February Resolutions

The new year typically seems like a good time to set goals, whether it be to pen some sort of Bucket List or to commit to New Year's Resolutions.  Sometimes, I have a tough time going along with the flow when it comes to things like this.  In most aspects of my life, I tend to feel rushed or inauthentic if I'm trying to accomplish a prescribed action by a prescribed time.  New Years resolutions prove this point, as I never want to rush into a commitment on January 1st if I'm not really behind it.

However, I'm now one full month into 2015.  I've had some great successes and adventures thus far, yet I've found the same 3 goals hanging in the back of my mind, dictating many of my thoughts and actions.  As it turns out, there are 3 things that I want to resolve to do this year.  On day one of month two, I'm calling them my February Resolutions.

From Bill Waterson's classic Calvin and Hobbes.

1. Make new Friends

I've always been a lone wolf runner.  I like to run on my own time, at my own pace, in my own world.  Part of this is surely due to my lack of planning.  You can't schedule a run with a friend if you can't schedule your runs consistently in the first place!  Part of this is also due to the fact that my job in retail tech support has me dealing with people constantly, and the runs can be a respite from the incessant interactions.  In 2014, I made a significant number of running friends online, via Instagram, Twitter, and the respective communities of Girls Gone Sporty, Nerd Herd Running, and runDisney.  Really I knew this all along, but camaraderie feels good!  It's both encouraging and fun to have friends in the race with you!  In 2015, I'd like to grow my support system of runners, both online and in person.

To follow through with this goal, I've already re-upped my membership to local group Venture Outdoors, and intend to participate in some of their hikes and outdoor adventures.  I also intend to start running from time to time with the Steel City Road Runners or other local groups.  Additionally, I plan to give back by volunteering with Girls on the Run and plan to attend my first info session this week!

Haley and friends 2014.  They sure are dears, but sadly unable to provide the companionship of human runners.

2. Cook more Food

I'm making this one tangible and measurable.  Going forward in 2015, I'm going to cook at least one new food or meal each week, and share the results on my blog and Instagram.  I have the bad habit that too many Americans share; I love to eat out.  I fall too often for the greasy food-court food convenient to my work, or the friendly but fatty bar food close to my apartment.  The insane thing is that I actually enjoy both the action of cooking and the reward of eating the home-cooked meal, but I don't do it nearly enougham .  To make sure that I am nourishing myself with better choices, I am committing to cooking more, and blogging weekly to hold myself accountable!  Also, I'm going to revisit Michael Pollan as reading material on my commute.  I can't imagine I won't be inspired.

If I make anything decent, it's pretty much always eggs.  I love eggs, but excited to master some non-egg dishes in 2015.

3. Go sub-5 in my Marathons

For many marathon finishers, the 5 hour mark is an inevitable.  For reference, Oprah Winfrey finished just under 4.5 hours in her first marathon, and 4-4.5 hours tends to be the average range for most finishers these days.  For me, 5 hours seems unbreakable.  I've finished all 3 of the marathons I've started, but I've done so in approximately 6 hours each.  Walt Disney World was longer, though I reserve the right to a "slow" race time when the race includes interactions with heroes, villains, and the beer vendor at Epcot's Morocco pavilion.

I run for fun.  I love being Goofy, silly, and nonchalant in my races.  There is still that part of me, however, that wants to push, challenge myself, and achieve the sub-5 hour time that I know is in me.  Heck, there may be even faster times in me.  But sub-5 is the first step.  I've not yet run a marathon this speedily, but I've run quite a few 5K, 10K, and half-marathon distances at paces destined for a sub-5 marathon finish!  In fact, putting a recent 10K time into a prediction calculator has me able to finish a marathon in less than 4 hours 40 minutes!

I've already started training, and have 2 marathons on my calendar for 2015.  I'd love to accomplish this goal at the Pittsburgh Marathon in May.  It may happen, but realistically I also know that Pittsburgh is a challenging, hilly course, and going sub-5 would mean taking almost an hour off of my fastest prior Pittsburgh time.  My realistic goal for Pittsburgh is to achieve a PR.  In October, I'm running Marine Corps.  Fast, flat, and in one of my favorite cities on Earth, I am confident that I can reach my time goal in Arlington and DC.  I just need to man-up and follow through with the training between now and then.

Finishing my first marathon at the Pittsburgh Marathon in 2013.

I am looking forward to achieving all 3 of my February Resolutions in 2015!  I also look forward to learning more about how others are attacking their New Year's Resolutions, personal goals, and other challenges during this year.  After all, this is the year that Marty McFly discovers himself riding a Hoverboard, so you know it's gonna be a good one.

Great Scott!  (Photo from criticalhits.com.br)

Challenges Accepted: 3 Fitness Challenges for the Achievement-HuntingAthlete

For the last three weeks, I haven't done much in the neighborhood of running.  I haven't gone for many runs, I haven't made many plans for future runs, and I haven't written about running.  Theoretically, it's wise to take several weeks off after completing a marathon.  It's also easy for me to lose some motivation when there's not a finish line or shiny new bling at the end of the training cycle.  Yes, I run because I love it.  I love the chance to step away from the busyness of life and spend some time to myself on the road or the trail.  But I'm also an achievement hunter.  The runs feel all the sweeter when there's a challenge to attain.

Will run for bling, badges, and bragging rights.

I do have a fall marathon on the calendar, but my official training calendar for the Marine Corps Marathon doesn't start until June 9th.  In the interim, I've discovered a trio of challenges to add some purpose to my workouts.



The National Bike Challenge

This is the second year I've been involved with the National Bike Challenge.  While some apps and games have a variety of complex rules, the premise of this bike challenge is almost too simple - ride as many miles as you wish, and record them.  The challenge becomes even easier for smartphone users as it partners with the app Endomondo to track your miles while you ride.

From the website of the Rust Belt Battle.  Oh, and Cleveland?  You're going DOWN!

My favorite thing about the National Bike Challenge isn't its ease, or the fact that it encourages me to cross-train; my favorite thing is the additional local challenge, the Rust Belt Battle between Pittsburgh and Cleveland cyclists.  Lots of cities encourage their own local challenges, which track miles the same way.  Not only is a bit of hometown pride at stake, but local Pittsburgh bar OTB Bicycle Cafe allows riders to earn free pints of beer and soft drinks when they reach certain milage milestones.  Will ride for beer!

Awesome bike bell from Bike Pittsburgh's Bike to Work Day member swag bags!

The National Bike Challenge officially started 3 weeks ago on May 1st, but it lasts through the end of September.  There's still plenty of time to join and to log those miles for both personal and city pride.


The Lose-It Cardio Challenge

Another app-based challenge, the Cardio Challenge is tracked though the Lose It smartphone app.  The app acts as a journal for users to record the calories they consume in their daily food and drink as well as the calories they burn during exercise.  The premise is similar to other apps such as My Fitness Pal and Livestrong.  The unique thing about Lose It is that it incorporates challenges where users are encouraged to focus on specific behaviors from eating more vegetables to sleeping more hours at night.  The Cardio Challenge rewards participants with a point every time they burn their body weight in calories.  Users can participate in whatever type of cardio they like from running to mowing the lawn, power yoga to playing drums, cycling to skydiving.  Lose It allows participants to add activities manually, or to sync several apps and fitness trackers including the Fitbit, Nike Fuel Band, UP by Jawbobe, the Map my Run app, the Runkeeper app, and the Nike Plus Running app.

Horseback Riding - Roughly 300 calories burned per hour.

Football - Approximately 550 calories burned per hour.

The Cardio Challenge is hosted by my employer in partnership with Lose It.  While this particular challenge is not open to the public, there are dozens of similar challenges available to join.  A team challenge, The Cardio Challenge has me allying with 3 of my coworkers in friendly competition to get more points than groups of our peers.  That's my favorite thing about this challenge - there's nothing like some friendly trash-talking each day at work to motivate me to get more and more points!

My team, The Best Team Ever, is standing in 3rd place.  Ben Not Allowed and #riding Keith's coattails?  We're coming for you!

This particular challenge is not open to the public, as it requires a private access code from my employer, but the Lose It app hosts dozens of challenges each month, with varying start dates and methods of point accumulation.


The Runner's World Summer Run Streak

Like the Bike Challenge and the Cardio Challenge, the Summer Run Streak enjoys an extremely simple premise.  From Memorial Day to the Fourth of July, participants commit to running at least one mile each day.  This adds up to 40 consecutive days of running.  Aren't runners supposed to take days off to rest during their training programs?  This is true, but most programs suggest that runners who are otherwise healthy can complete these types of streaks as long as a couple of runs each week are recovery runs with a slow pace and short milage.  I'd never dream of running hard and fast for 40 days straight, but each time Runners World sponsors a Run Streak, I'm compelled to challenge myself with the streak.

The Run Streak does bleed into my first weeks of Marine Corps Marathon training, but I think that getting out the door each day for short runs will help me to build both a physical and a mental baseline for the remainder of my training calendar.  Like the other challenges, this one makes tracking runs super easy through the Map My Run and Map My Fitness apps.  I suppose that committing to 3 app-based challenges also means I'm about to resign myself to a summer of poor battery life in my poor iPhone, but I suppose that's the price I'll pay.

Summer's the time for beer, baseball, and streaking! 

The Runner's World Summer Run Streak starts Memorial Day, May 26th.  Runners can pledge to complete the challenge here and can share their successes with other streakers with the hashtag #RWRunStreak on social media for the duration of the challenge.


Join me in my quest for fitness challenge glory!  Hopefully, I can keep up with all of these over the next few months.  Surely I don't need any other challenges on my plate, but I'd love to hear about any other challenges floating around out there in the fitness community.