Training Lately...

I mentioned in my Ultimate Coffee Date post that I reviewed my Believe training journal from the last year and was disappointed by how often I saw remarks like "could have done better" or "ugh, bad week in training", or even "skipped this, skipped this, and skipped this".

I also mentioned that I usually do the same thing every year - I say THIS YEAR I'm going to do a better job! THIS YEAR I'm going to train like a beast. THIS YEAR I'm going to hit all my workouts. But do I? Nope...

It's so frustrating and, honestly, I don't know how to go about breaking out of that destructive cycle. I start a training cycle fired up and ready to totally go Beast Mode all over it and halfway through I'm shortening workouts, skipping the stretching, and that's only IF I did the workout at all. By the end I'm just like Eh - whatever...I've already screwed the pooch on this one anyways. NEXT TIME I'll kill it. Ugh...

So how has my training been going lately? Let's see...

Monday 12/28: Did the 3 miles, but didn't hit the paces Coach Tiffany gave me
Tuesday 12/29: Rested (could have done a Barre workout, but I opted for total lazy instead)
Wednesday 12/30: 3 miles, but walked half of it for no real good reason
Thursday 12/31: Skipped my 3 mile timed workout
Friday 1/1: Light stretching and leg balance exercises
Saturday 1/2: Should have done 6 miles, did 3.3 instead
Sunday 1/3: Light stretching and leg balance exercises

So there's an entire week of workouts and you can see that I pretty much blew off every single one of them in one way or another AND I have a flipping half marathon in 6 days!!!! Seriously...why do I sabotage myself like this?!? I don't get it...I'm actually pretty good about getting my work job done, why can't I apply the same principles to my workouts? Or my healthy eating? I'm pretty much figuring that Coach Tiffany is totally disgusted with me or at the very least is questioning my commitment to my training...as she should be on both fronts.

But I'll keep on trying guys...I'm not going to just quit saying THIS YEAR, or THIS TRAINING CYCLE, or even THIS DAY. I'm going to keep pushing to kill it because perhaps someday I actually will!!! I will give myself credit for something - I don't quit. I keep failing and won't give up. hahaha

Seriously though - I'm all about persistence folks, even if it is persistence at telling myself to be persistent. Someday it's gotta stick, right?? ;-)

One thing I am going to do though is share my training progress a little more. I know it might be boring as hell for some and you have my permission to skip it completely if you so desire. But I need some accountability if I'm going to head into my new training cycle - heck, if I'm going to head into my planned workout tomorrow! - with the right frame of mind of totally killing it. I can do it...I can do it...I can do it. Say it with me now... :-)

It's a Battle...a Fight to the Death!

You can't be involved in working out or fitness or health...wait, let me revise where I'm headed with this. You can't be ALIVE and not see all the time about the importance of mental toughness. You know, it starts early with trite sayings like "When the going gets tough, the tough get going." or "Life is tough, but you're tougher." They are endless!! And there's a reason for that.

The reason is because having the ability to be mentally tough is so important!! Seriously, there's much in life you simply can't do without it. And the thing is that you might be super mentally tough in one arena of life, but be super mentally weak in another one. For example, when it comes to being a Mom, I've always prided myself on being able to hold it together even through the super stressful things like injuries or illnesses. Where one parent might pass out at the sight of blood, I can stand stoic and calm. But where I struggle constantly? Mental toughness in my diet and exercise.

I know what I want and I'm willing to fight for it...right up until it gets hard. And then the hamster wheel of doubt starts to kick in, or the wheel of excuses starts spinning, and my brain all of a sudden starts believing what it is being told. That I'm "too tired and need a break" or that "one piece of candy won't kill me" or "I've been sick, I need to take it easy" or "what's the difference, you're never going to hit your PR goal anyways...it's already lost". Honestly, the list of doubts and excuses could go on for days because they are always changing, and yet always staying the same.

When most athletes are asked what their key to success is, it almost always comes down to mental toughness. The ability to push through the wall and keep going. Kara Goucher has bravely shared that she struggles with this same issue - the mental game. Some athletes are able to run for hours through a desert, while others crumble under much lesser circumstances. It would almost seem like mental toughness, especially when it comes to exercise performance, is something that you're either born with or you aren't. Maybe you're born with it, maybe it's Maybelline? If only there was a mascara you could apply that gives you the ability to increase mental toughness by 25%! The star athletes have it - that combination of natural talent and mental toughness to push through. You can't be a star athlete without some combination of both of those things.

But I'm not a star athlete and am not trying to be one. I am just an average person that has dreams and desires - things that are going to take FIGHTING FOR to achieve them and yet I stumble when it comes to the mental aspect. I succumb to the fatigue in my head that tells me that my legs are giving out. I succumb to the fatigue in my brain that says that I deserve to eat something I want. I succumb to the things that take me further away from goal instead of closer to it. Now, not all the time mind you...but enough of the time that it affects my journey towards my goals. Do I not want it enough? Is that my stumbling block???

There's a gazillion and one articles about how to strengthen your mental toughness...just Google it and you'll see for yourself. Be confident! Use a mantra! Visualize success! Practice it in Training!

But I'm honestly asking...what do you do when you use those tools and they still fail you? What's the trick here because I'm at a loss for how to keep pushing when my entire body says just fuhgeddaboutit. I'm at a loss for how to stop myself from thinking constantly about the candy in the jar or glancing at it every single time I walk by it.

I will say that for me it's a battle that sometimes is easy to fight, and sometimes is close to impossible. Sometimes I can spend hours of standing firm, and others it's a second by second battle. Am I a little overly dramatic when I say it's a fight to the death? Perhaps...but it's definitely a battle I will be fighting UNTIL death because I'm not willing to give up. I'll keep fighting this fight. There's things I want and I may not always know how to be strong enough to get them, but I'll keep trying to figure it out. Any help towards that end that you can offer is always appreciated!!

Seek a quality life, friends! Talk to you again soon...

Life Lately...

Good morning! First, let me just say Happy November!!! I seriously can't believe that we are already getting close to wrapping up 2015. It's been a whirlwind of a year that's for sure...but we're still not done yet!!

November is actually probably my favorite month of the year...the holiday season is officially in the swing of things and my favorite holidays are right around the corner! It doesn't hurt that there's lots of holidays from work on the schedule either! hahaha Many times I'm more excited for the time off than I am for the actual holiday. Kind of sad, but I'm just being honest here. LOL

I have a few races coming up too - this weekend is the Mission Inn 10k. I've done it the past three years as part of the Run Riverside Challenge and as challenging as it is, I do find myself looking forward to it each year. You can read the previous race recap here, and if you want to learn how I did the opposite of preparing for this race last year you can read that here. News Flash: I didn't beat my previous PR at last year's race and felt like I barely survived it really. I don't remember having fun that's for sure. LOL

From the race website - click picture to go to site.

But I will say that I'm going into this year's race feeling much more prepared for it! So there's that...the coaching has been very beneficial and that kick in the gut that I got at the completion of October's training cycle has proven to be very motivating. That and the fact that I really want a PR at the next race on the schedule...more on that in just a moment.

My plan for this weekend is to treat the race like a training run. It's a very hilly course so I'm going to do my best to control my running on the hills and focus on my form and hydration/fueling throughout. Because the following weekend is the Surfer's Point 10k in Ventura and that one is going to be my PR push!!

This is the first time I will be doing races on back-to-back weekends, but I do feel prepared for it especially since I'm using the first race as a training run for the second one that will be the push. My biggest goal for this weekend is to focus on how I feel at each mile and visualizing running faster and stronger the next weekend. Oh, and it doesn't hurt that the Surfer's Point 10k will be mostly flat...something I can't say ANY of my other 10k races have been! I'm looking forward to a flat race, finally. LOL

The rest of life lately consists of spending time with the family and just soaking in all that life has to offer. Oh, and work...can't forget the thing that pays the bills. LOL

It really is, friends...it really is!! Now get out there and have an awesome weekend and go crunch some leaves under your feet while you're at it!!

Stay in pursuit of a quality life!

FOCUS Grasshopper...

Ya'll know that I've been working with a running coach for a little bit now - Coach Tiffany with Thoroughly Thriving. And I absolutely LOVE it!! Having the guesswork taken out of the equation is so nice. And I really do feel like I push myself at least a little harder because I want to make my effort worthwhile. BUT at the same time, I know that I still slack off way more than I should. Sometimes there might be totally legitimate reasons for it, but really, 90% of the time that I slack is just because I'm losing the battle of the lazy brain. I know that. But you know how when you see some cold, hard facts it brings it all into FOCUS just a little more???

This morning I looked at my new week training report and this is what I see: Looking at October so far you've skipped about 28% of your workouts and modified 15%.

Just a bit of a gut kick on that one. I shouldn't be surprised that the hilly half marathon last weekend was so tough and I shouldn't be surprised that I felt like I had been hit by a Mack truck for most of this week. Not when I look at the fact that I've totally and completely SKIPPED 28% of my assigned workouts. More than a quarter. And of the 72% that I have done, I've modified 15% of those.

So in other words, I've nailed 57% of my workouts during the month of October. Sure, sure - that's a little more than HALF that I've done. And that's not necessarily bad...BUUUUUUTTTTT, if this was a test, only a little more than half is definitely failing.

Why, thank you Dwayne - there are not truer words you could speak to me! And thank you for that dazzling smile while you're at it. ;-) haha

What it all boils down to is this. If I want to run a personal best at my goal race in January 2016, then I'd better focus and I'd better put in the effort. I can get to that finish line feeling like I got thrown down by The Rock in an epic wrestling match, or I can get to that finish line feeling like I just ran a hard race but that I just ran a race that I was totally prepared to run. And whether I meet my time goal or not - the real goal is just that - I want to KNOW that I put in the effort during training and that I really did leave everything I could on that course.

I will get there...and the effort and the focus start now!! My goal from my coach is to hit at least 90% of my workouts going forward. Okay, okay - game on, Tiffany!!

Question: How do you keep your focus on the goal?

Running With It!

Because my bestie totally gets me!! She sent this last Monday and it was exactly what I needed. LOL

Okay, so this week I am back to a regular posting schedule of Monday-Thursday! I'm making that promise to myself right now and am declaring it out loud. I feel like September has gone by in a blur and I kind of knew it would but I didn't do a very good job of preparing myself for the actual reality. And I kind of feel like I've been doing a lot more failing at life than succeeding at life, but I'm working on turning that around because you know what, it's never too late to make a fresh start at anything or everything.

Training These Days...

I totally didn't kill it last week with my training. I think I actually had more "bad" days than good ones when it comes to what Coach Tiffany had on my plan. I have to admit that looking at my results on my training plan, there was a lot of "I didn't really want to work out" going on last week. I'm not sure what that was about, but almost every day last week was some kind of bleh - I don't wanna. I think the lazy brain gets the win last week. :-( Okay, so what did I do?

Monday: Cross-training of my choice so I did a full-body strength training session

Tuesday: 3x1 mile repeats that ended up being 2x1 mile repeats because I had a headache and got up too late to do the full workout.

Wednesday: I skipped what was supposed to be an easy run to run to the grocery store. Total fail on this one, but we were out of toilet paper so it was an absolute necessity. LOL

Thursday: The only running workout of the week that I totally rocked and that was only because I was going into work late and could do it a little later than normal.

Friday: Easy run/walk. One of the things I enjoy most about Friday is that I start work at 8 instead of 7, so it is currently light enough outside that I can head out solo to get my run in. So I did just that, BUT I did have an encounter with some crazy geese that tried to chase me down! They were like a little gang. I laugh, but they were scary!! I ended up with 2.6 miles at a VERY easy pace since there was lots of walking.

Saturday: I was supposed to do 5 miles, but wasn't feeling too great so I decided to push my run to Sunday.

Sunday: I headed out, but I will be honest that it was just all kinds of bad. I couldn't get in a groove and just felt like breathing and running were way harder than they should be. My legs felt like lead and my lungs felt like they were only being used halfway. I don't really know what was going on, but it was a very warm morning (I think we hit about 102 later that day)...at any rate, I just didn't have it in me at all. I did the first mile at a 10:15 pace and then just crashed and burned. Oh - and I got chased by the geese again while they watched another lady go by with absolutely not even a honk at. What's the deal with these crazy geese and their dislike of me anyways?

I didn't kill it this weekend as far as running goes...but I'm not going to let that influence how I start the next week! I'm going to relax and watch some football and finally start reading #bossypants during the commercials. I will prep my food and ensure I'm good to go for a totally kick ass healthy week. Tomorrow is a new day and today is all about rejuvenation. #sunday #restoremysoul #football #REALwomenmove #skirtsports #vixen #ssambassador #mizuno #sweatpink @skirtsports @fitapproach @mizunorunning

A photo posted by Kristen Grimes (@kgrimes526) on Sep 20, 2015 at 8:20am PDT

The rest of my Sunday looked a lot like that picture above! I also did all my laundry, prepped my food for the week, and watched The Age of Adaline before hitting the sack nice and early (cute enough movie BTW...totally predictable, but I expected that). Just call me a wild party animal, why don't ya! *wink* But you know, all joking aside, I woke up this morning ready for my week. I hit the treadmill for 2 miles of mostly running and actually made it to work on time even with shaving my legs!! *GASP* In other words, I was totally adulting the hell out of today! (Side note: Am I the only person that can't wait for tights weather so I can quit shaving my legs more than once a week? Just me?)

Autumn officially starts on Wednesday, September 23rd, and I will be celebrating by hosting a Skirt Sports giveaway! Come back by on Wednesday for all the details!

I've been selected to participate in a campaign for Hemp Hearts with FitApproach as a Sweat Pink Ambassador so I'm super excited to get my hands on those little goodies and try them out - watch for more about that early next month along with an opportunity to win some for yourself!

My first 5k of the fall season is quickly approaching on October 3rd! I'll be talking race strategy next week...

I've been following several people training for NYC and Chicago marathons and am toying with the idea of letting fate decide if it is time for me to run my second marathon by throwing my name into the lotteries for those two races. I figure if I'm going to do another marathon, I want it to be one that is iconic and outside of Boston, they don't get much more iconic than those two. I've been to New York before and have wanted to go back ever since, and would love to see Chicago. What do you guys think???

Well, there are lots of fun, exciting things on the horizon! Share something fun from your weekend with me in the comments!

Living, Training, Partying, Now!

I keep reminding myself to "BELIEVE" that I've got this crazy life under control, but it seriously keeps reminding me that I am far from being in control most days. *wink* And honestly, I hate doing "update" posts because they make me truly realize what a slacker I am at times. I guess I'm feeling a little like I'm playing catch-up more often than not lately, hence the crickets and cobwebs hanging around the blog. Being able to fit it all in can be rather difficult at times, ya know?? I'm sure I'm not the only person struggling with the desire to do more, be more, love more when the critical piece is actually find more time for all of those things. No?

First, we all survived Melissa and Curtis' baby shower this past weekend to celebrate the impending arrival of baby Gavin next month! She's down to about 5 weeks left if she goes full term, so we're really starting to get pretty close. I'll be sharing some additional info and pics from the baby shower in the near future, but here's a little preview if you aren't following me on Instagram.

So excited to finally celebrate little Gavin's impending arrival with @melissa.grimes.bmx @curtbmx!! Everyone is having a great time and there is more food than we could possibly eat!! #welcomegavin #babyshower

A photo posted by Kristen Grimes (@kgrimes526) on Sep 12, 2015 at 2:53pm PDT

Work has been crazy busy lately and I'm just coming to accept that this is how it is going to remain. But I'm definitely very grateful for a wonderful job that offers me lots of challenges to keep me entertained!

In other family news, we have a birthday party for the grandkids this weekend - Joshua is 5 now and Angelique will be 4 on the 27th of this month. So much celebrating taking place! It definitely keeps everything dynamic and I'm working hard at just being flexible without going crazy. It's amazing how fast time goes so I'm trying to just focus on each thing and re-focus on my word for 2015: Now. As in live in the now. Be in the Now. Make it happen Now.

And finally, training updates! Since hiring Coach Tiffany I can definitely say that I'm seeing improvement and I'm thrilled! Have I nailed every workout? Nope. Have I done every single workout on the plan? Nope. But I feel like I have been immensely more consistent in my training than I've ever been when I'm solo. Having that accountability and feeling guilty when I have to type in my notes that I either didn't do a run or cut it short has been great for me. I will get into my specific training a little more next week, but just suffice it to say I'm super glad that I've hired Coach Tiffany and I really feel optimistic that I will continue to see improvement in my consistency and running endurance.

Question: What's something you've been up to lately in life or training? 

Tips for Getting Back on Track to Beat the Dog Days of Summer

So did you know that the period of "dog days of summer" is early July to early September? Did you also know that it goes back to Roman times and refers to the sultry period of time that Sirius was rising in conjunction with the Sun? You see, Sirius is also known as "the Dog Star"...so there you go...Dog Days of Summer! Voila!

But I also happen to know that the dog days of summer are that period of time that it is just so freaking dang hot it is hard to find the motivation to do anything outside of either sitting in a nice cold pool, or finding an air conditioned spot! I also happen to know, and learned it best last year while training for my early September marathon, that it is the period of time that is hardest to train in! Because doing a training run at 5:30 in the morning on a Saturday and it is still 72 degrees before the sun is even up is just ridiculous. Right?? Or waiting until the sun goes down at 8:00 PM and going outside and it is still mid-80's is even more ridiculous!

So what happens a lot during the summer is we R E L A X instead of pushing hard on our training. Mother Nature dictates it. But, guess what? Fall racing season waits for no one...so it is extra critical that as the dog days of summer wane that a plan is in place to get right back on track and start working towards crushing those fall races! So here's my plan for putting the dog days of summer behind me and making this Autumn my best yet!

Don't Totally Slack Over the Summer
Sure, I have had to make tweaks and adjustments to work out over the summer, but because I haven't just sat around doing nothing it is going to be at least a little easier for me to really push during the early Autumn months. I hit the treadmill, I woke up at the butt crack of dawn even on Saturdays, I resisted the urge to eat ice cream for every meal. Over the summer is a fantastic time to work on some cross-training like swimming or cycling too! Granted, you won't be able to push as hard as you may normally push, but if you keeping moving in some fashion more often than not it is going to keep your fitness level up and allow you to jump right back into heavier training as it cools down.

Enlist Help
I have several different ways that I'm enlisting help. 1) I hired Coach Tiffany to be my running coach. 2) I registered for a late October half marathon with some co-workers. 3) I have my reward plan in place and am working hard to earn those bonuses! I know that with a little help I can get back to the level of intensity I was at before summer laziness settled in. Just this weekend a small group of us from work that are doing the half marathon got together to run a portion of the course. I took it easy and walked it since I had been working hard on the time trials/baseline testing for Coach Tiffany all week, but starting Monday I don't get to slack anymore as Coach Tiffany will be providing the plan! But I will honestly say that if I hadn't been meeting my co-workers for that run, I would have sat on the couch instead. Yuuuupppp, having that training run scheduled turned out to be a brilliant thing because I'm so glad I got up and moved!

Refresh Your Wardrobe
I don't know about you, but there is nothing that motivates me to want to work out more than having new workout clothes or running shoes! Just getting a package in the mail makes me want to put the item on and go run or workout RIGHT THEN! Luckily, most athletic companies are releasing new fall styles on clothes and shoes now - including my absolute favorite, Skirt Sports! (Disclaimer: I'm a Skirt Sports ambassador but all opinions are my own and I am not compensated for them.)

Make a Plan and Write It Down
I know this is a pretty basic tip, but you know what? It WORKS. I have always found it to be tried and true that when I take time to create a plan on a weekly basis, my success rate for executing that plan increases exponentially. It's real. It doesn't have to be fancy and you don't have to do anything more than writing a few words of your intentions for each day of the week in order for it to be beneficial to you. When you have a date with yourself, you tend to keep it. I like to spend at least a few minutes on Sunday of each week reviewing my plan in my Believe journal so I have fresh in my mind what I need to do each day and know what it's going to take to make it happen. A little bit of a longer run on Tuesday? I better make sure I get up the first time the alarm goes off and not hit snooze. Barre DVD on Wednesday? I need to make sure the DVD is on my desk and ready to go so I'm not searching for it while I'm half asleep and un-caffeinated. You get the idea...

Just a few of my favorite things! Minnesota Vikings pen, Believe journal, and Starbucks mug!

Keep Your Goals in Sight
Write your goal race on your calendar, put it in your phone, download a countdown app, use some highlighters or stickers or glitter - whatever it takes to keep that goal in front of you! I am using at least a couple of those - I have it on my calendar at home (the one that is posted to the fridge so the entire family knows what's happening and when) and I have a countdown app on my phone, and I have it in my Believe journal. The point is, keeping your goals in sight will remind you why you started, especially when it is hot, you're tired, and you have a bad case of the don't wannas.

So the takeaway is that just because we are in the dog days of summer it doesn't mean you can't start getting back on track NOW so you can totally CRUSH those fall goals! By enlisting help, keeping your goals in sight, making a plan, and keeping active to some degree, you will not only arrive to the start line, you'll arrive feeling confident in the work you put in while everybody else was still lounging in the pool! And if you're looking for the perfect fall wardrobe at Skirt Sports, don't forget to use SSPQL20 for 20% off! (That is also good for race registrations too, such as the Virtual Boobie Run that is taking place the weekend of September 11-13!)

Question: How do you beat the dog days of summer?

That's The Point...

I'm not using this chart...but I really should...because it is AWESOME!!!

I know we've all heard before how much rewarding ourselves can really pay off towards helping us achieve our fitness and health goals, right? I just did a Google search for "rewards for working out" and got back a bajillion results.

Don't believe me about it being a bajillion? That's just a small snip of the results!

But for all the talk about how good rewards can be, I've never gotten it. I've set up plenty of rewards over the years. If I skip the candy jar this month I can get a new nail polish. If I don't stop at See's all month I can get some new socks. I've even participated in challenges that have a money pay-out from a group putting funds into the pot...but you know what? I never actually GIVE myself the reward even if I earn it!?!? How silly is that? But at the end of the period I just kind of say "eh, I don't really need to spend money on that thing". So I don't. And then over time, the rewards just don't mean anything because it's just a bargain I'm making with myself. Until now...Let me explain.

I've been in a slump, ya'll know this as I've talked about it several times. I haven't been putting in my training and I've given myself way too many excuses to cut short or go slow or skip entirely. And it was really starting to get me down. I started talking to my hubby about feeling like I needed someone to really push me. He says "like a trainer? aren't those expensive??" And of course they are...they can be quite expensive...so we talked about the reasons that I felt like I was struggling. And then together we came up with a plan, and I was willing to give rewards one more try to see if it would actually work to keep me motivated this time. With him being my accountability, I would have to earn points for incremental rewards. Here's what we came up with.

Doing a full workout at prescribed paces - 3 points
Doing a full workout but not at prescribed paces - 2 points
Doing a partial workout (not full time/miles or paces) - 1 point
Cross-training of any kind - 1 point

I have to earn a minimum of 10 points each week to get my reward so it gives me a little bit of wiggle room; but not much (as I learned recently...more on this in a moment). I have regular reward intervals set up, the first two are two weeks apart, and then after that it goes to three weeks in between. And my reward goes up in increments. So the first one was $10, the second one will be $15, the third is $20 and so on. Then the final reward if I earn 160 points total (over the 16-weeks of my program) I get $100 for a new Skirt Sports outfit. (YAHOOOOOOO - and the Fall 2015 line will be out so I can get all the pretty new designs!!!)

So is it working?? YES!! Let me tell you a quick story. The week of June 22-28 was the final week in my first two-week reward period. And it ended up being a crazy week...I skipped my Wednesday workout because I was sick with the plague (okay, it wasn't actually the plague, but it sure did feel like it!). And then on Friday I was still sick and needed to go to my Mom's to help her pack for her move to Utah so I didn't work out that morning either. Thennnnn on Saturday when I should have done a run, I did a very easy walk with my Mom & Sis as it was Mom's last time joining us for a walk before she left on the plane later that morning and I wanted to spend the time chatting with her. So I had already missed 4 points that week and only had 8 points. That meant I needed to earn at least 2 more if I wanted my reward. My plan was to make it up on Sunday morning. But you know what they say about the best laid plans...

I woke up and was still just so sick...and exhausted...so I didn't run. In the morning light I was basically thinking "whatever, so what, so I lose 10 lousy bucks, who cares. i'm sick, i'm tired." And I told my husband pretty much that same thing to which he basically responded along the lines of "sweet - 10 bucks I don't have to pay out!! too bad you won't get your reward, honey...that's a real bummer". Just imagine that last bit said dripping in sarcasm. So I sat there and thought about it all day and I just couldn't let him have the satisfaction of me not earning my reward!!! (And just so you don't think that my hubby is a total jerk, he knew that saying those things would get under my skin and that I would refuse to let it go...so by being all oh bummer about it, he totally nailed exactly what I needed to get it done. That tricky little stinker!!! He knows me so well...) So at about 7:00 PM in the middle of cooking dinner I strapped on my shoes and hopped on the treadmill. I had to do 4 miles at an easy pace, and I had to stop to stir the food every once in awhile, and I took a longer break to actually eat dinner. But I actually finished that 4 miles (not always at an easy pace though as I walked the last mile pretty much after eating dinner, so I only collected the 2 points) and I collected my definitely not lousy 10 bucks!!! And the satisfaction I felt at earning that money cannot be beat!!!! Yeah, it's $10 and I could pretty much spend that anytime I want without it being a "reward"...but it was so much more than that. It was that it had momentarily slipped out of my fingers but I ended up saying no-way-unh-uh I am not going to LOSE it when it is that close!

So, yes, it is totally working!! Last week I actually earned 13 points and didn't even need to do my Saturday run, but I did it anyways just because I wanted to and could and I didn't want my stupid lazy brain to let me off the hook.

I finish my second reward period this weekend and am well on track to earning my points...but I won't get too cocky just yet because we've seen how those best laid plans can go. *wink*

The Sure Way to Succeed...at Failing

So I'm going to let you in on a little secret...one that I'm working on perfecting!! It's called the Sure Way to Succeed...at FAILING and I'm getting REALLY good at it!! (Said in a very sarcastic tone of voice).

Step One: create a training plan - put a lot of time and effort into this because the other steps are somewhat dependent on this one. So spend several hours perfecting it, plugging the details into your running journal - my favorite is the Believe Training Journal by Lauren and Ro - creating the workouts in your Garmin calendar and whatever else you need to do to be ready for kickoff on Day 1 of the plan.

Step Two: Set some SMART goals: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Relevant, and Time-Bound. For example you might set the following goal: Set a PR in the half marathon distance on May 23, 2015. Specific: Get a PR. Measurable: you have a time from your last race, all you have to do is come in under that one...totally measurable. Attainable: yep - just stick to the training and eating right and it should be no problem. Relevant: yes, totally relevant. Time-Bound: there's a solid date attached to this goal. This is a GREAT goal!! Should be completely manageable!!

Step Three: Tell yourself that you are going to completely NAIL this training cycle. You are going to eat right, get enough rest, stretch, foam roll, yoga your ass off, oh and don't forget cross training - you're going to ace that too!! You should also go on Pinterest and pin all kinds of happy motivation to get you jazzed up for this! Print some off, tape them to your wall, use that motivation!!

Step Four: Eat all the bad food. Slack off on all the workouts. Completely forget every goal you set. Don't pay attention to what's on the training plan. Go out and run your 13.1 miles with no more than 9 miles done in training. SUCCESS - you have now completely and totally set yourself up to succeed at failing!!! Brilliant!!! Whomp-whomp.

Seriously though, I have not done the work and I have made a plethora of excuses and I recognize that I have this really bad habit of completely and totally going into sabotage mode as I near a race. I don't know what that is or where it comes from...I could probably psychoanalyze the heck out of myself and find out that it is related to a fear of not living up to the standards I've set in my head, so if I have a bunch of "reasons" why I can't meet those standards than it isn't really my fault. Yeah...I'm guessing it's something like that. hahahaha Talk about a total mind f*&%!!! But here's the thing...I don't like it. I don't like being that person that is all fired up at the beginning just to completely fizzle out like a firework that didn't have enough oomph.

I want to know what it feels like to get to a starting line and know that I've done everything I possibly could have, within reason, to be READY to tackle the distance and the pace. I would even be okay if I didn't make my goal because I would at least know that I had done everything I could. But I haven't gotten there yet, and I'm definitely not there for this weekend's half marathon. My single goal for this one is to just finish it within the time limit so I can get my medal.

But I'm ready to turn a corner and no longer succeed at failing...I want to actually SUCCEED.

More to come on this...I've been working on setting some new goals, a new plan, and a system to support those goals and plans. I'll be sharing soon!

In the meantime, keep in mind that even though I joke about it, even failure is a building block to success because it teaches us what needs to be changed or tweaked on the next try! It's all part of the learning experience...one I'm getting pretty darn good at.

The Weekend

I had a great weekend!! The weather was perfect, the days were long, and my time was a perfect mix of active and relaxation. The only bad part was I should have done some homework, but I just couldn't bring myself to even sit still in front of the computer for a moment. Oops...

Here comes the weekend in photos:

I was a little worried that I waited until the last minute to do my Easter shopping, but it actually wasn't that bad when I went on Friday afternoon! Of course it didn't hurt that I had a Valencia Orange Refresher from Starbucks to keep me going.

Took a walk in the evening with the Hubster and saw a pair of Canadian Geese hanging around...he was definitely playing the doting mate there and was very watchful of his lady swimming while he stood guard.

Headed out early enough on Saturday morning to catch the tail end of the Lunar Eclipse. I always wish the camera would capture what we actually SEE, but that's the best I could do. You can just barely see the little chunk missing out of the bottom. It was pretty freaking cool though, lemme tell ya.

And if I was out early enough for the eclipse, then you know that means I also got to see the sun come up and it didn't disappoint!

#chasingeverysunrise

I headed out for an easy nine miles...HA!! As if easy and nine miles actually went together in a sentence...but I was sporting my new Skirt Sports Switzer skirt (get your own at www.skirtsports.com and use SSPQL20 for 20% off!!). I loved that my skirt matched my Mizuno Riders and Garmin Forerunner 220 (not pictured) so nicely because nothing makes nine miles easier than feeling like you look good while you're doing it! :-) I love the reflective detail on the leg of the skirt, you can see the 261, but just below that it says fearless. LOVE!!! This was my first time wearing this particular skirt and I have to say that it was perfect...the shorties underneath didn't ride and it was super comfortable all around.

Got a new step record on Saturday thanks to that nine mile run in the morning followed by grocery shopping and egg coloring and all that fun stuff!

Here comes the obligatory egg dying picture - the kids had a blast and it didn't take them long at all to decorate all three dozen eggs! By the time I sat down I got to do ONE egg. hahaha (Not that I'm complaining, it's for the kids anyways and I usually only do a couple.)

L-R: Angelique (3), Michelle, Melissa & Curtis, and Joshua (4)

Gee, I wonder who dyed this egg?? ;-)

And....they're off!!! They are both at such great ages (4 and 3) it was a total blast. We have several parks throughout our neighborhood so we utilized this one just down the street from us in a cul-de-sac. It was perfect!! Small enough to not be overwhelming, but large enough to give them both plenty of room to run around without tripping over each other.

All in all, it was a fabulously blessed weekend of fun and family!

How was your weekend and is your egg-hunt tradition indoors or outdoors?