Cheers to 2014!

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Happy 2014 everyone!  I hope you all had a great New Year's Eve!  Believe it or not, I actually spent New Year's Eve in Times Square (we were inside at a party and only went outside to watch the ball drop so we didn't freeze to death).  It was definitely an experience and a fun time way to send in the New Year!

For 2014, I've decided instead of resolutions to make some goals.  While I like resolutions and I did well on them last year, I want to continue to challenge myself and I feel that goals will help me do that.  I also feel like some of them are pretty aggressive, so we'll see how they go!  So without further ado... here are my goals for 2014!

Complete the Dopey Challenge
This is a pretty obvious goal as I spent most of 2013 preparing for this.  I can't believe it is only 8 days away!

PR in the Half Marathon
My current PR is a 1:51:52 set back in 2010.  I ran a 1:55:03 this past September, so I am hoping to make this happen.

Check 5 states off my list
I've already got 3 states on the schedule (Kentucky, DC, Oregon).  I have a couple of ideas for the other 2 states and will let you know once they are finalized.

Race a marathon
I am not running the Disney marathon with a time goal with Dopey going on, so I would like to actually race a marathon in 2014.  I already have an idea for a race and will let you know once it's been decided.

Run 1,250 miles total
I ran a total of 1,145.77 in 2013 according to my Garmin, but I did a lot of my Jan-Mar weekday runs on the treadmill (without my Garmin) and they are not counted in that number.  So I think this doable.

Commit to core work
This is one area I have definitely been slacking on.  I really want to get back to this and to get it started, I am taking part of the Athleta 30-Day Plank Challenge.  You should join me!

You'll notice this list is all fitness related.  I do have some personal goals for the year, but they are basically the same ones as my 2013 resolutions (eat healthy, save more, travel more, spend more time with friends).  I also have a couple of other goals that I am tossing around my head and if I do decide to make them official, I'll make sure to share.

What are your resolutions/goals for 2014?

New Year's Resolutions: Mid Year Checkin

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Since we are a little more then half way through the year, I thought it would be a good time to do a quick checkin on my New Year's resolutions.  It's easy to make resolutions, but it takes effort to actually stay accountable to them, which was part of the reason why I blogged about them.  By forcing myself to take stock mid-way through the year, I can refocus for the rest of 2013 on those that I slacking on.  My original post can be found here.

So, without further ado...

1.  Eat better - B

I think I've done pretty good on this one.  I've kind of bounced all over the place with this one (I tried Paleo, I went Gluten Free), but I think I've gotten to a good place.  I have discovered that I feel best when I eat as little processed food as possible.  Anything overly processed seems to upset my stomach.  To that end, I've been following the Tone It Up nutrition plan for the last couple of months.  It focuses on 5 small meals throughout the day and lots of clean food.  Hydration is key as is eating lots of fruits and vegatables.  They have their own protein (Perfect Fit) which they use in a lot of recipes.  At first I wasn't sure if it was worth the money, but I did buy 1 box to check it out and I am hooked.  I've been making their protein pancakes with it for breakfast and I am full all morning!  It has definitely been helping and my eating has gotten better, but I am still not great all the time.

2. Follow my workout schedule better - A-

I am probably doing too good with this one.  It took me a while to get into the groove, but now that I have, I have been really diligent about following it.  Per my post yesterday, I feel like guilty when I skip workouts even if I know that it is the right thing for me to do.  Need to make sure to listen to my body.

3. Work life balance - B-

This one is getting better.  Not quite were I want to be, but much better then last year.

4. Running goals - B+

I am giving myself a B+ on this one.  I finished my number 1 goal, which was my 30 by 30 Challenge.  I also announced a new challenge, running a half in all 50 states.  I think I've got a good balance of races for the remainder of the year, so I am racing but not getting burnt out.  There will not be a marathon in 2013, but I am doing one (Dopey) 12 days after the year ends, so I will still be doing marathon training in 2013.  Therefore, I am giving myself partial credit for not doing a marathon in 2013.

5. Travel more - B

I have done some solid traveling so far this year - 2 trips to Disney (my happy place), Chicago twice (once for a weekend, then for a week), San Fran, Cincinnati.  I also have some trips schedule for the balance of the year, but not too many (Disneyland and Disney World, Providence).  It's not as much travel as I would ideally like, but my budget only goes so far.

6. Be a better blogger - B

I can definitely getting better at this.  I settled on a name (keeping 'sarah runs a lot') and for the most part, I am more consistent about blogging.  My race recaps are going up closer to the actual race occuring (woohoo!).  I have also added in some pages and am remembering to update them.

I'm still not the best at replying to comments (I always try to I promise!), so if I didn't respond, I apologize now :)  It's still a work in progress.

7. Save more - C+

This by far is the hardest for me.  I have a budget and when push comes to shove, I would rather spend the money traveling then putting it in savings.  I am saving, but should be doing more.  This is the one I hope to improve for the rest of the year.

8. More time with friends - A

I have done really good with this one.  I have made my friends a priority and it's been great.  We've had dinners, we gone away (weekend in the Hudson Valley in a log cabin?  Check!), I've travelling cross country to spend time with them (weekend with Vanessa and Meghan in SF? Check!), I've celebrated engagements and weddings and birthdays.  I've been better about responding to emails from friends.  Life is short and my friends are important to me.  Want to continue to be at an A with this one.

I've definitely done well with my resolutions, but there are still areas I can improve in.

How are you doing with your resolutions?

I have pages!

OMG - I have pages!  As you know, one of my resolutions for 2013 was to make some changes to the blog.  I've started by updating the theme (a little simplier and cleaner) and adding pages.  Don't have a ton right now, but am starting with Personal Bests, Race Schedule and 30 by 30 Challenge.

If you're reading this one a reader, you can't see the pages - so head over to the blog to check 'em out (or I made it even easier for you and you can click the links above to be taken to each page)!

Resolutions for 2013

So per my post yesterday, I have set some New Years Resolutions for myself.  I always have trouble with resolutions because I feel no one ever keeps them (January is always my least favorite time of the month at the gym since it's always so crowded and then by February it's back to normal).  I've thought pretty hard about my resolutions this year and tried to make them accomplish-able (is that even a word?  well, it is now!).

So without further ado, below are my resolutions for 2013.

1.  Eat better I feel like I am a broken horse on this one lately (I've mentioned it in several posts in the last couple of months), but I am more resolved then ever to do so.  The month of December was not good for me - lots of parties and eating rich foods and not in moderation.  I weighed myself this morning and I am the heaviest I've been in a long time.  I won't reveal the number because it's really not that bad, but for me, it's a lot.  In addition, I basically spent the entire time between Thanksgiving and Christmas sick.  In college, I used to avoid getting sick because once I did, I'd be sick for the entire winter and that stopped once I graduated.  I realize some of it comes from not eating healthy foods and some from being stressed and run down (see #3 for more on this).  I need to take care of myself as a priority.  So to do so, I spent some time the last week or 2 doing some research and I've made some decisions.

To start, I've downloaded the free app "Lose it" which helps you track calories and exercise based on how much weight you want to lose.  I am hoping this will help me make better choices.  For example, we went to brunch yesterday and after ordering (and eating) my eggs benedict, I realized they had over 1,000 calories.  In 1 meal.  Not. good. at. all.  See what I mean?  Just starting tracking yesterday, so only on Day 2.

Next up, I've decided to try and follow the Paleo diet.  Now, it might sound like I am jumping on the bandwagon (I know it's incredibly popular right now), but I did some serious research on it (like taking multiple books out of the library on the subject).  Given the info I learned, I am interested to see if / how it will work for me.  I'm not going to go into a ton of background on the diet (if you don't know about it), since there are a bunch of website that will explain it better (try http://thepaleodiet.com/ to start), but basically it's all about eating what our ancestors ate in the Paleolithic age.  Lots of protein, fruits and vegetables, no grains or dairy.  I know I won't be able to follow it 100%, but going to do the best I can and see how it goes.

2. Follow my workout schedule better With everything going on this past year, I did not do very good about following my (or any) workout schedule.  I am making it a goal to stick to it this year.  I know I will feel better getting my runs in or some cross training so I am really going to make it work.  I got a new planner for 2013 and plan on entering in all my workouts each Sunday night for the week so I can stick to them.

3. Work life balance What I think is becoming a running theme on this blog (and certainly this post) is that work was crazy the last 6 months.  And it threw off my workout and eating schedule.  And being so busy made me run down, which I think in turn was part of the reason I was sick all December.  Now, I realize I can't control my job, but my goal is to have a better work life balance and make the effort to leave work at a reasonable hour each day and not stress about it when I am away from work.

4. Running goals I do have some running goals for 2013, number 1 being finish my 30 by 30 challenge (only 1 to go!).  I do have a goal for after I finish my 30 by 30 Challenge, but I am going to wait until that is done to announce it.  I had a low-key NYE this year - my friend Pam came over and we had dinner and planned our races.  We live quite the life, right?  So, I do have my race calendar (for the most part) planned for the year.  I'll share it later this month (along with my new goal after 30 by 30).  There is going to be no marathon this year (as of now, that could change) but given how rough training was in 2012, I think taking some time off of marathon training will be nice.  Still going to be doing Half's and running, but no marathon and trying not to over do it and get burnt out.  Crazy, I know!

5. Travel more I think this one could be my life mantra.  Travel more.  I love it and it makes me happy.  It doesn't always make my wallet happy so it's a tough one.  But I do want to make an effort to travel to new places and visit far away family and friends.

6. Be a better blogger I seemed to go in spurts with posting.  Sometimes I'm really good at it, sometimes I'm not.  Going to try and be more consistent throughout the year in posting.  I am also hoping to redesign my  blog and maybe add some pages (maybe 1 for the 30 by 30 challenge or for running records? Who knows yet).  I am also debating buying my own domain name, which then adds the problem of committing to a blog name.  I renamed this blog 'sarah in the city' a while back, but never changed the blogspot address.  I am leaning back towards 'sarah runs a lot' since it just feels like me.  Any opinions on this subject?

7. Save more This one is pretty simple.  Going to try and save more.  Which I think will help make #5 more feasible.

8. More time with friends Another simple one and ties in with #3 and #5.  Spend more time with friends.

In addition to resolutions for the new year, I have some other personal goals (both short and long term) that I am not ready to share publicly.  Not sure if I will ever share them, but I know them and have then written down so I am always working towards them.

What are your goals for 2013?

20 New Year's Resolutions (for all ages)

Yes, I realize it is almost April!  But I feel like it's never too late for some resolutions and these ones come courtesy of my friend/co-worker Mike.  I saw them hanging in his cubicle and knew I had to steal it.  Also, I know they are technically for 20-somethings, but I genuinely feel that some of these points (ok, most or all) are applicable for all ages.

I personally think the entire world should get behind #6.  Sorry Kardashians.  You just annoy me.

So true for all ages

NJ Half Recap

So this past weekend was the Long Branch (NJ) Half Marathon. I did really well! I was a little worried going in because my training hadn't been super consistent and we only started doing speed work a little bit ago. And it had really been a while since I'd raced a long distance and my last 2 halfs (Disney and Manhattan) weren't my best results. So I went in with a "Lets just go out and run and see what happens" attitude. It must have worked!

I didn't want to go out to fast and crash at the end, so I kept telling myself to slow down and keep it at a nice and easy/consistent pace. I definitely didn't feel like I was pushing myself too hard, but was still managing to run sub-9 minute miles (something I normally don't do - or haven't done in the past!). I was able to keep semi-consistent splits (time per mile), which I am really happy with. Felt really good the entire time. Towards the end started to tire out a bit, but managed to keep my splits pretty consistent. I am also pretty proud that my fastes mile was Mile 13.

My finishing time was 1:54:45 - an 8:45 pace! And a new PR by 5 minutes! I can check one thing off my new years resolutions! But I am totally going to add it back on, because I wanna beat it again :)

And, believe it or not, I went for a bike ride on Saturday morning, so I wasn't on 100% fresh legs. I wonder if my time would have been faster if I had been.

Below are my splits from the race:

Mile 1 - 9:07
" 2 -8:47
" 3 -8:39
" 4 - 8:41
" 5 -8:42
" 6 - 8:38
" 7 - 8:38
" 8 - 8:42
" 9 - 8:55
" 10 - 8:35
" 11 - 9:05
" 12 - 8:51
" 13 - 8:33
" .1 - :51

Resolutions

Since its the new year, thought I'd share my resolutions:

1 - Beat my PR in the Half Marathon
2 - Complete the Timberman Half-Ironman
3 - Be more consistent in my training (i.e. be better at forcing myself to go the gym/running)
4 - Eat healthier