Yearly goals update

Mon, 3 Jun 2013 21:34:28 EST

YTD:
Run 428.93 (yearly goal is 513, so almost there already)
Bike 605.02 (yearly goal is 1500)

I realized today that I am up over a thousand miles in total for running and biking. My goal for the year is 2013 miles in the year 2013, so I'm over half way there.

In the month of May, my bike miles went down quite a bit, due to the half marathon training for the race near the end of the month, but June should take care of the shortfall in my bike miles.

Half Marathon #3

Mon, 27 May 2013 21:51:00 EST

Yes I did it!!!!

Take that 216 Plantar Fasciitis!

Half marathon #3 is done and in the books. I am so very happy to be able to post this blog, after a successful 13.17 mile run.

The humidity was a factor during my race, as it was 93% at the start, with scattered thunder showers forecast. We never got rained on, but miles two and three had a light mist in the air.

I felt really good running, even in the humidity, until I didn't. At th...

Half Marathon Weekend

Fri, 24 May 2013 19:50:09 EST

It's here.

On Sunday, May 26th, I will be toeing the line at the Saskatchewan Marathon, to run the 13.1 mile distance. It has been four years since I have been able to successfully train for a half marathon, due to PF (I totally understand every time I see Lynn post the words “darn PF”).

My previous half marathon times have been 2:39 and 2:46, and even though I’m older, I really am hoping to improve upon those. I started a training plan on my own back in early Janu...

Mid-April (and no outdoor biking yet)

Mon, 15 Apr 2013 09:17:56 EST

I am getting closer to getting my bike out. It was -5 C this morning when I got up. That is still pretty cool for a bike ride, so I went down to the basement and my stationary bike. But there is enough pavement showing in town now that I could bike out to the highway, once the temperatures get above freezing. So I'm cheering about that!

104

My runs have been ramping up as I head towards my goal of a Half Marathon at the end of May. Yesterday's run was t...

THE SPARK SOLUTION

Tue, 9 Apr 2013 10:09:48 EST

I was very honored to be asked to participate with a few other Spark members, in reading and reviewing a copy of SparkPeople’s latest book:

“The Spark Solution: A Complete Two-Week Diet Program to Fast-Track Weight Loss and Total Body Health”, written by Becky Hand, R.D. and Stepfanie Romine.

sparkpeople.com/sparksolution/

I was invited into the book by a well written introduction featuring “Erin”, a SparkPeople member who had decided ...

March update.

Mon, 25 Mar 2013 09:30:27 EST

Wow! It has been a long time since I blogged.

I just wanted to update on my mileage goals, which are ticking along very nicely. My goal for the whole year is 2013 miles in the year 2013, made up of 513 running miles and 1500 cycling miles.

Today is March 25th, or the 84th day of the year, making the year 23.01% done.

I have biked 375.46 miles of the 1500, making it 25% of the goal complete.

I have run 170.36 miles of the 513, making it 33.2% of th...

Determination!

Thu, 21 Feb 2013 19:49:29 EST

This morning, the temperature was -28C. I haven't run since Saturday because it's been so cold, and mostly with a wind pushing the cold even colder. But this morning, there was no wind (see the flag behind me), so I thought I would put on the layers required, and get my butt out the door.

It felt fantastic!!

Cold? Yes. But exhilerating!

And really good to get some more ru...

Sharing time!

Wed, 20 Feb 2013 13:55:11 EST

It has been awhile since I last blogged, mostly because I was away on holidays for three and a half weeks, and didn't have a screen larger than my phone. Although I read what I could, it's really hard to keep up with everyone, and hard to type any amount of messages.

But I'm very happy with how active I was able to stay while I was away. I even lost a pound by the time I got back (while hubby gained five - yikes!).

My 2013 bike and run goals are firmly ingrained in my ...

Goals bring clarity

Sat, 12 Jan 2013 10:15:10 EST

YTD:
Run 21.92 of 513 (or 0.0428% complete)
Bike 55.2 of 1500 (or 0.368% complete)

I have never had such an aggressive goal, but I feel really motivated to complete this. Today, it was -27C with a slight breeze, making it quite cold outside. But I needed to get a run in, and didn't want to use the treadmill, so bundled up and off I went. I ran a total of 4 miles, and am so glad I did it and got it done.

Having my running goal in place has really helped push...

Breaking it down

Tue, 8 Jan 2013 20:21:08 EST

First of all, thank you to everyone who commented on my last blog about the mileage goals. It is very ambitious, but I am motivated to "get er done"!!

Secondly, thank you to Bobby (BOBBYD31), who challenged me to find another 13 miles somewhere, so I can do 2013 miles in the year 2013. I think that is awesome, and will be so cool when I achieve it!

So, now I need to break my goals down.... so I can see how to achieve them, and where I am in the process.

Mileage goals for 2013

Sat, 5 Jan 2013 01:23:51 EST

Friday morning I was lying in bed thinking and doing math! I have decided that I will have two mileage goals for 2013, one for running and one for biking.

Running goal: 500 miles (7.45 year to date so far)

Biking goal: 1500 miles (8.1 year to date so far)

I truly am someone who likes ticking things off a list, and also someone who watches the numbers. So knowing that I need to get my workouts in on a weekly basis is going to help me make my yearly goal.

2013 - Here I Come!

Tue, 1 Jan 2013 15:45:09 EST

Wow! December just whizzed on by. My last blog was on December 7th - so much for my blogging streak. I am proud to say that I did get my ten minutes of walking or running in each day til Christmas Day. We had family staying with us, and it was majorly cold outdoors. So I didn't hit the treadmill or the outdoors that day.

December contained so much, besides the joy and experience of Christmas. We had a meeting to let us know that our school was again under review, and I volunt...

December Challenge - Day 7

Fri, 7 Dec 2012 21:06:28 EST

Another successful day, although today's walk was uncomfortable at best. It is very cold here, and the wind is up again. So I only did one ten minute chunk today, and just for the challenge. Wow, I was cold when done.

So one week into December, and the streak is going well. Thank you to everyone who has encouraged me along the way.

December Challenge - Day 6

Thu, 6 Dec 2012 22:02:08 EST

I want to congratulate WINEALITTLE, who is streaking right along with me this month! Six days in, and we are both on track.

Yesterday, I went snowmobiling with my hubby. It was so much fun. The snow is soft and at least knee deep. Talk about an upper body workout - moving the machine through that much snow takes some shoulder power. So glad I've been doing my strength training. We even did a river crossing (twice), which made me a little nervous but we were fine.

T...

December Challenge - Day 5

Wed, 5 Dec 2012 13:58:39 EST

Happy 25th Anniversary - my hubby and I got married on a beautiful December day 25 years ago, when there was NO SNOW!!! What a different type of winter that one was, than the one we are enjoying this year.

Here is a picture of us taken earlier this year:

I did get in a very quick ten minute walk (so walk and blog streak continues), when I chose to walk to lunch and meet hubby and son th...

December Challenge - Day 4

Tue, 4 Dec 2012 22:27:17 EST

Baby, it's cold outside!

It was -25 Celcius this morning when I went for my run, but this is my fourth day in a row for walking/running AND for blogging. Even if it's late tonight!

December Challenge - Day 3

Mon, 3 Dec 2012 09:17:21 EST

First of all, let me say how the rest of my day played out yesterday. I took down the curtains in my living room and washed them (then dried and ironed before re-hanging). I also took down all the pictures and dusted them, as well as the knick-knack type things. While the curtains and pictures were off the walls, I washed all the walls. Then moved the furniture around to make room for the Christmas tree, while vacuuming under the couches that don't get vacuumed very often!

The ...

December challenge - day 2

Sun, 2 Dec 2012 12:01:23 EST

Just keeping myself accountable, and trying to walk and blog daily through December.....

Yesterday, after my walk, I also swam for a half hour - and a half mile. So this morning, I felt that it would just be ten minutes for sure. You know ten minutes just to say I did it and kept up my streak.

However, I got going, and once I got going I went for 40 minutes.

It really is true, that you tell yourself you just need ten minutes - the workout will then take care...

December Challenge

Sat, 1 Dec 2012 15:06:06 EST

I like to give myself a challenge, or a goal to work on, specifically for December. With so many distractions, I need to focus on just something simple. Last year, I did the "No chocolates in December" challenge, and it worked very well for me. I even received a 500 piece puzzle from someone as a Christmas gift - with the puzzle picture being oodles of different kinds of chocolates. I told lots of people about my goal to stay chocolate-free, and then just had fun with it!

So t...

10K race in BC

Mon, 5 Nov 2012 09:15:02 EST

It has been a very long time since my last blog, but I wanted to document my Kelowna 10k race.

I went to BC and met up with Trish and Penny!

Of course, Paul and Roo were there too. We hiked a beautiful trail that was lots of ups and downs - Penny said she was going to track it as "hiking with backpack", since she was pushing the stroller through most of it. There were times that the hills we...

My "Ten Things" blog

Sun, 30 Sep 2012 00:01:17 EST

This blog was inspired by my friend Penny (RUNNINGWILD) and her blog from today.
www.sparkpeople.com/mypage_public_jo
urnal_individual.asp?blog_id=5079969

It was a great day, so here are some of my reasons to celebrate:

1. I started the day with a six mile run. After being sidelined for over two years with Plantar Fasciitis, any distance for me now is celebrated.

2. I finished harvesting my garden. All that was left to bring i...

Is what you are doing furthering your goals?

Mon, 24 Sep 2012 21:52:31 EST

After work today, I grabbed a three gallon pail and went out to the garden and filled it with carrots. I washed them, and then grabbed a podcast while I stood there peeling them.

Towards the end of the podcast (Smart Passive Income by Pat Flynn), the blogger stated, "Is what you are doing RIGHT THIS SECOND furthering you toward your goals"?

There are so many times I need to remember this question / statement.

As he was asking it, I was okay with furthering ...

10K race

Sat, 22 Sep 2012 18:16:44 EST

Today I ran in my first 10k race since before battling Plantar Fasciitis.

It was awesome!

The weather was a little cool at the 8:00 am start, but it warmed up to over freezing as the sun came up and the race went on. So I was a little underdressed when waiting for the race to begin, and a lot overdressed when it warmed up.

I have another 10k race in two weeks that I've really been training for, so I wanted to keep this one as just another training run. Bu...

SparkLive! is coming to an end

Fri, 14 Sep 2012 09:39:08 EST

I have been leading SparkLive! meetings for over a year. We received the news this week that this wonderful program has been discontinued. The very last class will be held on September 23rd.

Although I am very sorry to see it end, I cannot help but be grateful for what it has brought into my life.

252

I have sincerely loved each and every class that I was in. The participants have brought such a joy into my life - it's been a blessing to intera...

Beautiful Sunrise (with Picture)

Fri, 31 Aug 2012 09:45:25 EST

My morning's are getting darker and darker each day now, and when I head out at 6:00 am, this is what is greeting me (perfect sunrise). This both exhilerates me and makes me sad that summer is coming to an end. I can no longer bike on the highway at this time of day, as it is too dangerous - even though I do wear reflective clothing. Hunting season has started, so instead of running on the gravel roads, I'...

I tried GeoCaching and loved it!

Sun, 19 Aug 2012 11:57:01 EST

Motivation:
I have a new hobby for sure! Yesterday I did a couple of geocache treasure hunts, and fell in love with a new activity. It's like a hike with a treasure hunt at the end. Anyone can do this, although it's much easier with a GPS enabled devise, like a Garmin or iPhone.

Nutrition:
I haven't been tracking like I was in July. I fell off course yesterday while cooking dinner, and had a couple of Oreo type cookies. I think the smell of the food was just too mu...

And I did it anyway...

Wed, 15 Aug 2012 09:57:24 EST

Motivation:
Yesterday, it was cool, windy, and rainy. I did not go out for my scheduled bike ride. Did I go to the basement and ride the stationary bike? Nope. I love working out in great weather, but when it comes to nasty weather, it kills my motivation, and then I had a poorer choices eating day. Not horrible, but had some chips at the end of the day that I could have done without. But today when I woke up and it was even cooler and windier and still a misty (not really rainy) m...

Thursday thoughts!

Thu, 9 Aug 2012 10:17:53 EST

Motivation:
In the last six days, I have biked over 34 miles and ran over 12 miles. This has been a very good week. I'm such a numbers person, and this motivates me all the time. I keep track of things, and try to do more each week - with a fourth week of recovery where I do less - but that's built into the plan. I think about my numbers while I'm running, or while biking. Trish and I used to joke about how we would do fractions in our heads while running. I love numbers, always h...

Increasing my run again :)

Wed, 8 Aug 2012 10:16:21 EST

Motivation:
Again, I am able to go farther. This is a huge motivator for me. I'm not about speed, but I can train for and kick the crap out of some distance! I love watching my numbers get bigger each week, but because of injury, I have learned to really be careful not to overdo it.

Nutrition:
I tracked a full day's worth of calories yesterday. Hahaha, I almost never get to the total day anymore. And I was right in the middle of my range - YES! I am trying out the S...

Great weekend!

Tue, 7 Aug 2012 10:22:44 EST

Motivation:
My mom is walking on a consistent basis. My sister is still biking. People around me are starting to get into the healthy habits too. I love that I can share these things with them now. It feels so good when those you love are being healthier.

Nutrition:
We were at my parent's home on the long weekend, and I did pretty good. Not perfect, but it wasn't a train wreck either! I was able to stay away from the alcohol, and kept up my water intake over all thr...

Ten minute chunks still count!

Thu, 2 Aug 2012 10:22:24 EST

Motivation:
One of the things that motivates me, is going farther than I have been going. I thought I would pick that one for today, and then also explain about my tired legs (a few people mentioned suggestions after my last blog). This week, I went 25.71 miles on the bike on Monday morning. I followed that up on Tuesday morning with a run of 4 miles. I have NEVER gone that far on a bike before, not even when I was a kid. And since coming back from two years of Plantar Fasciitis, I ...

Motivation in Calendar turning to August!

Wed, 1 Aug 2012 10:19:17 EST

Motivation:
I know I said that I was going to pick one of my five things that I wrote down for SparkLive! class, but this morning there was something else that motivated me, so I want to write about that. As I was lying awake in bed, I thought about staying there, how good it felt, how tired my legs were, blah, blah, blah. And then I thought of how many opportunities for a beautiful summer morning were left. I can't bike up here (outdoors) in the winter time, and even in the fall I c...

My walk turned into a run this morning!

Tue, 31 Jul 2012 10:21:09 EST

Motivation:
In our SparkLive! class, we are challenged to write down five things that motivate us. I am going to pick one of those over the next five days, and write about it here. While we have been at the lake this summer, I have really noticed a change in my husband concerning his attitude toward fitness. He has often walked with me, and even has suggested going for bike rides several times. And twice he has gotten into the kayak, when I know he is very afraid of water (can't swim...

I DID IT!!!!

Mon, 30 Jul 2012 09:53:22 EST

One of my summer goals this year, was to bike in from the lake. It's 25+ miles of hilly terrain, very hilly in the first six miles nearest the lake.

Boom!

Done!!

Can't wipe the smile off my face!!!

334

Bring on the day!

Mind Shifting

Sun, 29 Jul 2012 12:35:00 EST

Motivation:
We have been talking this week in SparkLive! classes about using ten minutes of time for healthier activities. Ten minutes is easy enough to find, as long as we can allow our minds to shift thinking. I've been thinking about this lots this week, and as a by-product of that, I've taken lots of ten minute walks, or bike rides. There is a bathroom across the street from our camper, but I've started walking to the main service centre (the one with showers) every time I need to...

Friday musings

Fri, 27 Jul 2012 10:15:08 EST

Motivation:
It truly is a work in progress, a journey, so to speak. There are habits that are truly engrained in my head now (morning cardio, water, healthy snacks, etc). But it doesn't happen overnight, or even over weeks. These habits have taken time to get there, but now I can't imagine living without them. They are a part of me. So if you are just beginning, don't fret too much about missing things or not being perfect. Be gentle with yourself, and know that day by day, these h...

Garden Goodness :)

Tue, 24 Jul 2012 10:04:09 EST

Motivation:
Hubby and I decided we both needed a night at home to sleep in our own bed and get some solid rest! So that's just what we did. I slept through the whole night, and felt great this morning. It also felt good to spend that evening at home and get some gardening done. I booked a massage for Friday after work - looking forward to that!

Nutrition:
I plant a pretty large garden. It takes alot of work to get it started, and to keep the weekds out. But the payof...

Bike/Kayak/Run - fun days!

Mon, 23 Jul 2012 14:48:32 EST

Motivation:
My sister and her family left the lake this morning. It was so much fun having her and her kids along - I love having company while working out. It doesn't feel at all like work, and more like play. I guess that's the way it really should be!

Nutrition:
Eating very well, although I splurged last night and had not one, but two, Smores! They tasted very good, and I loved every little bite :)

Fitness:
I guess I didn't get a blog in yesterday...

New longest bike distance reached :)

Sat, 21 Jul 2012 21:23:08 EST

Motivation:
Part of the material we covered in SparkLive! this week was this: although exercise will get easier to do, it should never feel easy. We need to constantly set and achieve goals that will push us a little farther. I love this, as setting goals is a favorite activity of mine.

Nutrition:
I want to share a recipe with you for a summer treat called Banana Soft Serve:
recipes.sparkpeople.com/recipe-detai
l.asp?recipe=694221
I tried...

Good Friday morning!

Fri, 20 Jul 2012 10:17:28 EST

Motivation:
Last day of work til the weekend! Gotta make the world go round. My sister is at the lake still, but will be heading for home after this weekend. I am enjoying having her so close. Otherwise, we live about three hours away from each other.

Nutrition:
Had a shredded wheat this morning in my almond milk with saskatoon berries (yummy). I'm also making a banana smoothie to take with me to work. It's so hot here right now - not complaining!!! The saskatoon...

Going strong!

Thu, 19 Jul 2012 23:08:22 EST

Motivation:
Things seem to be clicking along very nicely these days. I'm feeling good, I have lots of family around, the weather has been pretty decent and warm - life is good! The highlight of my day would have to be that my brother that lives in Manitoba popped in to our campsite on his motorbike. He had been visiting his daughter and was on his way home. I sure wasn't expecting him, so what a great surprise. A quick visit, a meal, and he was on his way home again.

Nutr...

How did I miss Tuesday?

Wed, 18 Jul 2012 21:04:36 EST

I was sure that I made a blog yesterday, but I don't see it here. Either I imagined a wonderful piece of literature, or perhaps more likely I didn't hit the "Post Blog Entry" button. LOL, I guess I'll just have to start my daily blogging streak all over again!

Motivation:
We just had a major storm go over, and I am feeling so much better about my situation when storms rage. If something were to happen, and I needed to get myself somewhere on foot, I could. If something wer...

Back to work Monday, and raining

Mon, 16 Jul 2012 23:44:54 EST

Motivation:
At the end of our SparkLive! class the members said that were motivated to go and do something healthy, like go for a walk. I find the same thing after each and every class. I love listening to my classmates and supporting and encouraging each other. I always leave the class motivated to do more!

Nutrition:
Ate very well today, of course I was back home and working today. We came back out to the lake after class to spend the night, but all my meals were at...

Streaking works people!!

Sun, 15 Jul 2012 10:59:10 EST

Motivation:
Streaks are awesome. Since I started this daily blogging, I am now on a streak that I don't want to end. I was just waking up this morning, and my hubby stated that it wasn't raining yet. I was up and out the door so fast - it was supposed to start raining at midnight, so I wasn't sure if I when I would get in my workout. But when he said it wasn't raining, I RAN!!! Got the run part done before the rain, but it did start to sprinkle on the cool down walk home. It's okay,...

Fun Times!

Sat, 14 Jul 2012 20:07:17 EST

Motivation:
Playing like a kid again, laughing and giggling!!! I love that my boys have girlfriends and that we all get along. It's so much fun to bond with them, and it was a very good day. Loving this lake living - it all just feels so good. We are still using our legs to get us everywhere, and I am liking that alot. Hubby and I find lots of ways to communicate better when we are spending so much more quality time (hint, he has no tv to watch and I have no internet)!!

N...

Lake morning

Fri, 13 Jul 2012 11:26:55 EST

Motivation:
It is just so much easier to be more active while camping. We walk or bike every where, we chop and carry wood (me too, I love chopping wood), and everything else is done manually. There is a lesson in this for sure. Our lives at home have become a little too convenient!

Nutrition:
I ate well yesterday, and no junk. Even passed on the chips - more than once. I didn't even have to fight back any temptations, and that felt nice (I got an inside smile for my...

Peaceful morning

Thu, 12 Jul 2012 09:07:31 EST

Motivation:
I'm feeling so at peace right now. The smooth kayak ride, a nice walk home, and now to sit here with the sounds of birds chirping (and Mosquitos vibrating). I am very thankful for the opportunities of the day, and for the support and encouragement I am receiving here on SparkPeople - thank you friends!

Nutrition:
We have been so eager to get to the lake each night, that I haven't made salads ahead of time or per-cut veggies. Today I will take the time to do...

Lesson re-learned

Wed, 11 Jul 2012 10:19:58 EST

Motivation:
Sometimes, although this is my journey, I need to remember Chris Downey's famous words. 'Your daily actions and words impact more people than you ever realize.'. Yesterday this was brought home to me, by a note inside a goodie. Here is what it said, "In everyone’s life, at some time, our inner fire goes out. It is then burst into flame by an encounter with another human being. We should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit. ?
Albert Schweitzer...

CASSIOEPIA's SparkPeople Blog

Found my Mantra

Something that seems impossible at first....