My week- October 24-30

Where to begin this week? Well, I'll start with my week's running. I got in 23 miles this week. Nothing huge, but it was a good week. My runstreak is currently at 705 days, and I'm over 100 miles for the month.

 I did run a virtual race this week. I ran the 131 Events Halloween Brew Ha Ha on Saturday. The weather was great, and I had originally thought of running a longer run and counting the first 5K for the race. I decided instead to run a strong 5K and see how it went. I finished in just over 30 minutes, but my last mile was a 9:14 so I'm super happy!!

This brings me to my other two thoughts for the week. First is running pace. Be it because I've been in the running scene for so long, or just the fact that I'm older, my view on pace has changed over the last year or so. I used to feel that if I wasn't running under 10 minutes a mile, I wasn't really running. Runners are supposed to be fast...but let's be real, "fast" is a relative term! Lately my pace for training runs has ranged between 10:45 and 12:05. In the past this would have really bothered me, but as I've gotten older I realized some things. The most important thing is I'm out there running! So many people will never get out there and try. Just being out there is a win! Also, yesterday showed me that I can still run pretty fast, heck most every race I run I'm sub-10 min per mile, I'm REALLY happy with that. It makes me think of all the podcasts I've listened to that tell you to slow down to race faster, or the 80/20 rule, and that I may have been running a lot of my training too fast, honestly. Also, let's be real I'm not getting younger, lol. My PR days may be way fewer than when I was in my 20s, but the passion for the sport is still there and even if I just get slower and slower I will always enjoy being part of the running community. So with all that in mind, I've been able to let the preoccupation with pace go...at least for the most part :) 

The other thing is that I've made a definite decision on is one my my 2017 goals. I will be doing the Run For God devotional. I had a couple experiences that led me to this. First, I was checking Facebook and found the story of why Run For God was founded. The story hit home with me. The founder was approached by a friend who was concerned that running had become an idol rather than just something done for health and recreation. That got me thinking about my own relationship with the sport. Then just yesterday there was a local race I chose not to enter, when the results were posted on line I saw I would have placed in my age group. I was so upset! Why didn't I enter that race? Why did I let an award slip through my fingers? Why would I not sign up for a race even if money is tight or I have other obligations, or....   I stopped myself right there. That type of thinking is NOT the direction I want my running to take. I realized right then that I need to refocus myself and I think the Run For God devotional will be perfect.

With that I'm off to do the family thing, and the cleaning house thing, and the running thing. Happy running!!

Letting go

Have you ever been in a race where you started out feeling strong, passed someone then had them pass you later in the race, and all you could do is watch them slowly pull farther and farther ahead? Well that's kind of how I feel this month is going, but I'm actually ok with it. Let me explain...

I've been on Instagram for a couple of years. What was originally supposed to be a crafting account for me slowly morphed into a running account. It was so motivating to see others running races, reaching goals, and challenging themselves that once my account took the turn toward fitness I never looked back. As I got more and more involved with the running community the hashtag "challengeville" kept popping up so I checked it out. Challengeville is an amazingly supportive group of runners headed up by @oldguyrunning who hosts monthly milage challenges. Over the last 4 months I have conquered the Tinman (93.3 miles in a month) twice and the Bigfoot (150 miles in a month) twice. Heading into October I thought, "I'm feeling good AND I've got a half marathon and some virtuals coming up...I've got Bigfoot for sure!"

Well, here we are mid October and Bigfoot is slowly pulling away and I'm having trouble catching up :( Now I'm not giving up! I will still do my best to try and catch him. But while I'm in the midst of fighting off a second (SECOND) cold already this season it's helped to put some things in perspective.

First, goals are important, but not the MOST important thing. When it comes to life you need to prioritize, and while a running goal may seem like the most important thing, it really isn't. Family needs to come first. People aren't in your life forever, kids aren't little forever, people can't be replaced, and pushing to a goal and ignoring them just isn't right. The road will be waiting for you when you have the time.

Health is also paramount. If you don't take care of yourself you can't run at optimum levels. This is what I am personally dealing with now. I so want to run a virtual race today, but I know I'm teetering on the edge of getting sick and I have to work today. So is it worth it to me to push and run 6.2, then go work 9 hours to end up feeling so miserable that I can only muster 1 or 2 miles a day for the next week? In a word, no. I'd rather cut back a bit, run tomorrow on my day off then be able to rest like I need to to kick this bug before it takes me over.

Finally, as important as goals are, is the world going to end if you don't reach it? My type A personality wants to scream, "YES!!!!", but my logical brain says, "No!" I think a lot of my stress comes from feeling I ALWAYS have to reach a goal if I set it. But when I step back and really think about it, if you reach EVERY goal, EVERY challenge, are you really setting your sights too low? Also, as weird as some may think this sounds, at some point you need to learn how to deal with not reaching a goal. Realizing it's not failure. It's not that you didn't work hard enough. Realizing that life happens and sometimes things just don't work out. Maybe stepping back and reevaluating the goal you set and readjusting. And knowing deep down that you did your best, and you will come away wiser and stronger from the experience.

I will continue to chase Bigfoot this month. I will do my best to catch him, but even if I don't I won't let myself get down about it for too long. I'll  just let him think he's finally shaken me and sneak up and get him another month ;) With that I'm out the door for an easy run then some rest before work. Hope you all have a great weekend!

JaDee

Been too long

Wow! It's been a long time since I've been here. So much has happened and I've grown in many ways. So as I try to get back into blogging, I'd like to use this post to play catch up, and share some thoughts in general. That said, here we go!

Where to start, where to start... well, guess it makes sense to start with my running. 2016 has been a wonderful year so far. I've run many virtual and live races, taken part in some challenges, ran my first (and 2nd and 3rd and 4th!) live half marathon since reclaiming my life, and in doing that qualified for Half Fanatics!! I placed in one of the races I entered, earned lots of bling, and am currently on runstreak day 687. Running has truly been a blessing, and I look forward to sharing more.

My thoughts on blogging... When I started this blog, the optimist in me had grand visions of becoming this huge, popular, high volume blogger. I think in my mind I want to be this grand motivator with a huge following and all that stuff. Silly? Maybe, but goals are good. After giving it some thought, however, I've come to realize that I really want to have a place to chronicle my journey. (I know I've said this before, I'm just trying to get it through to ME, lol) I'm not a trainer. I'm not a dietitian. I'm not an expert. Im just a regular girl with a family and a full time job that loves running and trying to find ways to better herself. So this will be a place to write out all those thoughts that probably bore my non-running friends and family but they are kind enough to listen to. If I get some readership, some regular readers, some comments, that's AWESOME! But when it comes down to it, this is my blog, my page, my thoughts, for my fun and expression, and I welcome you all to read and follow me and share in my journey.

Ok, weight loss....I'm STUCK! LOL :/ One of my hopes in revitalizing my blog is to hopefully get my butt back in gear with my nutrition and cross training to jump start some changes in my body. I guess when it comes down to it, I'm not worried about weight loss as much as fat loss. I hope this will give me some accountability and I'm hoping that chatting about it more will keep me doing more.

Well, that's all I can think of for right now. I mean, there's other stuff rattling around my head, but I think it's stuff for other posts. I'm really just hoping to have fun with writing again and share snippets of my daily life to hopefully spark, or fan the flames of even just one person's motivation to reach their goals. With that, I'm off for the evening. Live happy and run lots <3

     JaDee

Well hello there 2016!

It's hard to believe we are into a new year already! 2015 just seemed to fly by. It was a good year for me. I found virtual racing which led to me entering more live races and by year's end I had run more than 30 last year! 

I placed in a few, set some PRs and had a lot of fun. I became an ambassador for FitFam, learned not to hold onto stress, and made lots of new friends. As good a year as 2015 was, I want to make 2016 even better!!

In the spirit of accountability, I've come up with a list of goals for 2016, and am sharing them with you today. Will I reach them all? Well, I'd like to say "yes", but honestly I don't know. What I do know is if I don't write them down and put them out there it will be way easier to back out and not work toward some of them. So, without further ado, here we go...

1. Run every day. Yes, I know I already do this, but my bigger goal is to see just how long I can take my runstreak. Today will be day 406!

2. Journal as often as possible. Journaling helped me get through one of the darkest periods of my life. I feel there's something very therapeutic about putting pen to paper so I am trying to journal more to help me reach my goals and deal with some of life's craziness this year. It's also going to be very interesting to be able to look back at the end of this year and see just how I dealt with everything and how far I've come!

3. Meal planning. With my guy and I both being cooks and foodies, I'm thinking this will be both helpful for the waistline AND the wallet, lol!

4. Weights 2x a week / yoga 2x a week / 2 races a month. I'm going to try to find more balance with my fitness this year. I'm so good at making sure I get out to run, now to get that same consistancy with lifting and yoga!

5. Quilt, knit and/or crochet 3x a week. I've got soooo many unfinished projects laying around. I NEED to get some finished up. What will I do with them, I don't know, but just having something move from the "to do" list to the "done" list will be a great thing.

6. Read 2 books. Reading is one of those things that I know I should do more of, but don't :( This year I'm hoping to change that! I'm not necessarily worried about reading Shakespeare, or New York Times best sellers, but books that interest me. That I think I'll enjoy. I already purchased one and am going to get started on it tonight.

7. Drink more water. I always put this as a goal. I'm still not so good at it, but if you don't try, you'll never get better, right? I have a green water bottle and I want to drink one full bottle a day. If I could get to the point where I drink water like I do coffee I can only imagine the health benefits I might see.

Well, there you have it! I may add more as the year goes on, but these are the big ones I'm focusing on right now. How about you? What are your goals for the coming year? Whatever they are, let's all work on making 2016 the best year yet!! Run lots and live happy my friends! <3

Turkey Trotting and soul searching

Hi everyone! Hope you are all having an amazing Thanksgiving!! We haven't done the dinner thing yet, we tend to eat a little later than some, but my day has already been off to an great start!

Today was the local Turkey Trot 5k and I was able to take part this year :) This was by far the biggest race I've taken part in this year and every time I do a large race I have some mixed emotions, but more on that later. I was able to get there with plenty of time to settle in and finally got to meet fellow SWEET workout ambassador, Aimee. She is an amazing runner! We got to chat about running, and the local marathon (and half). I'm super excited for her because she has qualified and will be running the Boston marathon next year! How awesome is that?!?

I made my way to the start line and began to realize just how BIG this race was. True to form I lined up further back than I probably should have, but I was going to do this as a fun run. Well.....when the gun went off the plan changed, lol.

Now, I'm not gonna lie, this is where the mixed emotions come in. I love being at races, I love seeing families being active together, I love the energy of the crowd, but the crowding makes me feel a bit claustrophobic and I feel this need to find some space. I know this is partly my own doing by lining up too far back. I tried my best to just relax, find openings where I could, and run the best race I could today. The course was great, had a few hills (which I love) and was well marked and manned. The only thing I would say was a negative was I didn't see mile markers or see anyone calling splits. Not a big thing, but I would have liked to have seen it. 

    Without mile markers I just ran based on my RPE and to my surprise, my time was better than I had expected it to be. No PR, but a solid effort and I'm happy!

So, the soul searching part... I have been thinking about if I should train to race the 5k distance or move on to longer distances. My decision? Longer distances. I'll still run the 5ks, they're fun and a good test to see just how fast I can go. But for whatever reason, I feel let down if I don't place...which is silly. I don't tend to feel that way with the longer distances. Maybe because I see them as a race against the clock and myself. That nagging feeling when I don't place at a 5k takes the fun factor down a notch, and the fun is one of the biggest reasons I run and race. 

When I started racing, or should I say entering races, it was to celebrate the fact that I could cover the distance. There was a childlike giddiness that came with just being part of a crowd that was running. I felt like a kid that was running over grassy hills chasing butterflies. My heart was light and happy and I was proud because my effort was my best. Placing wasn't even a thought. 

I don't know when the "I've gotta place if it's a short race" mindset kicked in. I have absolutely no issue with those who run to place in a race. A race can be many things to many people. For me, however, I want the challenge and the joy of movement to be what I come away with every time. Not disappointment of not winning an award. So that said I think my focus is going to be more on the 10k - half marathon distance this coming year. I just feel that's what I need. 

So with that I'm giving thought to my upcoming race season as well as other fitness goals for 2016. Wow, I can't believe I just said that! lol! I do have one more race on the calendar for the year, but it is truly a fun run for me. I have no desire to rush this last run, and when I post about it you'll see why ;)

Oh, and finally, I did reach the big 3-6-5 this past Tuesday! It's quite a feeling to look back at the past year and think of the many runs I was able to do. Everything from one mile to 13.1, blazing heat, bitter cold, morning runs, evening runs, indoor, outdoor. Fitting them in between family, a full time work schedule, and other obligations. Enjoying the leisurely long runs on my days off. Discovering virtual racing, running local races. It's been an amazing year, and I can't wait to see what the next one brings!  Today was runstresk day 367 and I'm looking forward to seeing just how long this Runstreak can go!

With that I'm off to enjoy the rest of my Thanksgiving. Until next time live happy and run lots!<3

The Canton Charge 5k

Hi all!! Hope you've been running lots and reaching those fitness goals! I've had a lot of things on my mind lately and have been wanting to blog to get it all out there, so not to waste a moment let me get it started.

First off I competed in the Canton Charge 5k this past weekend. Totally fun, overall very well organized, even if there was one thing that caught me off guard but I'll get to that in a minute. This run was held to celebrate opening day for our city's basketball team. So it was totally all in fun and celebration. Start and finish were at the civic center, which meant we were able to stand indoors in the warm until the start which was very nice! 

The start was pretty uneventful, honestly, and I actually lined up in a great spot because I didn't get stuck behind slower runners or caught in a bottleneck ;) We took a straightforward loop through the city, and I felt light on my feet. I decided not to run with headphones so I could notice more of the architecture...one of the big reasons I love doing some of these races.

It was about the time we started the return part of the loop that I noticed something. They didn't have anyone calling mile split times. Not a huge deal as I just wanted to run a strong race, but odd nonetheless.

I decided I was just going to focus on runners and either stick with them or pass. So one runner at a time I made my way toward the finish.

I crossed the finish line got my medal and made my way to the food. I knew I finished strong so we waited for the awards, alas I didn't place. When the official results were posted, I found I had missed third in my age group by 2 seconds! TWO! My official time was 26:12, a PR, but I'll admit I stewed over that two seconds for a while, lol. 

Which brings me to the next topic rattling around my brain. I've never followed a training plan to PR a 5k. Right now I'm in the process of deciding if that will be my goal for next year, or if I want to up my race distances and qualify for half fanatics instead. I'm still deciding, but one thing I know for sure is December is going to be a light month. Two to three miles a day. That's it. I need to give my legs at least one easy, and I mean easy, month before I launch into half marathon training. After my heartbreaking (for me) 2 second loss I came across this quote, and it helped me to think a little clearer. We won't win every race, but if we learn from our "losses" it's not really a loss, now is it? ;)

My other thought was about the direction of my blog. Mostly about wanting this just to be a place to share. I see so many experts and trainers and people sharing "how to"s and diet plans and the like, and part of my brain thought "Hey, you should do that too!" But truth be told, I'm no dietitian, no expert, no personal trainer (ok, I used to be one but I digress), I'm just a regular woman who has a family a full time job, home responsibilities and a big, huge passion for running. So I really do just want this to be a diary, or a dialogue, or like a chat between friends. I've got plenty to share, but plenty to learn too, so that's how I see my blogging from here on out :)

Finally, some big, huge, exciting news!! You all know I'm a SWEET workout ambassador, well I got the news a few days ago that I have been selected to be a FitFam Ambassador!! I'm so excited I could burst! FitFam's goal is to help encourage people to live a healthy, active lifestyle. They sponsor virtual races and events to help motivate you as well as having a supportive community on Facebook and an amazing site to help you find your next race. I'm looking forward to sharing news about events, and being involved in helping them #movethemission to help everyone live a healthy, active, happy life! 

As a matter of fact, our first virtual challenge is coming up in January and we would love to have you join us! You can run, walk or cycle, and earn some really cool swag in the process ;) not to mention get a jump start on any New Year's resoloutions. Just visit fitfamchallenge.eventbrite.com and enter MOVETHEMISSION10 to receive a 10% discount on your entry. Hope you decide to join in the fun! 

Well, I think that's all for now. I'm off to try and squeeze in some yoga and quilting before dinner, lol, wish me luck. Until next time, run lots and live happy!!

I would like to thank RunCanton Inc and TG Photography for allowing us to download and share race pictures from this wonderful event.

The SWEET workout virtual 5k...round one

So, today was my SWEET workout virtual 5k. Actually it's my first of two. I'm counting this one as my Instagram race. This race is a fun virtual race from the fitness group I am an ambassador for. The coolest thing about this race is it was FREE! Yes free, the only "entry fee", if you will, was you had to make a hand made piece of bling for the person you were partnered up with. Well heck!! You all know I love crafting as much as running so I was all about it! I am on vacation this week, so I though "how perfect". I should be rested and able to crank out a really good 5k. Well.....

When I laced up I just knew something was off, but I had set the date and I look at my virtuals like I do live races. Although I could move the date, I really feel you build character learning to run in various conditions. It teaches you what your capeable of, where your limits are, just how far you can push. So off into the unseasonably warm weather I went. I couldn't even have gone a mile when I could feel it...heavy, tired, an upset stomach...this wasn't going to be pretty. I had originally thought maybe I'd run longer and count the first 3.1 as my race, but that changed quickly. 

After the first mile, my plan quickly became just do your best. I kept telling myself think of this as a fun run...only 2 more miles...just keep your feet moving...you can do this...this is your race. But in the back of my mind I just kept thinking "Why? Why do I feel so awful?!?!"

After 2 miles I did feel a bit better and I was going a little faster. I think taking the pressure off myself to push made all the difference. I had never been so happy to just be done with a race in my whole life as when 3.11 finally appeared on my phone. It was rough. It was ugly, but it was done. 30:43 or 9:52 per mile. Not my best, but better than I thought it was going to be.

 

After it was all said and done I started thinking. What happened? Everything going on right now should have netted me a great race. On vacation, resting when I want, easy run yesterday, then it hit me. Diet. My diet has been awful since vacation started :( Which then got me thinking more...

Why have I not been eating like I should? I know how I should eat. I'm constantly reading about nutrition, I've taken nutrition courses, I know what it takes to lose weight and have the right nutrition to fuel my workouts (for me anyway) Why haven't I been doing it? I could give a million excuses, but excuses do nothing to fix anything. 

Long story short, there comes that moment of clarity. When you realize YOU ARE in control. You are the one making the decisions. No one else is telling you what to eat, when or how to workout, what steps you should be taking to reach your goal. It's in your hands. You need to take the bull by the horns and MAKE things happen. 

The thought actually came to me earlier today when I decided to go grocery shopping. I try to involve my family in meal planning, but far too often I get "I don't know what I'm hungry for" or "I don't like that" and we've fallen into the trap of eating what sounds good, not what's balanced and healthy. Today's shopping trip is when I took the bull by the horns! I had in mind healthy dinners. I circled the store hitting the produce, meat and dairy departments first. Much less in the way of processed foods. I felt really good when I looked in my cart! I saw REAL food. REAL meals. And what will REALLY help me to become a better athlete (as well as help my family become healthier as well). As they say, you can't out exercise a bad diet!!!

We shall see how getting my eating back on track fares as I have a live race on Saturday the 14th. I will be running the Canton Charge 5k. I wasn't going to sign up for this one as I don't like requesting a lot of Saturdays off, but everything lined up for me to be able to run it. I pretty excited about it!

 

Then to finish out this month's race calander I am running the local Turkey Trot on Thanksgiving morning. It's been years since I ran this particular race so I'm looking forward to it as well. As well as watching the Macy's Thanksgiving  Day Parade when I get home ;)

Finally, I have something really exciting I will be announcing soon. So you'll have to check back here early next week so I can share my news. It's really cool, though, I promise!

For now I'm off to enjoy my evening. Until next time be happy, run far, and smile bunches!!