Mid-Year Check In

via GIPHY

Sooooo.... a solid 5 month break without a post. Ugh. I am so not doing good about getting back into the swing of regular blogging.

I really have no excuse for not blogging February and March; I was around and has time. I cannot say the same for April through June. It was non stop travel during those time periods. I took 12 trips between mid-April to the end of June! There was one portion that involved 12 (one way) flights during a 38 day period. Ooof. It was a lot.

Some of it was planned, but most was not. I had some work travel come up that was unexpected and some family stuff going on. My grandfather has not been doing well, so I ended up going last minute to Chicago for Easter (which I am so glad I did). Sadly, he passed away at the beginning of June (one of the unexpected trips).

But now, things should (or better be!) calming down. I don't have many trips planned until Labor Day except a weekend trip to PA to sit by the pool. That one I can handle. 😀

Since it is the middle of 2017 already (am I the only one who has no idea how that happened???), let's take a quick check in on my 2017 goals. You can see my original post for more details on each item.

1. Run 1,270 miles in 2017. I am right on track with this one! As of 6/30, I had run 642.55 miles. Slightly ahead of 50%!
2. Tackle 5 states in 2017. Sadly, it doesn't look like 5 will happen this year. I have 3 planned, but don't think it will be possible to get 2 additional ones done.
3. Run 2 marathons. This is most likely not going to happen. I made the decision to not run a spring marathon - and it was definitely the right decision for me. My body was not ready to jump that headfirst into training and I know its better for me to listen to my body. 
4. And the big one - qualify for the Boston Marathon. This is still on my list, but I'm being realistic that it might not happen this year. It is taking me longer than I would like to get my speed back and I need to be honest about where I am. I will one day qualify!

This is also probably a good time to update you on my fall marathon plans. If you remember from this original post, I had planned to run Chicago (I had a time based guaranteed entry). Well, one of my best friends got engaged (yay!) and asked me to be in her wedding (of course!), but the wedding is on the same weekend of Chicago. So no Chicago this year. Instead, I am going to be running the Wineglass Marathon in Corning, NY.

And now for some other goals (blog-wise and life wise):

1. Get back to blogging regularly. Clearly, I failed at this one. Hopefully I can get better in the second half.
2. Work on eating clean as much as possible. I am doing okay on this one. I have good days and bad days, but trying to be better at it.
3. Cross train more often. I've done pretty good here too. I've been trying new workouts to find some additional ones I like and can add into the rotation. I did PureBarre in the beginning of the year (not my favorite) and discovered Barry's Bootcamp (love!).
4. Travel more. I am definitely exceeding this one. I probably traveled a bit too much this past spring.
5. Downsize my stuff. I have done pretty good one this. I've already taken several large bags of stuff to good will and have more in my apartment waiting to go. I need to be a little more strict on my "1 in, 2 out" policy, but I'm trying and that's all I can really do!

So this was just a little bit of an update on what I've been doing. Looking forward to getting back to a regular routine; not just in blogging, but in my normal life. So much travel makes it hard to get into any kind of regular routine.

I'll be back soon this week with a training recap - I'm just finished week 6 of Wineglass Training!

Goals: January

Happy Thursday everyone! Is it me or has this week just flown by?

As I mentioned in my 2017 post, I am going to do mini goals each month. I think having smaller goals will help me reach my larger goals for the year.

But, before I get into my January goals, I wanted to add one to my 2017 goals. This one totally slipped my mind when I was typing up my list, which is funny because it's one of the ones I really want to adhere too! I went back and added it to my original post, but I'll include it here too.

• Downsize my stuff. This should really read "get rid of my excess crap". Because really, I have too much stuff. I love my apartment and love that I haven't felt a need (or had) to move in years, but the downside to that is that I am not forced to clean out/go through my stuff every time I move. This means I have a lot of stuff in my apartment. My closets are packed and my drawers overflowing. While I plan on going through my stuff, a big thing I am doing is instituting a "1 in, 2 out" policy. This means whenever I buy something, two thing must go in the donate pile (and stay there). I am hoping this helps me make smarter purchases ("Do I want this enough to get rid of 2 things?"), while also helping me downsize my clothing collection.

In full disclosure, this will not fully apply to my race shirts. I don't get rid of those (as they have sentimental value to me), but at the same time my race shirt collection is out of control. What I am thinking about doing is removing shirts from the rotation and packing them away. Especially some of the older shirts that have already gotten a lot of use. I am also considering pulling all my Disney shirts and making a quilt out of them. Has anyone ever had one made? What company did you use?

Okay, so now that I've shared my last 2017 goal, let's get to my January goals!

1. Run 100 total miles. This is a gimme since I want to run a total of 1,270 miles for the year. Ideally, I'd like to run more then this in January, but don't want to overdue it in January.
2. Sleep a minimum of 7+ hours a night. I really got off my sleep schedule in December. I'd like to focus on getting into bed at a reasonable hour each night and actually going to bed. I have a (bad) habit of getting into bed and then playing on my phone for an hour. Not good! 
3. Focus on following a meal plan and not eating junk. This is a year round goal, but I feel like January is a good month to truly reset and start the year off right. I know this will be tough when I'm in Disney, but really going to focus on this the rest of the month.
4. Cross train at least 4x a week. Again, part of my annual goal. But, I also know this will get harder once I get into marathon training and my mileage increases. Want to focus on this while I can.
5. Take 2 bags of stuff to Goodwill. Let's get that closet clean out going!

That's all for this month!

What are your goals for January?

Happy New Year + 2017 Goals

Image from Tone It Up (I loved it so much, I borrowed it!)

Happy 2017 everyone! Long time, no talk, eh? 2016 was not a great year in terms of blogging for me, but I am hoping change that in 2017. I am borrowing a term from one of my Volee teammates and "zamboni'ing" it for 2017 (i.e. making a fresh start). So rather then re-hash all that I did in 2016, I am just going to start fresh in 2017.

So to start 2017, I want to share my goals for this year. These are my overall goals, but I also plan on setting smaller monthly goals (some related to my overall goals and some not related).

Let's start with my running goals:

1. Run 1,270 miles in 2017 (same numbers, different order). 2016 was one of my lowest mileage years, but that is to be expected given the surgery. I am finally feeling back to normal and am excited to tackle 2017.
2. Tackle 5 states in 2017. I still don't have them all set, but I am excited to check some more states off of my list.
3. Run 2 marathons. My plan is to run a marathon in the Spring (likely in May) and then the Chicago Marathon. I had a time qualifier for Chicago so I didn't need to wait for the lottery results. Really excited to head back to Chicago after the heat of 2007 (and praying for better weather!).
4. And the big one - qualify for the Boston Marathon. I haven't spoken to much about this goal, but this one has been a longtime goal for me. I got pretty close at Route 66 and am hoping to get back there. My plan is to run the spring marathon to get the cobwebs out and get my speed back, then use Chicago as my goal BQ race. Dream big or go home, right?

And now for some other goals (blog-wise and life wise):

1. Get back to blogging regularly. I really do enjoy it and miss doing it. My plan is to do 2 posts a week: a weekly training recap and one other. The second will change each week, but I do know I want to go back and recap my recent races (more for my own personal memory).
2. Work on eating clean as much as possible. I don't know if it's getting older or a side effect from my surgery (they did route around in my stomach for a bit), but I just really can't handle processed foods anymore. I'd like to focus on eating healthy (and clean) as much as possible. It'll be a work in progress - I know I won't be perfect all the time (especially when traveling) and I know I'll slip up, but it's something I am going to be working on.
3. Cross train more often. This is something I really want to focus on. My best year of racing (2015) included a lot of cross training and especially, core work. I know it's shocking, but my abs/core did not magically reappear post surgery (and wishing them back didn't work either!). Really going to focus on this, especially in the winter/spring.
4. Travel more. I love traveling and am looking forward to visiting some more states as part of my 50 States goal. I am also looking forward to visiting far flung friends and family.
5. Downsize my stuff. This should really read "get rid of my excess crap". Because really, I have too much stuff. I love my apartment and love that I haven't felt a need (or had) to move in years, but the downside to that is that I am not forced to clean out/go through my stuff every time I move. This means I have a lot of stuff in my apartment. My closets are packed and my drawers overflowing. While I plan on going through my stuff, a big thing I am doing is instituting a "1 in, 2 out" policy. This means whenever I buy something, two thing must go in the donate pile (and stay there). I am hoping this helps me make smarter purchases ("Do I want this enough to get rid of 2 things?"), while also helping me downsize my clothing collection.

In full disclosure, this will not fully apply to my race shirts. I don't get rid of those (as they have sentimental value to me), but at the same time my race shirt collection is out of control. What I am thinking about doing is removing shirts from the rotation and packing them away. Especially some of the older shirts that have already gotten a lot of use. I am also considering pulling all my Disney shirts and making a quilt out of them. Has anyone ever had one made? What company did you use?

What are some of your goals for 2017?