Tuesday, February 17, 2015

Everything else will follow...

One of my running friends said: "consistency beats intensity any day". I thought about that a lot today. And in doing so reflected on my training since the start of the year. I've neither been intense nor consistent (at least not as consistent as I would like) this year. In fact, I feel like there just aren't enough hours in the day to get everything I need want to get done accomplished...

It's easy to fall into the desire of wanting to "go hard"  and "push myself" in training because I think that in doing so I will yield faster results (plus I'm generally not a patient person so I like to see results quickly). It's hard for me to remember that I just have to be consistent with my training plan and before I know it the results will start to show. That's not to say that I shouldn't be trying my best with each and every work out. But there is a difference between trying my best and trying to be better than someone else. I need to keep reminding myself that...
photo by Alice McGuire
And even though I feel like I'm having a lot of "weak" running days, deep down I know it's better than not running... or worse, not being able to run at all.

So today after work I ran. It was short. It was painful. I almost twisted my ankle. And nearly got hit by a car. But I got it done...

I saw this quote the other day on this site and it totally applies to me...

And then I remembered this article and realized that even in the 80+ age group I might be out of my league...
wow. just wow!

In an effort to end the day on a positive note I decided to do something simple that would make me feel at least a little bit happy about my accomplishments so far. So I reorganized my medals...
(it's killing me that the "medal hanger" on the left isn't straight)

I also decided to focus on a few other things from today that went really well...
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1. There are a few changes at work on the horizon that will (hopefully) provide me with a job description that better aligns with my experience, education, and passion...

2. Lunch was really really good today (teriyaki salmon, sweet potato, spinach salad with carrots, cranberries and sunflower seeds and (maybe just a little too much) dressing)...

3. I'm slowly making progress with my wall sits. I don't have a particular schedule for them since I'm not doing a 30-day challenge, but I'm just trying to increase the duration every time I do it...

4. I have some of the best friends ever. I can always count on them to give me a pep talk, advice, or distract me with tangential conversation topics to help cheer me up...


What was your favorite meal/food item today?

Anyone doing a 30 day (28 day?) challenge this month? What is it and how is it going?

Do you think you'll still be running at age 80?

8 comments:

  1. I absolutely plan to still be running. Whenever I get down about the fact that I'm not getting much faster, I remind myself that I'm holding steady and I just need to keep doing that. Eventually I'll start being the fast old lady. ;o)

    I made beef soup last night and it was super yummy!

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    1. I hope I can still be running at 80+ years too :) Right now I need to focus on being patient with my training, and just take/focus on one thing at a time. Beef soup sounds yummy!!!

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  2. I hope that I'm still running at 80 :) My husband's grandmother is going to be 101 this year and she's basically my inspiration for everything in life.

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    1. Does your husband's grandmother do any activities now? My grandparents were quite as active as they got older, but a lot of that was because they didn't have that "go-to" physical activity that they loved as they got older. I hope I will still be running when I become a grandmother.

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  3. With my love/hate relationship with running, I doubt if I'll still be at by 80. I do think I'll still be physically active though. Definitely can relate to your struggles on being more consistent though. Be Well.

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    1. The key is to stay active. Running is hard on your joints so it may be smart to switch to something else. I went to a conference once and the speaker said his mother (well into her 70s) swam 1 mile every single day to stay active. I hope our issues with being inconsistent with our running resolves soon, And I hope you have more "I love" and less "I hate" running days

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  4. I hope I'm still able to run at 80. My Grandfather is 96 and just stopped playing golf two years ago, walking the course, BTW. Consistency is so key, just log those miles!

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    1. Wow that's great that your grandfather was able to keep up with golf for so long! That's really awesome. Hopefully at 80 we will still be out there being consistent with our running. I can't even imaging what 'blogging about running' will be like at that time ;)

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