June 2019 Monthly Running Challenge

mbaker566 · May 2019

going for 40. and to make it a habit. maybe i'll put the runs on my calendar like an appointment

katharmonic · May 2019

Welcome newcomers! @hayz007, @ruby8968 and @deepalivohra - 20km is a fine goal, you can always adjust as you go. Feel free to jump in and ask questions or share, lots of runners of all levels of experience here and we like to chat. About running, but also about food, weather, weird animals, whatever.

Who else for the 100-mile club - so far myself, @ContraryMaryMary, @shanaber, @Teresa502

@Elise4270 Aw, your kitty definitely wants to ride. Great balance work for her! I saw a story on facebook the other day about a guy cycling across Europe and he found a kitten along the way and she rode along with him the rest of the time in a bag on the front of his bike. He even stopped for a while because the kitten got sick from getting cold and then made sure she was better protected from the elements on the ride. So sweet.

Elise4270 wrote: »

We need a good monthly question/questions. Any ideas?

How important is running/cycling/yoga... your exercise addiction/goal to you? How has it helped you in areas of your life and what changes do you envision in the next year.

I don't think I'm exaggerating to say that running and exercising in general saved my life at a time when I was in a really bad place mentally and physically about 4 years ago. Joining a running group was not the first thing I did to become more active, but it was the thing that changed everything for me. It gave me a life outside of work, more friends than I have ever had (and good ones, that I can count on for anything), and a sense of accomplishment and hope and looking forward to the future. More recently, strength training and doing spartan races have given me such a boost that I can do so much more than I ever thought. I won't lie, I love that people are amazed and impressed by the changes I've made and things I've done.

But it's the personal sense that I have something important to me in my life that I enjoy and makes me healthier in all ways that keep me going. Also, as @Teresa502 mentioned, seeing how hard it is for my mom to move around now is motivating in a scarier way.

In the next year - I hope that I'll be a tiny bit faster overall, have a little more endurance, and be stronger (for crying out loud I want to get that pull-up I've been going on about for months). I want to keep pushing myself, do some more crazy things I thought I couldn't do, and have a lot of fun. And eat a lot.

eleanorhawkins · May 2019

mbaker566 wrote: »

going for 40. and to make it a habit. maybe i'll put the runs on my calendar like an appointment

@mbaker566 give it a go, it sure works for me! I have a diary with every run from now until November scheduled. My family call it obsessive, but having that plan in place stops me even thinking about it, I just know I have to run that day so I go run. No pondering, no excuses.

kgirlhart · May 2019

Elise4270 wrote: »

We need a good monthly question/questions. Any ideas?

How important is running/cycling/yoga... your exercise addiction/goal to you? How has it helped you in areas of your life and what changes do you envision in the next year.

Great question. Running an yoga are both very important to me. I have lost ~80 pounds since October 2015. I started on here after my youngest went to college. I was tired of being fat and feeling tired and run down all the time. I love both running and yoga because they make me feel good about myself both physically and mentally. I'm very proud of myself and I have a lot more confidence now. I was never athletic growing up but now I feel like I can accomplish anything I set my mind too. I think I look a lot better too. I hope to be able to continue to run and do yoga for many more years. I like that at 51 I am in the best shape I have ever been in.

kgirlhart · May 2019

Welcome @hayz007, @ruby8968 and @deepalivohra !

And thanks for setting us up for June @katharmonic !

annshandle · May 2019

I'm getting back into running after being out of it for a while (over a year). I don't have a specific mileage goal, but work slows down for me in June, so I'm hoping to run most days.
I love the feeling of running well and having strong legs! I'd like to be able to run 10 miles by the end of the summer.

Tramboman · May 2019

I'm in for 150k in June.
Exercise is important for keeping me out of the urn until it's absolutely necessary to go in there. It's also a good tactic for keeping me at a reasonable weight.

Avidkeo · May 2019

"How important is running/cycling/yoga... your exercise addiction/goal to you? How has it helped you in areas of your life and what changes do you envision in the next year."

good question.

My whole family are overweight. all of my childhood memories are of sitting around talking, sitting around watching TV or sitting in cars, driving to cool places, to spend about 10 mins looking at them. I want to change that for my kids. I was always overweight and after the birth of my 2nd child something just clicked, and I went on a year long mission to exercise for a year. That went so well, I lost over 45lb (22kg) that the next year, I went on a year long training mission to run a half marathon. Did that in November last year. So now my goal is to maintain the weightloss (something I am struggling with ATM) and keep up the exercise so I can teach my kids its a normal part of life.

Starting this weekend - depending on the weather - I'm going to start taking my 5 year old out on runs. Shes keen and keeps asking to go. We will start short and build up. I cant wait to start taking her to parkruns when we get to our new town! So as the year goes on my goal is changing from running a HM again to teaching my girls to run (if they want to)

MegaMooseEsq · May 2019

I’m aiming for a big increase in mileage this month - 65 miles up from 20 last month. After the first week and a half I’m keeping my increases right around 10% week-to-week, but I’m aiming for 10 miles to end off this week and 13.5 next week to get myself back on track for my 6/29 10 Miler and 8/3 Half Marathon, and those are both big jumps from where I've been the last month or so.

MONTHLY QUESTION: "How important is running/cycling/yoga... your exercise addiction/goal to you? How has it helped you in areas of your life and what changes do you envision in the next year."

Pretty dang important! I started working out because I realized in late 2016 that the only thing I could really control was myself. I couldn't make anyone hire me, I couldn't make politics not be terrible, I couldn't make my mother get healthy or my husband get healthy, but I could get healthy myself. So I went about deciding what that would look like, and exercise was right up on the top of the list after losing weight. I lost maybe 20-25 pounds before I started pushing myself to walk more, then run a little, then run more, then lift weights, then run kind of a lot, and now, FINALLY, daily yoga.

It's helped in pretty much every area of my life. Running has become a passion, an identity, and an excellent way to manage stress (except when I'm injured, in which case it's an excellent way to create stress). Lifting weights has made me stronger, look better, and improved my balance. Yoga I'm still pretty new to but I'm already seeing benefits in keeping my joints happy, helping with my mental health, and improving my proprioception.

I don't know what the next year will hold - hopefully more of the same or better. I've regained 10-15 of the 55-60 pounds I lost between January 2017 and April 2018, and I'd really like to get down to a normal BMI, or at least a little bit further away from the obese category. Running has genuinely been the biggest impediment of weight loss for me, unfortunately, so I'm not really sure how to balance that, because I sure do not want to stop running! I've stopped tracking calories because it got to be too much, but I might need to re-examine that.

June Goals: run 65 miles, lift 3x/week, 30 minutes/day of moderate cardio and 30 minutes/day of mobility.

2019 Races! (bold registered)[/b]
January 26: Securian 10K, St. Paul, MN Chip time: 1:05:07
February 16: Half Fast 10K DNS
March 23: Hot Dash 5K, Mpls, MN Chip time: 0:28:39 (*PR!)
May 19: Women Run the Cities 5K, Mpls, MN Chip time: 0:33:02
June 8: PHRC Pensieve 10K (virtual)
June 12: ESTRS French 5K, Plymouth, MN
June 29 Lift Bridge 10Mi, Bayport MN
August 3: Beat the Blerch Half Marathon, Carnation, WA
September 2: MDRA Victory Labor Day 5K, Mpls, MN
September 8: Sioux Falls Half Marathon, Sioux Falls, SD
October 5: TCM 10K, St. Paul, MN
October 6: TCM 10Mi, Minneapolis to St. Paul, MN
October 12: Bemidji Blue Ox 26K, Bemidji, MN
November 28: Turkey Trot St. Paul 10K, St. Paul, MN
December 14: Reindeer Run 10K, Mpls, MN

shanaber · May 2019

How important is running/cycling/yoga... your exercise addiction/goal to you? How has it helped you in areas of your life and what changes do you envision in the next year.
Wow so many good answers to the questions already!

I don't think there is an easy answer for me - it is a bit complex and there have been so many benefits and many that I never even considered.
I too started running as part of my weight loss program and encouraged by my trainer ('just run 1 block, just 1'). I discovered that I didn't hate it and in fact loved how it made me feel. It helped me to lose 60 lbs and I still use it as my primary cardio to maintain what I have lost and hopefully lose a few more.

Running gave me a reason to just get outside and enjoy the fresh air, the birds, animals, trails all around (that I didn't know about before) even in an urban area.
Running was/is incredibly important for my mental health. When I was working it was my stress relief and kept me from going off the deep end several times.
Running gave me such a boost of self confidence when I needed it badly. I mean if you can run a HM or 2 or 3 or 20 you can do just about anything, right?
Running forces me to make a plan, keep to a schedule. Now being retired, I love having the time to run when and for however long I like but it also makes me plan out my week and yes we schedule around my running plans.
Running gave me Hobbes the Vizsla - I got him to be my running partner!
Running is something I do for me but I have met (IRL and virtually) some great running friends and I love the fellowship of the running community.

How important is it... coming off an injury and not being able to run for months has helped me realize that it is not just important, it is a deep part of who I am now. It is beyond needing to run again... it is knowing I will run again. I want to be that 80 or 90 yo still out there running and maybe even still racing!

This next year I expect to be building on my recovery and hopefully improving my times closer to where I was previously. I may not be able to hit those PRs from 4 years ago but I am definitely going to work towards them. Of course overall for the next year I want to build slowly and remain injury free.

@mbaker566 - when I was working I would create a recurring event on my calendar (designated as 'busy') for running. I may have had to move it if a critical meeting popped up but it was always there. I even attended meetings (conference calls) on my cell phone while I was out running. It was only a problem if I needed to participate and not just listen 😁

Eddie_Ice · May 2019

Came just short of my goal last month so going for another 50 miles this month!

MobyCarp · May 2019

Extra rest day today, may take a planned rest day tomorrow. Listening to my body in the last days of May.

With that in mind, goals for June:

Nominal June mileage goal: 100

Real goal: Get back to running regularly without re-injuring myself

If things go well, I should blow past 100 miles in June. But I want a conservative goal, because I may need to back off to stay healthy.

GratefulWayFarer · May 2019

I'll try for a modest 15miles this month. Got a marathon in October so I wanna start early!

hanlonsk · May 2019

I was SOOOO close to making my May goal. And although I want to aim high, I have a vacation and 1work training in places that actually know winter is over. So I might melt by existing, let alone running. And another work training that may mess with my schedule if nothing else..... so, ummm to focus again.... I’m trying for the 50 mile club again. May get it one of these times.

GregInORL · May 2019

Im in. 100 miles (May miles 122)

Amburney · May 2019

How important is running/cycling/yoga... your exercise addiction/goal to you? How has it helped you in areas of your life and what changes do you envision in the next year.

MY exercise goals are very important to me because meeting those goals help me succeed in other areas of my life like in my career. Plus I feel so much stronger as I am meeting my goals and becoming healthier. This year I am targeting my first half-Ironman so it has been challenging yet rewarding. Swimming and cycling have been consuming my life these past few months so with that being said...

Run Goal this month - 50 miles

Elise4270 · May 2019

Amburney wrote: »

How important is running/cycling/yoga... your exercise addiction/goal to you? How has it helped you in areas of your life and what changes do you envision in the next year.

MY exercise goals are very important to me because meeting those goals help me succeed in other areas of my life like in my career. Plus I feel so much stronger as I am meeting my goals and becoming healthier. This year I am targeting my first half-Ironman so it has been challenging yet rewarding. Swimming and cycling have been consuming my life these past few months so with that being said...

Run Goal this month - 50 miles

ATTA GIRL! Love that goal! Welcome to the group! Makes me wanna get to that pool today!

MobyCarp · June 2019

Amburney wrote: »

How important is running/cycling/yoga... your exercise addiction/goal to you? How has it helped you in areas of your life and what changes do you envision in the next year.

MY exercise goals are very important to me because meeting those goals help me succeed in other areas of my life like in my career. Plus I feel so much stronger as I am meeting my goals and becoming healthier. This year I am targeting my first half-Ironman so it has been challenging yet rewarding. Swimming and cycling have been consuming my life these past few months so with that being said...

Run Goal this month - 50 miles

Be sure you do enough training on the bike!

Elise4270 · June 2019

MobyCarp wrote: »

Amburney wrote: »

How important is running/cycling/yoga... your exercise addiction/goal to you? How has it helped you in areas of your life and what changes do you envision in the next year.

MY exercise goals are very important to me because meeting those goals help me succeed in other areas of my life like in my career. Plus I feel so much stronger as I am meeting my goals and becoming healthier. This year I am targeting my first half-Ironman so it has been challenging yet rewarding. Swimming and cycling have been consuming my life these past few months so with that being said...

Run Goal this month - 50 miles

Be sure you do enough training on the bike!

My new mantra "unleash your inner hippo" 😄

rheddmobile · June 2019

Still rehabbing my Achilles’ tendon. I can run on it some now, but it freaks out pretty easily, and I’m only supposed to run on it if it’s not painful. So my primary goal is to behave myself and not run if I feel any pain.

However, with that caveat, I would like to run at least 30 and walk at least 30 miles for June, hopefully building up to some longer pain-free runs by the end of the month. And also, keep it up regularly no matter how hot it gets outside, to allow my body to adapt to the weather.

Elise4270 wrote: »

We need a good monthly question/questions. Any ideas?

How important is running/cycling/yoga... your exercise addiction/goal to you? How has it helped you in areas of your life and what changes do you envision in the next year.

I’m a type 2 diabetic controlled through diet and exercise, so regular exercise is literally what allows me to eat the foods I enjoy. And running, especially hard runs and long runs, are better for my short term glucose control than any other form of exercise I’ve found so far. After a long run I can triple the number of carbs I eat without spiking my glucose.

Yoga turns out to be not for me. Every time I try to get into it, I wind up with joint injuries. Diabetics tend to have poor circulation to their tendons and many times are prone to tendon injuries, and that seems to be the problem. I can be very careful and never do anything that feels even slightly hard and still find myself injured later. Not to mention my knee has no ACL and likes to go out of joint when doing floor work. I do balance, stretching, and stabilization work, based on exercises from physical therapists. Just not yoga anymore. And it’s been much better. I did some research, and for a non-contact, low impact practice, yoga has a surprisingly high rate of injury! Who knew?

However, I find weight lifting as beneficial as running when it comes to keeping my muscle volume so I have less loose skin, and weight lifting heavy also benefits my glucose control not just short term, but over several days.

So much for the practical benefits. But running also keeps me sane, gets me out into nature, and gives me an outlet for my competitive nature. It gives me something to do for my health that I love, instead of having to dread working out every day. Being injured and unable to run has taught me that even a bad run is better than no run!

June 2019 Monthly Running Challenge

Replies

Categories