write myself a training program, oogle new gear), and get started on the first few little steps. It's not too overwhelming, but it's so fun to dream of the possibilities :)

My First Half Marathon

The half marathon. 13.1 miles.

For a self-proclaimed non-runner for SO many years, this was such an intimidating distance. However, training for it and completing my first half last month was SUCH a positive experience for me!

I started small. VERY small. A couch-to-5k app helped me progress from being unable to run for 5 continuous minutes to completing my first 5k in March. My surgery took me out for a while, but I slowly increased my mileage. At first, every run was torture. Everything hurt, my lungs burned, and I felt like 13 miles would never, ever happen.

I’ll never forget the day I ran 4 miles. It was the first time in my life I’d ever run that far. I never thought I could. But after slowly building up to it, I just went out one morning and did it. And you know what? It felt good. Better than good. I was hooked! How could my body go from 1 mile being excruciating to 4 feeling so casual? It was the turning point that transformed me into someone who actually enjoyed running. All those months of torture finally amounted to something.

After that, I increased my mileage weekly. I would do shorter runs a few times a week, and I mapped out my training plan so I would hit my longest distances a few weeks before my race (allowing me to taper). It went really well. The morning (before work) I ran 9 miles, I wanted to shout it to the world! I was loving this! Running was still hard, but suddenly it was a challenge I wanted to take on – I wanted to push my limits.

Of course, nothing ever goes as planned. The week of my 9-miler, I hurt my ankle. I figured it was something I should just shake off, so I continued with my shorter runs, but I eventually realized it was a bigger deal than that. I ended up having to discontinue my training plan for a few weeks, missing the Dirty Dash as well as all of my longer training runs.

The week before my race, I was able to do a pain-free 5-miler, so I knew that taking a break was the right decision, but I was terrified that I would struggle through my upcoming race due to lack of preparation. My anxiety was at an all-time high, but I knew I couldn’t back out at that point.

The event, put on by Goldilocks, was in Las Vegas on October 17th. We got started bright and early, and despite some women who got us nervous about the “hard course” we had chosen, I got off to a nice and easy start. The first 7-8 miles were uphill (ugh) and the sky was cloudy. I took things nice and slow, not wanting to burn out. Honestly, after hearing about the hills that I didn’t prepare for, I was just hoping to finish in under 3 hours (2:30 as a stretch goal). I felt really good, though, so I started to pick up the pace as I went.



It did end up raining, which felt amazing, and despite the major (ew ew ew) toe blisters that resulted (still got those suckers), the whole thing was quite pleasant. I never felt that gotta-die sensation I was expecting, and my splits were very negative (I’m talking minutes per mile faster). I finished strong with a sprint, I passed a ton of people in the last half mile, and I pretty much loved every second of those 2 hours and 17 minutes.



I’m so thankful that I’ve had this experience, and I will definitely do another half in the future. :) :)

My First Triathlon: Camp Yuba Sprint 2015

Guys. A triathlon has been on my bucket list for as long as I can remember. I signed up for this sprint last year, but my car accident happened 2 weeks before the race, so this year was the year.

I wanted to test the waters with a sprint, and it was the perfect distance! 1/2 mile swim, 12.5 mile bike, and 3.1 mile run.



We camped down by lake Yuba the night before (so awesome!) and got a bright and early start. I set up my transition area and even got a spot at the end of the rack. People were so nice and encouraging, and I pretty much loved everything about it. They did consolidated age groups since it was a small race, and I got 4th place for women under 35! (technically I was the second woman 25-29, soooo I'll take it haha)



I had so much fun! I definitely learned a lot (don't start in the back of the pack on the swim, sit down to take my wetsuit off haha, go faster! :)) and I will definitely be doing more of these!

8 mile run

Yesterday was a milestone for me.

I've always complained about running. It's always been hard for me. From ankle pain to lack of endurance, it's just been plain unpleasant.

Last year, however, I decided I was going to try it for real. That meant getting running shoes (who knew it would make such a huge difference??? :)), sticking to a training plan, and actually running for longer than 15 minutes at a time.

I know. Earth-shattering. I'm super ahead of the times.

So, after finally applying myself, I was able to run 8 miles yesterday (only stopping at the water fountains along the trail). I know that, for many people, that's not a very major accomplishment... but, for me, that was huge :) :) :)



Next week is my tri, so no long run... but I'm excited to keep adding mileage! :)

Life Checklist: Progress?

I came across this article (which I liked much more than most of the "30 things to do by 30" that mostly involve traveling or breaking up with that idiot or having your own credit card.... thanks for tips) that's a mid-twenties checklist for your career and it got me thinking...

What does my checklist look like?

There are many many things I'm sure I'd include, but these are a couple that I think make good measuring sticks (for me):

--Am I happy? Why or why not?

I'm not saying that life should always be rosy or that being happy is the only goal, but figuring out why I feel the way that I feel about my life at the moment is generally a good way to help me figure out if I'm on track.

--Where do I want to be in 1, 5, 10, 30 years? Is what I'm doing now taking me down that path?

While this is common career advice, I also like to apply it to other aspects of my life. What kind of person do I want to be when I "grow up?" Am I doing things to take me there, or am I wasting my life with things that don't actually matter to me in the long run?

--Am I progressing? Do I have goals and am I working towards them?

If I'm enjoying my time, that's great. But when I look back a few months or years, have I made progress since that point? Or am I letting myself get stagnant, forgetting to take steps forward? (This is something that terrifies me. What if I wake up one day, and my life is half over, and I haven't accomplished or experienced any of the things that I wanted to?) It's so easy to just go through the motions of life, and having something to work towards helps keep me moving in the direction that I want.



Those are just a few of mine.... do you have any? :)

Thoughts on fitness for the new year

Resolutions! Goals! Yay!

While I don't really like to set NY resolutions, it is a great time to reevaluate the progress I'm making. I look at race calendars, personal study, my career, and more to see if I like where I'm at and where I'm heading.

Fitness goals are always in there, for me. And most people, I think. Lose weight, eat better, exercise more, run farther.... whatever those goals may be, I think the motivation behind them matters.

I heard two thoughts recently that I really like.

"Exercise to be strong and healthy. A beautiful soul needs a sturdy vessel."

"Do you work out because you love or hate your body?"

Just some food for thought - our goals should be based on positivity and wanting to accomplish something good rather than based on fear or negative feelings.

Is your life on track?

You know how sometimes you read something, and it actually makes you think... even days later? That's how this was for me.

I like plans, and planning, and setting goals, and feeling like I'm making progress.

So, to me, it makes perfect sense to take a look at my life, really take a long-term look, and see if it's taking me where I want to go. Would I be perfectly happy with the choices I'm making and the direction in which I'm heading? What changes would I make if I were able to truly look at the big picture? What things am I unwilling to give up or unwilling to try based on my own short-sightedness... even though my long-term plan should/shouldn't include them? How many questions can I ask in one paragraph?

Anyway, I like the idea of stopping every once in a while to evaluate where my life is taking me and reevaluating where I am now based on where I want to be when I'm 80 years old.

Reaching a Major Goal

Goals. I love em. They drive me, they direct me, they sit in the back of my mind and tell me what to do when I have down-time.

I am so much more focused when I am working toward something I can check off a list. For example, if I tell myself, "I'm going to get into biking this summer," I don't usually get past drooling over gear. If I sign up for a race or ride, however, then I'm much more motivated to get out and prepare for it.

Well, 2 years ago (almost exactly) I made a goal to read all the talks given at General Conference between 2000 and the present (that list has obviously grown between 2012 and 2014). I don't think I quite realized how much of a commitment that would be, but once I set out to do it, there was no turning back. I've been chipping away at that goal almost daily for 2 whole years. And I've loved it.

Last night, I officially read my last talk on the list. When I realized I was reading it, my heart rate rose, I could hardly focus... I even called my husband in so I could tell him! I almost didn't want to read that last talk!

While it was so awesome to realize that I was accomplishing such a major goal, it also felt strange. Something that had been such a part of my life for 2 whole years was about to be... over. In a great way, but... now what?

Anyway, I read the talk, loved it, feel really great about setting out to do something and actually DOING it... and now I've already got a new goal in mind ;)

Yay for goal-setting!

Making Progress

Progression. It's so hard to wait for it. I used to be (and still am, in some areas, although I'd like to think I'm getting better) sooo the kind of person who decided she wanted to do something, threw herself into it 110%, and then watched as it died off quickly because she didn't become a fabulous ballerina/marathon runner/poetry writer/master scriptorian/yogi immediately.

It's hard to start at step one. It's hard to wait for visible results. It's hard to do all this work for what seems like such little pay-out.

I see this all the time at work (I work in corporate wellness and fitness)... Either: 1) people who want to lose weight come in, set some really high goals, throw themselves into it for anywhere from 2 days to 4 weeks... and then we never see them again or 2) people who come in 1-2 times per week and take it really easy while they are there, and several months later they wonder why they still haven't lost the weight.

Seems like the problem usually lies with the level of effort put into reaching their goals. If they put in too much effort too soon, they burn out. If they don't put forth enough effort, they don't burn out, but they really never get to where they want to go.

Whatever our goals may be, these problems seem to persist. We either want immediate progress and get frustrated when things don't work out, or we just kind of coast along and don't push ourselves hard enough to make any change.

So how do we find that middle ground? The level of effort that sparks progress but doesn't sap all motivation? Unfortunately, there is no right answer. Fortunately, being mindful and aware can work WONDERS. Take mini self-assessments on a regular basis. If you feel yourself burning out, take a break, take smaller steps, switch something up to make it more interesting... but don't keep dashing forward, full speed ahead, because you're destined to crash. On the other hand, if you're feeling great but feeling like you're capable of more, then it's time to see what you can (safely and intelligently) step up!

Something that I see as being very beneficial is having a plan. A physical, written-out, step-by-step plan. Whether it's a workout plan for the next several weeks/months, a page of broken-down goals for the number of essays/articles you would like to read/write, a running plan that progressively increases your volume or intensity, or a plan to help you build and develop a certain skill (plug for pistol squats, mostly because I love that she's broken down the progression), it is so helpful to have a way to measure your progress and see if you are staying on track.

We are capable of so many fabulous things, but unless we're smart about them, most of us won't ever reach that amazing potential.


cheesy, yes, but so true

New Year's Resolutions --- Setting Goals

This is the time of year that everyone sets new goals. I mean, it makes sense... it's a built-in cutoff point in time where you can measure your progress. As much as New Year's Resolutions get a bad rap, they can be beneficial... if you go about them in the right ways. One thing we focus on at work are the SMART guidelines for goal-setting...

By keeping your goals within these bounds, you are so much more likely to actually achieve them.

For instance, if your goal is "2014: lose weight," well, that doesn't mean much. How much weight? How are you going to do it? What happens when the temptation to be lazy or to double fist Chungas burritos comes up? If you modify that goal to say that you're going to lose 10 lbs by June 1st, so you are going to try and lose 2 lbs a month, and you're going to do that by cutting down to one dessert a day and going to the gym 3 times a week, and you're going to weigh yourself every Sunday to make sure you're on track and write it on your calendar so your significant other can see if you're sticking to the plan.... suddenly your goal has a lot more meaning and direction. You've set yourself up for success, rather than setting yourself up to quit by March.

My company's wellness committee sent out an email with a strategic way to prioritize your goal-setting (which I will include below). I really liked how they emphasize that the things that are your highest priorities should be taking up the most of your time. It's great to say that your spirituality, your spouse, or your passions are highest on your priority list... but how much time are you actually spending on them (vs things that aren't on your list like Facebook or shopping or playing)? It's important to set your priorities, take a look at your life and see where you're actually spending your time, determine what changes you would like to make, and set up a plan to help you get there successfully.

Here's to New Year's Resolutions that actually stick!!!







Eight Steps to Writing a Strategic Life Plan

STEPS ((EXAMPLES))
1. What Matters Most to Me?
List all the aspects of your life that matter most to you. ((Spouse/partner, children, career, personal enrichment, health, spirituality, friends, finances, community and etcetera.))

2. Determine what you really want.
Prioritize the list of what matters most to you. Do this without judging yourself. ((1. Personal Enrichment 2. My Spouse 3. My Children 4. Paying off college loans/finances 5. My Career))

3. My Current Reality - Where are your efforts currently directed?
In a typical week, on average how much time do you spend on activities associated with each of the aspects listed. Rearrange the ordered list for the current reality. ((1. My Career 2. My Children 3. My Spouse 4. Personal Enrichment 5. Paying off my college loans/finances.))

4. Envision your future - What's your "big picture?"
Write a vision statement for each of the aspects of your life in your 2014 vision above. These statements describe what your life will be like when you achieve exactly what you set out to achieve. You may want to take baby steps and start with the top one or two. The remaining aspects of your life can be addressed once the action plans for your top priorities are nudging in the desired direction. ((1. Personal Enrichment. I am going to spend more time on activities that fulfill me like spending time on my hobbies and do more volunteering in my community. 2. My Spouse. In 2014, I am going to improve my communication with my spouse so we can connect more deeply and appreciate each other more. 3. My Children. In 2014, I am going to improve the quality of my relationship with my children so we have a more satisfying home. 4. Paying off my college loans. In 2014, I am going to pay off $7,000 worth of college loan debt.))

5. Create an Action Plan with S.M.A.R.T. action steps for each of your top 2 life areas. What specific steps do I need to take to ensure I reach my goals?
*The key is to write them so they meet the S.M.A.R.T. criteria for effectiveness (each action statement uses an assertive tone to describe a specific, measurable action that will be taken within a realistic timeframe. Plug them into a graphic organizer, print and hang it up where you can literally cross off the action steps as they are completed.)
For Example:
((My Spouse.
In 2014, I am going to improve my communication with my spouse.
• I am going to use 30 seconds of slow, deep breaths to prevent raising my voice with my spouse when we are talking through issues.
• I will schedule 2 date nights/month in our calendars through Q1.
• The night before our date night, I will write down 2-3 questions that we can answer together over dinner.))

6. List any Obstacles/Hurdles to your goal in each of the life areas.
For Example:
((My Spouse.
• The kids' extra-curricular activities schedule may prevent us from getting two nights to ourselves.
• I'll be too tired, unmotivated to think of discussion questions.
• I'll be overwhelmed from my day and commute and snap before I remember to 'breathe'))

7. Create a Support System to hold yourself accountable to completing the action steps. This system may include tasks as well as people that care about you; stick with you; and believe that you can achieve what you want in life. They will help you deal with setbacks if/when they occur.
((• I will put action items in my calendar.
• I will set recurring, quarterly calendar appointments of 1 hour to review and reflect on my plan and current path.
• Each quarter, I will review, revise and/or write a new list of 5-7 specific objectives for the next 90 days. These will be the most important things I can do in the next quarter to move toward my 'big picture.'
• I will print my life plan and share it with my best friend....giving her permission to check in on my progress throughout the year.
• I will network with someone who is already balanced in this aspect of their life.))

8. Identify a reward for the completion of each action step and goal. The size of the reward can be based on the size of the goal and the size of your budget, but it should be enticing enough to keep you motivated.
For Example:
((My Spouse.
Reward: Once I successfully use the buffer of deep, slow belly breathing consistently for one month, I will plan an overnight getaway for the two of us.
Paying off my college loans.
Reward: Once my loan is paid off, I will buy a new mattress (using a cash payment).))

How to Win the Race

So I recently read this talk given by Elder Holland back in 2002 titled "The Other Prodigal," and it really hit me hard that day. Almost two weeks later, I still think about it every day.

The story of the prodigal son was always hard for me to swallow, growing up. Maybe it was because I was an oldest sibling who had always tried my hardest to make the right choices and be the best that I could be, but it just never seemed FAIR to me that someone could do EVERYTHING wrong and yet get rewarded with the fatted calf. I mean, why try hard in the first place if you can just undo all of your mistakes and still get the reward? For someone who tried to avoid all those mistakes in the first place and who made a lot of sacrifices, I always resented that parable.

This talk, though, definitely put it in new light for me. The whole talk is amazing, but there were a few points that really stuck out to me.

When talking about the elder brother's feelings about his returning punk-of-a-brother, Elder Holland says,

"Feeling unappreciated and perhaps more than a little self-pity, this dutiful son—and he is wonderfully dutiful—forgets for a moment that he has never had to know filth or despair, fear or self-loathing. He forgets for a moment that every calf on the ranch is already his and so are all the robes in the closet and every ring in the drawer. He forgets for a moment that his faithfulness has been and always will be rewarded.

No, he who has virtually everything, and who has in his hardworking, wonderful way earned it, lacks the one thing that might make him the complete man of the Lord he nearly is. He has yet to come to the compassion and mercy, the charitable breadth of vision to see that this is not a rival returning. It is his brother. As his father pled with him to see, it is one who was dead and now is alive. It is one who was lost and now is found.

Certainly this younger brother had been a prisoner—a prisoner of sin, stupidity, and a pigsty. But the older brother lives in some confinement, too. He has, as yet, been unable to break out of the prison of himself. He is haunted by the green-eyed monster of jealousy. He feels taken for granted by his father and disenfranchised by his brother, when neither is the case. He has fallen victim to a fictional affront. As such he is like Tantalus of Greek mythology—he is up to his chin in water, but he remains thirsty nevertheless. One who has heretofore presumably been very happy with his life and content with his good fortune suddenly feels very unhappy simply because another has had some good fortune as well.

Who is it that whispers so subtly in our ear that a gift given to another somehow diminishes the blessings we have received? Who makes us feel that if God is smiling on another, then He surely must somehow be frowning on us? You and I both know who does this—it is the father of all lies. It is Lucifer, our common enemy, whose cry down through the corridors of time is always and to everyone, “Give me thine honor.”""

How often do we let someone else's accomplishments, praiseworthiness, or moment in the spotlight make us feel as if we're losing some kind of contest? How many of us, instead of choosing to be happy for someone else, take it as a personal blow? Even when we're happy for them on the surface, how do we feel in our secret hearts?

Elder Holland goes on to talk about re-framing our perspectives so that we don't view this life as a race against each other. If we are all in this together, then of course we would be happy for the successes of another! Because, really, it would contribute to the success of our overall goal. We would be happy, sincerely happy, to see others succeed as much as possible, because we're all on the same team. We would serve them, go out of our way for them, bend over backwards and do anything in our power to see them succeed, because that's how we would succeed. If seeing everyone cross the finish line was our goal (and it should be, shouldn't it?), then it wouldn't matter how fast we ran as individuals, but how we could work as a team to get even the slow-pokes to finish that race. Because that's how we win. Not by out-pacing others, not by personal successes, not by doing better than our neighbor. A wayward brother returning home after making every mistake in the book would be a cause for celebration, not for resentment. Because the steps along the way matter less than the end goal. And by the prodigal son returning home, both brothers win.

Certified

So for the last month I’ve been studying for my big certification test – the ACSM Health Fitness Specialist certification, to be exact. I didn’t really have a whole lot of information on what to expect from the test, so I was really nervous. I passed up on a LOT of fun things – The Husband went on many trips and played many times without me. It was hard for me, to stay home and study for something I didn’t even think I would pass.

See, I was planning on taking this test in August, and that was stressful enough. But less than a month ago, I found out that the exam would be changing on July 1st, and all of the study materials along with it. Blahhhh. So I was stuck with a decision: take the test 2 months before I was planning on taking it, or buy all new materials and start studying all over? I ultimately decided to take the exam before it changed, and so preparing for it became my whole life for the next few weeks.

I wish I had applied myself like that in college haha.

It all paid off though: I passed! I was so nervous that I was shaking, and I couldn’t believe it when I got my score! All of the studying, the sacrifice, the prayer and fasting, and the stress were worth it! I’m certified and it’s all over with!

KNIT ALL THE THINGS

Ok, ok, even though I’m not horribly artistic, crafting is my guilty pleasure. When a girl told me this last weekend that my home looked like “Pinterest gone right,” I figured I could just go ahead and die happy.

My crafting history, however, is extremely short at this point. Not that long ago, crafting was extremely intimidating to me. When I found this project in a magazine at the hospital one night, however, I decided I needed to learn how to knit.



I mean, if anything is going to motivate someone to take on a major knitting project, it would be that blanket, amiright?

It’s freaking beautiful. Never mind that I have never knit anything in my whole life. I don’t even crochet. Or sew. Or even use one of those looms that most little girls use to make potholders for their grandmas. Nope, not me. I figure square one (and two through twelve) will be this gorgeous blanket.

Enter a craft store purchase of some bamboo knitting needles and cheap yarn so I could hurry up and teach myself. Next, YouTube tutorials for casting on, a basic stitch, and casting off. Then, the realization that internet tutorials suck because you get zero feedback and that cheap yarn is miserable to work with.

Needless to say, my knitting box went into retirement for several months.

I saw that lovely picture the other day though, so my motivation returned. I bought some better yarn and realized that KNITTING IS AWESOME! Who knew?? You can do it while you watch a movie, on long road trips, sitting around and talking with people, pretty much whenever you want! (Even a climbing/canyoneering trip where everyone else is hardcore and you feel kinda silly)



Now I just need to find the perfect yarn for that darn blanket…