Be it Resolved!

Happy New Year! I ended 2008 on a good note, doing my five miler this afternoon. It felt tough, I guess because of the high winds – gusting up to about 40 or more knots. At times it felt like I was walking and running through water, plus I had to keep taking my hat off as it would blow away.

For whatever reason, the running was not coming easy so I walked most of it, averaging 13 minute miles for the five miles. Every time I ran, I got winded after a few minutes. I started out running three minutes and walking two minutes, but it just wasn’t working out. Near the end, having walked for about 20 minutes straight, I ran for 7 minutes straight by reducing my pace a little bit.

With 2009 on the way, I was thinking about some specific resolutions related to Team in Training, staying fit, staying positive. I don’t normally write down resolutions, much less share them with the world, but I will this once. I'll check back on these now and then to see how I am doing.

Get down to an ideal weight. I’ve gained a few pounds over the holidays and am probably now about 8 pounds above my ideal weight. It should be very doable to get to it if I keep working out. Actually, if I can fit back into two old pairs of jeans I have hanging in the closet, I don’t care what my weight is.

Stick with my TNT training schedule each week, completing 90% of the scheduled 5 to 6 a week trainings. Yeah, it means missing sleep and being tired, but that goes with staying in shape if you work full time.

Complete my TNT event – still not sure yet if it will be the full or the half marathon. Whichever I do, make it a personal record.

Knowing that I may not be able to make my fund raising goal, keep taking actions to try to make it happen. And if I don’t get there, don’t get too discouraged about it if I truly gave it my best shot.

Complete the Monument Avenue 10K this March with a personal record – that would be less than 1 hour 9 minutes.

Do a breast cancer race in honor of my sister and many others. Hopefully, raise a little money for breast cancer research at the same time.

After my TNT event is over, stay involved with TNT by coming to a few trainings as a patient honoree, and helping with at least a couple “water stops” for each season.

Find the time to go on at least one three day backpacking trip in the upcoming year.

Hike more often after my TNT season is finished – at least two hikes a month.

Continue to run and walk enough after the TNT season is completed to stay in “close to half-marathon shape.”

Be much more dedicated about stretching and improving flexability. Included in this would be getting back to the PT and strengthening exercises I have for my hip.

Be much better about taking care / rehabilitating that rotator cuff tear that has been bedeviling me since June, 2007.

Keep working on general conditioning and strength, and on core body strength.

Reflect at least a minute or two each day about feeling grateful for the gift of that day. Even if things are not ideal that day, or things are not going my way, I am lucky to still be alive to experience the day.

Don’t take life and health for granted. Things changed for me in a flash, like a bolt from the blue, six years ago and they could again, at any time. Try to seize the day, even work days which have been very difficult to seize.