2014 Goals

2:30 Half Marathon

I might only do one half this year, so its going to be a good one.

Run 1500km

I did close to 1100 in 2013, so this is doable. 

Run a Marathon

Feels like a bit of a cheat goal since I'm already registered and training, but I still have to get through it on the day.

Do Yoga

A simple goal. Just continue to make yoga a part of my life.

Go Somewhere New

This is going to be a goal every year. It doesn't need to be as epic as going half way around the world to New Zealand, anywhere new would be fine.

Watch 100 Movies

I was so close last year. Movies need to be new to me.

Read 50 Books

I read 60 in 2013, but I always start the year with the goal set at 50. 

2013 Goals - How'd It Go

I wasn't really blogging at the beginning of last year, so my 2013 goals only live on my ipod. Let's review them anyways, shall we?

Run 8K Continuously
This didn't happen. I got up to running 6K continuously. My hip injury and pretty much taking 3 months off running didn't help this.

Go Somewhere New

When I set this goal, I was thinking along the lines of Montreal. New Zealand works though!

300 Workouts

I seem to remember Daily Mile sending me a year in review last year, otherwise I'm not sure how I'll track this. According to Garmin Connect, I did 155 runs so I must be close to 300. I'll update this if I can.

Watch 100 Movies

I got up to 98 which is pretty good. Or maybe I watch too many movies, I don't know.

2.5 Hour Half Marathon

Another goal victim to my injury. I know it would have happened though in October if I hadn't been dealing with my hip strain.

Run 1000km

Despite my injury, ran 1071. 2012's total was 815, so I'm pretty pleased with this.

Read 50 Books

I ended up reading 59 so A+ here.

Weigh Less
This was a goal for me at the beginning of the year, but 2013 was the year that I accepted my body for what it is and what it can do so heck with a number on the scale. That's not to say that I don't weight myself, I do to keep track of how I'm doing with my eating. But I'm not trying to get to some sort of magical number anymore so this goal has been met in a completely different way.

Onto 2014!

December Goals

1. Do some form of exercise everyday.

I'm normally pretty good with this, but with the holidays coming up, life might get in the way. I figure that I can find at least 20 minutes everyday to get some activity in (even on Christmas)

2. Step Away from the Holiday Treats

Things I love:

• candy cane ice cream
• gingerbread men
• cranberry bliss bars
• special holiday flavoured macarons
• cupcakes

Most of these are available at my local Loblaws (including the macarons! My Loblaws got fancy!). While its fine to have a holiday treat at a party, they are not for everyday! So no adding a gingerbread man to the shopping cart for an evening snack. No picking up a bliss bar with my coffee on the way to work. 

3. Start learning about meditation

If anyone has suggestions are way to begin, please let me know.

4. Go to a Yoga Studio

It's been awhile and even though I'm enjoying my home practice, I think going to a class would be beneficial once in a while. I had good intentions to get to a moksha class yesterday, but my bus didn't show up and I wouldn't have made the class on time so set up the mat at home instead.

5. Enjoy Some Winter Walks

Preferably with my husband, but walking on my own or with friends is fine too.

November Over

How's November go?

Goal 1 - Fix My Hip B+

I'm still going to physio but I've cut back to going every 2nd week instead of every week. The sessions are typically 15 minutes of my therapist working on my hip (digging his thumbs into the muscle and stretching it out) followed by 15 minutes of icing. I'm not sure how much I'm really getting out of the sessions and the cost of weekly visits are adding up. So far the only homework I have is squats and rest.

I have gotten back into strength training (and the prescribed squats). Back to my beloved Chalean Extreme three times a week. I've lowered the weight for all lower body exercises until I get a better sense of what my hip can handle and what it can't.

I did get the okay to try some running - on the treadmill at 0 incline. For the most part, that's been fine. I have increased the incline to 0.5 now and keeping my pace on the slower side. I've loaded Zombie's, Run! back onto my iPod to keep me entertained.

My first outdoor run this past Thursday didn't go as well. I felt fine while running, but my hip tightened up later that day. I think running in snow with my yaktrax on might not have been the best idea for a test run. Think I'll try clear sidewalks and no added weight on my shoes next time.

Goal 2 - Daily Yoga A

I practiced yoga 25 times in November so I missed a couple of days. Getting back into yoga has been the silver lining of my injury. I'm loving my time on my mat.

All of November's sessions have been at home and mostly shorter sessions of 20 to 30 minutes. Yoga Download is my main go-to, I love their 20 minute free audio classes. DoYogaWithMe and this video are also great. I picked up Christine Felstead's Intermediate Yoga for Runners DVD at the Scotiabank expo and that's been a nicer longer session.

Goal 3 - Get My Eating Under Control B-

I have been planning my meals and doing some cooking but there's still room for improvement ( a lot of room). Treats at work are my downfall as are all of the Christmas goodies that have started appearing. I've been losing and gaining back the same 3 pounds all month. I am tracking my eating though most days, just need to make some better choices.

Stats for November:
# of Work Outs: 28 (actually higher, but I'm counting double work outs and days where I followed up with a yoga session into 1 work out).

Running Stats - I have been tracking these all year, but this is my first time posting to my blog. Compared to earlier months, these make me sad. I'm reminding myself that this is a start point.

# of Runs: 7
Total Distance Ran: 20.52km
Longest Run: 5.01km
Fastest Pace: 7.09/km
Average Pace: 7:33/km

November Goals

October was an odd month for me. My hip injury pretty much meant that I did very little in the way of work outs. Not working out was leaving me feeling kind of depressed. With being away for a bit than coming back for Thanksgiving, my eating hasn't been good. I've done pretty much no cooking for the entire month. So November is going to be all about getting back into the swing of things.

November Goals

1. Fix my Hip

I've been going to physio once a week for the past three weeks and there seems to be some progress. It doesn't hurt as much anymore but its still not back to normal. Physio has mostly been trying to loosen up the muscle and reducing pain but in this past week's appointment, I was giving some squat exercises to start. I've never been so excited about squats! So November's plan is to do whatever exercises my physiotherapist says to do, keep stretching and icing and hopefully getting back into running sometime this month.

2. Daily Yoga

I started daily yoga sessions about a week ago to help with my hip and I'm noticing a big difference both in how my lower body feels and just generally, my outlook. Going from working out 6 days a week to resting on the couch was not doing anything good for me mentally. Yoga is helping me feel more in tune with my body and its something I can do that doesn't hurt my hip and is actually making it better. 

3. Get my eating under control

I need to stop eating like I'm burning an extra 2000 calories a week. Healthier foods, less calories. I need to start cooking healthy meals and planning out my lunches. I could get away with treats when I was running 4 days a week, not so much now.

Toronto Waterfront Half Marathon 2013 Goals

I've been away from blogging but couldn't skip my usual pre-race goals post. I have a couple of other things in mind that I want to write about (like the name change of my blog) so maybe I'll stop by a bit more often.

So - Waterfront Half Marathon tomorrow! This will be half marathon #7 for me my third time with this race. However, I'm not sure what to expect tomorrow.

My training was going really well through the summer. I was training with my running room clinic, getting my hills and long runs in. I felt good about the progress I was making and even changed my goal time from 2:30 down to 2:25.

Than second week of September rolls around and I end up with a hip flexor injury. I spent two weeks alternating between trying to run (pain) and resting it. Than another two weeks of pretty much no running while on vacation in New Zealand (which was AWESOME! I'll post some pictures soon!). I finally admitted defeat and headed to a physiotherapist this past week.

I've been icing, resting and stretching in hopes that I'll make it through the race tomorrow. My leg isn't feeling bad right now, but in the past 6 weeks, I've done a total of 7 runs. 1 run was 17k, 1 at 13 and the rest 6km or less.

I'm hoping that 3 solid months of training pre-injury and the fact that this isn't my first half marathon will get me through tomorrow. Running for 2.5 hours probably isn't the best idea right now, but I'm going to do it, maybe regret it on Monday. I can take the next two months off if needed.

I do still have some time goals in mind, but I'm not going to feel too bad if I don't beat them:

A - 2:30, my year long half marathon goal.
B - sub 2:33 (my current half marathon PR)
C - finish in upright position

I spent a lot of time thinking yesterday that I need to be okay (mentally) if I need to stop because of my hip and I'm almost there. I think taking a DNF will be more painful to me in the long run than limping the course, so I'm really hoping it doesn't come to that.

With that said, I'm heading to my couch and my ice pack and a few episodes of Downton Abbey to rest up!

Good luck to everyone else racing tomorrow!

Sporting Life 10K 2013 Goals

Another Sunday, another race.

As I did last year, I'm following up my half marathon with a nice little run down Yonge Street. This will be my third year running Sporting Life. One of the main things I like about Sporting Life is the crazy amounts of people and this year the event is sold out with 27,000 people!

My goals for tomorrow:

A. 1:08:40 (6:52/km) - Completely based off the Macmillan Running Calculator, using last week's half
     marathon time. A bit faster than what I ran at Harry's Spring Run Off. Extra two kilometres tomorrow,                                  
     but no big hills. I've done 6:53/km on a 10K training run so if all conditions are perfect (weather, body, mind, no wardrobe malfunctions, etc), could be a possibility.

B. 1hr10min (7/km)

C. 1:11:10 Otherwise known as 10K's at my magic 7:07/km 2:30 half marathon pace.

D. New PR - Anywhere under 1:12:55

Current weather forecast for tomorrow morning is kind of windy, 8 degrees/ feels like 3 and overcast. Except for the wind, seems like nice running weather!

Toronto Goodlife Half Marathon Goals

My fifth Half Marathon!

I'm excited going into Sunday's race. I think I trained well for the most part and I'm definitely a better runner now than when I started my training in January.

Each of my half marathons have gotten progressively better.

My goals for this race:

A+. Sub 2:30.

A. 2hr 30minutes. 8 minutes off my current PR at a pace of 7:07/km.

B. 2hr 35 minutes. Still a PR at a more reasonable pace of 7:23/km

C. New PR. Honestly, I'll be kind of disappointed with this but if I'm not having a good race, I'll take what I can get.

Since I have serious issues pacing myself, I'm going to stick with the 2:30 pace rabbit as much as possible. My biggest issue is always starting too fast and slowing down substantially during the second half. If I'm feeling good after sticking with the pace bunny, I'll speed it up a bit towards the end.

My mantra for Sunday.

Weather should be good and I'm looking forward to the downhill course and running along Rosedale Valley Road (my favourite stretch from last year). If anyone is out tomorrow, look for me and say hi! I'm wearing a blue shirt and a white hat.

Race Day!

First race of the year for me!

This is my first year running Harry's Spring Run Off and my first 8K race. I entered this race with a bunch of my co-workers. It's the first race for most of them.

I'm looking at this race mainly as a testing ground for my upcoming half marathon. I'd like to run this at my goal half pace (7.07/km) or faster so I'm hoping for 56:56. According to MacMillan running calculator, if I can run a 2:30 half (which remains to be unseen) I should be able to do an 8K at 53:23. This would put my overall pace at 6:40/km which would be a bit of a stretch for me, especially with the hills on this course.

Either way, I'm just going to have fun, enjoy High Park and do whatever I can to make sure everyone else from my group has a good time.

Midsummer Night's Run Goals

This is one for my bucket list - Midsummer Night's Run 15K.

Very excited and this should give me an indication of whether or not I'm on track for a 2.5 hour half marathon in October.

Goals for this evening:

A - 1 hr 46 min (7:07 pace which is what I need for a 2.5 hour half)

B - 1hr 53 min (7:30 which has been my best pace on my long run)

Overall goal - have fun and sparkle!!!!

TO Women’s Half Goals

3 races in 4 weeks ends tomorrow and I’m ready for a break.

Super excited though for tomorrow. I think that the Toronto Women’s races will also be special for me, cause it’s where I ran my first 5K in August 2010. Tomorrow’s half marathon will be my 6th race in the series.

I’m not expecting huge improvements on my time from the Goodlife Half as it’s only been 4 weeks and I think that the course is going to be a bit tougher (ie. not downhill) and the weather is probably not going to be as perfect as it was for Goodlife.

Goals:

A – 2:40 finish. This would be a bit of a push, but if I pick up the pace during the second half of the race, might be manageable.

B – 2:43 finish (same as Goodlife). Based on my 10K time from two weeks ago, various running calculators put me at 2:43.

C- Finish with a smile.

Sporting Life 10K Goals

Tomorrow’s race has been completely overshadowed by last week’s half marathon. I actually pretty much haven’t given it any thought until a couple of days ago.

My goals for tomorrows 10K:

A – Finish under 1hr15min. Possible, but we’ll see. If I can repeat the first 10K of last week’s race, this could happen.
B – Finish in 1hr 15m. Based on recent times, I think this is do-able.
C – Break current PR of 1:19:50.
Have my usual pre-race dinner of pasta and garlic bread all set to go. Bagel, juice and banana set for the morning.

(again, I kind of love the shirt)

Big Medal

 Finished in 2:43:40 so met my goal of finishing anywhere in the 2:40's. 7 minutes off my previous half marathon PR. Recap to come soon.

Spring 2012 – Race Plans

My current plan for the spring is 4 races in 6 weeks. I am registered for all of these so I’m committed.


Toronto Yonge Street 10K on April 22nd.
This is the former Sporting Life 10K, but Canada Running Series and Sporting Life are no longer working together on the race. I registered for this way back in May when the registration was pretty cheap.


Goodlife Fitness Half Marathon on May 6th.
I went back and forth a lot on this race. I wasn’t going to do it because I didn’t want to do 10K, 12K etc in the cold and snow. However, I set a goal last month to take every possible opportunity to enrich my life and decided that this fell into that category. I don’t have high expectations, but I’ll be able to finish. Also, it’s on my 32nd birthday!

Sporting Life 10K on May 13th.
Again, another race I wasn’t going to do, but they were offering a $50 gift card to Sporting Life and registering was $45 so I pretty much made $5! Also, it will be interesting to compare the two 10K’s. They’re both following the same route so the organization will be different.

And finally Toronto Women's Half Marathon on May 27th.
Running Jennie convinced me. I love the Toronto Women’s Runs and will already be through half marathon training so why not?

So that’s the plan for the spring. I was thinking of adding Harry's Spring Run Off into the mix, but maybe not.
Very much looking forward to being done with the cold!

First Post of 2012???

This is pretty lame that my first post of 2012 is up on February 18th!!

So what have I been up to?

Spent a great week in Puerto Plata

Experienced a death in the family that made me think a lot about how I live my life.


Signed up for a bunch of races (more on that later).
Started half marathon training.
Completely lost all motivation.
So I’m recommitting. Made a meal plan for next week, did some healthy grocery shopping. And back to the blog.

2011 in Review

2011 was a good year. I don’t think I ever blogged about my goals for the year, but we’ll look at them now. I’ve had them saved on my iPod since last January so I can regularly review them.
Improve 5K Time
In 2010, my best 5K time was 40:17. I really wanted to break 38 minutes and with the help of Running Jennie, I crushed that in October finishing in 36:23.

Weigh Less
I’m down 9 pounds and 9% body fat from the beginning of the year.I did see my weight watchers goal weight a couple of weeks back but then Christmas happened. Ah well.
Workout 5+ Days Per Week
2008 and 2009 were the years I stopped working out because of my arthritis. 2010, I started working out but not regularly. 2011 was the year that I embraced fitness. 6 workouts a week is my standard now and I love it.
Apply for New Jobs
This didn’t happen because my position at my current job changed for the better so I’m happy again where I am.
Run a 10K Race
Not only did I run two 10K races, I ran my first half marathon.


Races run: 5 (2 5K’s, 2 10K’s, 1 Half Marathon)
Fitness Minutes (according to Spark People) 13,192
Kilometres Run: 576

Looking forward to a fabulous 2012!

Goals Check In

1. Increase run time
I've done 10/1 run/walk intervals twice now. The first time was easy, the second time not so much. My pace is slower than normal, but its a start.

2. Keep running over the winter
I was going to run this morning but it was -6, feels like -13 and I chickened out. I'm hoping to get some near (warmer) gear for Christmas which will make a big difference. Right now I'm running in a long sleeved top and a windbreaker which is good when the weather is around 0. There is a couple of treadmills in the condo gym, so I might have to break down to use those.

3. Strength Training 3 Times a Week
This is going very well. I just finished week 2 of the Push Circuit which is the second phase of Chalean Extreme. I'm feeling stronger and my push ups are getting better. Plus I have actually have some definition in my arms now.

4. Yoga
Fail. I haven't been to any yoga classes and have only done my DVD once. Maybe I'll get to a class tomorrow.

5. Loose the last 5 pounds to get back to my Weight Watchers goal weight.
I'm at my Weight Watchers goal weight. Very happy about that.

Weigh In Day

May 2005
Started weight watchers at 198 pounds

February 2006
Hit goal weight of 147 pounds

January 2007
Slowly started putting the weight back on

January 2010
Hit 173 pounds and decided enough was enough. Time to loose it again.

Dec 2 2011
I'm back at my goal weight!!!!!!!!!

My Running Bucket List

A Mid Summer Night's Run
Running in the evening by the lake with fairy wings? Yes please.

Ottawa Marathon or Half Marathon
I've heard good things about this race. Again, running by water is right up my alley.

New York City Marathon
Looks like a ton of fun and amazing crowd support. Also, I want to run through Central Park.

Las Vegas Half Marathon
Running up the strip at night.

London Marathon
London is my favourite city so any excuse to go is a good excuse.

Goofy's Race and a Half
This is my ultimate racing goal. I have a 7 year plan that works up to this race (half marathon on Saturday followed by full marathon on Sunday). My goal is to run Goofy in 2018, which will mark 10 years since my rheumatoid arthritis diagnosis.

Day Before

Saturday = rest day. I did all of my errands and running around yesterday afternoon so today I'm going to relax, eat properly and get ready for Sunday morning. I have pasta for dinner,  Downton Abbey and Spirit of the Marathon on DVD.

After my MRI yesterday, I hit up race kit pick up and the expo.

Besides the shirt and bag, the race kit wasn't too exciting. A juice box, a mini cliff bar and the usual flyers. I like the shirt though. Fits alright and I like that there is a different shirt for each distance (the marathon shirt looks the best. As it should).

I wandered around the expo for a bit. I didn't end up buying anything except for a renewal on Canadian Running magazine. I did stop by the Run Disney booth and picked up a brochure. They did have all of their medals out including the goofy medal. I felt kind of emotional holding it. Sigh. Someday.

Race Goals


My goal tomorrow is to finish strong. I'm expecting to finish in about 3 hours which is slow yes, but its realistic for me. Signing up for this half marathon was (and still is) so far out of my comfort zone. This is the first of what will hopefully be many half marathons so there's lots of time to work on speed and times later. First one is always a PR!