2011 Weekly Challenges - #1

My brilliant idea for helping me reach my 2011 resolutions is to have one week goals.   I've found that I do very well with short term challenges.  The longer they go, the more likely I am to drop off.  So I'll try a series of one week challenges - and I can repeat that challenge for multiple weeks if it feels right.  I'm going to try to one challenge each for the 2 resolution areas.   The challenges themselves will not necessarily be hard - the hard part for me is keeping them going all week long for those that are daily challenges, or getting them done within the week for those larger challenges.

• 1) Health area challenge - follow the new medication and exercises every day.  This seams simple enough and I have hopes that this will help get the foot exercises into my daily morning habit.  Status: Successful - it took a little work to get the right timing down for the foot exercises, shower, and applying medicated cream.  Net result is the foot pain starts later in the day so things must be working/improving

• 2) De-clutter challenge -  I went back and forth on this one and I think my solution is to come up with one and a second bonus challenge...and I've just determined that reaching a bonus challenge deserves a reward.

1. main: "Take back the house" - this means getting the rest of the Christmas and Christmas guest stuff taken care of by cleaning and properly storing it away.  Status: Giving myself a "Successful minus".  Things are cleaned and out of the way but I'd like to work on a better storage system for them so there is still more work to do.  I could have put the towels, blankets, etc back where and how they were shoved into the linen closet but instead I've left them on a table in the kitchen until I can get the storage bags for them.  Overall this is still a success.   
2. bonus: Consuming or Scheduling the Groupons so they get used timely and don't go to waste - Status: Good effort but not yet successful. the bonus was too much, and most of it did not get done.  It was good to have the stretch goal because it did motivate me to try to get these tasks that have been sitting out there on my to-do list finally completed.  
• Massage - get this schedule, and see if it can be upgraded to a hot stone massage completed, reservation made for Jan 20 for a Hot Stone Massage
• Oil Change -used/ completed
• Oilerie - make the reservations (Thurs, Feb 3 date) - completed, reservation made for Feb 3 with Barb T and Nancy
• California Closets - need to clear closets -- this week's challenge is to tackle the Right side.
• REWARD - ??

The reward concept is hard for me - and probably not for the reasons you think.  Most rewards cost money, and weather I make the challenge or not, its still my money that's being spent and the concept of giving myself permission to spend my own money (when I already feel I have that permission) is just a weird concept to me and does not really feel rewarding.   Another common reward area is food related, and with my desire to reduce my weight, food or more likely decadent food is also less of a motivating factor for me.   I need to give the reward some more thought. 

2011 - the year of reductions

It took a while but I've determined 2011 will be the Year of Reductions!!

My life currently has an unwanted level of abundance.   Too much clutter, too much stock piling, too much weight, etc.   I'm feeling the need to correct these areas.  But I need to be careful of my tendency of perfectionism and the all or nothing approach -- too often I get overwhelmed and don't know where to start or feel like I'm making so little progress there is no point to continuing.  I need to work on overcoming both of those key stoppers for me.  My mantra will be "moving in the right direction"  and "a little is better than nothing".


 So on to the specific subgoals for 2011

Reduction of Stock Piling
I have too many supplies, both food and non-food (office supplies, cleaning supplies, etc).   My philosophy will be to "use it or lose it".    This will be hard - I have a tendency to creatively find bargains and stock up.  Sometimes the bargains are only available when stockpiling and purchasing larger volumes than a single household needs.   This is also a long ingrained idea that comes from the attitude of my parents as I was growing up; finding bargains is a virtue.  These goals will probably cost me more dollars but overall I expect it to create more happiness and I currently have the cash to spend and could use a bit more happiness in my life.

1. Eat from the Pantry Challenges at least 5 times this year for periods of at least 2 weeks.  This means very limited grocery shopping during this period except for pet food and milk (and truly great deals).   I think I could get by without for anything else using substitutions (ie, out of coffee then drink tea in the morning, etc).
2. Remove all periodicals that over 1 month old.  This covers all those old magazines that I have stacked up just waiting to be read.   The initial goal is will be to get all the pre-2009 periodicals out by end of March (first quarter), all remaining 2009 by May, and from then on keep nothing over 1 month old (ie, all January will be out by end of February).
3. Clean out Closets - this is helped by the already purchased groupon for California Closets.  I have too much.   That's it - no additional need to clarify that sentence.   I would like to change that and have less but higher quality clothes with more cross usability.   Its time for some upgrades to what I have.  And time to let somethings go.

Reduction of weight / bmi
This is the standard one across most of Americans - time to get into shape.   And really I'm not going to have the scale define too much of this goal.   Instead, I'm going to focus on some exercise goals and challenges.

1. Time Goal: Complete 5K in under 12 min pace.  Ultimate goal is to get back to being a 10 min mile runner but that goal can wait.  This Fall I was running close to 14 min miles and I believe I can get down to 12 min miles if I keep at it - I need to resolve my plantar fasciitis problem to make this goal
2. Distance Goal: 1/2 Marathon.  Ultimate goal is a full marathon - its on my bucket list.   This year it is a stretch to do a 1/2 marathon and I'm reserving the right to change this if my planter faciatis keeps me from getting the miles I would need to get in for 1/2 marathon training.  Update:  I'm registered for the Ice Age Trail Half Marathon on May 14 and expect to take Marty's trail running program starting April 1 as preparation for it.

These are the goals and I'll meet them by having weekly challenges.  More on that to come.

Feeling like a grown up

I made gravy today....and that made me feel like a grown-up.  Which is funny because just yesterday I had bagel chips for dinner and that decisively made me fell like I was not a grown up. 

I sat on the couch after finishing the bag and contemplated my life. I'm been in a slump over the last couple of months, with an inability to get things done.  One key point I contemplated was I'm constantly amazed but what I'll "live with".    The thing is I hate my house, my life, etc when I let things go and just live with it.  I blame my parents for my unnatural ability to live with things that should be dealt with, because they saw "living with" things as a virtue.   They honestly thought it made them better people to have the ability to live with it.   My tenancy to "live with" things half done, half put away, etc is one of my key barriers to having the life I want.  I look around and I see a coffee table that has had stuff to review for goodwill donations, etc - and its been sitting to the side of the living room since mid August!  I don't think a "normal" person would with that.

Another key barrier is perfectionism - it's not the standard perfectionism -- I don't feel that things have to be perfect .... I feel things have to be perfectly efficient.  And when they are not efficient, then I don't get things done.  I've had a built-in efficiency monitor that goes loco when things, people, and/or processes are not efficient and do things the hard way.   Drives me CRAZY.  And it makes me procrastinate and not get some of the day-to-day stuff done because I'm looking for a different way to make it more efficient or more routine.  Its probably worse in my personal life because in my professional life at IBM there is a TON of inefficiency that I can not control, so I try to control even more in my own life.  Aughh

The third barrier is frugality - another trait I learned from my parents.  I have this trait to an extreme.  I'm looking around my computer as I write this and see several used napkins and tissues - used but they still have the ability to be used again.  It really does bother me to throw these out when I can still see life left in them.  Auggghhh.   I love to "use things up".  I actually do get a feeling of happiness when I finish a box of crackers or cereal, or finish the last piece of paper in a notebook.  Speaking of notebooks, I'm using one now that has pages that dated from 2003 - yes, 7 years ago I was using this same 70 page notebook.   And I've moved at least once (and maybe more times) since I purchased it for about 10 cents - I wonder how much my moving cost was for all these old notebooks with "a few good blank pages in them"?   How can I think that's worth it to keep things like old notebooks that still have 10 sides of blank pages?  I have too much stuff that doesn't bring me pleasure or happiness but that I have a hard time throwing away because they still can be used.  The tissues and napkins are an extreme example but there is much in my house that fits this bill. 

So what do I do to get over this?... just do it.  Take the old Nike slogan and try to apply it to my house.   Just do it, even if its inefficient and they are better ways to do it, just get it done doing whatever it takes (or retakes) Getting my house to be something I'm proud of will make a big difference for my attitude.   I did a change over to clean up piles of stuff that was left in the kitchen, and the clean up made me feel soooo much better about the kitchen.  I need to take that same approach throughout the house.   Its a nice house - I do love it - but for the last few weeks I would have been embarrassed if anyone came in beyond the doorways.

So this weekend will be a big push to get it done.  The priority will be the "public areas" of the house - I'll let the bedrooms slide to another time.  I'm going to get the Family room, living room, dining areas, mud room, and entry areas looking how I want them to look.  Trust me - this is a big task.  But its going to happen.  I have the motivation  to get it done.  Now I just need to find the time.

Building confidence to match capability

I had not run in 2 weeks - it started because of the cold but continued because of fear.  Fear of finding out how much I had lost with that break, of how hard it would feel,  and of how long it would take to get back to where I was with cardio and endurance.

It's true.. the only think you have to fear is fear itself.

Saturday I ran for about 5 miles on the Scuppernong Trail.  I still had the tail end of my cold and had to carry water because my throat needed it constantly throughout the run (our sag wagon had water at around the 3 mile point), but overall it was fine.  If I had not had the trail running program, there is no way I would have gotten out and ran that morning.   No way.   But I did have the program, and I did run, and it was fine.  No, better than fine; it was GOOD.   I felt good, and I felt capable.  I'm grateful I had the insight to sign up for the trail running program - to be fully honest I was a bit intimidated by the concept and wasn't confident that I was capable of  trail running - but it's been good, first and foremost it has kept me running and increased my distances.  Saturda's 5 miles was the longest I've run since 2007 when I completed the Green Bay Half Marathon.

We have 2 more outings for the Trail Program - and the last one could be a 9 miler for me.  There is a 6 mile loop and a 9 mile loop.  Marty (our leader) thinks I can (and should) to the 9 miler.  Once again, I'm not confident...but considering the scuppernong run...I'm beginning to believe I'm capable of it.   What I need I to do is to bump up my running over these next two weeks to prove to myself that I can do the 9 mile run.

As a side note, this post started in my mind with frustration at waking up with a very soar neck today.  It had started yesterday with waking up with a mild soar neck - it hurt a little and had some limited mobility on the left side.  I'm positive the trail running did not help it any.  The neck continued to mildly hurt throughout the day and impacted my sleep.   This morning it was painful - there is no other words to describe it.   And I thought for sure this would keep me from pilates class tonight and probably limiting my additional running this week. Well a heating pad session, a few alieve, some simple stretching and it's feeling much better.  I'm confident that I'll be able to participate in pilates and that the stretching and movement from tonight's class will improve the neck - confident that I'm capable.   And I'm feeling like I'll be able to add those morning runs in this week to make Saturday's trail running go smooth.  It really is very nice and empowering to have a core belief that I'm confident in my capabilities.

Set backs

I really felt like I was in the groove for picking up running again. I looked forward to the outings and felt steady improvements.  The only concern I had was picking the right clothes - I often dressed too warm.   I figured that was relatively minor and would figure itself out the more I ran and the cooler fall weather came into play.

Well, I'm out of the groove and wondering how I can get back into it.   I got sick - the server cold and with sour throat that hurts to swallow, the stuffy nose where you can't breath through at least one of the nostrils at all times, achy and tired.   Over all a miserable condition and there was no way I was going outside to get in any sort of run.  This lasted just over a week.  

I'm now feeling better - still have the cough that I can't fully shake and the throat is not fully back to normal but I feel 100% better than I did last week. 

So its back to finding a way to exercise - specifically getting back to running.  Monday night I worked out with my pilates mat class.   This is the second day I've dressed in sweats with the plan / hope / desire to get in a run throughout the day.  Wish me luck (and focus)

Running History

I've been really pleased with the running this time around.  I've been a "runner" on and off a few times in my life.

The first time was back in college - I regularly ran 5Ks and one of the first CrazyLegs 5 mile race.  At this time, I wasn't really a runner - I was an in-shape college kid that could run multiple miles without too much effort.

The next time was when I lived on a beautiful lake in Minneapolis - Lake Harriet (1994-ish).  It was a nice suburban lake with a paved path just short of 3 miles circling it - and with side options of a very nice rose garden, floating bridge through man-high cattails (very cool route), and a bird sanctuary (not as cool as I would have thought).  I started slow and steady with my own running program.  I started with running from my apartment to the band shell, which is probably less than half a mile.  I did that minimal route for weeks - running that short distance about every other day.  Once I was comfortable with that distance I then ran past it to the rose garden entrance and back; and again I did that distance for weeks.  Once I was comfortable with that I moved on to the next landmark and ran to it and back.  I'm sure for a while I was running more than the circumference of the lake because my landmark milestone (canoe dock) was more than half way around the lake from my apartment - so the there and back was more than 3 miles.   But it was not as satisfying as the day I ran straight through all the way around the lake - it felt awesome.  And I was so proud of myself.   This running continued for about a year until I switched jobs, moved to Schaumburg, IL.  The Chicago apartment complex was on a busy street and there just was not anything near as nice as running around Lake Harriet.  As the winter came, I stopped all running and did not pick up again for a few years.

Fast forward to a few years later when that company I worked for while living in Schaumburg was purchased/merged with another paper company in Dayton, OH.   We spend many months traveling to Dayton and along with that many, many dinners out.  And I've always found that when your on expenses and someone else is paying the dinners tend to be bigger, fattier, and include appetizers, drinks, and desserts - which leads to weight gain.   A bunch of us started walking to help counteract the impact of our dinners.  We walked around the parking lot of our hotels and corporate apartments most mornings.   This also lead me to switch jobs as I had very little desire to relocate to Dayton, OH.  At the new job I was immediately traveling again but this time I had a good friend on the same assignment and he was a marathon runner.  When I would go out in the morning to walk the parking lot of our hotel, I would see him running through the same parking lots.  He often trained in office parking lots because there was little to no traffic at the early time we were running and we could connect parking lots to make a large loop of about a mile.   I started the running again - this time making it more of a time based ramp  up program for myself.  I did this parking lot running for several project assignments and what really got me going was when I started running at home.  At that time I lived in the Chicago Gold Coast neighborhood.  My condo was directly across from the south end of Lincoln Park and about a half mile through it to the zoo.  I absolutely loved my home running route - I started through the park and ran a loop through the zoo - my zoo path ran pass the monkeys, lions, tigers, elephants and (my favor) the polar bear; then through more of lincoln park gardens, through the marina, and along Chicago's famous the lake shore path.   Total distance was 4 miles and it made me feel soooo good to complete that run.  At that time I got into running 5Ks most weekends, and did a couple 10Ks.    But then I had a minor ankle twist on the Gargoyle Gallop 5K - twisted my foot when running from the street onto the curb; nothing major just landed wrong as I stepped up and by the time the run finished my ankle was twice its size.  The next running mishap was the Run for the Zoo 10K which was poorly managed that year.   The heat index was very high and the TV weather people  were advising not to go outside and do not exert yourself - but still we all went to the 10K.  The problem was the run officials knew about the heat and were encouraging everyone to drink as much water as possible as we were waiting to start - but that created a problem that multiple water stops along the 10K had run out of water by the time the 10 minute mile runners (me) came through.   No water on a long run (10K was long for me) on a blistering hot day does not make for a good run at all.   Follow that up with a move to Wisconsin and again having a new neighborhood without a near as nice running option and I once again fall off the running bandwagon.

The next time I was a runner was a half heart effort.  I took Marty's Adult Beginner Running Program and started running regularly but with no real program.   Most weeks I made the BLS fun runs.   I was getting in better shape and my friend Niki from the gym wanted someone to run a half marathon with her.  Not sure why she really had the goal for herself, but I've always had a personal goal to finish a marathon so this seamed like a good step for me.  The training went surprising well.  I enjoyed our long runs together and had no trouble keeping up the shorter training runs during the weeks.  Our half marathon was not that satisfying or me.  The day was awful - cold (40F) and lightly raining at the start.  It did warm up as we went but around the 8 mile mark Niki's feet starting hurting and she couldn't run.  At first we just did walk breaks between running but by mile 10 she couldn't run at all and needed to walk.  She offered me the option of leaving her behind and running but I felt the right thing for me to do was to stay and walk with her.  We finished but our time as much longer than I expected or hoped for.  It wasn't a good milestone for me because I know I could have done so much better (faster).   Shortly after the Half, I ran into my own foot problem with planters fasciitis on my left foot.  I ended up in physical therapy and never really restarted the running - I did the occasional 5K and usually felt awful about my decreasing time which made me want to run even less.

Now I've restarted again.   I retook Marty's class and ran my first 5K in over a year and a half.   This time I'm using his running program of X mins run followed by Y mins walk.  The progress is slow.  I feel slow, and don't like what the walk breaks do to my pace per mile.  I'm running about 2.5 miles now for most of my runs.  And really there are times when I don't need/want those walking breaks - but I've still been taking those breaks.  I'm trying very hard to stay faithful to this program and start slow since that's when I've seen my best results and longest periods of running.  Last week I started his Trail Running class; which I hope adds some variety and fun into my running.   My current goal is to RAW - Run All Winter.  I hope to find a spring half marathon and really compete for myself at it.  I'd like to train with people but I need to set the expectation that we would be running alone for the Half.  I don't want to feel the obligation to stop running because of someone else.  I hate how selfish this plan sounds, but for myself I need to get one half marathon completed well.

I'm baacccckkkk

I'm back -- from Vegas and more importantly I'm back from the funk that I had when I got back home.

I'm not sure what overcame me but I was really out of sorts.  My eating was awful - chips by the bagful and high fat / high calorie choices.   My sleeping was off; the running continued (thank God) but the pace felt slow and sluggish.  My to-do list kept growing and my done list never seamed to change.

God I am glad to be back to normal now!!! 

I completed the Tosa Fest 5K run - a bit slower than I would have liked but overall I'm pleased with my ability to keep a program going and be back to active running.  Since the 5K and the completion of Marty's running program I've stayed on the program and have joined his trail running program.  Tonight I start my park and rec Pilates Mat class.   Net result - physical activity is back on track and feeling good about it.

My eating is getting better - smaller portions and healthier choices.  Today I has a kohlrabi while my spaghetti squash cooked for lunch and an apple for desert.   Yesterday's breakfast was an apple with nut butter and raw oatmeal.  Much healthier choices than I was making last week!

My to-do list is finally shrinking again - although to be fully honest is staying about the same because as soon as I finish tasks I'm adding new ones to it.  I have a lot of work to get done for the yard before winter and throughout the house.  And before when I was in my funk I wasn't even able to see all the possibilities and opportunities that are now on my to-do list.  I'm on my way.

I owe some updates from previous points -- look for that shortly!