Monthly Archives: January 2015

Uncategorized

Living with #NoExcuses

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This week’s prompt for the Sweat Pink #NoExcuses challenge is to blog about what #NoExcuses means to me… a timely topic, as I was just sitting here trying to think up excuses to avoid going to the gym to lift at o’dark-thirty tomorrow morning. I don’t know about you, but I find making excuses way too easy sometimes: “I’m too busy.” “I’m too tired” (that’s the one I want to use for tomorrow).  “I have to do XYZ first.”

But let’s be real: all those excuses actually mean the same thing: “I don’t want to.” So when I find myself making those excuses, I need to look at the root of the problem. Why don’t I want to? Is it because it’s a mundane task (hello, laundry-folding)? Because I’d rather be doing something else? Because it’s hard, and I’d rather take the easier path (*coughsleepcough*)?

photo 2 (6)Recycled picture from a time I didn’t make excuses not to lift. 

Once I’ve found the root of the problem, I can reanalyze the original task I’m making excuses about. Some are non-negotiable: I have to do laundry if I want clean clothes. I have to grade papers if I want to be decent at my job. For the non-negotiable tasks, I then have two options: Find a way to make it more enjoyable (listen to cheesy music or a podcast while I do chores, for instance), or just suck it up and do it.

Other tasks aren’t do-or-die, but they’re still important — things like getting out of bed when the alarm goes off to get in my workout or prepping the bulk of our meals on Sunday afternoon. For those things, I remind myself of the benefits of doing them — avoiding injury, finally getting that dang marathon PR, not eating everything in the house because I’m too hungry to wait for dinner to cook on Thursday night, etc. Reminding myself of the payoff almost always motivates me to push my excuses aside and get to work.


Inspirational image from the Internet. Source. 

And then there are the minor to-dos that I find myself making excuses to avoid — that Thirty-One/Norwex/other come-buy-stuff party at a vague acquaintance’s house, inservice day lunch with colleagues at the restaurant that I really don’t like, wearing pants without a drawstring on Saturday — and I realized that for most of those, it’s okay to not make an excuse. For those, “I don’t want to” is a perfectly fine reason (except maybe the party. That would be a little rude). So I don’t need to make an excuse; I just need to not do it.

Next time you find yourself making an excuse to skip your workout, not prep your meals, or blow off that pile of work yet again, ask yourself what you’re really saying.  If the task is worthwhile, find a way to make it happen. If it’s not… don’t do it. No excuse necessary.

And if you need a little extra motivation to bust those excuse, search the hashtag #SweatPink on Instagram or Twitter, and you’ll see tons of pictures of people like you getting it done.

What’s your secret for avoiding excuses?

Training

Lincoln Marathon Training: Week 5

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This training cycle seems to be going really quickly. Week 5 already?! But that’s a very good thing, because the days are getting longer and warmer (though I’m sure we still have several cold and snowy spells ahead). Week 5 was a decent one; I feel like my body’s finally adjusting to the heavier training load again. And I even made it back into the gym, which resulted in some major DOMS… meaning I need to not take several-week breaks from lifting. Profound insight, that one.


I love memes.

Anyway, here’s how the week went:

Monday: 
Monday was a great day. I started by going to the gym… at 7:30 because I had the day off. 7:30 is an amazing gym time because no one is there. I wish I could do that all the time. Later, once it warmed up to shorts-temperatures, I headed out for a nine-miler, finished with 10 strides. (Side note: I’ve been doing strides for years and I still feel like I’m doing them wrong).
photo 1 (19)
Then, the day got EVEN BETTER because when I got home from my run, these babies were waiting for me on the porch:
photo 2 (19)
End-of-year shoe sales are the best. I already have an identical pair that’s still in rotation, but no worries: my Sweat Pink shoelaces will help me tell the difference.

Tuesday:
14 miles. On. The. Treadmill. After work. It might not be exaggerating to say that this felt like the longest run of my life. Also, no grading got done that night. It was mostly just run-eat-sleep. I did manage to catch most of the State of the Union address, so I felt like an okay American.

Wednesday: 

5 recovery miles. They felt remarkably short after the previous day’s run. Afterward, I did some core work and stretched a little.

Thursday: 

AM: 11 miles easy, again on the treadmill because winter. I miss daylight and non-icy roads.

PM: 45 minutes of strength training at the gym.

Friday: 

I fully intended to be a good person and work out in the morning so I could stay and watch the basketball game after school. But being a good person seemed a lot less important at 4:30 a.m., so I turned off my alarm and went back to sleep. So… 5 evening recovery miles, core work, stretching, and foam rolling. And no basketball-watching. Hashtag I’majerk.

Saturday: 

18-mile long run. I started at around 7:30, and it was pretty chilly. I kept expecting it to warm up, but it never did. It wasn’t miserable, but this friend of mine had a hard time getting undressed for a post-run shower because her hands were so cold. She flailed around for nearly ten minutes and it was kind of hilarious.

Okay, it was me. I don’t have friends.
photo 4 (12)
Yes, I’m wearing giant, non-running sunglasses. My awesome running sunglasses got stolen a few months ago, and the cheap-o ones I bought to replaces them broke. These were better than nothing.

Sunday: 

Rest day! 30 minutes of yoga.

Totals: 62 miles running, about 2.5 hours strength/stretch

This coming week looks almost identical mileage-wise. My main goals are to work on my post-run nutrition (always a struggle) and keep working on stretching and strength training.

Have a great week, friends!

What is your favorite time to go to the gym?

Runners: What sunglasses do you wear? I really need to get some decent ones again, but I can’t afford Maui Jim’s like my beloved stolen glasses. Whomp whomp.

Food, Uncategorized

Can We Please Stop Calling Food “Bad”?

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Last weekend, I attended an event that was followed by a potluck-style meal. Across the table from me sat a woman in her mid-50s and a little girl about nine years old. I didn’t know these people, so, being the socially awkward creature that I am, I was mostly focusing on eating my food instead of making conversation. However, I couldn’t help overhearing the conversation across the table. The woman turned to the little girl and said, “I’m being bad. I’m on a diet that says I can only eat proteins and vegetables, but I’m eating these potatoes.”

I cringed and bit my tongue. That was neither the time nor the place for what I desperately wanted to say, so I’m saying it now.

Please do not say that you are “bad” for eating any food. Food can be “bad” in only two instances. One: it tastes bad and/or is poorly prepared, as in, “Don’t go to that restaurant. Their food is  bad. Even my rottweiler couldn’t chew the steak.” Two: It is spoiled, as in, “Don’t drink the milk that expired last week. It is bad and will make you sick.” Otherwise, food is not “bad,” and eating it doesn’t make you bad.

What you eat has absolutely no bearing on whether or not you are kind, or compassionate, or interesting, or funny, or loving, or independent, or courageous, or any other adjective that is part of what makes you “good.” Nor does what you eat make you sinister, or evil, or mean, or gossipy, or rude, or needy, or foolhardy, or any other adjective that could possibly be “bad.” Maybe what you eat makes you less healthy. Maybe what you eat even makes you fat. But “fat” and “bad” should not be synonyms — and especially not when talking to an impressionable young girl.

Like most women, I’ve struggled with body image for as long as I can remember. I’ve flirted with disordered eating, and  I’ve had my lists of “bad” foods. I’ve eaten and then felt guilty more times than I can count. You probably have, too.  We’ve been down that road. We still go down that road, even though we hate it.

So let’s change that. Let’s keep our daughters, nieces, students,  and friends from a lifetime of guilt, of feeling “bad” because of a certain food or food group. Let’s teach our kids — and remind ourselves– that some foods are less nutritious than others and should be eaten less frequently, but that food is not associated with morality. Let’s teach them that food’s main  purpose is to keep us alive and healthy, and that while some foods are better at that than others, food’s minor purposes also include pleasure, celebration, etc., and those things also have a vital place in our lives.

That lesson begins with not only what we say, but what we do. So stop riddling yourself with guilt when you indulge in something you love to eat. Stop showing our girls that the occasional less-than-healthy  snack makes us less-than-worthy people. Stop calling food “bad,” and maybe, just maybe, the next generation of women won’t have to fight that same old battle.

Training

Lincoln Marathon Training, Week 4

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Can you believe January is more than halfway over? If feeling that every year goes faster than the last is a sign that you’re getting old… well, I’m old. The good news is that the Colorado weather gods decided we’d been punished enough, and the past few days have been 50 degrees and glorious. And the days are getting longer all the time, so soon I’ll be back to outdoor runs on more than just the weekends.

Here’s how the training week went:

Monday: 

AM: About 30 minutes of upper-body and core work, including some planks for SweatPink’s #NoExcuses challenge
photo 4 (11)

PM: 11 miles easy. Or as easy as 11 miles on a treadmill on a Monday night can be.

Tuesday; 

AM: 30 minutes of lower-body and core

PM: 13 miles. That’s a long time on a treadmill, but on the bright side, I was able to watch almost the whole premier of The Bachelor. Yes, I know it premiered a week ago, but Hulu  won’t let me watch it free until the next episode is out. And it’s not within my pride to pay for that.

Wednesday: 

Only one workout: a five-mile recovery run and 10 #NoExcuses burpees.

Nothing says "I'm working hard" like looking at the camera to make sure it's working...
Nothing says “I’m working hard” like looking at the camera to make sure it’s fliming…

Thursday: 

AM: 45 minutes of full-body strength training

PM: 9-mile run with 4 at tempo. I hate tempo runs. Have I mentioned that?

Friday: 

5-mile recovery run and 15 minutes of yoga to try to loosen up my tight legs.

Saturday: 

We went to Denver Friday night with Jordan’s family, and I planned to do my long run in Denver Saturday morning. But we were staying way out by the airport (i.e. nowhere good to run that I know of), and when we woke up, the wind was howling. So I decided to wait until afternoon, which was a terrific choice: the wind died down, the sun was shining, and I ran 15 miles in shorts.
photo 2 (18)

Shorts weather also means snow-melting and mud-making weather.

Sunday: 

45 minutes of yoga. I tried a new-to-me video on Amazon. It wasn’t my favorite, but my legs and hips felt a lot better afterward. And I took a picture for the #NoExcuses challenge, because prizes.
photo 1 (18)

Totals: 58 miles running, about 2:45 strength and stretch.

This week, I plan to head back to the gym for my strength sessions. I avoided it the last couple of weeks because one, doing it in my basement is easier, especially in the early mornings, and two, I didn’t want to fight New Year’s crowds. But I need to lift some heavier weights, and I know that, so back to the gym I go tomorrow.

Anyone else wearing shorts in January?

What’s your next event?

Uncategorized

Why Do You Run So Much?

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Why do you run so much? Ask my students, my family, my friends. I shrug and give the simple answer: I run so much because I love it.

But if I had time, every time someone asked, I could list so many reasons. If I had time, and if the questioner was willing to listen, I’d say…

I run so much because I love it. I love the challenge of a hard training run or race: the fire in my legs, the ache in my lungs, the bile in my throat, all telling me that I’m giving it my all, that no matter the outcome, when the run is over and I collapse, I can be satisfied, knowing that I stretched my limits as far as I could.

photo 4 (2)

I love the euphoria following a win, and in a strange way, I love the despair following a loss — because it’s the losses that teach me, that make me analyze my weaknesses, that inspire me to work harder and come back fitter, stronger, faster than before.

I love the hard efforts, but the easy runs also own a piece of my heart. Nothing brings me peace like the serenity of a quiet early-morning run, bathed by the light of the rising sun, serenaded by the first birds of morning. Evening runs are special, too: the day’s stress melts away with the sweat, and as the miles tick away,  my mental storm clouds clear. Running helps me put my world in perspective. In both a figurative and the most literal sense, running keeps me grounded.

20140711-DSC_9093

It doesn’t matter if I’m running trails, the mountains, the streams, the wildlife, the uneven terrain keeping me from obsessing about pace and holding me in the moment; or if I’m running roads, the pavement pressing against my feet, my lungs burning, the miles passing faster and faster; or even if I’m running on the treadmill, zoning out to mindless television and playing mental games. Wherever I am, running is my happy place, my stress-relief, my alone time, my self-awareness enhancer. And I love it.

That is why I run so much.

Why do you run/bike/swim/exercise/fill in the blank so much?

Training

Lincoln Marathon Training, Week 2

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Before I get into my training recap for the week, I want to tell you about Sweat Guru’s No Excuses Challenge. If you’ve read my blog for long, you probably know I love challenges. Encouragement to work out, a group of like-minded supporters, and a chance to win prizes? I’m in. The Holiday Sweat challenge was a lot of fun, so imagine my excitement when I saw this one! Here’s what it entails (wording taken from Sweat Guru’s e-mail):

  • Each Sunday we’ll send you an email with weekly prompts (workouts, healthy snack ideas and more)

    • We ask that you share your answer or interpretation of those prompts daily via Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, your blog, etc using #NoExcuses #SweatPink for a chance to win fun weekly prizes from brands like Augusta Active, ShowerPill, ActivMotion Bar, WIN Detergent, Beaming with Health….etc etc…

    • The workouts will be things like drop down and give us 10 push-ups or burpees or even get out and run (or walk) a mile!

  • Each day, we’ll all share what we’re doing and how we’re doing it on our social channels and help each other stay accountable, motivated and on top of our goals.

  • Every Friday, we’ll send around an email with winners, prizes and our favorite Tweets, IG posts and blog posts from the week (hello, link love and social sharing!)

Want to sign up? Use this link: http://bit.ly/1yCAQLl.

Now, let’s talk about week 2 of marathon training. Between marathon training cycles, I tend to forget, or maybe just look at through rose-colored glasses, how time-consuming training is. This cycle seems especially so, since I’m going back to a Pete Pftitzinger training plan after using McMillan plans for the last two races. Both plans have about the same overall mileage, but Pftiz has longer-at-once mid-week runs  — an 11-miler one day and a 5-miler the next, for instance, instead of two 8-milers like McMillan’s. I’m hoping that the mid-week longer runs will make me stronger and faster so I can finally get over that 3:13 hump. So I’m willing to put in the mileage, even if that means seeing numbers like this on a treadmill on weeknight.photo (13)

Monday: 
AM: Longer runs also mean two-a-day workouts when I strength train. I’m trying to do upper and lower body on different days, when possible, so I can spend a little more time on each. Monday was upper body and core.

PM: 8 miles with 10 strides… or at least as close as I could come to running strides on a treadmill. They’re so short that it’s tough to do them inside.

Tuesday: 
AM: 30 minutes lower-body strength training.

PM: 12-mile easy run. I was pretty disappointed to see that I can’t watch The Bachelor on Hulu yet for free. Looks like I’ll be a week behind all season, so no spoilers!

Wednesday:
AM: 5-mile recovery run followed by some stretching and foam rolling, I’m really bad about doing those two things, so one of my goals this cycle is to diligently do them.
photo 3 (12)

Only one workout today, as I had an evening full of meetings.

Thursday:
AM: 9 miles easy. J and I both had meetings/stuff that had to be done after school, and I wasn’t sure how long they would take, so I wanted to make sure the run got done.

PM: Quick upper-body and core strength workout.

Friday:
AM: 5-mile recovery run, some core work, and a bit of stretching. And then I took a selfie, because that’s what bloggers do.
photo 2 (17)
Working out at home is the best, because who has time for clothes that match?

Saturday:
J had a meeting in Denver (read: free hotel room), so I went up and stayed with him Friday night. Saturday morning, I headed to the Cherry Creek Trail for what was supposed to be 16 miles with 8 at goal pace.
photo 1 (17)

The first couple of miles were pretty clear, but then the patchy ice became more ice than concrete. Instead of goal pace, I stuck with “stay-upright” pace. It was a beautiful morning, though, and I love running in Denver, so overall, I’m not disappointed. I’m a little sore today, even though I didn’t go fast. I think it’s from stabilizing myself on the ice.  Afterward, I met up with my two college roommates for pedicures and brunch, so Saturday was pretty super overall.

Sunday: 
Rest; just 30 minutes of yoga. J agreed to try joining me for my Sunday yoga sessions. I’m pretty excited… even though he’s WAY more flexible than I am and will show me up.

Totals: 55 miles, 2.5ish hours strength/stretch

Week 2 is in the books, and today I made a bunch of meals to free up some post-run evening time, so bring on Week 3

Are you joining the #NoExcuses challenge? DO IT.

What’s your favorite city to run/exercise in?

Food, Uncategorized

7 Healthy Breakfasts to Start Your Day Right

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My good friend Sarah asked me to write a post giving some suggestions for healthy breakfasts. Since Sarah is my only reader  one of my most loyal readers, I am more than happy to oblige.

Untitled

Breakfast can be a challenge. We all know we’re supposed to eat breakfast, but mornings are rushed, and it’s easy to hustle out the door without eating (actually, I never do that. I’m starving in the mornings) or grab a PopTart or a doughnut. But breakfast doesn’t have to be challenging; with a little bit of forethought, it’s easy to eat a quick  meal full of nutrition to start your day on the right foot.

Breakfast should contain carbs, fats, and proteins to keep you full and energized through the morning, and all these breakfasts fit the bill. I’ll split them into two categories: those that you can make ahead of time and those that require a (very) little bit of preparation in the morning.

Make-Ahead Breakfasts

Egg muffins. These little guys are basically a frtitata in an easy-to-grab format. The beauty of these is that you can throw in whatever veggies you like; just dice them up, put them in a muffin tin (either use liners or grease the tin really well), and pour beaten eggs or egg whites on top until the muffin cups are nearly full. (You can also just break an egg on top of your veggies). Bake at 350 for 12-15 minutes, until they’re set, and ta-da! breakfast for the week. In the morning, pop a couple of muffins in the microwave, wrap in a whole-wheat tortilla (if desired), add a piece of fruit on the side, and you’re good to go!
photo (12)(I ran out of egg whites, hence the two whole eggs).

Overnight oats. Are these still trendy in the healthy-living blog world? En vogue or not, this is another easy grab-and-go breakfast (as long as you can eat it at work. No spooning while driving). In a jar, stir together oats, milk (dairy or non) or yogurt, protein powder (optional — if you’re using a low-protein milk like almond, I’d definitely throw in protein powder), nuts or peanut butter, and a banana or blueberries. Screw on the lid, and put it in the fridge. In the morning, stir it again and eat it.

(Image source, because my overnight oats are not even close to being this pretty. Mine are usually in an old cottage cheese container.)

Muffins/quick breads. Google “healthy muffin recipe” and you’ll get millions of results. Whip up a batch on Sunday, and for the rest of the week, just slather one or two with peanut butter and add a side of fruit.
photo (11)

Morning-Of Breakfasts 

Egg sandwich. Beat two eggs in a microwave-safe bowl. Throw in a handful of spinach. Microwave for about a minute, stir, and microwave for about 30 more seconds. Place eggs between two pieces of whole-grain toast. Eat.

Oatmeal. This time of year,  cold overnight oats just don’t do it for me. Luckily, hot oatmeal takes only a couple of minutes. I use old-fashioned oats, add fruit or pumpkin; egg whites or protein powder; and walnuts, flaxseed or peanut butter for some healthy fats. If J and I are carpooling, I eat in the car; otherwise, I make these in a Tupperware (or a cottage cheese container), toss it in my lunch bag, and eat it when I get to work.

Smoothies. Green smoothies are definitely still trendy, and for good reason — they’re quick, easy, and portable, and they give you a serving of veggies without tasting like a serving of veggies. My go-to mix is almond milk, spinach, frozen mixed fruit, egg whites or protein powder, and flax or chia seeds.

(Again, not my picture. Source. Apparently my food is unusually ugly.)

Cottage cheese, banana, nuts, and cinnamon. Mix it up. Eat it. Thank me later. (This is where I get all the cottage cheese containers.)

None of these breakfasts are exactly earth-shattering, but they’re simple, tasty, and healthy.

What are some of your go-to weekday breakfasts?

Are you a weekend food-prepper, or  do you make everything as you go? 

Training

Lincoln Marathon Training: Week 1 (or, That Time I Ran 54 Miles on a Treadmill)

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So this happened on Saturday morning…

photo 3 (1)

On Friday, I was seriously considering not registering, since my first week of training was not going as planned. It was cold and miserable outside, and my digestive system was staging a major rebellion against all the holiday eating. I thought “Really? 18 weeks of this?” But Lincoln fills up fast, and Jordan convinced me to register. He said I’d regret it if I didn’t, because I love training and racing. The man knows me well. So I signed up.

Let’s talk a little more about that crummy first week of training. Christmas break had me all excited to get in lots of outdoor running. I didn’t have to be at work, so there was really no reason to not run outside, right?

photo 2 photo 1 (16)

Well, I guess those are reasons. I felt like a weenie staying inside every day, but before it snowed, it rained. Rain in December means ice, and temperatures that never get above 20 mean ice that doesn’t melt. So I went to the treadmill. Call me a wimp if you want, but I’m a wimp without injuries, so there’s that.

Here’s how my treadmill-full week went.

Monday: 

9 miles with 4 at tempo — my first tempo run in months. It was hard, as tempo runs always are for me. I also did two rounds of the Runner 360 post-run.

Tuesday: 

11 miles easy. That was my longest treadmill run in quite some time, but I discovered a new show to help get me through. Anybody watch How to Get Away With Murder?
photo 4 (10)
Plus, I had this sweet new medal hangar (a Christmas gift from my in-laws) to motivate me.

Wednesday: 

5.3 recovery miles. I had to add the .3 because I was NOT ending the year with a decimal. I have issues. So I ended 2014 with a nice, even 2305 miles. After my run, I did some core work and, believe it or not, stretched!

Thursday: 

I was going to run outside Thursday. The temperature was up to a whopping seven degrees by mid-morning, which is cold, yes, but doable, especially since the sun was shining. And then J pointed out that seven and sunny does not melt ice. And he pointed out all the unshovelled sidewalks. So back to the basement I went for 9 easy miles and some strength training.

Friday: 

We had to go to Loveland (about an hour and 20 minutes away) to do some shopping and meet up with friends, so I had to run before daylight. So this would’ve been a treadmill run regardless of the temperature outside (which was cold, anyway). 5 recovery miles followed by core work and stretching again. Who am I?

On a side note, one thing I was shopping for was YakTrax or something similar so that I would be more able to run outside when conditions are like they were this week. (I tried the screws-in-shoes thing at our Christmas lights run, and while they were okay for 4 miles, they were bugging my feet by the end). One of the friends we were shopping with (who is moving and trying to get rid of lots things), said she had a pair that she’d never used and that I could have them. Score!

Side note #2: We went to see Unbroken. It was amazing. Go watch it.

Saturday:

I should have titled this post “My Husband Is Always Right.” Saturday morning, I was sick of the treadmill. I did not want to be on it for 15 miles. It was my first week of training, dang it, and I needed an outside run. I didn’t care if it was cold and icy and slow. I said all of this to J, who argued that I needed to stay inside. It was still very icy and not very safe out there, he said. And, looking at the radar on his weather app, a nasty storm was on its way.

Grumpily, I went downstairs. To make the run bearable, I watched Sleepless in Seattle (thank goodness for Amazon Prime) and every 10 minutes, I hopped off for a minute of strength or plyo moves. About 45 minutes in, it started snowing outside. Sideways. Once again, J  was right — visibility would have been terrible if I had been outside, and most of the sidewalks were still not run-able, so it really would have been dangerous out there.

So I finished my 15 miles. Ta da.
photo 5 (3)

Sunday: 

An hour of yoga. I’m determined to do yoga at least once a week during this training cycle.

Total: 54.3 miles.

I was inclined to gripe about the treadmill, but then I realized how stupid that was. “Oh, poor me, I have to run on my own, personal treadmill, in the basement of my nice, warm, safe house, with a fan blowing on me and a movie on my laptop.” Wow. You really have it hard. *rolls eyes at self*

But I do plan to get outside soon. This cold snap is uncharacteristic of Colorado, and once the ice mostly melts off or I get my friend’s YakTrax, I’ll feel a lot safer out there.

But in the meantime, it’s back to work and back to treadmill runs at 0’dark thirty, so it’ll be Saturday before I venture back outside.

What’s the longest you’ve run on a treadmill?

Do you own YakTrax or something similar? 

Uncategorized

More and Less in 2015

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I wasn’t going to write a New Year’s post. I don’t like New Year’s resolutions, because they never stick. I usually try to make some goals, but by June, most of those goals have shifted. Last year,  I picked a phrase to focus on, but that didn’t really do much, either. And honestly, I like my life. I don’t want to make a ton of major changes.

BUT I have room for improvement, of course, and New Year’s is a good time to set some goals and intentions. I decided to go ahead and put those goals into writing. I know the experts (or something) say that goals should be specific, but this year I’m keeping them general: more of some things, less of others. In no particular order, here are the things I’ll do more and less of this year:

less and more

More PRs, hopefully starting with the Lincoln Marathon in May.

More trail running. It’s inconvenient since I live in Flatville, but I love it, so I want to make it more of a priority. I’m hoping that my #runabler friends will help. A few trail races might even happen in 2015…

Chase the Moon falls on my 30th birthday this year. Who wants to be on my team?

Less hair-washing. I know it’s not good for hair to be washed every day, but sometimes I even wash it twice a day (if I work out twice). My hair is splitting more quickly than it used to, and that’s probably why. Any tips for not looking like a greaseball with second- or third-day hair?

More yoga. At least for this training cycle, I’m planning to do yoga every Sunday. After the marathon, I’ll see how I’ve liked that plan and go from there.

More empathy.  I can be kind of a judgmental turd. I need to work on accepting people as they are and understanding what makes them that way, rather than … turdiness.

Less mindless eating. I’ve gotten a lot better about this than I used to be, but when I’m stressed or, especially, procrastinating, I still travel this road. (“I can’t grade these papers right now! I’m hungry!” … that’s bad).

More adventures. Travel. Camping. Hiking. Exploring. I’ve got some major wanderlust that needs satisfied.

One of my favorite adventures ever: hiking in Hawaii.
One of my favorite adventures ever: hiking in Hawaii.

More writing. Every time I make goals, this is one of them. I’m joining this Write and Run 31 challenge for January to start down the write-more path.

Less stress over things that don’t really matter. My plan is to ask myself “Will this matter by next year?” every time I start worrying.

More risks. Professionally, personally, running-ly… I tend to hang out in my comfort zone because, well, it’s comfortable. But in order to grow in any of those areas, I need to be willing to take more risks.

2014 was not a banner year, nor was it a terrible year. It was just an average year. Here’s to making 2015 better-than-average. *clink*

What are your goals for 2015?

Any tips/advice/volunteering to help me meet some of mine?