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Posts Tagged ‘goal setting’

February Miles and March Goals

Posted in Biking, Family life, Marathon, Miles Log, Running, tagged , , , on February 28, 2013| 2 Comments »

February has passed in a blur of marathon training, skiing, and life-with-three-kids. Let’s check in on my goals for February:

Eat less cake. – Done. Not necessarily less sugar, but less cake.

Run the Brea 8K and earn a PR at that distance. – Done! Big fat PR at the Brea 8K!

Start training for the Mountains 2 Beach Marathon. Week 3 of marathon training is done and week 4 finishes off on Saturday with a planned 20-miler!

Do not injure myself (a perennial goal). I feel good. My adductor magnus continues to speak up a little bit post-run, but I feel great while I’m running and my stride is not affected.

February Miles

Swim: 0.67 miles in 25 minutes in 1 workout. <— Seriously? Must hit the pool this Friday.

Bike: 79.74 miles in 4.79 hours in 4 workouts. <— Is that right? I'm shocked I only rode the bike four times. I guess it makes sense though because I substituted skiing for some cross-training days.

Run: 95.17 miles in 16.07 hours in 11 workouts. <— Makes me want to run another 4.83 miles today to hit 100. Not gonna do it though. Today's a much-needed rest day.

Strength training: 2.67 hours in 6 workouts. <— Interesting — the exact same amount of time as January but in 5 fewer workouts!)

Skiing: 11.5 hours in 3 workouts.

Random Photo for February

I took this photo on a 7-mile tempo run. Can you spot the hawk resting on the top right side of the old silo?

It seems like there's a philosophical, evolutionary statement in there somewhere. Industrialization meets nature reclamation with hawk perched on the rusting, graffiti-covered water silo behind the chain link fence.

It seems like there’s a philosophical, evolutionary statement in there somewhere. Industrialization meets nature reclamation with a hawk perched on the rusting, graffiti-covered silo behind the chain link fence.

Goals for March

Resist racing the La Habra 10K. I ran this race last year and would love to do it again this year, but after all the work it took to juggle the marathon training long run with the Brea 8K last week, I do not want to put myself through that stress again, even for an inexpensive local race.

Heal my darn adductor magnus/groin strain once and for all. I think this takes time, strength training, tennis ball massages, and hot baths.

Do two 20-mile long runs, two 18-milers, and one 13-miler. This advanced marathon training plan is aggressive but so far I feel up to it!

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Marathon Race Goals

Posted in Marathon, Racing, Running, tagged , , , , , , , on August 18, 2012| 4 Comments »

Putting my marathon race goals out there for everyone to see intimidates me. I know that saying them out loud makes me no more or less likely to achieve them. I will put in the hard work of training. I will do my best to rest for recovery, eat well, and stay healthy. With a little luck thrown in, I will show up well-trained and injury-free on race day. Then it’s a matter of seeing how the cards fall that morning.

Which of these goals will I achieve? Does it make it any less of an accomplishment if I don’t achieve them all? (Remind self on race day: the answer is no — if you achieve any of these goals, you should be thrilled and proud and ready to strive for the next goal at the next race!)

5. Finish the race. I know all too well that the goal with any race, and particularly a new running race distance, is to finish. No DNS, no DNF = win! An automatic PR! Better yet, finish without injury and you’re golden even without a spot on the podium.

4. Finish in under 4:30. That would be a darn respectable time.

3. Finish in under 4:10. Now we’re talking.

2. Finish in under 4:04. That’s what the McMillan Running Calculator and other pace calculators predict I can do based on my half marathon time — somewhere in the range of 4:04 and 4:02.

1. Sub-4! There’s a big difference between 4:04 and 3:59:59. Some (including the authors of Run Less, Run Faster) would say it’s not wise for me to push the pace and try to break four hours. Perhaps they are right, and “they” can tell me they told me so on race day. I am content to strive for my highest goal. My training thus far proves that the goal is on target. Using the Run Less, Run Faster plan and assuming a marathon pace of 9:06, I am able to meet the prescribed times for the track repeats, tempo runs and long runs. Fingers crossed, knock on wood, I’ve-put-it-out-there-don’t-smite-me-now, I will achieve one or more of my goals at my first marathon less than three months from now!

Do you set one or more goals for yourself for a race? How has that played out for you in past races? I broke 30 minutes in my first 5K as an adult. I completed my first 8K and 10Ks without injury (I set a low bar on those races!), and I reached my highest goal of a sub-2 for my first half marathon.

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