What are your 2019 exercise goals?
Replies
-
Main goal for 2019 - BQ at Steamtown in October.
Other 'plans' include training for a fast 5k for the first couple months of the year (other than mile training I have never trained to run fast). I will also be running my first ever 'ultra' trail races in January (3 and 6 hour timed events - I 'may' get enough distance in the 6 hour race to be considered an ultra). I'll run a couple other races before training for Steamtown gets started (sometime in July).
I also plan to bike more next year and maybe get back into martial arts for cross training.
The training for the 5k went well but I got the flu a week before the race. Ended up about 3 minutes off my PR. Not sure I'll train like that again. I like to keep my lungs in my chest.
Ran the January race. Didn't get the ultra distance but I had fun (too much Mountain DEW, toasted cheese sandwiches, and Fireball). I'm already signed up for next years race.
I was peer pressured
into running Erie Marathon before Steamtown. I decided to take a shot at a BQ there. Six weeks before the race I tore a muscle (sports hernia) and that put me at 0 miles for a couple weeks. I managed to work back up to 15 and started the race but had to quit early. I've already backed out of Steamtown. I'm now focusing on a November marathon - maybe Harrisburg or Philly. I'll decide at the last minute if I will do one - I don't want to just run it. I want to run it hard.
I did manage to bike a lot more. It was the only thing I could do pain free while I was injured...4 -
I love the way those reporting back are so rational about both successes, and not achieving a goal that was set before knowing what the year would bring.
I almost said failure, but it is not. It is balancing life.
I can remember seeing @Orphia’s post about 2019 km. I thought ooh that is so doable walking.
Ha! The first 2 months I got 400km.
2nd 2month 300.
Then life, a holiday and spending time with my mum in Scotland, took over.
I just checked the health app on my phone and I am at 1300km so far for the year.
I’m not a tracking type of person, but I am thinking if I add a bit more time on walking, 40 instead of my usual ~30 min stroll a day, I may just make it.
I wish I had remembered the 2019km when it was much better weather, but heck, a little bit of rain won’t shrink or rust me.
Will report back at the end of the year.
Cheers, h.3 -
middlehaitch wrote: »I love the way those reporting back are so rational about both successes, and not achieving a goal that was set before knowing what the year would bring.
I almost said failure, but it is not. It is balancing life.
You're absolutely right about "failure". We don't fail. We make plans. We hope to do things. We change our minds. We redirect our attention to something more important.
In my situation, my husband (with brain injury) is where my attention has been redirected. I hoped to be able to build up our cycling ... because we ride together ... and it looked like that might be possible at the beginning of the year. Then he had a tonic clonic seizure (grand mal) in March and his progress took a big leap back. Once we get his medication sorted, we might be able to surge ahead again.
But a positive of that redirection of attention is that I've been able to spend more time at home focusing on my Master's degree.
It is balancing life.
5 -
@dewd2
@middlehaitch @Machka9
We've all been successful, and we know part of achieving goals is setting SMART goals and not being ashamed to alter them in order to maintain all-round health.
In fitness and exercise, our goal-setting also needs training.
I was starting to dislike seeing this thread lurking in my My Discussions list, so I decided to put a stop to avoiding it.
For the rest of 2019:
Run regularly at distances that mean I can keep running regularly.
I have other nice goals that aren't about exercise, but exercise means I feel able to do them.3 -
I don't really have 'goals' in the sense that I have to do something or fail. I'd rather call them plans. I plan to do this or that but if I don't it is not a big deal. My only 'goal' for the year is to keep moving forward and 'try' to get better every year. I have long term goals that may or may not be achievable. Those are the ones that keep me making plans each year and 'trying' to get better. And, if I never achieve the long term goals it isn't a huge deal. The fact that I am stronger because of the pursuit is achievement enough.
But I will BQ next year dammit!
3 -
Chin ups. I just want to be able to do one.3
-
I don't really have 'goals' in the sense that I have to do something or fail. I'd rather call them plans. I plan to do this or that but if I don't it is not a big deal. My only 'goal' for the year is to keep moving forward and 'try' to get better every year. I have long term goals that may or may not be achievable. Those are the ones that keep me making plans each year and 'trying' to get better. And, if I never achieve the long term goals it isn't a huge deal. The fact that I am stronger because of the pursuit is achievement enough.
But I will BQ next year dammit!
Hahaha, that's all so great.
I have had a plan/goal to do the Athens Authentic Marathon in a year or two. I've been doing Greek lessons on Duolingo for a year.
However, I'm not so sure I want to add such a huge flight to my carbon footprint now. But I'm still loving the lessons.
I love your goal of trying to get better, stronger, and/or wiser.2 -
My original 2019 plan was to train smarter and not take it too serious and not get hurt. Well, that all changed in January when I injured my Thoracic spine, I thought while doing indoor rowing, on a rowing workout.
I do a niche sport of Indoor Rowing (yes, I know it sounds odd, but it has a cult like following of Cross Fitters, strength training athletes, former runners/bikers and former College Crew). I had in the back of my mind to finally break a 7 minute 2K this year and a sub 19 minute 5K. After having to take 4 months completely off the rower and then baby my back for the next two or three, I'm back to paces that I started at five or so years ago.
The good news is the back is healing, though I have a lot of strength left to regain. I've also enjoyed a lot of my workouts while I haven't had the ability to train as hard. Also, the several months not being able to do the rower made me appreciate it more. I've also learned that Cross training is OK to do more often. Although I do believe in specificity training, I've gotten some great workouts on an Assault Bike too. When I couldn't row at all, I could do the Assault Bike, also a great full body workout.
I do plan on racing this Winter, though I won't be nearly as competitive as I was 18 to 20 months ago. I'll go not to win but to just enjoy the experience.
Full circle on my goals, I am back to the injury impacting me only slightly now so I am nearly full health again. I've learned better desk posture. I've learned that the back wasn't all hurt by rowing. I had a cheaper office chair that was breaking down. I have a new appreciation of a great ergonomic chair. Lessons can be taken out of setbacks. This is the first longer term injury I've experienced in over 10 years. I've been disappointed in my performance numbers but not my resilience, if that makes sense.4 -
I think a few in this thread like indoor rowing.3
-
To run 5k in 25 minutes3
-
to get more defined through weight training. to see my abs develop. also, to be able to do 100 pushups in a row. could barely do 2 when I started my WLJ last April and am at 50 right now.2
-
With a baby due in February, my main goal is to get my squat, deadlift, and bench back up to where they were before pregnancy and hopefully, beyond.
Also work back up to 6 days a week at the gym.
Well, I’m back 6 days a week at the gym!
And got my bench to 130 today so 2 goals down.
Squat and dead’s are a different story :-(
2 -
The date of the opening of this topic was about the same time I'd decided I had had enough of the daily despair causes by pain and diminished mobility of my badly deteriorating joints and made my appointment to finally address it. I really didn't have any exercise goals beyond being able to do something once my hip replacements (January and April) and rehab was completed (late June). Happily, as we head into the home stretch of 2019, I not only met, but have greatly exceeded that (non) goal and have gotten myself into a sustainable routine ever since. I haven't thought about future goals except to continue what I started.4
-
Nice contributions!0
-
To sum up ...
Half marathon in January ... Done!!
Gradually build up cycling distance ticking off milestone distances along the way. The goal behind this is to build a solid base for further long distances and events in 2020.50 km
75 km
100 km
125 km
160 km (100 miles)
Get back to climbing 20+ flights of stairs at least 4 days each week. I work in a 10-storey building, and can climb 10 flights in the morning, and 10 flights in the afternoon ... plus extras if I want.
Walk (or run or hike ... basically move by foot) more than last year.
These are my walking/running/hiking totals for the past few years ... so ... more than 1357.1 km in 2019 would be good.
2018 - 1357.1 km
2017 - 1302.52 km
2016 - 1133.02 km
2015 - 1131.7 km
And build some upper body & core strength + improving flexibility.
I haven't been able to run since the half marathon.
I am cycling but not building up.
I am climbing stairs but not regularly.
I am walking ... quite a bit of walking. Right now I'm at 764.8 km for 2019 so I just need to walk about 170 km/month to make my goal by the end of the year. Might be a little bit of a stretch, but we'll see.
I am getting some upper body and core with pilates, rowing and some additional exercises.
I'm just starting to run again after nearly a year off.
I am cycling occasionally, but we still haven't done a 50 km ride.
I have been trying to climb more stairs and built up to about 15 flights on occasion.
I'm about 300 km behind last year, but have hit the 1000 km point!
Through a combination of pilates, rowing, and weights, I hope I'm improving the upper body and core strength, and perhaps my flexibility too.
1 -
2018 was my first full year retired and has been a really good exercise year for me especially on the cycling front, particularly a fairly dramatic improvement in my hill climbing ability, but there's some lessons to learn.....
- Lose my "winter fluff" a bit quicker, entering an early season long distance event will help focus my attention better.
- Do more organised events as they tended to be the most fun and take me to new areas, include three century rides as I normally only do two a year.
- Explore further afield, including cycling abroad.
- Be a little kinder to my elderly body as I had too many episodes of general fatigue which I caught a bit too late (push harder isn't the answer to every question!).
- More focus on the technical side of training rather than just volume.
Review of my year....
Lose my winter fluff quicker - done.
More organised events and 3 Centuries - nope. Injuries intervened and only managed 2 Centuries. First one I threw myself down the road at high speed after only 14 miles but struggled round with a torn knee ligament and displaced clavicle plus a load of abrasions. Second one I managed a PR of 5:47 and had a brilliant experience.
Explore further afield and cycle abroad - partial. Loved cycling in Tenerife and Porto Santo but didn't manage many other events or rides far from home.
Be kinder to my elderly body - epic fail! Two major disc prolapses plus the crash injuries meant it's been a real struggle this year and I end it with both fitness and strength down compared to last year.
More focus on the technical side of training rather than just volume - yes but not in the way intended. Cycling volume down by about 900 miles but a lot of my training has been technical rehab training rather than technical fitness training and very boring it is too.
1 -
Main goal for 2019 - BQ at Steamtown in October.
Other 'plans' include training for a fast 5k for the first couple months of the year (other than mile training I have never trained to run fast). I will also be running my first ever 'ultra' trail races in January (3 and 6 hour timed events - I 'may' get enough distance in the 6 hour race to be considered an ultra). I'll run a couple other races before training for Steamtown gets started (sometime in July).
I also plan to bike more next year and maybe get back into martial arts for cross training.
No BQ, No Steamtown.
Injury at the end of July put the end to any BQ attempts for this year. I went several weeks without any runs and had to build back up very slowly. I did manage to run a marathon (and PR'd the course) but it wasn't close to what I wanted.
The fast 5k also never happened. I caught the flu a few days before the race. I did run it but missed my PR by 3 minutes.
I did run my trail race and I'm gearing up to do it again in 2020 (and even more trails in 2020 - maybe a 100k???).
I still consider this year a success. I didn't get my goal races but the 'real' goal is always to keep moving forward. I did that and more. It was an awesome year to start my 5th decade on this planet.
Edit to add I did bike more. It wasn't on purpose but when I got injured and couldn't run I discovered I could bike without any issues. So my mileage went from 0 to 100 in just a few days. 2 -
Duck_Puddle wrote: »I did long and a lot this year. Since I won’t be needing to run eleventy billion miles a week for marathon training next year, I’m hoping for a return to a more balanced program that also includes fun stuff like biking and hiking (which got squeezed out by marathon training miles this year).
Also shifting to a speed focus on the running side.
Have a short, fast race in March and a half in the fall. But mainly looking for more balance.
LOL.
I got man-flu/plague early in the year and wasn’t able to train for the March race. I did unexpectedly finish only 10 seconds off my PR, so I’m calling that a win.
I ran my first trail race-nailed my projected time, but also smashed my leg/knee and ended up rehabbing over the summer.
I did run my half in Banff, Canada (followed by a week of trekking all over the Canadian Rockies), then another half in Moab, Utah 2 weeks later (followed by a week of trekking around Moab). This earned me entry to half fanatics (and some seriously dead legs to start marathon training).
Balance? LOL
things other than running? Well I did do some incredible hiking. I also did flying trapeze and skydiving x 2.
My real goal overarching continual goal is to do epic *kitten*. And that continues to get a giant green check.
0 -
Injury rehab is my priority at the moment. Assuming I am successful, I have two goal races and one "social race" on the schedule.
1. June - Patriot Half Iron distance triathlon. I have an aggressive time goal for this race held on a fast, flat course.
2. July - NYC Olympic distance triathlon. Huge number of participants in this race. It's all about a weekend in the city with friends, including a downstream swim in the Hudson river, followed by a bike ride on the West Side Highway, then a run in Central Park.
3. August - Ironman Mont Tremblant. This is my goal race. Beautiful ski village venue, awesome volunteer and spectator support, and an extremely challenging race course. I'm counting down the days until my next crack at this course.
Lots of group training fun planned as well, with a bunch of local sprint distance races on Thursday nights and our regular group open water swims on Friday nights.
Little did I know when posting my goals last December that I'd miss an entire year due to Achilles and lower back issues. Had to withdraw from all races and was unable to run or ride my bike for almost a year. That threw me for a loop, since my weekly training activity went from 12-15hrs/week to zero. On a positive note, I was able to do some hiking this fall as my rehab progressed. That was a blessing, since my wife and I did some beautiful hikes around New England during foliage season.
Reading today's posts, I notice that life threw curveballs to many others here as well.
Going into 2020, I am healthy again, albeit a bit chunky, so I'm focused on my food intake while training for the South Beach tri in April. That will be a fun vacation with a race thrown in for good measure.
Beyond that, I'm registered for a HIM race in June while trying to dodge serious talk about Ironman Louisville until I see how my legs hold up.
.
2 -
Epic *kitten* for the win!!! 2
-
Down from 346lbs to 232lbs. I want to cut the 32lbs out and get back to my high school weight. myfitnesspal is really helping me do that....4
-
johnnys_fitness_ch wrote: »Down from 346lbs to 232lbs. I want to cut the 32lbs out and get back to my high school weight. myfitnesspal is really helping me do that....
Wow! Now that's an accomplishment. Congrats!!!1 -
kathrynhoward84 wrote: »I’ve got ski instructor exams booked for April. Prior to that I need to spend time training in the off-piste and on steep pitches.
Also just need to up my general cardio condition to help this.
More generally- log 183 days with some sort of deliberate exercise activity (that averages as alternate days).
Well, 3 out of 4 isn’t bad.
I had to pull out of the Instructor exams as my husband became seriously unwell and I needed to be at home not overseas. (He’s fine now). I am going to rebook for Easter 2020.
I have done masses of work on steeps and off piste (although I’d still like the off piste to be better).
My cardio situation is much better, I’m lifting more and I’ve become “a runner”.
Oh, and those exercise days - 244!
1 -
-
I'm not great with goals; I'm more about looking around me & taking advantage of immediate opportunities. But . . .
I need to get in a pool and swim at least once (if you know how much I dislike swimming, despite needing to swim in order to row safely, this wouldn't sound nearly as lame as it seems on the surface).
Get back into some kind of explicit strength routine (another thing I don't much like, but know I need) without aggravating some physical problem and needing a break and physical therapy again.
Keep on keeping on with rowing, hoping to keep up 4 days a week on water again this year once weather allows, and make it through the C2 Holiday Challenge again in 2019.
Keep up with spin (2x a week, currently) and do some cycling in summer.
Defer knee surgery for at least another year (torn meniscus).
Dang, that whole thing sounded kind of grim and gloomy! (It isn't, really.)
Rowing camp (Craftsbury) again would be nice, too.
Pool: I think I was in a pool once, maybe twice. I didn't flip my boat, even though I did row the single (12" wide at the waterline) a few times (usually I row a double or quad).
Did the 4x a week on water rowing in season, and the C2 200k holiday challenge, and the spin classes (mostly). No cycling that I recall, which is odd.
I had a little spin/indoor row hiatus because my knee kicked up and I decided to try resting it for a few weeks. No need for surgery, and it's fine now.
Strength training was off and on, mostly off. PT did happen again (shoulder impingement), but that's more of a parallel fact than an excuse for stopping. (Yes, I think weight training aggravated things. Muscle imbalances and scar tissue complicate things for me, in this realm.) I picked up again in Fall with some light strength conditioning, but dropped it during the holiday challenge . . . partly because I'll use any excuse , partly because there were fewer days between Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve this year, so recovery was at a premium. Now trying to talk myself into another restart.
No Craftsbury, but did a local mini-camp for some extra rowing coaching.
<snip for reply length>
Reading today's posts, I notice that life threw curveballs to many others here as well.
<snip>
Reasons > excuses? (JK ). 0 -
What I probably should have said was that I was struck by the number of posts describing how injuries and/or illness forced people to miss events or defer goals that they had set for 2019. Cycling, running, etc.2 -
What I probably should have said was that I was struck by the number of posts describing how injuries and/or illness forced people to miss events or defer goals that they had set for 2019. Cycling, running, etc.
I understand. Just a bad joke on my part, that maybe we're more likely to jump in and post about things we didn't accomplish because actual reasons. No offense intended, truly. :flowerforyou:1
Categories
- All Categories
- 1.4M Health, Wellness and Goals
- 393.4K Introduce Yourself
- 43.8K Getting Started
- 260.2K Health and Weight Loss
- 175.9K Food and Nutrition
- 47.4K Recipes
- 232.5K Fitness and Exercise
- 424 Sleep, Mindfulness and Overall Wellness
- 6.5K Goal: Maintaining Weight
- 8.5K Goal: Gaining Weight and Body Building
- 153K Motivation and Support
- 8K Challenges
- 1.3K Debate Club
- 96.3K Chit-Chat
- 2.5K Fun and Games
- 3.7K MyFitnessPal Information
- 24 News and Announcements
- 1.1K Feature Suggestions and Ideas
- 2.6K MyFitnessPal Tech Support Questions