End of Year Review

So 2011 has just ended and it’s time to review the year. Overall, my year has been a good one (running wise).

• I’ve drastically improved my form.
• I’ve improved my 5k race time.
• I’ve ran in a race longer than 10k (Hudy 14k).
• I’ve made several double digit runs (pre-PF my longest run was 3.6mi).
• I’m more efficient in my trackwork.
• I remained (kinda) diligent in my runs, with the exception of when hurt myself, and then when I fell off the wagon after my daughter was born (good reason).
• I’ve amassed a decent amount of running gear.
• I’ve put in good ground work to reach my goal of racing a total of 50 kilometers by the time I’m 30 (six months from today).
• I’ve picked up on some of the nuances of running:
• --Know when to show up for a race
• --Know where to line up in the chute
• --Know to stash water on long runs
• --Know what to wear in what weather
• --Know to stretch and warm up
• --And so on
• I’ve run a total of 356 miles.
• And on top of it, I’ve had a lot of fun.

Outside of running my year has been good as well.

• I’ve graduated a class of excellent students.
• I’ve helped direct the school’s musical.
• I’ve had a great time with my wife and son (he and I had a blast this summer).
• I’ve potty-trained my son (for those parents out there, you know how big a deal that can be).
• I’ve made some new friends.
• And most importantly, I got to welcome my daughter into the world.

As big of a year that 2011 was for my running growth, I suspect 2012 will be even bigger. Despite the leaps and bounds of the past year, I still see it as ground work for a much larger plan. I have many goals for this year, some are carryovers from years past (as denoted by an *), and some are completely new.

• I will run the Flying Pig Half Marathon on May 6th.
• I will run the U.S. Air Force Marathon on Sept 15th.
• I will finish my goal of 50k of races run (I’m at 49k) before my 30th birthday.
• I will get my weight down to 215.*
• But an important part of the weight-loss is to do so while maintaining my muscle mass (I really don’t want to shrink).
• I will do more of my running in the morning (which means waking up when the alarm goes off).
• I will eat more healthily.
• I will help my wife get into running.
• I will improve my swimming technique.

I have a lot of big goals, but none of them are too lofty (except the waking up when my alarm goes off). But that’s common; I’ve always had high expectations, of myself and those around me. To help me track all of this work, I wrote an extensive training log on an excel-like Google doc (it's got a 5 star rating from 74 users...just saying). Any of you are welcome to use it, and if you have trouble with it, or need it modified, just contact me.

Those of you who take the time to follow this blog, thank you. And those of you who have sent comments and suggestions via e-mail thank you very much. And to you who has allowed me the time and money to focus on running (particularly those multi-hour long runs on Saturdays when you’d rather I stay home and do housework), thank you, and I love you.