Running Through 5th Grade: Running Wrap Up for 2016

"Running is the greatest metaphor for life because you get out of it what you put into it."
--Oprah

As 2016 comes to an end, I have been reflecting on the past year and setting new goals for 2017. On January 1, 2016, I was having a pity party for myself. My way of getting out of my funk was to sign up for a challenge - "Run the Year." The challenges was put on by Run the Edge and it meant that I would attempt to complete 2016 running miles during 2016. I decided from the beginning that I was only going to count my intentional running miles. It averaged out to be just over 5.5 miles a day. That seemed manageable. Even if I missed a day here or there, I would have some long runs on the weekends. I also hoped that I could bank some extra miles during the summer (spoiler: that didn't happen!).

To everyone who thinks, "I could never...." I encourage you to TRY! Whether your, "I could never..." has to do with running or anything, set a goal and go for it. The journey will be worth the work.

I didn't quite meet the goal of 2016 miles but I am really happy with what I was able to finish the year with. I stayed healthy and never went more than 2 days in a row without running. I couldn't have done this without the support of my family (Rog, the kids, my dad, my sister, etc.), friends (the ones who came to run races with me, the ones that showed up at finish lines to surprise me, the ones who ran to train with me, the ones who encouraged me to keep working toward my goal), co-workers (who knew my goal and believed that I could possibly do it), and even strangers! My running journey this year has been amazing. It helped me balance life so much better than in years past.

So I didn't meet the mileage goal of 2016 but here's a summary of what I did accomplish:

4 10Ks

1 15K

2 10 milers (including a crazy TRAIL run)

3 half-marathons

Best Mileage month: November (200)

Total Miles for the Year: 1941
Avg miles per day: 5.32

After the Mississippi Riverview 10K --1st place
female!

96.3% complete----In grading terms that would still be an A.

75 miles short....

January - 143 miles
February - 108 miles
March -158 miles
April - 132 miles
May - 160 miles
June - 159 miles
July - 168 miles
August - 177 miles
September - 175 miles
October - 171 miles
November -200 miles
December - 190 miles

Day of the week with the most miles - SUNDAYS with 327 miles

Will I attempt this challenge in 2017? DEFINITELY and my sister is joining me!!
Goals for 2017:
-Run a double-digit long run at least once a month
-Complete Core de Force 30 day program before my 1st half on April 1
-Run a sub 1:50 half at some point this year
-Drink water (this one is probably the toughest one for me....)

Mel from Fellow Flowers (Just completed their challenge to move you a** for 30 minutes EVERY day), had a live video as I was finishing up this post and she challenged us to answer these 4 questions:
What was your biggest lesson?
What have you left undone? What still isn't figured out?
What did you accomplish? What were your really great wins?
What should you let go of? What can you leave in 2016?

Minneapolis Hot Chocolate 15K

2016 taught me many lessons (as do all years and experiences). I think my biggest lesson is that PERSPECTIVE is a powerful and important thing. I love the commercial where the characters say the exact same things but they mean VERY different things. I like to think of myself as an optimist but this year I learned that I need to work on my perspective. How I am viewing things and feeling because of things hurts me when it doesn't need to. The year also taught me that my favorite distance is 13.1 miles. In 2017 I am going to focus on halves---6 races at that distance. The first 4 (April, April, June, and July) will allow me to wrap up 40 halves in my 40th year!!!! (I'm super excited about that---especially since I was NOT a runner until my mid 30s.)

I have left some miles undone and some things I don't have figured out is how to improve my communication with others.....I'll keep working on that.

Accomplishments are many. I made it through a big family vacation and I'm still talking to my sister ;-) just kidding. We had an amazing time! I ran almost 2000 miles! I traveled on my own but also with friends. I tried running with people (very hard for this introvert who really uses running time for the quiet solitude). I was a 1st place female in a 10K. I have continued to grow and learn and try new things (including a zumba class--outside my comfort zone for sure). I have continued to laugh and love hard. My biggest accomplishment this year is that I still have passion for the things I do.

I need to let go of worry. I need to leave behind feeling like I need to control things so much.