2016 Goals

Another year has come and gone! And so it's time to reflect on the past year and set up a plan for the coming one. I've gone back through old posts and found my 2014 and 2015 goals. I've copied them here and added my 2016 goals in each category.

Putting these out there make it real and help keep me motivated to know that I will hold myself accountable throughout the year. Here we go! (Previous year goals are the abridged version.)

Running

2014 Goal - 4 half or better runs and beat 1:50.

2014 Actual - I got in all 4 of my half or better runs. I did NOT get under 1:50.

2015 Goals -  5 Half or better races for me this year! I'll still be working toward under 1:50.

2015 Actual - I squeezed in 6 half or better with one clocking in at 1:45:12. It was quite literally an all downhill race, but under 1:50 nonetheless! I had a few right at 1:50 but none others that were under much to my chagrin. 

2016 Goal - 6 half or better races and have a non-downhill race under 1:50. In fact, my stretch goal this year is a sub 1:45 although I know it is indeed a stretch. I only have one race on the books right now so I need to get planning! 

Work

2014 Actuals - All of our Timber Run homes are now under contract and we had 50% more custom home deposits than our goal. Additionally, we purchased lots in a new subdivision and that wasn't really even on our radar for the year.

2015 Goals - If 2014 brought high expectations, 2015's goals are mountainous! By the end the year, we are expecting great things!

2015 Actuals - This year was my favorite year so far in the home building industry! We closed out Timber Run, launched and broke ground on a new subdivision, Summerset, and built more custom homes than any previous year. Also, we purchased and renovated a new building for our offices in downtown Greenfield and have enjoyed our short time there with our great team. 

2016 Goals - Tom and I have an appointment on our calendar to sit down and talk through these goals. I'm excited to see what the new year will bring!

Books

2014 Goal - Read 24 books. 

2014 Actual - Didn't get there. There's always another year. :)

2015 Goal - Read 24 books. That was easy. 

2015 Actual - Finally I did it. Hopefully there will be a follow up post to this with the books that made the list! We will have to see how much time I have on my hands!

Weight

2014 Actual - Lost weight but didn't hit my goal of pre-kid weight.

2015 Goal - Lose the rest.

2015 Actual - I did pretty well here this year, but still didn't hit that number. I did another round of elimiating sugar, and this time with no artificial sweeteners either. That was hard. I did stay off the Diet Coke for the whole year. Although, I will treat myself to a Diet Dr. Pepper every once in a while. I don't think it's a coincidence that cutting out the Diet Coke has led to holding close to my most recent low weight. 

2016 Goals - I'm not sure that "weight" will ever not be a yearly goal. I just love to eat too much and can't ever seem to get the hang of "moderation." So, I always just try to keep things reasonable and find new little tricks to keep me motivated. This year, I was able to actually get under the weight I have listed on my driver's license. In 2016, I want to be five pounds under that number and hold steady there.  I'm not exactly sure how many pounds that is as of this moment, probably 8-10 depending on how bad the holidays play out on the scale. 

New Goals for 2016

I have a couple of new goal categories for the year. I think these will help with my running goals and my weight loss goals. 

Mileage - I've never set a mileage goal for the year nor have I done a great job of tracking mileage. I will do this in 2016. Tom went for 1,000 running miles this year and blew past it! I think it sounds like a fun thing to track. So, in 2016, I will run 1,200 miles which works out to 100 miles per month. This will not be a small task. It works out to about 23 miles a week which would be more than I run when I'm not in a training cycle. I'm hoping this will motivate me to not skip runs and to up my weekly runs from my usual 5 up to 6 and to keep a long run every week. 

Steps - This year, I had over 5,000,000 steps (5,080,909 as of this second). For 2016, I'm going for 5,500,000 which is just over 15,000 a day. This should go hand and hand with the increased mileage goal. 

Pull-ups - Right now, I can do exactly zero pull-ups. I keep saying I want to master at least one but now I've officially put it in writing. My plan is to start with my bands and eventually work up to at least one unassisted this year and maybe even two. It's doable, but I will have to work pretty hard toward achieving it. Upper body has never been one of my strengths! 

There you have it. These are a few areas of focus for me this year. Do I have other plans as well? Sure but these areas are concrete areas of my life in which I can set attainable and measurable goals which is really the whole reason I choose to run in general. It's such a great mechanism for me to set, track and achieve goals as an adult! 

Indianapolis Monumental Marathon - The Rest of Training

Seeing this video making it's way around social media this week made me realize that I haven't updated the world on my marathon training! (My favorite line is when she says, "Why would I talk about something that is interesting to no one?!") Well, this post is all about marathon training so if you're not interested, click away. :)

I left off at Week 7 and I'm now in Week 19. Without a ton of specifics, I ran a lot. Not as much as many people run during marathon training, but enough to keep me eating and sleeping more! Plus, I added in a handful of spin classes and continued strength training once a week.

I also squeezed in two half marathons in September which means I hit my 2015 running goals! One of the races I even got under 1:50! It may have an asterisk but I'm counting it! The full marathon wasn't even on my radar for the year. (Race posts upcoming!)

I'll do a quick update via photos for the missed weeks...

First up was our 14 mile run. I say "our"... Steph is in! She's doing the whole thing too! Soooooo thankful that we've been able to do all of our long runs together!

I've been on a mission to fix some foot issues. This was an attempt at heat moldable inserts. Boiling inserts on my stove is not something I ever pictured myself doing! (They didn't work.)

Next up was a 16 miler. Slow and steady has been our game plan! I'm totally convinced that this theory has made training so much more doable. I didn't start needing a nap and eating like crazy until 18 or 20 mile runs. "Slow" running is the best. :) (I'm probably running 45-60 seconds per mile slower than I did last round, but plan on beating my time in the race.)

New favorite song on my playlist this round.

After the insoles, I tried a Brooks Ghost 7 in a larger size. No dice. I then tried out some Altra's. Numb toes. Absolutely loved the cushioning though! Just a little funky looking!

Really, in total, I've only had two runs this entire time that felt bad. And, they felt terrible. The first was 18. Ugh. Plodding along and sore knees. 

I also did my first specialty 5K - the Glow Run! Super fun with black-lights and neon powder. Glow in the dark tattoo...

Here's my personal marathon cheerleader - Monica. Remember how she stood out in the freezing cold rain last time around?! She always makes everything super fun! 

The next day was a very early 20 mile run. I carb-loaded with some pancakes at Denny's around 11PM so I was ready to go! Headlamps were necessary for this one! (Maybe I should have just kept my light up glasses and necklace!) 

This 20 miler felt SO much better than the 18 of the previous week. How does that even work?! It must have felt good for Steph too because she signed up after this one!

Tom and I both ran before church that morning! 50K (31 miles) between the two of us! Not too shabby!

The next week, we took off for Virginia for Fall Break. I owe a big post on that one! On a running note though, Josie ran 4 miles with Tom at a great pace. Look at her stride! 

I got a run in at the park too and a few others on a treadmill. This morning, I had the entire State Park to myself! I seriously only saw one truck and one other runner the whole time!

Home again. I love our trails in the neighborhood, especially in the fall. So familiar!

Finally, the last 20 miler came around. This was the other awful one. I know why though I think. I slept badly, didn't fuel right and didn't have enough water. I suffered through though even if I did take to the couch until 6PM. Tough. Didn't even get any pictures. :) Appreciated seeing this on IG the next week though!

Last weekend was a 10 mile run at race pace. We brought it home with an 8:45 pace. And, talked the whole time. Piece of cake! 

Oh year. And, Tom decided he will take on the full as well. What a guy! I'm sure he'll be able to do it and I'm excited to see what he thinks!

So, here we are. Race day shows up on the 10 day forecast tomorrow.  We have less than 20 miles left in our training program. We're there folks. Bring it. 

#bemonumental

2015 Goals

16 days into the New Year! How many resolutions have been broken by now? For me... none. I've stopped setting them a long time ago. I am dead serious in that I never made it past January 2nd. They just don't work for me. For some reason, they just seem so easy to break, and once broken, so pointless to go back to trying. It's already been broken so what's the point?

Goals, on the other hand, are my preferred method of motivation. And, I have been setting those for the last few years. Last year, they fit into four categories. Work, running, weight and books. I shared my running goals with the world. I may or may not have shared my book goal - I can't remember. Work goals we shared with our team and weight goals I kept quiet.

Did I meet them all? Nope. I was very close on many accounts and did a lot better than if I had just said in 2014 I would "run more," "word harder," "read more," and "eat better."

Running

2014 - I got in all 4 of my half or better runs. The last two weren't pretty although still better than I would have thought I could do just two years ago. I did NOT get under 1:50. Pretty darned close though at 1:50:51!

2015 - 5 Half or better races for me this year! I have the first three on my calendar already - 3M Half (Austin), San Diego Mermaid Half and the Indy Mini. I'd like to do the other two in the fall. Tom mentioned last night that he would go longer than 13.1 for a belt buckle. I may have to do some searching and make that happen as a fall get away for us. The Bird-In-Hand Half in Amish Country is also on my list - running with the Amish and a real horseshoe as a medal sounds like a really unique experience! I'll still be working toward under 1:50 but I'm pretty sure it won't come in my first two races of the year. I'm just not feeling it but I'm gunning for the Mini and another PR. That just seems to be a good race for it although I think many (many!) would disagree.

Work

2014 - We hit 2014 with some high expectations for our home building business. We ended 2014 overwhelmed with how far we had come in just one year! Along with having all of the homes at Timber Run under contract in December (we're back to a few available, but figured that would happen too!), we had about 50% more custom home deposits than we had set as a goal. Additionally, we purchased lots in a new subdivision and that wasn't really even on our radar for the year.

2015 - If 2014 brought high expectations, 2015's goals are mountainous! By the end the year, we are expecting great things!

Books

2014 - Read 24 books. Didn't get there. There's always another year. :)

2015 - Goal: Read 24 books. That was easy.

Weight

2014 - Lose weight - don't worry - I was specific in this department - just not with the Interweb. I lost about half the pounds I had set as a goal. The goal is pre-kid weight. Why is that just so hard to achieve?! (Maybe because I'm almost 10 years older? How did that time go so fast?!)

2015 - Lose the other half. I've started out the year by significantly reducing my sugar intake and cutting out Diet Coke (again). It seems like everything I've been reading lately led me to these two things. I'm amazed at how much sugar is in EVERYTHING! I'm still doing fruits and grains but just nothing (OK - very little) with "sugar" as an ingredient (or corn syrup, HFCS, cane syrup, etc.). After a few days, I really haven't missed it. And, when I really get a craving, I have a cup of sugar-free hot chocolate. (I realize this probably has aspartame, but so much less than a 44 oz. Diet Coke!)

So, there you have it. That's what I'll be working toward this year. I think they all meet the S.M.A.R.T. qualities and I've added another A for "Accountability" in there by putting it out to the world. 2015 looks to be a great year!