Some New Goals for My Today...My NOW. And Bring on the PULL-UPs!

Goals Goals Goals.  As far back in my life as I can remember, I've been a goal-driven person.  When I was a kid, I might not have known that the things I set in my mind to work towards were even called "Goals" but I had them.  I've always had something in my head and my heart that I wanted to strive for.    To go along with the goals I've set for myself has been quite a heavy dose of REFLECTION and this has been KEY for me in being able to accomplish the things I set out to do.  As I continue to work towards things that I want for my life, I've always been able to take a step back and see myself from another perspective. I can see where I'm struggling and where I need to make changes.  I can also see the progress I've made along the way...taking the time to notice this progress makes me want to keep going!  Many times I set goals that only last for a short while before getting scraped.  And sometimes my goals continue to hold for months and years.  No matter how long I sit with a goal, having them always makes me a better me.  

Recently I've felt such a pull to take a step back and start fresh with some goals.  Things have just been moving so quickly and it seems as if every day, every week has been FULL with changes and NEW NEW NEW with this move to North Carolina.  Now that things are settling into "normal" and this place feels more like home, I've had a chance to sit with my old friend REFLECTION and think about where I'm at with life and myself and where I want to be.  

Some new Goals for my TODAY...for my NOW:

• Connect on a deeper level.  So much of me craves connection and an opportunity to share my life moments with those that I love and miss but a huge part of me has been craving an equal amount of privacy or rather a closer knit social circle. Not sure how I will go about doing this but taking time for e-mail, phone calls, special "I'm thinking of you" text messages", filtering my facebook audience so I'm connecting with less people and more with the people that truly care.  
• Be PRESENT and engaged with my kids without phone or other distractions nearby.  
• Read more books.  I have a reading list for the summer and it looks like this will be my summer of classics.  I'm done with Jane Eyre and on to a book called Silas Marner (almost done) by George Elliot.  Excited for the next one.  
• Enrich my MIND (again, more reading along with visiting museums, writing, having more meaningful conversations with friends, etc.)
• Stay off FB way way MORE...limit times that I check Facebook, e-mail and other social media outlets.  And share less and with limited people.  
• Use my Gifts.  Volunteer, connect, being open and conscious of giving of myself to the world . 
• Continue to reflect and set goals.  This is a goal in itself.
• Get in touch with my spiritual side that has been neglected lately.    
• FITNESS.  I have no real running goals right now other than to run often and running what I feel like running.  Some days this will be 5 miles and other days only 3.  But it is so wonderful to not be training for anything specific.  One of my biggest goals with fitness in addition to a healthy lifestyle (diet, staying active, etc.) is to continue to build on strength.  I've been doing lots of: Lunges, push ups, hill running, dips, abs, pull-ups, etc.  My body is shouting out a big "THANK YOU" for the drop in mileage and just more of an overall balance to my fitness routine.  
• One of the goals I've set for myself this summer is to do 10 full pull-ups by the end of the summer.  Right now I'm at about 6 to 7 but I have some work to do with not bringing my knees up.  I'm not entirely sure of the "Proper" form for a pull-up but I plan to make sure to have that down by the end of the summer.  I think that instead of doing pull-ups every day, I might break it up to 3 times a week with 3 sets of pull-ups (as many as I can do).  Many times,  I walk by my pull-up bar and I  make a point to pull myself up on the bar and hold myself up for as long as I can last before continuing whatever it was I was doing.  It helps that the bar is in my kids' bedroom door frame.  Below is a video of my 6 pull-ups from last night and almost 7 today.  You'll notice what I mean by my knees coming up.  But here's to making progress!  10 seems like a lot more than 6 and 7 when it comes to pull-ups.   

Are you a goal driven person?  Do you write your goals down or just keep them in your mind?  What's one of your biggest goals in life right now? 

Tips for doing proper pull-ups? Feel free to critique my form.   

Amanda 

Life, Motherhood, Running Randomness

There are days lately where I forget I even have this blog and when I wonder why I even post on here at all anymore.  I guess I've just been in a different place in my life as I adjust to this new place in life.  Lots to adjust to too.  But life is finally starting to slow down a bit and things are feeling a little more normal instead of a constant WHIRLWIND of NEW NEW NEW.  Things are still VERY NEW and every day still brings with it something that I've never done or seen before but my old friend Routine is making her way back into my world.  And I'm realizing more and more just how much I love a little routine in my life. I'm also remembering the gift that this blog is to me.  Expressing my thoughts on here  is an outlet to me. It allows me a way of writing my heart as it comes or sharing my adventures as they happen.  It is different to me than just writing in my private journal.  Even if nobody but ME reads this thing, it is still just that... a Piece of ME.  Glad for it.  I guess in a way, many of my blog posts are a form of therapy or self-talk... this blog helps me process in ways that I might not otherwise.  So, here I am... the last day in awhile that I will have a short stretch of hours just to me since summer vacation for the kids starts.  I have a million things I could be doing right now (running included) but I'm making myself just sit down and take some blog time.  I know that I'll walk away from it ENERGIZED and clear headed.

Days like today call for some a REALLY RANDOM BULLET FORMAT... thoughts, goals, gratitude all rolled into one big hodge podge of a blog post.

Life:  

• LOVE living here in North Carolina.  Asheville is unlike any place I've ever been before.  The quality of life we have experienced here is so good for our family.  We are even more in love with the small town we live in that is just outside of Asheville proper.  It is a small town feel but not too small to where we feel isolated from the culture and vibrance of a city.  
• I think that perhaps my favorite of all things about where I live right now is my front porch.  I spend so much time out there!  Coffee on my porch swing in the mornings, curling up with a blanket and glass of wine in the evening, dinner with the family out there, meeting all the young families that walk by our house at all hours of the day (especially evenings)...oh, and just sitting out there and listening to the BEAUTIFUL SONG of the birds!  They sing ALL. Day. Long!  No joke.  I've never heard so many bird songs in my life.  Sometimes I sit out there to read and write and I will just get lost in the songs they sing.  I even hear them at night right before I go to sleep.  
• I've been reading Jane Eyre.  Why have I waited this long to read this book??!  Beautiful, romantic, inspiring, and a book that given me just an overall appetite for bringing my reading life back in full force.  Trying to find time for that is another thing but not training for anything right now means more free time.  I feel awakened.  This summer will be my summer of reading classics...I've said this before but I'm determined to really do it!  
• Meeting new people is exciting and energizing but I'm realizing more and more as I get older just how much of an introverted side I have to go along with my very extroverted side.  I'm a person that needs a certain amount of time with just ME...getting lost in my thoughts, processing life, writing, reading, observing...I NEED this time.  Spending too much time in constant social situations without alone time can be draining for me.  My battery needs recharged with alone time... plenty of it.  
• I think part of the reason I get drained from too much social time is that I tend to share so much so fast with people.  Some call this a lack of filter.  I just think of it as being me.  However, I admit, with this tendency to open up to people so quickly, comes a certain level of vulnerability after the fact.    I love quickly, share freely, let people in easily... but gosh, there's a part of me that wishes I was a little more reserved sometimes... it would make certain things easier.  I'm feeling a tad vulnerable lately with all of the new people I've met (but nobody that truly knows me here) and just an overall need to put my shell back on for a little bit.  But who am I kidding?  I never keep my shell on for very long.
• This big move across the country has actually made me feel closer to my forever friends that are there no matter what.  It has been comforting to me to know that these people are only a phone call, letter or e-mail away.  A simple text of "I love you" or "I miss you" or a joke or picture...these things are treasures to me lately.  Big smiles on my heart knowing that these connections are timeless.  

Motherhood:

• My mother heart is so so full of JOY and COMFORT lately.  My kids have adjusted so well to being here.  They are thriving...gymnastics, swim lessons, travel, sports, adventure, and the best of all is that they are growing so close.  They may not have made a ton of super close friends just yet but instead, they have begun to become the best of friends.  Don't get me wrong, they still FIGHT like crazy but the love and interactions I've seen among them has been priceless.  I know that they pick up on our happiness in being here too.  
• My son gave his preschool teachers a small gift that he made along with a note that he "wrote".  I can't say enough about how much happiness it brought for me to see them get down on his level and read his note so personally.  They looked in his eyes and answered his questions that he wrote.  And they just made him feel SO SPECIAL.  Ah, this was worth a million dollars to me.  
• My kindergartner (almost 1st grader) has gone from reading a little bit to always having her nose in a chapter book or magazine and constantly writing letters to her family back home in Oregon.  This has been another gift in the motherhood department.  And one that has made me know that she is in a good place with her school.  
• My oldest is 2nd grade going on high school.  Really, she's always been this way but there have been lots of conversations lately that I didn't think we'd be having this soon.  The good thing is that she feels safe talking to me (so far) and I'm so glad we've been able to have such special time together lately...time to really talk and connect and let her know that I'm ALWAYS here to hear her. 
• Truly trying to remember to be in the moment with my kids.  I'm so much better at this than I was when they were younger.  As they get older, there is so much more I feel like we can share together...jokes, conversations, stories, thoughts about life, appreciating beauty... Just savoring the gift that motherhood is and ENJOYING them! Even if I do feel like I want to rip my hair out 1/3 of the time.  Ha!  
• So much power in just saying "I'm Sorry" to your kids (to anyone really) when we make mistakes and react in ways we aren't proud of.  I've done this a lot the past year but telling them that I'm sorry and admitting my faults shows them that it's okay to make mistakes and that they don't have to be perfect to be wonderful and loved. 

Running:

•  RUNNING.  Running has taken a very different seat in my life compared to a few months ago.  I'm not training for anything.  I'm not even running very many miles.  I'm certainly not logging any mileage or following any plans.  I'm JUST RUNNING and LOVING the gift that it is!  

• Just for fun, I ran 4 miles two days ago with on again off again 200s with the faster ones being around 6:40 pace.  Not fast enough to be repeat pace but a nice little fartlek type run to get my heart rate up and help me sweat like a pig.  So good for me.  
• Most of my runs are easy and fun with some random lunges or push ups thrown in for good measure.  
• Sub 8's still come pretty easily but my endurance is hilarious these days.  
• Yesterday, my husband and I got to go on a trail run date for his lunch break.  AH, I love trail running!  Especially with him, my favorite running partner.  
• Speaking of my husband, he will be running a marathon in September along with all the other many people hoping for a BQ.  I know he has it in him and I'm glad to support him in his training after all the time he has supported me.

Speaking of running, better get that in now or I'll miss my opportunity.  And friends from Oregon coming to visit this weekend...can't wait to see friends!  

*  What's your favorite classic to read??  Please share as I make my summer reading list.  

Happy Friday! I miss my Runninghood Community!

Amanda

First Trail Race. 30k Cradle to the Grave. Wow!

So happy to cross this finish line.  Slowest race I've ever run/hiked/walked in my life.  But an incredible experience unlike anything I've ever done!  

A few weeks ago, I decided to do something a little crazy.  Well CRAZY is all relative.  But it felt a little crazy then and it surely feels a little crazy now.  A good crazy.  An exhilarating crazy.  The kind of crazy that makes you feel like you're really LIVING life!  I signed up for my very first trail race. Not just a little one either.  A 30k. The Cradle to the Grave 30k here in North Carolina.  I didn't know anything about the race course.  In fact, I didn't know much about trail racing period.  I've done very little of it in comparison to someone that would call themselves a "trail runner".  After today, I've realized a few things....about trail racing, myself, my day, and about these Appalachian runner mountain folk in Asheville, North Carolina:

1. Never trust an elevation map unless you really know how to read one.  Understanding the numbers on the side of the chart and not just going by how flat or hilly it looks on the screen is quite important.   Scale means something on those things!  
2. Never trust these crazy (good crazy) Asheville runners when they talk about things being "fairly flat".  They lie.  Ha!  Or they are so warped from running here for so long that they don't understand what their hills are really like...BRUTAL! They are some tough tough runners! 
3. If a runner from Asheville tells you that a course "Isn't that bad with elevation", expect VERY HILLY.  If they tell you that a course has "Big Hills", trust them.  Be very afraid.  Run the other way.  
4. I have a completely new respect and understanding of what it means to be a trail runner.  Wow!  
5. Going down steep hills with technical trails is an art in itself.  I don't know how these people did it so fast.  I was almost as slow going down the mountain (literally a hike for 2 miles up) as I was going up.  
6. These trail running women that passed me at the end are amazing!  
7. Running this trail race is like nothing I've EVER done with running before in my life.  It was EXTREME running and would surely fall in the category of extreme sports in my opinion (but that's coming from someone that isn't into extreme sports AT ALL).  
8. Running a road marathon and PRing is a completely different kind of racing than it is to run 18 plus miles that involves shin deep mud, knee deep rushing water, fallen trees, roots, rocks, streams, etc. etc.  
9. I have never been so hungry in my life while in a race.  Towards the end I walked a lot...or hiked.  I was dreaming of a cold beer and a burger.  Anything really.  And then I found a quarter of a peanut butter sandwich in my fuel belt...HOLY MOLY!  I have never been so excited to eat a piece of food in my LIFE!!  Ever. I walked and ate my sandwich and soaked up all that was around me.  
10. Something so FREEING about not being a slave to the GARMIN and knowing that time is not what this race experience was about.  At All! Time on the Garmin is of NO Concern!  At least it wasn't for me.  There were a few stretches of wider trail where I picked up the pace to a sub 8 mile but most of the race was single track and technical.  No way that I was going to run any decent splits. 
11. Trail runners at this event know how to celebrate after a race...The first thing I got was a cold beer and then warm BBQ. 
12. Something about running through rivers, crossing logs, having your feet covered in mud, and running through pouring rain that makes you feel AMAZING and TOUGH!  
13. I worked muscles today that I'm pretty sure I didn't know I had....or at least I'll be certain of this tomorrow.  
14. Today was a humbling experience but it was also an experience that has made me feel so STRONG and ALIVE and PROUD of Myself.  I'm so so glad I took this challenge and that I keep taking these opportunities to try new things in life.  They are stretching me in so many new ways.  YES YES YES to LIVING FULLY!  
15. When I woke up this morning and it was raining so incredibly hard (Um, I'm talking torrential downpour), I almost laughed at the idea of racing a trail race.  But I'm so glad I did it anyway...despite the way less than idea conditions that made this already DIFFICULT course, absolutely CRAZY! There's that good crazy again. 
16. Thankful for a friend that I met here that has become a fast friend.   She's the kind of person that inspires me to be MORE of MYSELF.  Especially with trying new things with running....like how she sent me up a mountain the other day for my training run.  ha! 
17. If I do this again, I will bring more fuel and definitely take my water and Nuun again!  I found that my body craved REAL food today and I will for sure pack at least another half peanut butter sandwich...it was a piece of heaven to have on the course today.  

I wish that I could have taken pictures of this course today so I could share what it was like.  Well, not really because that would have taken away from my experience (and my phone would have been ruined from the rain) but it really would have helped in explaining just how intense this was.

Rushing water

Cold Puddles

Thick mud

Pouring rain

Fallen Trees

Steep inclines and declines

Jutting rocks

Root covered ground

Lush Forest

Vibrant Green

Sounds of nature

Logs for bridges

Heavy breathing, slow climb

Digging Deep 

Slow doesn't matter

Soul Alive

New Limits

Many Moments of Solitude

Alone with Thoughts

Conversations with Myself

So happy to have done my first ever trail race!  An Amazing one to have as a first!  And this Brooks Tank is officially my racing tank after wearing it for the past 4 or 5 races.  I LOVE it!  

 She placed second in the 5k!  It was so nice to have her to celebrate and carpool with today.  

My brand new Brooks PureGrits will never be the same again!  :)

I'm not sure when I will do another trail race but I do know that I found something NEW today (within myself and in the experience) that I'm richer for finding.  Truly a LIFE moment that has made an impact.  So glad that I decided to try something I've never done before...it's these things that make life extraordinary.

Amanda