January Goals in Review: How Did I Do?

At the end of 2011, I set some goals. I also came up with a plan for January, since I think it's more effective to set monthly goals rather than annual goals (or at least to break down the annual goals into smaller pieces).

So, how did I do?

Things I said I'd do this year:

1. Nutrition.

January has been *okay*. I have been about 80% on track with my nutrition plan from Amy. I know to get the hard core results, I need to be 100%. I'm going to aim to improve that in February.

2. Fitness.

I set a goal at the beginning of January that I would work up to running 4 miles again. I didn't really do that. I only ran 12 miles in January. I decided about mid-month to run 2 times a week, and run 2-3 miles each time. But then I got sick, and didn't quite do that...

3. Beachbody.

I set some pretty lofty goals for 2012 with my Beachbody business, but I broke them down into monthly goals. I'm happy to say I've done *really* well. For example, my income goal in January was $800, and I made $722. Close, and I'll take it.

4. Get certified to- and actually- teach group exercise again.

I'll be certifying again in Turbokick and Piyo next weekend! And I'm about 90% sure I'll be going to APEX in February to do my AFAA Group Exercise Primary. So, I'm REALLY REALLY close, and I can't wait!

5. Pay cash for a car.

Of the things on this list, this has seen the smallest amount of progress. However, some of my other goals will be helpful in reaching this goal, so I'm not worried. I feel like as the other goals are met, this one will come together.

As for February, I'm hitting the ground running. But I'm adding another goal (you may be able to help): I want my Facebook page, Sarah Fitness, to reach 1000 fans by my birthday, February 27. Can you help?

How are you doing on your New Year's Resolutions? Are you reviewing them monthly (or planning to)?

Have a great week and finish out January STRONG!

Take Action

Source

"Nothing diminishes anxiety faster than action." ~Walter Anderson

Do you sit around and worry about stuff?

 How's that working for you?

Source

Honestly, sometimes you do feel paralyzed. Something needs to happen. You need to take that next step, but you're not sure what to do. You're scared. Maybe you're afraid of failure. And that's normal. We are all a little afraid. But nothing happens... if nothing happens.

So, my assignment for you today is this:
Think of something in your life that you want to change.
Take one step towards changing that today.

It's easy to talk all day about the great things you will do, and that's important, too. We want to have the vision in our mind all the time. But there comes a time when the talk has to stop and the action needs to happen.

So, go do it. And get closer to that goal.

"Action is the antidote to despair." ~Joan Baez

Great Moments in Goal Achievement

As long as I've been running (or at least as long as I cared anything about time) I've wanted to complete a 5K in less than 30 minutes. My fastest 5K time was 32:00-something, so I had a little ways to go.

Sometimes when I run, people mistake me for Homer Simpson

But this weekend, I had a miracle happen.

My runs lately have been around 2 miles. I've been focusing on speed, on *not* taking walk breaks, and just making it through without cursing running. I have to admit it's been a lot more rewarding lately than it was towards the end of "Half Marathon Season 2011", when I wanted to punch running in the face most days.

On Saturday, I didn't get to do my run in the morning, so I had to wait until my husband could watch the kids. I decided to try for 3 miles, since I've been doing 2 or 2.25 lately. I wanted to push myself a little.

I headed out. The weather was perfect. I had my music on. I felt like I was going a little faster than comfortable, but I kept telling myself, "Only 300 more seconds" (which is 5 minutes. This is a technique I use often. Counting helps me pass the time and also helps me breathe, which I think helps prevent sidestitches. Well, most of the time).

I have my Nike+ set to tell me every quarter mile what my pace is. It was getting ridiculously fast. I was impressed. So much that when I hit 2.5 miles I decided to go for the full 5K.

28:21. Holy Schmoly. I ran 3.1 miles in less than 30:00 alright.

And now that I have reached this goal, I feel empowered. I mean, it wasn't easy. It wasn't a piece of cake. It was challenging and I did it.

So, I'm wondering what other goals I can reach if I set my mind to it?

Oh, and the best part: I got rid of the Tracy Morgan Curse. Dirk Nowitzki congratulated me at the end of my run.

Nice, Sarah. (source)

The Reality of Reality

My daughter's first birthday is this week. It's gotten me all nostalgic.

Last summer, as I hobbled around as a huge pregnant whale, I did my best to stay active. I knew what I could and couldn't do, and was determined to be as "in shape" as I could be.

I even hung out with Beachbody CEO, Carl Daikeler...

There were things I knew I couldn't do pregnant, but could do *later*- running (I had to stop at about 5 months because it was just too uncomfortable), dieting (!!!), and a few other things. I got used to seeing my weight go UP rather than down.

I gained about 40 pounds.

This is me the day I gave birth.

I promised myself that, by the time my daughter was 1 year old, I would be in the best shape ever again.

I was so silly.

I had forgotten what it's like to be the parent of a newborn. I had no idea what it would be like to be the parent of TWO children, and working full time.

I didn't know that my emotional eating issues would flare up even more, now that I had almost NO alone time (except for workouts). Standing in the kitchen, shoveling peanut butter in your mouth is a lot easier than cutting up salad when your baby won't let you put her down.

So, even though I'm *pretty close* to my pre-pregnancy weight (I have about 3 pounds to go), I'm looking back on this past year with HUGE pride. I'm not where I want to be physically, but I have accomplished a lot.

I completed the Country Music Half Marathon.
I worked at my outside job (the one that isn't parenting).
I kept the kids from hurting each other.. most of the time.
I survived.

And even though I'm not where I want to be, I am on my way. And that's really the point.

Setting Goals: "SMART"

I going to talk a little about setting goals today. It's important to know how to do it right, or else you're just setting yourself up for a frustrating life. We don't want that...

There's a fun acronym to help you when setting goals: SMART.

It stands for:

Specific

Measurable

Attainable

Realistic

Timely

So let's talk about each of these:

Specific

You want to be specific when setting a goal. Often you hear someone say, "I want to make more money", or "I want to lose weight", or even, "I want to run faster." Well, that's great, but how will you know when you have reached your goal?

Try being more specific: "I want to make $1000 more per month", "I want to lose 10 pounds", "I want to run a sub 10:00 mile." Which brings me to the next point...

Measurable

When designing your goal you want to be able to measure when it's completed. You'll know you've reached your weight loss goal of 10 pounds when you are 10 pounds lighter. 

Attainable

While I encourage setting high goals, it's also important to choose a goal that you can actually reach. For example, I'm 37 years old, and have had 2 children. I have probably missed out on my chance to be a Victoria's Secret model. If I made that my goal, I would be constantly disappointed because I never attained my goal. Also, I have never in my life been a smaller size than a 4, so if I made my goal to lose weight and become a size 0, it would probably just frustrate me.

Realistic

Being realistic also helps you avoid great frustration. If you are 100 pounds overweight, your long term goal may be to lose 100 pounds, and that's great. It is attainable. However, if you set your goal to lose 100 pounds in 1 month, you're not being very realistic.

Timely

It's always a good idea to include a date by which you'd like to reach this goal. It's easy to say, "I'm going to earn $2,000".... but when? In your lifetime? In a week? Know the *deadline* - it makes a difference. 

So, to put this in practice, I'm going to list a few of my goals:

Goal #1: I want to reach 139 pounds/size 4-6 (depending on brand) by September 1.

S: Is it Specific? Yes

M: Is it measurable? Yes

A: Is it attainable?Yes it is.

R: Is it realistic? Yes, it is.

T: Yes, there is a time set (my daughter's first birthday).

So, does this give you an idea of a "smart" (hee hee) way to set goals? I would love to hear your goals in the comments. Come on, share with us!

(Or you can hop on over to Sarah Fitness on Facebook and chat about your goals while you get some motivation from others!)

Post Goal Depression

Have you ever worked towards something big? You waited on a certain date, or certain accomplishment. You just had to make it to that big event. It could be a goal you were striving to reach, a big race, graduation, maybe the birth of a baby... something big. You counted down the days.

Finally the big day was here. How exciting! You ran your race, got your degree, gave birth... and afterwards felt elated to have completed the big goal!

My daughter and I, moments after she was born

And then what?

Source

You reach your goal, the excitement has worn off, and you feel a little letdown. I know every time I graduate I have kind of the same experience.

Some people deal with it by setting a new goal. If you finish the big race, quickly go put another one on the calendar! However, if you just had a baby, planning the next baby is probably not the best idea...

Have you ever dealt with this? What helped?

I recently reached a big goal, and I'm amazingly proud, and very glad I did it... but I'm going through the "Now what?" stage. My life hasn't really changed a lot yet. My house didn't clean itself. The clouds didn't part with a ray of sunshine shining down on me, making me tan, my goal weight, and doing my roots. My kids continued to challenge me.

So, life goes on. I have a new goal already.

Have you ever experience "post goal depression"? How did you deal with it? I would love to hear your thoughts...

It's the Week in Review!

So, I wanted to take a minute and look back at my workouts last week, and set some goals for the upcoming week. I also want to try to do it in an entertaining way, which may or may not happen...

Monday, 1/31: Turbofire 45 EZ (modified for knee issues)
Tuesday, 2/1: Ran 2.6 miles on track (yay), a little tiny bit of back work at the gym
Wednesday, 2/2: Turbofire Fire 30 (I think, having trouble remembering)
Thursday 2/3: Ran 3 miles outside. Awesome!
Friday 2/4: Pure and Simple Yoga, Eoin Finn
Saturday 2/5: 4.2 mile run
Sunday 2/6: Rest day. Did some stretching and a little core. Took a nap with baby instead of doing housework.

My goals for the upcoming week:
Monday, 2/7: Total body weights (Jari Love or Cathe Friedrich)
Tuesday, 2/8: Run 3 miles; core
Wednesday, 2/9: Total body weights (Jari or Cathe)
Thursday, 2/10: Run 3 miles; core
Friday, 2/11: Total body weights or Turbofire
Saturday, 2/12: Run 5 miles (Or try to do 4.2 mile loop faster)
Sunday, 2/13: Rest or yoga

So, I'm trying something different. I'm looking at my training all as "ways to keep me running better". So, the strength training is TO HELP ME RUN BETTER. The stretching and core is TO HELP ME RUN BETTER. Let's see how it goes.

I also kind of decided that, although I want to work on 2 hours a day every day, I just can't. I'm only training for a half marathon right now, not a full. I'm not training for a body building competition. Yes, I want to lose weight, but I'm not going to make that my goal. My goal is to run better. And parent, of course.

I've only been a mother of 2 for five months now. I'm still getting adjusted. I can't do everything. My house will not be clean and organized for a while. I need to be okay with that, and at least keep it clean enough so everyone has socks and there aren't bugs living in the carpet.

I love you, Monday. Bring it on.

Sarah

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Reasons Why I Have Not Completed a Marathon Since 2004... and Why This Time It's Different!

In 2003, I was recently married, teaching a million aerobics classes a week (and yoga, so I wouldn’t completely die), and decided I needed a goal. I was working as a group exercise coordinator at a University Gym, and someone brought in a brochure for “Team in Training”.

I looked over the brochure and thought, “You know, I do all these dances, and choreography, and I have goals like ‘lose 10 pounds’ or ‘look a certain way’… but I need a real GOAL.” So, I decided to sign up.

Before training started, I worked up to running about 30 minutes at a time… on a treadmill (I was unaware of the treadmill vs. road controversy at that point). I had never been a strong runner. Growing up, I had asthma, and my asthma manifested itself in loud, honking wheezes, so whenever we ran in school, I honked, wheezed and came in last… while the other kids made honking sounds to mock me… (whoa, and that still hurts 30 years later… I have some issues…)

Let’s just say, I started running, but the marathon training was just going too fast for me. I decided to try to walk/run, and eventually I decided I could just do the half. By the time the Oklahoma City Marathon was coming up in April 2004, I was down to just walking. I hated running.

Well, my friend and I decided the day before the marathon that, since we were going to walk anyway, we might as well do it for 26.2 miles instead of 13.1. I mean, I felt like I could walk forever. So we changed our registration.

I did it. I walked 26.2 miles. Then walked back to the car for at least a mile (WTH?), then rode in the car for 2 hours.

Holy Guacomole, my legs hurt after that!

So, I took some time off from running. Actually, I took some time off from *moving* after the race, I was in so much pain. In the summer of 2004 I was just building back up to my 30 minute runs, when on September 1, I ran over myself with my own car.

And, there began my long line of obstacles.

Late fall 2004, my mom got sick. Spring 2005, she went into hospice and died. I wasn’t interested in much of anything for a few months.

Fall 2005, I started teaching aerobics again and started doing a few short run/walks at the gym before and after classes. I was having fun.

Spring 2006, I decided to go back to school for my library degree. I started running on the treadmill at the school gym. It was going well. I wouldn’t say I was a terribly strong runner at that point, but I was getting better.

By Summer of 2006, I was ready to commit to a half marathon. I registered for the Dallas White Rock Lake Half Marathon, which was in December (I’ve always wanted to do this race). But, almost immediately after registering, I started having pain in my achilles tendon, and eventually had to stop running for a while. I decided to try for the next year.

In January of 2007, I found out I was pregnant with my son. Well, so maybe this wasn’t my year for endurance running.

After my son was born, and I struggled to lose the MASSIVE amount of weight I gained from doing nothing and eating constantly, I started the Couch to 5K program in January 2008. It was going really well. I was running 30-40 minutes at a time, losing the weight (slowly) and doing pretty well.

Then we moved to another state (Summer 2008).

Here we go again: Start new job, get back to running. Run a lot.

I registered for the April 2009 Country Music Half Marathon. Almost immediately after registering, my knee started hurting.

I decided to keep running, but do shorter distances.

Fall 2009, I was a running maniac. I was doing races, and I was awesome. I had an amazing 4 mile run on Christmas day, and then I knew I was ready: I registered for the 2010 Country Music Marathon.

January 2010: What? I’m pregnant AGAIN? (A wonderful surprise, but still, a surprise…)

By this time, I’m tired of obstacles. I’m thinking, “Why can’t a 5 month pregnant woman do a half marathon?”

I ran up until about the 5th month, when it just got to be too much.

I had my daughter in September 2010, and started running about 4 weeks later. This time I’m serious.

I have not yet registered for the Country Music Half Marathon (I was afraid to jinx myself) but that is the plan. Then, I am planning to fly back to Dallas in December to do the White Rock Marathon (all 26.2 miles).

Feel free to wish me luck/cheer for me/encourage me/ or laugh at my bad luck below…

To your health,

Sarah

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(Originally published 1/19/2011)

The Secret to Success is...

EUREKA! I’ve discovered the secret to success! I think it can be applied to almost any situation. Do you want to know what it is?

“Do it, even when you don’t feel like doing it.”

Wow.

You know how, in the days leading up to New Year’s, you make resolutions? You plan how this next year is going to be your best ever, and you can’t wait to get started.

I know I have done this. I’ve also lost interest when it got hard or inconvenient to do. I admit it.

I looked forward to running today for a week. I have been sick, but I knew that today, my kids would be at school and I would have the day off to run. I was very excited about this… last night.

However, this morning, I really had no desire to run at all. What I really wanted to do was get the kids off to school and go back to bed. I even tried to convince myself I didn’t need to run today…

But, luckily, reason prevailed, and I remembered no one ever reached a goal by just doing what they felt like. I got dressed, ate some ezekiel bread and peanut butter, brushed my teeth (Gomer running rule) and went out to run.

I talked myself into running a few minutes at a time. At first, I told myself I could stop at 20 minutes. Then 25. Then 30. I stopped a little past 30. I didn’t want to go more than that since I hadn’t run in over a week and a half (but the cool thing is, I felt like I *could* do more).

Of course, I was so glad I did it.

There are other, non-fitness related examples. I wanted to blow off working my business tonight and just go to bed. But, I told myself that successful people don’t just do it when they feel like it… and I did it.

My undergraduate major in college was in music performance. As a pianist, I had to practice. A LOT. A LOT A LOT A LOT. It was lonely. It was boring. I was often really tired. But I did it… even when I didn’t feel like it.

So, kids, there you have it: the secret to success.

What are some of your goals, and how can you move a little closer to reaching them today?

To your health,

Sarah

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(Originally published 1/17/2011)