Happy 2016!
I love that a new year feels like a blank slate, a new beginning. A fresh start. An opportunity for new dreams, new roads to explore.
Now I’m a pretty goal-oriented gal, but I’m not a fan of “New Year’s Resolutions” … sounds so rigid and formal, eh? In fact, several dictionaries specifically describe New Year’s resolutions as “a decision that you make on the first day of the year about the things that you intend to do or stop doing during that year.”
Gee, doesn’t that sound fun?
Instead, I love the approach Dimity and Sarah from Another Mother Runner are taking, setting “intentions” for themselves, rather than resolutions or even goals.
According to Merriam-Webster, an intention is “the thing that you plan to do or achieve : an aim or purpose.” Now that’s more like it. It feels way more realistic, and I love that “intentions” also allow for a little wiggle room because, as we all know, sometimes life happens.
Like last year. I had set a goal for myself of running a sub-2:00 half marathon. And I missed that goal by four seconds. Sure, I ran the race with, oh, pneumonia, but my immediate reaction upon seeing my time was extreme disappointment and lots of beating myself up and negativity. And then I missed my chance at redemption due to my foot injury, which (when combined with the pneumonia) sidelined me for the last few months of 2015.
Do I Did I feel like a failure for not meeting that goal, even though getting sick and being injured were both out of my control? If we’re being honest, yes.
And that’s not a healthy way to live.
So that’s why you won’t see specific time goals with my 2016 intentions. I do want to work on my speed and learn how to attack hills, which I’m hoping will improve my race time and make me a stronger (and hopefully faster) runner, but I’m not going to make the time on a clock — such a black-and-white thing — one of my goals or something that defines success in 2016.
Okay, I’ll hop off my soapbox now. Here are my 2016 running/fitness intentions…
I think they’re all pretty self-explanatory, but there are a few I want to expand on:
- Create a balanced workout schedule that incorporates Piyo and spin (and, I should add, strength training) along with running: This was something I totally overlooked in 2015 and I can’t help but wonder if it impacted my performance and possibly played a role with my foot injury? My strongest year of running was 2013 when I had a more balanced workout schedule.
- Stay injury-free: It feels weird including this one a few weeks before my PT consult for my heel pain (which my podiatrist suspects is related to an alignment issue) and I have no real “plan” to see this through, but it’s more of a reminder to myself to do the things I need to do, whether it be stretching or taking a rest day, to keep myself healthy.
- Have fun and BE KIND to myself: Having such awesome running friends has definitely upped the fun factor in 2015, and I know it will continue to make running a blast in 2016. However, the “being kind to myself” part is a bit harder, but it’s something I really want to work on this year. But I feel like these two go hand-in-hand since, at the end of the day, I am a recreational runner. I’m not getting paid to run. I’m not a professional athlete. I run because it’s great exercise, it clears my head, and I enjoy it. That doesn’t mean I’m not determined and competitive, but it also means I shouldn’t put ridiculous (and unrealistic) expectations on myself. And there’s nothing wrong with that.
I am also thinking about “intentions” in other areas of my life … hmmm, I smell a blog post on that later this week 😉
Regardless of whether you have intentions or goals or resolutions or whatever you want to call them (yes, it is just semantics), here’s to a happy and healthy 2016!
Ericka @ The Sweet Life says
Love those goals, including the “big girl” push ups (I need to do that too, I always revert to knees!). Staying injury free also one of mine!