Goals for 2018

Happy Humpday! It's time to start setting some concrete goals for 2018 and I finally feel ready to start wanting to run fast. It's funny when after a marathon, you feel hungry to chase another dream, but also not quite ready to start working hard again. This week, I've finally started to feel the need to run some tempo paces again and can't wait to hit some speed work again. I've had a rough idea of what I want my next goals to be, but I'm also a big fan of taking small steps to get to a larger goal. Last year, I set my goal to get under 4 hours in the marathon and under 2 hours in the half marathon (both I accomplished). This year, I'd like to smash some more goals to help me get to my bigger running pictures. 

Goals for the half-marathon in 2018:

• negative split the race- I'm not sure if I've ever negative split a half, but I really want a several minute negative split half. 
• get under 1:50- I think this is easily do-able, since the past two marathons I've hit 1:50 at the halfway mark
• check off another state- still trying to find a good one to do for this. Let me know if you have any recommendations!

Goals for the marathon in 2018:

• get under 3:40- I think this is definitely do-able since I felt a huge breakthrough on my last marathon race (both physically & mentally). I think I'll train for the SLC marathon for a 3:40 marathon, but know that I may not get under it until later in 2018. I like to set bigger goals and while not obtain them, get myself a bit closer to it (and crush another goal).
• stay mentally stable through the race- I stayed really mentally strong for the Vegas marathon and hope to carry this through my next year of training

Goals for staying physically fit in 2018:

• Yoga at least once a week- I am really determined to have this practice become a weekly habit to stay strong/injury free.
• Strength training at least 3 times a week- I think strength training will be an important part to help me reach my goals for 2018 and also stay injury free.
• Making nutrition a priority- I've always eaten healthy, however I think this is another key component to reaching my goals, staying strong, and injury free. Fueling my body. 

Other goals for 2018:

• Read 12 books
• Take the next-steps towards my next career-move
• Try a new fitness activity
• Travel to a new National Park
• Backpack to a new destination

What are your goals for 2018?

Goals for the Rock 'n Roll Las Vegas Marathon

Here it is! Goals for my race on Sunday. 

Goal A. Have FUN

Goal B. Negative Split

Goal C. Get that Sub 3:50 that I know I'm capable of!

Goal D. Get that Sub 4:00 that I set as a 2017 goal

I always LOVE to set goals that I know I will accomplish, no matter what. So I know that whether I hit any of my other goals, I know that if I have fun then it will be a success. I've had a strong training cycle and know that I'm capable of goals B-D, so we will just need to trust the process, trust myself, and remain thankful to be able to be running 26.2 miles on the Las Vegas Strip, AT NIGHT, with thousands of my fellow runners! I can't wait to have a party the entire time!

I will make sure to update you next week with my race results, recap, and lots and LOTS of photos! Xo. 

Dreaming Beyond Your Comfort Zone

I re-listened to the Runner's World Show Podcast on Deena Kastor's Positivity Speech yesterday and was totally inspired. I was ALSO inspired yesterday when I listened to I'll Have Another with Lindsey Hein's Podcast interviewing Teal Burrell (Teal went from a 4:07 marathon to qualifying for the Olympic Trails with a 2:42 Marathon)- talk about dreaming big!

I started thinking about dreaming big (and not just kind-of big, but really really big) and how truly scary it is to think of the long road there may be to get to your goals (and how uncomfortable it could be). I like to set goals for myself and sometimes get only a fraction out of my comfort zone, but I'm not sure if I've ever really pushed myself way out of my comfort zone too much. I've hiked some pretty dangerous trails, sky dived, moved halfway across the country by myself, applied for jobs totally out of my league, but these all seem SO small compared to Teal's goals and Deena Kastor's amazing speech about positivity. 

I've also been thinking a lot about my recent race and what my goal for Las Vegas Marathon should be. I'm a huge believer in stepping stones towards a larger goal, so I wanted to utilize LV as a stepping stone towards my bigger goals (running a sub-4 hour marathon, qualifying for Boston, running a 1:45 half-marathon). I also know that I still struggle with pushing myself in a race beyond my comfort zone (getting comfortable with the uncomfortable)- I was SO close to the edge of breaking through this barrier at my recent race (progress, eh?), so I am determined to achieve that at my next race. 

Positivity and the ability to dream big really do go hand-in-hand.

You not only have to BELIEVE in yourself, but you also need to BELIEVE in your dream. 

Creating positive self-talk is really difficult and something that I don't always succeed at. I get down on myself (sometimes on crummy runs or sometimes when I have a set-back from one of my dream goals), which is pretty terrible and a total dream-crusher. So, I am determined to begin to re-work my thinking from negative to positive.

It's not going to happen overnight or 6 months from now and it will be challenging, but I believe it will be THE key to my success to reaching my dream-big goals. 

It'll start small from consciously trying to be aware of how I look at situations, view myself, view others, etc. and correct myself when I notice these negative behaviors creeping in. I will also list three things each day that I am thankful for. 

Here's to launching my #dreambeyondyourcomfortzone project! You can join along in my project and leave your #thankfulnotes in the comments, a journal, your blog, social media, etc. Share the positivity!

Thankful for today:

1. A beautiful view out our deck
2. Avocados and Over-Easy Eggs
3. My Resiliency

What are you thankful for?

Any big race tips to stay positive and push outside your comfort zone?

What are some things that make your Dream Big list? 

Setting BIG Goals & Embracing the Scary

Goal setting. Sometimes our favorite thing to do and sometimes really intimidating, scary, and nerve-racking. Talking today about how actually writing down those goals makes it seem 'real' and that scary goals can sometimes be the best ones!

Please forgive that super long piece of grass right in the middle of my photo....

I am a huge dreamer and believer, but it takes me a LONG time to actually come to terms with my goals and embrace them. Sometimes the journey to achieve our goals can be scary, intimidating, and come with big change/sacrifices/set-backs etc. I set some pretty big goals for myself this year including breaking 2 hours in the half-marathon, breaking 4 hours in the marathon, and taking charge of my career path. 

I was honestly SO scared that I won't achieve my goal of a sub-4 marathon this year, however I'm slowly starting to realize that it's OK to be scared/nervous/anxious/excited (all of the above & more) and that this 'scary' goal of mine is good and it means that I'm pushing myself. Sure, I may not achieve it at this marathon next month, but I've got another one planned for in November and if I don't achieve it then? It's ok, I know I'll get there and I'll come out stronger in the end. 

Scary goals are OK. They mean that we're able to look past what we're currently capable of and believe that we can achieve so much more. 

I finally realized that I could very well be ready to break that 4 hour marathon goal on my biggest interval training cycle this morning. 10 miles with 4 mile repeats at 7:50-8:00min/mi pace. I honestly almost passed-out the first time I read this plan and thought there was no way I would EVER run a mile under 8 minutes, let alone 4! However, I continued to persevere through my training plan and the workout came on the docket this morning (I may have lost some sleep last night stressing about it...). I woke up and 4:45am to fit it in before work this morning and was determined to do this ENTIRE work-out outside. I absolutely love the treadmill for speed workouts, but have recently started switching them to outside as I know my mental toughness needs some work before reaching my sub 4-hour goal. 

I did a 2 mile warm-up then settled into a half-mile stretch of road that is pretty quiet with traffic (and no homes so less people to see me run by them 10+ times...) and flat. I settled into my first mile and was surprised with how easy it felt at 7:59 pace. 800 recovery then pushed into the second one (7:55), 800 recovery, third one (7:57), 800 recovery, and last one (7:58). I couldn't believe it- I had reached my goal and TOTALLY ROCKED IT. I basically felt like I was on cloud nine and still can't believe how easy it felt. 2 mile easy cool-down to follow.

I still have 26 days until my race, but I will be riding this cloud nine feeling for quiet some time! Despite the results that race day brings, I know that my big goal will be obtained whether it is in the cards for next month, November, or 5 years from now!

So embrace those crazy-scary dreams with open arms and know that you're badass for pushing yourself beyond your current limits. The journey to your destination will always teach you a thing or two and make you stronger, no matter the outcome. 

Do you have any big, scary goals for 2017?

What's your tactic for overcoming those nerves and embracing the scary?