October Goals

The People Have the Power: September 2020

~ Chocolaterunsjudy ~ 28 Comments

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September was even busier than the last few months! 2 trips to mom, both with side trips. One day trip as a “family” — I’d hoped for more, but it wasn’t meant to be. Cat sitting for a friend. Planning & executing birthday shenanigans for Mr. Judy.  A virtual 10k + virtual 5k walk.

September’s song is Patti Smith’s “The People Have the Power”. While it doesn’t have Strong (my word for 2020) in the title or the lyrics, it’s perfect for these times and it spoke to me.

The power to dream, to rule
To wrestle the world from fools
It’s decreed: the people rule
It’s decreed: the people rule
Listen. I believe everything we dream
Can come to pass through our union
We can turn the world around
We can turn the earth’s revolution

I very very rarely allow politics to creep in here. Get out and vote. Or mail in your vote, as we plan to. You can’t sit on the sidelines.

Getting in scheduled runs
It was really a mixed bag this month. There was a lot of stuff going on in the personal front, and sometimes that prevent me from getting it done. I did the best I could, and the truth is, just staying active is a win right now — and I did.

Grade Earned:  A

Recording my runs
I record them here. Someday I’ll get back to journaling!

Grade Earned: F

Dynamic Warmup
The cooler weather meant I was able to leisurely get ready for runs for much of September. So there was Yoga, there was foam rolling, and there was always a short dynamic warmup before the run. I enjoy not having to rush out the door!

Grade Earned: A+

Foam Rolling
I foam rolled more often in September. It feel off a bit towards the end of the month, again due to personal stuff, but I always foam roll before my runs and sometimes I did it on non-running days and also sometimes after my runs.

Grade Earned: A

60 deserves cake, right? Multiple times!

Nutrition
Nutrition continues to be not terrible, not great, and the scale continues to reflect that. There was birthday cake (for days, even with the smallest one), there was BBQ — but there were lots of veggies and nutritious meals, too.

Grade Earned: A-

Support

  • Massage? Nope. We all know why.
  • Chiropractor Appointment? See massage.
  • Do I need a hair appointment? I need to schedule that appointment. We are in a very good situation with COVID right now, but I could see that changing with more time spent indoors and school restarting.

Grade Earned: F

Cross Training
Still not cycling, but plenty of Yoga, and started out strong with strength training although again that fell off a bit towards the end of the month. I was balancing a lot of spinning plates this month!

Grade Earned: A

Hudson Crossing Park & Lake Taghkanic State Park

September 2020  gets  . . . 
. . . an A. A couple of Fs again, but mostly September was a busy month — seems like every month lately is a busy month!) — and I did the best I could with the time I had and by listening to my body.

September Goals:

  • Run 4 x week. Y/N. Sometimes. Some weeks I just wasn’t feeling it, so I didn’t. Other weeks, I did.
  • Set an intention for each run. Y.  I like this so it’s easy to continue with the things you enjoy.
  • Meditate when I get up. Y. This actually morphed into Yoga + meditate when I get up. I’m halfway through with my 40 day Kriya (see my post about that here).
  • Continue to try to eat intuitively — unless the weight starts to creep up. Y. I’m trying, but it’s crept up just a bit beyond where I’m comfortable. It seems the Winter creep has started early. So Y to eating intuitively; unfortunately Y to creep, too. I mostly know what I need to do — but I need to do it. #youfeelme?
  • Explore new places when I visit my mom. Y. It’s not always easy, because it can mean hours without access to a bathroom sometimes, but otherwise it’s a somewhat stressful day and this injects a little more fun into the visit for me.
  • Look around for the next virtual to motivate me. Y.  Well, I have looked around. I have a couple I’m considering. I haven’t made up my mind yet. Virtual isn’t the real deal, but it adds variety to my running, and I like that. And sometimes there’s cool swag.

Which leads me to October Goals:

  • A short running break. I had actually always planned on a running break after my Dempsey Challenge. My body made it clear I needed it, even though I haven’t been running hard. Not sure how long it will be, probably not too long, a week maybe two tops.
  • Ease back in with easy runs. No need to push hard — and better to rest now and be ready to push when there’s hope of real races.
  • Find a flatter course for virtual races. One of the virtual races I’m considering might be a 15k. My body has made it clear for now that it’s had it with the steep downhills. You know how much I love running downhill, but if I can’t run, well, that’s worse.
  • Explore new places when I visit my mom. It’s getting cooler, but I should still be able to explore in October. Thankfully they are working on some sort of plan to allow inside visitation.
  • Continue to try to eat intuitively — unless the weight starts to creep up. In the last few months my choices haven’t always been the best. I can feel that in some of my clothes — and I don’t like that feeling!
  • Decide on my next virtual race. I have a couple that I’m considering. One allows you to do it at any time before May. I’m not sure when the other one is (or if it allows you to pick your own time). I may end up doing both).

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Linking up with Zenaida Arroyo and Kim @ Kookyrunner

This week I am also joining up with the new Runners’ Roundup linkup.

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Reunited & It Feels So Good: October 2019

~ Chocolaterunsjudy ~ 33 Comments

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I got a small break in October (see last month’s “grade” herefor what’s been going on), but it ramped up at the end of the month with my Dad’s discharge from rehab and scrambling to try to find a suitable aide for him. They don’t give you much notice.

Even with a break, there was a lot of time at my mom’s

Running continued pretty strong, and since I was home most weekends, I also got to do some of my favorite Fall races, with varying degrees of success.

There`s one perfect fit
And sugar, this one is it
We both are so excited
Cause we`re reunited

Getting in scheduled runs
Even though I continued to play it by ear, from necessity, I also ramped up my running miles just in case I run a 15k in November. If the weather is good, I’ll do it (despite mostly likely little friend support) — although if a Nor’Easter or Blizzard comes through, no thanks!

Grade Earned:  A

One of my favorite things to do in fall — race!

Recording my runs
The scramble at the end of the month to get my parents settled caused some run recording to be spotty, but for the most part, it’s been better than it has been. Still lots of holes sometimes, though.

Grade Earned: B-

Dynamic Warmup
Still skimping on the warmups, but at least most days I’m going through some high knees, some butt kicks, and some leg swings. It’s something.

Grade Earned: B

Foam Rolling
I’d dearly like to get back to daily rolling, but for now mostly I’m rolling before my runs.

Grade Earned: B

There may have been a few too many treats in October

Nutrition
Nutrition has been okay. Most of the time fairly good, but occasional eating stuff I know is not really helping my body. I’m human, like everyone else — mostly I’ve been able to maintain my weight with the normal fall to winter creep. Time to cook has often been an issue.

Grade Earned: A-

Support

  • Massage? Not this month.
  • Chiropractor Appointment? I need to schedule an appointment soon. Probably after the 15k.
  • Do I need a hair appointment? No! The hair got downright scary, but it’s been trimmed and shaped. Even one of my mom’s friends commented on how nice it looked (of course that was after being washed, but before running).

Grade Earned: A

Cross Training
Yoga continued strong. There’s still some light strength training (some days a bit heavier) or some bodyweight exercising. Not quite as much walking as the days got shorter, colder, and busier, but there’s been more running miles.

Grade Earned: B

October 2019  gets  . . . 
. . . an B+. Still hanging in there at running three times a week, lots of yoga, a little bit of weight training. A few races: a slow trail 5k (read about it here), including a surprising 10k PR (read about it here) and a 5k that still didn’t break me out of my 5k rut (read about it here).

September Goals:

  • Strength train 2 – 3x week. Y. Not as heavy/intense as I usually do, but I did what I could.
  • Do my best to remain in running maintenance goal. Y. Actually, I got up to double digits in prep for the 15k. I’ll drop back down into running maintenance afterwards. Maybe . . . stay tuned.
  • Develop at least one vinyasa class. Y. Actually, developed two (the memorization is a different story). Taught private Yin Yoga classes. Got on the sub list at one local studio.
  • Foam roll when I’m able. Y. I’ve done better with it.
  • Continue to try to eat intuitively — unless the weight starts to creep up. Y. Still not tracking, still mostly maintaining (which means I bounce around a few pounds, but it’s not an upward creep). Although I need to keep a close eye on it going into winter — hopefully being home more often will help.
  • Meal plan on the weekends! N. Still struggling with it. After the beginning of the month I was just exhausted from everything going on, at the end of the month there was the mad scramble to get my parents settled. 
  • A race? At some point?. Y. Three of them, in fact.

Which leads me to November Goals:

  • Strength train 2 – 3x week. This will always be a goal. Hopefully November will be an easier month (if my parents stay healthy). I won’t be hosting Thanksgiving because my Dad can’t make the trip. Both relieved and a bit wistful at the same time.
  • See if I can at least sometimes get back to a 4 x week running schedule. I’ve done okay on 3 x week. It’s not the first time I’ve only run 3 x week, either. 4 x per week is my sweet spot, though.
  • Approach another studio about getting on their substitute list. It’s scary, but I know that I still need a lot of experience, and there’s only one way to get it.
  • Foam roll when I’m able. Would love to foam roll at least occasionally on days that I don’t run.
  • Continue to try to eat intuitively — unless the weight starts to creep up. It’s been back and forth. Not up enough that I feel the need to track, but I really hope that being home more will mean it settles down some.
  • Meal plan on the weekends! I’ll keep putting this in until I get back to it. Which I haven’t managed yet. But maybe with only the occasional day trip to my parents.
  • A race? At some point? I still want to tackle another 5k if the weather is favorable, and the weather is looking good for the 15k, too.

btuesdaytopics

Linking up with Zenaida Arroyo and Kim @ Kookyrunner

This week I am also joining up with Running on Happy, Suzlyfe, Crazy Running Girl, and Coach Debbie Runs each week for the Coaches’ Corner linkup

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Missing you: September 2019

~ Chocolaterunsjudy ~ 24 Comments

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September was the month it all fell apart. In case you hadn’t heard, we went to visit my parents on Labor Day, and my Dad ended up in the hospital that night. He spent almost a week in the hospital and is still in a rehabilitation center — except then he ended up back in the hospital, and is presently back in rehab.

My mom doesn’t drive. The transportation where she lives rarely goes out there. So I have spent the better part of September driving my mom to the hospital, to rehab, sleeping over there sometimes, spending literally hours in the car going back and forth.

So I’m taking a little deviation of my Love theme for 2019. I remember when this John Waite song was at its height in the mid 80s; I totally loved this song, and at the time, Mr. Judy lived in VT, and I lived in MD (we were not yet married). This song really spoke to me. It’s still does. Take from it what you will (missing running? my home? my parents when they were still vital? all of the above?).

I hear your name in certain circles
And it always makes me smile
I spend my time
Thinking about you
And it’s almost driving me wild

And there’s a heart that’s breaking
Down this long distance line tonight

Getting in scheduled runs
I have a feeling it will indeed be a one half a year year. Which hasn’t happened since I started running halfs eight years ago. I’m not sure if I’m upset or relieved about it, considering how rough this year has been. So still just running when I can.

Grade Earned:  B

Recording my runs
September is mostly a complete blank when it comes to recorded runs. I hate that! It was just too darn busy and tiring.

Grade Earned: B

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Thanks for taking so long to get a signal

Dynamic Warmup
As I wrote about in this month’s runfessions, which you can read about here, the only reason I even attempted to warm up most days was because I was waiting for my Garmin to get a signal. 

Grade Earned: B

Foam Rolling
I definitely miss it when I don’t do it, and let’s just say there was a whole lot of missing it in September. Like barely any foam rolling at all. I am still busy going back and forth to my parents for a few weeks, but things are a little calmer (we’ll see what happens when my Dad is released from rehab). Well, they were calmer until he ended up in the hospital again. It does look like maybe I’ll actually have a whole week at home.

Grade Earned: D

Nutrition
It wasn’t perfect, but in general I’m not a stress eater. I was often so busy I simply didn’t have time to eat. Every time we go through one of these periods with my family that’s the case and I usually lose a little weight. Mostly, though, I continued eating fairly well.

I had planned to do a little eating reset while Mr. Judy was out of town, but alas, I was only home a few days that week so there was no time and it didn’t happen.

Grade Earned: A-

Support

  • Massage? Yes! Just squeaked in with this almost the last day of September and it was glorious.
  • Chiropractor Appointment? Does teaching yoga to the chiropractor count? Seriously, though, I’m not due for a bit.
  • Do I need a hair appointment? I’ve made the appointment, but unfortunately I have to wait a couple of weeks..

Grade Earned: A

Cross Training
Yoga continued strong. There was at least an attempt at some light strength training or some bodyweight exercising. There was also a lot of walking to fill in the gaps in running and other movement. Most days I’d go for Soul Strolls either in the morning or the evening at my parents — sometimes both.

Grade Earned: B+

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September was definitely a best of times/worst of times month

September 2019  gets  . . . 
. . . a B. Doing what I could, when I could. Lots and lots of walking. Some running. Maintaining my weight. No injuries. One 5k with a 3rd place AG award. Passing my YTT and beginning to teach Yoga a little.

September Goals:

    • Look at Fall halfs!. N. Really don’t think it’s gonna happen.
    • Strength train 2 – 3x week. Y. I’m gonna say yes. I think I did enough light weights or bodyweight to qualify for 2 x week.
    • Work up to 8 miles. Maybe 9?. Y. I have a feeling I won’t be doing the 15k this year. So I did get up to 8 miles but not sure I want to go further right now. Most of my running friends are either doing long races right before, not running longer distances, or injured. Don’t really think I want to do it alone with no longer race I’m training for.
    • Working on practice teaching — and finding a studio to teach/sub at. Y/N. Studio teaching is on hold right now. My schedule is just too topsy-turvy. I am doing a private class to one student right now, and perhaps will do another class at a location that is top secret for the moment.
    • Foam roll almost daily. N. I’m definitely not beating myself up about this, it is what it is, but my body is crying out for it!
    • Continue to try to eat intuitively — unless the weight starts to creep up. Y. Still pretty much maintaining my weight. So for now it’s working.
    • Meal plan on the weekends! N. I tried, again, but I never got around to actually writing where the recipes I wanted to try were from. Need to get back to that!
    • A race? At some point?. Y. The Running Gods gave us some more awesome weather and you can read about it here.

Which leads me to October Goals:

  • Strength train 2 – 3x week. This will always be a goal. As we age, we naturally lose muscle. Bodyweight exercises count.
  • Do my best to remain in running maintenance goal. I have a pretty good feeling October will be super challenging in the running department, but I also don’t want to have to rebuild from scratch if I don’t have to. Will continue to listen closely to my body and try to make wise decisions.
  • Develop at least one vinyasa class. I may not be able to commit to a class right now, but if I can have a couple of classes all set to go, maybe I can get on some substitute lists.
  • Foam roll when I’m able. That might mean bringing my foam roller with me to my parents. Or just making sure I do it when I run at home.
  • Continue to try to eat intuitively — unless the weight starts to creep up. Winter is coming. It’s a time I — and most people — tend to put on weight if not mindful.
  • Meal plan on the weekends! I’ll keep putting this in until I get back to it. I actually wrote down a few recipes I wanted to make in my journal. Because I often know what I want to make but not where it is (Pinterest, which cookbook, etc).
  • A race? At some point? Big maybe. I wanted to do a 10k, but it depends on what’s going on in my life. There are plenty of October races to choose from, though, even if I don’t do a longer distance.

btuesdaytopics

Linking up with Zenaida Arroyo and Kim @ Kookyrunner

This week I am also joining up with Running on Happy, Suzlyfe, Crazy Running Girl, and Coach Debbie Runs each week for the Coaches’ Corner linkup

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September 2017: Did I pass?

~ Chocolaterunsjudy ~ 22 Comments

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September was a good month for running with beautiful Fall weather — right up until Summer decided to return just a few weeks before my Fall half marathon.

One thing that wasn’t good this training cycle? The speed work. For whatever reason, I was never able to hit my paces for speedwork. I can’t lie; after a while, it got me down. Most of the summer I couldn’t even blame the weather!

I decided it was okay if I didn’t meet my goal for this race, since I’d already had a pretty awesome year of running.

On the other hand, there was still hope because I found that with just a few exceptions, my easy runs got faster. And my 11 mile LSD was the fastest I’ve ever run 11 miles (outside of a race).

I still don’t know what race day will hand me, but I know my goal is still within reach. And I also know that a lot of things can happen over 13.1 miles. So here’s how I got after it in September:

Getting in scheduled runs
September saw a lot of runs being shuffled around. For the most part they got done, except for that senior moment when I brought two left shoes to my parents.

It’s all good, though, because that week I ended up tacking on a 5k to the end of the week I wasn’t already planning on. Things have a way of working out.

Grade Earned:  A-

Recording my runs
Still struggling with this one as I hit my peak training, had all sorts of appointments coming out of my ears, an overnight visit to the folks, and brunches out with the running crew.

I know I will kick myself for not doing a better job next year.

Grade Earned: B

Dynamic Warmup
It’s still oh-so-tempting to skimp on this. Sometimes I may decrease the reps I do to shorten it a bit, but I’m still getting it in and I even added one of the ankle mobility exercises from this blog post here.

Grade Earned: A+

Foam Rolling
I didn’t bring anything to foam roll with me when I went to visit my parents (I blame the humid 12 miles the day before!) but hey, it’s all still good since I ended up not running that day anyway.

Grade Earned: A

Respecting my body
I think I listened closely to my body and definitely respected it. And I was rewarded by not getting sick (knocks on wood).

Grade Earned: A

Nutrition
I’ve continued to eat pretty clean since I did Danette May’s 30 Day Challenge in August (read about it here), still using many of those recipes — but still going out to eat and enjoying a highly caloric treat (often shared — I never did tell you about the hot fudge brownie sundae that 4 of us couldn’t finish, did I?).

My weight has continued to fluctuate, which is fine as I’m at a healthy weight, but my clothes continue to feel good and so do I.

Grade Earned: A+

Support
Part of why September got so crazy busy was that I started to make all the appointments I’d been putting off for a while: massage, chiropractor, eye doctor, a consultation for Lola’s dental. I could have done some of these earlier (although the chiro really needed to be before my race!).

I still have some appointments I really need to get after — Bandit needs a dental, too (but I’m waiting to see how I feel about Lola’s). Gizmo is overdue for an annual. And then there’s the hair . . . I’ve been so busy all summer long on the weekends and my hairdresser only works on the weekends, so I’ve taken to just pushing the bangs back and shoving a bobby pin in there to keep it out of my eyes.

Grade Earned: A

Cross Training
We got a hike in on Labor Day. I did get to the pool once. I wanted to go more, but I ended up with a lot of appointments on the day I usually swim. Still no stationary biking.

I also got back to my almost-daily short Yoga practice (and sometimes longer). Even though I was doing a lot of stretching and Pilates, I noticed that my hamstrings just kept getting tighter and tighter. No bueno. With Jasyoga (and some of my other yoga DVDs) I can stretch them out in just 5 minutes (and other areas of my body, too).

Grade Earned: A

August 2017 gets  . . . 
. . . an A. It wasn’t perfect, but it was pretty damn good.

Which leads me to:

Goals for September:

  • Keep my journal up to date. Mostly, but not completely
  • Return to swimming when the pool re-opens. Doesn’t have to be every week. Y
  • Epsom salt soak once a week. I did it once . . . 
  • Continue my clean eating plan — maybe about 90%. Deprivation never works! Y
  • Continue with Pahla B’s Guide to Faster Running for strength training. Y, although I got off track a few times when I felt run down and didn’t quite finish it in time for my half
  • Foam roll immediately following roll unless I’m not home, and then do it when I get home. I’m just too liable to let it go if I wait until the evening. Y

Goals for October:

  • Enjoy my half — finishing = winning
  • Get right back to clean eating when I get back home
  • Epsom salt soak — shoot for every week; every week even better
  • Swim every other week; every week even better
  • Continue to research ID halfs
  • Trail race (if the weather’s decent — yes, I’m a fair weather trail runner, except for my only trail half!)

I’m linking up with with MCM Mama Runs, Marcia’s Healthy Slice, and My No Guilt Life for the Tuesdays on the Run linkup.

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This week I am also joining up with Running on Happy, Suzlyfe, Crazy Running Girl, and Coach Debbie Runs each week for the Coaches’ Corner linkup

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