2010 GOALS

*2010 GOALS*

I completed 729 miles in 2008 on my elliptical.
My goal for 2009 was 1000 elliptical miles. - I didn't use my elliptical near as much as I planned on in 2009. But between it, training for a half-marathon, Bloomsday and the half - I clocked between 400 and 500 miles. So I hit about half of my ambitious goal and instead of beating myself up over it. I'm proud of myself and what I accomplished in 2009. I walked my first half-marathon (and learned which shoes not to where). I didn't give up, even when I really, really, really wanted to (and that was with 5 miles still to go). It helped that I had awesome friends with me each step of the way and that my family came to cheer me on. So I'm proud that I did something.

So for 2010 my mileage goal will be 800 miles (elliptical, workout videos, tracks, trails, etc.). I'm not going to limit my miles to just the elliptical since I'm doing my body good as long as I am moving. I also plan on completing another half-marathon this year (looks like the Spokane Half is scheduled for 10/10/2010). I want to beat my 2009 time of 4:39:35 (a very doable goal).

I lost and kept off 11.7 pounds in 2008.
My goal for 2009 is to loss and keep off at least 24 pounds.
In 2009 I was able to lose and keep off an additional 3.1 pounds. Bringing pounds lost and kept off to 14.8 pounds. Didn't hit my goal, but for the second year in a row I lost instead of gained and that is worth celebrating (by dancing not eating junk food).

My goal for 2010 is to end it lighter than I started it. My minimum weight loss goal is to lose 12 pounds (beating 2008's personal best). But the goal I really want to hit is losing 52 pounds. That's a pound a week and if I consistently work at it (eat healthier, exercise, and make sure I get my water) I know that I can do it. So anytime during 2010 feel free to ask me how I am doing towards reaching my goals and give me a kick in the pants if I need it. Thanks!

So to help me keep track of my health goals for 2010 I am starting a health point system for myself.
Each day I can earn:
1 point for drinking at least 8 glasses of straight water.
1 point for meeting my fruit and veggie goal. (Something I really need to work on. My goal for the first week is to make sure I get at least 1 fruit or veggie in a day. That goal will vary week to week as eating fruits and veggies becomes more of a habit.
1 point for each day I exercise.
Bonus points:
1 point for every mile I do.
1 point for every pound I lose (to be tallied at year end)
So that's 1095 health points possible plus the mile and pound bonus.
So if I meet my goal of 800 miles and my goal of 52 pounds lost. The health points I want to hit is 1947. I'll be keeping track of the regular points week to week. Possible 21 points + mileage done. I'm looking to make 2010 a healthy year for me.

*finishes apple and skips off to do her workout*

Wanted: Someone willing to be my "Jillian" or "Bob" to kick me in the butt when I need it. I know it would be helpful to have someone frequently checking in on me and not afraid to tell me when I need to get my butt in gear. If you'd like to take on this role daily, weekly, or monthly let me know.

Week 1 Goals:
1. Eat 1 fruit or veggie daily.
2. Drink 8+ glasses of water.
3. Workout.

Day #1
1. Apple - check.
2. 8 glasses - check.
3. EA Active 6 Week Challenge Workout #1 - 30 min - check.
Leslie Sansone's Walk Slim Fast Start - 30 min - 2 miles - check.
Health Points Earned Today: 5
All goals met for Day #1!

Day #2
1. Banana & 2 plates of salad - check.
2. 8 glasses - check.
3. EA Active 6 Week Challenge Workout #2 - 30 min - check.
Leslie Sansone's Walk Slim 3 Fast Miles - 45 min - 3 miles - check.
Health Points Earned Today: 6
All goals met for Day #2!

Day #3
1. Salad - check.
2. 8 glasses - check.
3. Leslie Sansone's Walk Slim 3 Fast Miles - 45 min - 3 miles - check.

2010
Points Earned: 17
Miles Traveled: 8
Longest Streak: 3 days

So far, so good!

Kids, Pets, and Sod

The morning started out with me helping my Mom by watching 3 of her kiddos. A pretty typical morning with them accept the youngest two seemed determine to break their diaper records (I'll spare you the details as I don't prefer reliving them). As the 2 youngest slept, Kandra and I bundled up to start the process of picking the grapes off the grapevine while Mom continued to prep the backyard for sod. We took a break for lunch and Steven decided to wear more than he ate, but that's typical of a toddler. Then they all went down for a nap. Steven's didn't last long and eventually we both ended bundled up to go outside and help with the sod (he helped by playing in his car and petting the dogs).

So today my list of DIY projects that I've had a hand in expanded. I learned how to lay sod. Then I proceeded to sod the backyard with my Mother. The first piece of sod went down and Spunky (one of our two dogs) immediately approved by stretching out across the piece of grass. It was really entertaining at first. You see, we laid the first two rows and then we realized that we had forgotten to sprinkle the ironite. So two rows quickly get rolled back up so that we can lay down the mineral before rolling them back out again. The process then begins to get a little easier - well at least the sod laying part. Since in addition to the two dogs we now have a toddler in his spinny seat shaped like a car and an infant in her bouncy seat vying for attention. So little by little the sod goes in - between bottles and entertaining faces and making sure my little brother could see everthing and petting the dogs.

I had just about finished with one side of the yard as Mom worked on leveling the other when it was time to go pick Jeffrey up from school. So you add a hyper 1st grader who wants to run on the grass or stomp on the freshly tilled & leveled dirt to the mix and you can probably guess the kind of chaos that ensues. He is content for a little while to help roll out the sod since that is what Joey (another brother) had shown him how to do. Then Kandra wakes up from her nap and joins in with the running on the grass, stomping on the dirt, and rolling out the sod process. They actually all did really well considering their ages.

So the second side began about the time that Jeffrey and Kandra decided they were cold and wanted to play inside. The second side was not as straight forward as the first. The ground had to be mapped out. In the uppercorner I need to account for 3 foot flower beds (that don't exist yet) from the fences and an 8 inch gravel water line from the house (that also does not yet exist). The first piece of tricky cutting was around the window well. Time to start cutting chunks out to fit just right. Not bad as that was just right angles. Next we add in the angled edge of the swingset area - just an angle, nothing to tricky. Both dogs have taken to laying just one row of sod away from me so that if they whimper cute enough they'll get pet between piece laying. Then enter the meow of my darling Twirp. A rather pathetic, I want all your attention meow and a pawing at the gate. Simultaneously, both dogs jump up to full alert and move to the gate. Rascal (the other adorable kitty) joins in the fun and both cats proceed to the top of the cat house where they can peak over the fence and be pet without allowing the dogs to get them... and so begins the process of walk to the back fence for a new roll of sod, drop sod off, walk a few more feet to fence to pet meowing cats, then whimpering dogs watching meowing cats, then lay sod and trim, then back to get another roll of sod... It was rather cute. It shows me that even though Twirp is getting up their in years he is still the same old Twirp. As a kitten he'd sit on the fence between our yard and the neighbors waving his tail at the yapping weiner dog next door. I think one of his hobbies is teasing dogs. Eventually I make it around the edge of the house to do my oddest shape cut around a single brick. Fun stuff!

Now, just in case their aren't enough distractions. Let's add in sprinkling rain, fading light, and the temperature starting to drop. The little ones have all gone inside as the trek to the sod pile becomes one more by route memory than site. Move the rock and the baby toy that are hazards for ankles and feel around for a sod roll that isn't buried under another. Make your way back to the portion of the yard that is now lit by a flashlight and continue to cut the pieces to the right shapes... like around the rounded flower box. Eventually dinner has been put off for too long and with a few more rows left to go two weary women enter the house.

Chilli is a great way to warm up from the cold as my pants were pretty much soaked through from kneeling in wet grass. After putting the kids to bed Mom finished the last few rows. There is grass in the backyard again!

My Half-Marathon Time

4:39:35 which averages to a little over a 21 minute mile. Considering my friends and I walked the whole thing and I had on the wrong pair of shoes for it. I'm not going to complain (except maybe about the blisters).

I'm really proud of my buddy Mason as this was his first race ever. Combine the distance with the freezing weather and he impressed me greatly.

Just checked weather history.
Race temp at start and for first 5 miles: 20-25 degrees F.
Race temp second set of 5 miles: 25-35 degrees F.
Race temp last 3 miles: 35-39 degrees F.
So below freezing for the bulk of the race...

I Complete a HALF-MARATHON!

*happy dance*

I completed a HALF MARATHON!!!



I am so sore! I'll post more about it tomorrow.

Thank Ketchuplover that song ("I think I'm turning Japanese") is now stuck in my head... again.

Thanks Shell. I'm having fun with both EA Active and learning Japanese.

So I've volunteered to be the Community Leader for my city for the 5k challenge. Now I have the task of figuring out the best place for a race in late Oct/early Nov, because my mother pointed out that weather here isn't necessarily that co-operative during that time frame. I may have to contact the local gyms to see if any of them would let us utilize their indoor track... or maybe one of the schools... hmmm.


Got my workout in today and it was lunge after lunge after lunge. Unfortunately, my knee started to twinging the third to last set of lunges - so my last 2 and a half sets weren't as deep . But I made it through

Working Out

And I'm back again today Got my workout in this morning and loved it! mind you, I've realized I enjoy side lunges, moderately loath reverse lunges, and utterly despise forward lunges. Happily, this mornings workout only had side lunges. I am happy to report that I am seeing leg muscle again. I feel confident that if I stick with it I will be able to meet my Season 8 goal of 2 lbs a week (32 lbs gone by the finale). In my commenting on EA Active I went to their website and found out they are doing a 5K challenge (the run to take place between Oct. 17 & Nov. 15). Now I'll be completing my half marathon on October 11. So I figured I would sign up for this challenge and see if I can manage running it. There's no races in my city during the time period they gave - so, I figured I could convince a friend or two to create one and sent them an inquiry about becoming a community leader. I think it would be fun to meet some other people who have a 5K goal in mind that live in my area. That and I've realized that motivating others tend to in turn motivate me. So yeah. I'm a bit crazy... almost wondering if I can get people who'd want to do a costumed 5K on Halloween morning I think that would make for some fun photos to send into EA Active. Really, at this point I'm just rambling. So if you are reading this, THANK YOU!

Highlight of Day: Mom asking if I'd weighed myself recently because it looks like I've lost. *happy dance* Tis always a great feeling when others notice and comment on my progress. *puts in piggy bank of fuel to help get me through the blah days that are bound to attack on my journey*

Notes of Accomplishment for Today:
* I finished my last bit of program certification at work today. Passed my 118 question SAT math instructor exam with flying colors. Done with all the training videos. Yay!
* According to my flashcard tracker (@ smart.fm) I've got half of the Katakana alphabet memorized and 75% of the Hiragana alphabet memorized. So I feel like I am progressing well (especially since I only started the Katakana 2 days ago) in my self-studies of Japanese. I am speeding up on how quickly I recognize the characters. As soon as I've mastered the Hiragana list I will begin on one of the many Kanji list. I'm so excited!

Today's Accomplishments

Got my workout in this morning and loved it! Mind you, I've realized I enjoy side lunges, moderately loath reverse lunges, and utterly despise forward lunges. Happily, this mornings workout only had side lunges. I am happy to report that I am seeing leg muscle again. I feel confident that if I stick with it I will be able to meet my Season 8 goal of 2 lbs a week (32 lbs gone by the finale of Biggest Loser). I went to the EA Active website and found out they are doing a 5K challenge (the run to take place between Oct. 17 & Nov. 15). Now I'll be completing my half marathon on October 11. So I figured I would sign up for this challenge and see if I can manage running it. There's no races in my city during the time period they gave - so, I figured I could convince a friend or two to create one and sent them an inquiry about becoming a community leader. I think it would be fun to meet some other people who have a 5K goal in mind that live in my area. That and I've realized that motivating others tend to in turn motivate me. So yeah. I'm a bit crazy... almost wondering if I can get people who'd want to do a costumed 5K on Halloween morning. I think that would make for some fun photos to send into EA Active. Really, at this point I'm just rambling. So if you are reading this, THANK YOU!

Highlight of Day:
Mom asking if I'd weighed myself recently because it looks like I've lost. *happy dance* Tis always a great feeling when others notice and comment on my progress. *puts in piggy bank of fuel to help get me through the blah days that are bound to attack on my journey*

Notes of Accomplishment for Today:
I finished my last bit of program certification at work today. Passed my 118 question SAT math instructor exam with flying colors. Done with all the training videos. Yay!
According to my flashcard tracker (@ smart.fm - great site - if you ever need to memorize anything I highly recommend this site) I've got half of the Katakana alphabet memorized and 75% of the Hiragana alphabet memorized. So I feel like I am progressing well (especially since I only started the Katakana 2 days ago) in my self-studies of Japanese. I am speeding up on how quickly I recognize the characters. As soon as I've mastered the Hiragana list I will begin on one of the many Kanji list. I'm so excited!