Motivated to Succeed

Day #117: 6.6 miles total; 3.1 miles in 23:45 this a.m. before going to Monument Mountain with Emma and doing another 3.5 miles. Then home to do some school work and made some yummy apple crisp and vegetarian chili for tomorrow! Only one more week of cross country and then I get some breathing room. 7 days until Stockade-athon 15k! Gulp!

Sleep come swiftly now
'For it is a busy week.
Clocks fall back again?

Day #118: 5 miles total; 4 with my xc team including 1.5 miles at 7:10 pace running the opposite way from them. 'Twas a cold practice - temperature was 37 at the start, 32 at the finish. Brr! 1 mile by my lonesome later for good measure before enjoying some awesome vegetarian chili! I guess I CAN cook a little bit!

Yawn. I'm too tired.
Maybe Jason knows something.
Should I start over? :-P

#119: 6 miles total; 4 miles with the cross country team doing a fartlek with 8 striders at the end. Then 2 miles later with Emm before watching a little election results pour in. Third presidential election I voted in, but the state race was more important in my mind. The people holding Elizabeth Warren placards thanked me for my vote. They must have seen my liberal propaganda hippie mobile pull in. Felt alright. Right ankle sore and don't know why. Guess that means I should probably just bag the 120 day challenge, now eh Jason Fitzgerald?

Obama llama
Hope he wins and pardons my
college debt mountain!

Day #120: 4 miles total in 34:11; Got through the day at work and came home, knowing that I was going to complete something if it killed me. I must have rolled my ankle without knowing it in practice on Monday and my ankle was incredibly sore the last two days, but nothing was going to stop me from completing my goal of running 120 days in a row. I've learned a lot during my 120 days of movement. I've learned that I can persevere if I set my mind to it. I've learned I can somewhat balance work and personal life together and that making myself run a mile even on the really bad days make those bad days not so bad. I think running is a truly amazing thing, a great passion of mine, and something I want to pass on to others after I'm dead and buried. I want to help people infuse their lives with happiness, with forward movement. There were days that I told myself, "no way, no how" am I going to log that mile today. But then I forced myself to roll off the couch (sometimes at 10:30 or 11:00 at night), and made myself slug through a mile. I have run miles barefoot, in Vibram Five Fingers, in work shoes, in hiking boots, and in warm, comfy slippers. No mile was particularly more valuable than another. Rather, it was the whole of the activity, the pursuit of the goal of 4 months of continuous movement that has changed my outlook on the sport. Along the way I've logged over 632 miles, ran a personal best at the marathon distance without a set training plan, scaled the highest mountain in the state of Massachusetts 3 times within as many weeks. I have endured aches, pains, and sicknesses. But the bull-headed stubborn me fought through it, refusing to concede defeat. Have I come out lighter? Mildly. I am finally sitting under 220 pounds for the first time in two years. I feel like I have gained muscle and lost some fat, but still sitting at 219#. I have gained energy (on most days). It is really great to think about what the future holds. I want to inspire others to push themselves to do what they think is outside their reach. I want them to strive and work, and if they do not succeed the first time, revise and revamp their approach and give it another go. Life is too short to be filled with "I cants". We need to change the world one step at a time, whether it be a step up a mountain, down a hall, into a classroom, into a doctor's office. Make the change and the choice you are given each and every day to live life to the fullest. I hope to join some of you in your quests for personal greatness and I hope you will follow me. I am not done yet!

Valuable miles

Shed enlightenment for me

We can ALL do THIS! 

Day #121: 4 miles relaxed; 2 in the snow and fading sunlight with my cross country team teaching them about "surging", "hanging", and "cornering". They took it in stride and really did a bang up job. Now comes the time for them to rest up, hydrate, cargo load and visualize the race. I want them to walk away from this season feeling like they have accomplished something great, because in all actuality they have. They've inspired me to push myself harder, give more of my time and energy to their cause, and believe in something greater than myself. Northfield @11:40 and 1:00 on Saturday! Hilly 5k where we get to see them give their best and run their guts out. Had two runners work so hard they puked last time, so I know they have it in them!

Believe in yourself,
Dreams become truth in action.
BART may surprise them!

Day #122: 1 mile easy - ankle a bit sore. Just 1 mile to log in hopes that Eileen Baumann Greenleaf is also logging a mile! My kids are off tomorrow for their last race of the season - Northfield, MA: We can do this!

Jogging to complete,
One more day... it's all I need,
Streaking sucks me in!!

Day #123: 3 miles running at Northfield Mountain and then a mile by myself later. My kids did real swell on the hardest course they've run thus far. We'll have them better prepared for it next year. Tomorrow is my favorite race, Stockadeathon 15k in Schenectady. My Grade 1 sprain in my right ankle is still a bit tender, so going to take it easy. Last year I ran a 1:21:xx, one of my slowest times ever on the course. Going to see if I can narrow the gap with my previous PR of 1;07. Something around 1:15 would be nice I think?

High knees, keep it light,
Fight or flight, runners's delight.
Conquer the demons!

2012: ??? (Can I go sub: 1:15 again?)