Running (wo)Man

I am sure most of you have seen this picture, it has been floating around the internet for quite some time.  I've seen it on Pinterest, Facebook, and Twitter, but every time I see it I laugh so loud because it is so true!  

I have never been a runner, I started skating when I was 12 and I should have started training (running/weights) then too because I was quite the overweight teenager but I thought that skating was enough.  I have stopped and started running programs multiple times over the past few years.  I decided I wanted to be a runner in 2009 and ran the Salt Lake 5K and the Race for the Cure.  That plan got derailed...

Last summer when I decided that I was ready for a change in my life, I recommitted myself to running.  I looked up some races, recruited a friend, and now I am running a half marathon and my friend is running a full marathon in April.  I've made it through a month of committed running.  34.2 miles this month!  Today while I was running I discovered that my easy jog is now at 11 min/mi, my run 10 min/mi, and my sprint pace is at 9 min/mi.  When I first started running regularly, I could not run for more than 5 minutes at an 11 min/mile pace and now that's the easy part of the run.  I am really excited for my official 12 week half marathon training program to start next week!

Here's to twice as many miles in February and actually looking as graceful as the top picture when I run!

2012

I got home from Utah on Monday.  It was amazing to be home among my mountains and my life.  It is remarkable how you can just fly back somewhere, and fall completely back into a life that you love.  I miss my life there, a lot.

The drive back to Saranac Lake, Monday night was not eventful--not normal for me, usually there's a blizzard or frozen rain.  Tuesday it was really really cold, I woke up Wednesday morning and there was no cold water in my house. Frozen pipe, luckily it was only in the bathroom.  Unluckily, I accidentally left the faucet in the bathroom on full blast instead of just a trickle.  When the pipe thawed, it left lots of water coming out of my faucet upstairs.  The drain was blocked and the sink overflowed, probably for the majority of the 5 hours I was gone after lunch.  That lead to water all over the kitchen when I got home and lots of clean up Wednesday night.  Today, I came home from lunch and on my way back to work, I locked my house keys inside my house.

Thankfully, the house is all dry again and the kitchen just needs a little KILZ primer and some paint.  I'm also back in my house.  Thank goodness for the most understanding and awesome landlords ever!  Needless to say, 2012 and I have not had the most awesome of starts and I totally cannot explain where this comes from but I am optimistic that 2012 will still be awesome.

I have great people in my life that remind me of my dreams and goals on a daily basis.  Today I am especially grateful for a "life coach" that reminds me that her super awesome life that I am totally jealous of, will be my life someday too.  

2012 is about staying focused on goals and dreams; its about keeping the BIG picture in mind and let the smaller problems roll off my back; its about moving forward, upward and taking advantage of all opportunities for growth; its about changing my life, about becoming a healthier and happier person.

I'm ready for you 2012!