2012 was a very good year for me. I started out with one...OK, maybe two resolutions that I was happy to say, I kept throughout the year. Let me take you back to the end of 2011 where I had made up my mind on a couple of things I wanted to achieve in 2012.
1. Was to find a marathon to Boston Qualify (BQ)
2. Was to run the year (2012) in miles.
Yup, I wanted to run 2,012 miles for the year. :-)
Now in 2011 I ran approx 1500+ miles for the year. So increasing my yearly mileage by 25% was going to be some what of a challenge. Although, as long as I focused on slowly increasing my daily mileage, hitting 2,012 miles would be reachable. So, i started the year by running the Goofy Challenge (half marathon on day 1 then follow up with a marathon on day 2) in Disney World. Little did I know that running 39.3 miles in those two days was just a step to how I was going to hit the remaining 1,972.7 miles. Well, during the Disney marathon I saw my wife and kids at mile 23 (totally unexpected) I was smiling and so excited to see them. Gave them all nice sweaty hugs and kisses (kids were disgusted) and ran off as they ventured into Disney MGM. When I saw my wife later that day, she mentioned to me that I looked fresh and happy and she wanted to see me actually "race" a marathon. I said "you sure" and she said "yes". So, I quickly decided on CIM (California Internatioanl Marathon) as my marathon and knew right then that my training would took care of the remaining mileage and help me acheive my New Year Resolution (NYR).
Now we all have heard or created a NYR and for what ever reason, did not see it all the way through. You know how it goes, many of you reading this have done it at one or multiple times in your life. "I'm going to the gym!" but only to quit 2-3months after you start. "I'm going to give up coffee creamer." but only end up adding it to your morning java by the end of the month. "I'm going to quit smoking" but because you were pressed for time one day at work you bummed a cig from someone and the rest is history. Heck I know, this has happened to me in years past but this time it was not going to happen to me. Because running is such a essential part of my life, I love reading about it, helping others, watching it and of course hitting the pavement myself. Not only that, since my wife threw down the gauntlet I knew this was NYR I would successfully complete.
So to date, I have ran 2,353 miles for 2012 (maybe go for 3,000 in 2013 LOL). I did BQ at CIM (through rain and insane wind) and am extremely happy for reaching and exceeding my NYR. Not only that, due to persevering or just sticking with my NYR I created a healthier me inside and out. Now what am I going to do in 2013? I have a few ideas and I bet you will not be surprised it will deal with running...shocking, I know!
So here's my list:
1. Be more consistent with attending Church (not running related but important)
2. Prepare for Boston!!!
3. Run a sub 18min 5k
4. Run a sub 38min 10k
5. Stay lean and mean ;)
2013 is our year! We all should go out and make a NYR to live a healthy lifestyle and most importantly, STOP GIVING UP! If it means adding one green vegetable to your dinner plate, although small for some, this is a BIG DEAL for most. JUST MAKE IT HAPPEN! If it means staying hydrated (many people do not do this enough), JUST MAKE IT HAPPEN! If it means walking up a flight of stairs, guess what? JUST MAKE IT HAPPEN! We all start somewhere and to live a healthy lifestyle, it's a change, a commitment. Dig down deep, get your support staff to make you accountable and JUST MAKE IT HAPPEN.
Kyle
Train Hard = Race Easy, Train Smart = Race Fast.