December 2020 Monthly Running Challenge

eleanorhawkins · December 2020

skippygirlsmom wrote: »

@eleanorhawkins I take BP meds every day (okay when I remember) and all my other numbers are good, the doctor says hereditary since it seems everyone on Mom's side of the family has it. Hopefully daily meds will help you out and you have no issues. I remember when I started taking them it was right after a surgery where the nurse was having a fit because my pressure was so high. The next morning it was so low I thought I was going to fall down the steps trying to go to work. The only issue I have now is if I don't know it I get a headache, usually the reminder that I need to take it.

Good luck.

Thanks, yes, the reason I even bothered starting to check it was that I've been getting a lot of headaches recently and that's what always happens to my husband when he forgets to take his BP pills.

@shanaber I always walk for 10 minutes before and after my runs, I'm too scared of my evil physio not to! I have been wondering recently when it's been bloody cold outside at 7am whether to have a go at doing my warm up on my indoor bike instead then hitting the road running to avoid freezing my backside off while trying to warm up. Good call on the HR, I don't have a chest strap but this watch generally seems ok at tracking it apart from the occasional crazy day when it decides I died running or I ran while dead. I think I can set HR alarms, will have a look and see.

martaindale · December 2020

I started the January thread. It's quickly upon us!

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10819137/january-2021-monthly-running-challenge#latest

skippygirlsmom · December 2020

Thanks @martaindale

Tramboman · December 2020

martaindale wrote: »

I started the January thread. It's quickly upon us!

https://community.myfitnesspal.com/en/discussion/10819137/january-2021-monthly-running-challenge#latest

Thanks so much!!!

rheddmobile · December 2020

Re: yearly running goals. Looking back at my goals for 2020 makes me laugh, in that not so good way!

My first goal was to avoid injury - didn’t manage that, as I had to wrestle with a torn meniscus throughout the year. However, I guess I can count this as a partial success, since I specified I wanted to “avoid overuse injury” and the meniscus wasn’t overuse, it was a trauma injury from wrenching my leg running trails! Oh well! It’s doing well now, fingers crossed. Partial success

My second goal was to find new ways to enjoy running and get my mojo back. At the time I had gotten into a rut of running at the same three parks. I can safely say I did the first half of this. Since all three places I used to run were suddenly crowded and unsafe, I had to scramble to figure out other options. I tried running roads in my own neighborhood and found it dangerous, then learned that a short drive would take me to a safer neighborhood with a more secluded road. Learned how to get to new trails - first a small nearly abandoned park with a couple of miles of overgrown trail, and later, several miles of gravel trails on the far side of the Wolf River in Collierville. As for mojo, at this point just getting out there despite everything is a success! But I actually tried several experiences this year that I had never done before. I ran as part of a team with a stranger from another city. I ran virtual races, virtual relays, a virtual road series, and a timed mile challenge. Ran an 8 mile race which I had never done before. I even acted as a race director, organizing a memorial challenge. Success

Goal three was to stop sabotaging my runs with late bedtimes which made it hard to get a run in before dark. Getting to bed in the wee hours of the morning and getting up in the middle of the afternoon is a special hazard for me and my husband, since we both work remotely with people in a different time zone, and we are both natural night owls. Well... after the curfews implemented during the hottest part of the year due to BLM protests made leaving the house at night impossible, we started getting up at dawn and running early. Side effect: I got to know the family of raccoons who live in my shed, since I was awake every morning in the hour between first light and dawn, when they come trundling home! I call this “raccoon time.” And looking forward to saying hi to my friendly neighbors kept me on a schedule better than running did. It’s colder now and my raccoons have been sleeping in, so I’m already slipping into old habits of getting up late! Success (so far anyway)

Next goal: run a road 10k in under 1 hour. Snuck this one in at the last minute, on Christmas Eve! 58:43. Success

Run the Navy Nautical 10 miler. Nope, it was cancelled. Cancelled

Reintroduce technical trails. Didn’t do this, both due to my meniscus injury and due to the technical trails being either too crowded or too distant (bathrooms closed, no place to safely pee, too many people to use the woods.) However, we have been running the trails we do have available to us. Failed

Get our regular long run back up to 8 miles. Yep, did this one. As expected it has made my 5k and 10k times improve. Success

Practice running on gravel. I hate gravel and the existence of gravel made my half marathon an unexpected misery - my knees just hate it and it kicks my legs around and wears me out. I did this one! The trails on the far side of the Wolf are mostly gravel, and I run them every week now, and I’m getting used to it. Success

Run speed work at a track. Did not do this, since the local Fleet Feet group runs at St Mary’s were cancelled for a while, then started back up but not safely. Cancelled

I set a couple of additional six month goals on my birthday in June, after learning some lessons from the first half of 2020! My first six month goal was to get my one mile time back under 8 minutes. I have since done this twice. Success

I also made it a goal to remember that not all things are in my control or up to me, and given that, to have faith and lean on God, never give up, always keep moving forward and doing the best I can for myself, keep finding new motivations and new sources of delight. I’m not gonna say whether I succeeded or failed at this... it’s a work in progress!

All things considered, this difficult year hasn’t been a total wash for me running-wise. I’m still here, my BMI is still normal, my blood glucose is still under control, and although my 5k race pace has slipped a little from this time last year, it’s not that far off. Can’t say I’ve made huge strides forward, but at this point I’m happy to be holding my ground.

quilteryoyo · December 2020

@eleanorhawkins You did great with the yoga all year. Everything else was pretty much beyond your control, so you did great! As for BP meds, they shouldn't make your BP drop that much. Mine never has. I don't think it should be anything to worry about, but you can discuss your concerns with your doctor. That's what they are there for.

@Avidkeo Yeah for not gaining weight. That's always a win in my book. You did great with the HM distances too.

@noblsheep Beautiful pictures! 2 out of 3 isn't bad, especially when 3 was out of your control.

@polskagirl01 Haha Glad you got out before your husband was able to voice other priorities. I hope you get to see Reddy again!

Yeah for meeting your goal @shorkster !

Congratulations @Scott6255 !

Thanks @martaindale !

@rheddmobile I think you did fantastic with your goals!

martaindale · December 2020

97.5/100 Miles

12/1: 5.1 Miles
12/3: 3.6 miles
12/4: 10 miles
12/5: 7 miles
12/7: 3.6 miles
12/8: 6.5 miles
12/10: 7 miles
12/12: 11 miles
12/14: 4.8 miles
12/17: 3.5 miles
12/18: 12 miles
12/19: 4 miles
12/21: 5.2 miles
12/23: 5.1 miles
12/26: 5.1 miles
12/28: 4 miles

I am sooo close to my monthly goal that I added a mile to my run today and I'll add a half a mile to my next one just so I can make it. Usually I just stick to my plan and don't worry too much if I miss a run or my goal. But I've never run 100 miles in a month before and I am not missing that by a piddling 1.5 miles!
It was beautiful this afternoon when I went out. I love these easy prerace weeks. You've been training so the short runs at an easy pace almost feel like a treat. At a minimum they are way easier that what you've been doing and that's nice.

quilteryoyo · December 2020

My 2020 goals:

1. Lose 10 pounds or more Success Lost 14 pounds and am at my goal weight

2. Exercise 4 - 6 times a week with 3 of those being runs Semi success Haven't looked at the entire year, but did pretty good until my aneurysm messed things up.

3. Sign up for my first Half Marathon (Just thinking about it is intimidating to me, so actually signing up is going to be a big deal in and of itself.) Success

4. Run the Air Force Half Marathon Cancelled due to CoVID

So, I guess I can say I was pretty successful with my goals. Next year...I'm not even sure where to start. I guess I'll have to think about that over the next couple of days.

katharmonic · December 2020

I’m also enjoying reading everyone’s assessments of their goals. We all had to adjust to the events of the year, but lots of great progress and making the best of it.

@kgirlhart well done on your goals overall, especially the yoga and total miles. You had a lot of extra stress to deal with for sure. Give yourself a lot of credit for getting through.

@eleanorhawkins good for you on the yoga as well! A disappointing year for sure with all the cancellations. Not to mention all the challenges on your plate. Hopefully you will be able to do some of those things in 2021. I don’t have any experience with BP meds but wish you the best in adjusting to them.

@Avidkeo the injury sidelined you, but you trained hard for the marathon, and accomplished your half in the process. Here’s to a healthy 2021!

@noblsheep Tibet looks amazing! I would love to be able to see it. Good insight and good goal about doing something rather than nothing if the planned workout isn’t possible. I’m glad that worked for you. And eating more carbs

. Which is something I’ve been purposefully doing as well. People freak out about it, but it’s important fuel.

@polskagirl01 kind of sad to say goodbye to your favorite spots, and Reddy the squirrel. I hope you’ll find some great new running routes in the new place.

Great job achieving your goal @shorkster!

Nice job on your monthly goal too @Scott6255! I always like to see the stride length increase too.

@skippygirlsmom looked like a lovely place to run. Glad Skip was fine. Sounds like a good time to give your knees a rest.

@rheddmobile great job on your successes. You did really well I would say. I’m always impressed with your consistency and how you and your husband push yourselves.

@quilteryoyo you did well too! Congrats on being at your goal weight and staying very active. Of course the race being cancelled was out of your control, as was the aneurysm. You’ve had a lot to deal with just recently that is so difficult. But you did great. Maybe give yourself permission not to set too many goals right now. Whatever you do, we’re here to support you!

@martaindale thanks for setting up January. I’ll be over there soon to check in, but am going to have to give goals
some thought over the next few days.

katharmonic · December 2020

Date :::: Miles :::: Cumulative
12/01/20 :::: 2.2 :::: 2.2
12/02/20 :::: 3.7 :::: 5.9
12/03/20 :::: 3.5 :::: 9.5
12/04/20 :::: 9.1 :::: 18.6
12/05/20 :::: 5.0 :::: 23.6
12/06/20 :::: 3.1 :::: 26.7
12/07/20 :::: 3.6 :::: 30.2
12/08/20 :::: 2.0 :::: 32.3
12/09/20 :::: 1.9 :::: 34.1
12/10/20 :::: 1.8 :::: 35.9
12/11/20 :::: 5.5 :::: 41.5
12/12/20 :::: 5.3 :::: 46.7
12/13/20 :::: 3.3 :::: 50.0
12/14/20 :::: 2.2 :::: 52.3
12/15/20 :::: 3.1 :::: 55.3
12/16/20 :::: 4.1 :::: 59.4
12/17/20 :::: 3.0 :::: 62.4
12/18/20 :::: 8.1 :::: 70.5
12/19/20 :::: 5.2 :::: 75.7
12/20/20 :::: 4.5 :::: 80.2
12/21/20 :::: 2.2 :::: 82.4
12/22/20 :::: 4.5 :::: 86.9
12/23/20 :::: 3.2 :::: 90.2
12/24/20 :::: 4.0 :::: 94.2
12/25/20 :::: 4.0 :::: 98.2
12/26/20 :::: 5.0 :::: 103.2
12/27/20 :::: 5.0 :::: 108.2
12/28/20 :::: 5.4 :::: 113.7

Today was a mixed bag of weather. I reluctantly agreed to run with friends at 7 am so that I'd have some company and get at least 4 miles done. But I slept terribly and when I woke up to the alarm it was raining/sleeting so I bailed out on that. The rain turned to snow briefly and then stopped, and it warmed up quite a bit so by the time I ran in the afternoon it was in the low 40s and not so terrible. Definitely beat freezing rain. I went in to my office to get a little work done dressed to run, and when I finished I ran a route from there that I know is a little over 3 miles. My office is in a building on the top of a hill and usually when I run this loop i start from there which means the last part of the run is all uphill to get back. Today I drove down to the bottom of the hill and parked and STARTED the run by going uphill to get that over with in the beginning. I ran some side routes through student housing to add a little more distance and ended up with a little over 4 miles. Later I went to the gym and did another mile and change on the treadmill as a warmup before strength training so that got me to 5.4 for the day.

Trying to finish the month and year with a few more miles. I'm going to fall a little short of my highest mileage year (1427 miles in 2018), but it will be a lot closer than I thought. I'm at 1392 right now. And I upped my goal for the month from 100 to 115, but now I'm going with at least 122 so I can make 1400. 3 days left so I can easily get the 8 miles to get there, which tempts me to do even more. I will NOT however be able to pull off over the 34+ more miles to beat 2018 so I'm trying to be fine with that

. One of my evil friends today suggested I could just do another 48 miles in 48 hours challenge and I'd have more than enough. No thank you. I would like to do some kind of new year's eve challenge though for my last run day of the (over) year long streak, so I'm trying to come up with something a little more than I would normally do, but reasonable. Maybe a countdown theme of doing a 4 mile run, 3 miles, 2 miles, 1 mile?

noblsheep · December 2020

Thanks for setting us up! @martaindale

Thanks! @Tramboman @Scott6255 @skippygirlsmom @quilteryoyo

martaindale wrote: »

@noblsheep Great pictures! Tibet is one of many places on my travel bucket list.

Head on over once international travel kicks off again!

shanaber wrote: »

@noblsheep - Tibet looks fantastic! Were you able to get in some runs while you were there? I am sorry you are having another Covid breakout! We just can't seem to get it even slightly under control here. We are expecting an extension of our stay at home order in So CA since the rates are so high and ICU beds are at 0%. It was supposed to expire today but I don't see how that could happen now. I am figuring probably another 3 weeks at least.

No running this time, this trip was only a week long and i didn't think that would be enough time for altitude acclimation to happen (it wasn't), so I didn't bring any running gear or shoes. I think it was day 5 when I finally felt like I wasn't going to die on the slightest slope!

Sorry to hear about the situation over there. This year just needs to be over.

katharmonic wrote: »

@noblsheep Tibet looks amazing! I would love to be able to see it. Good insight and good goal about doing something rather than nothing if the planned workout isn’t possible. I’m glad that worked for you. And eating more carbs . Which is something I’ve been purposefully doing as well. People freak out about it, but it’s important fuel.

Thanks! If anyone is planning to go anywhere in China, just give me a heads up

marisap2010 · December 2020

I’ve been MIA but have popped in here and there to read and like. Hugs to all that need them. I live seeing everyone’s awesome pictures.

Still undergoing a lot of work and personal stress. I just feel like one thing after another keeps popping up. Several of my counselors have left over the last few months (retired, transferred, etc.), but we haven’t had any applicants for the positions. The work/caseload keeps increasing, but there are fewer and fewer of us to manage it all. We are doing the best we can, which is all we can do, I suppose.

I know my biggest goal for the year was to train and run my second marathon, which I did, although it turned out to be virtual, and I finished with a sucky time. Some positives for the year include getting a 5k PR and losing 35lbs.

Tramboman · December 2020

12-1 rest + yoga
12-2 7k treadmill + resistance bands
12-3 7k treadmill + yoga
12-4 7k slow + resistance bands
12-5 7k slow + yoga
12-6 7k slow
12-7 7k easy + resistance bands
12-8 rest + yoga
12-9 7k easy + resistance bands
12-10 7k easy-ish + yoga
12-11 7k moderate-ish + resistance bands
12-12 5k treadmill + yoga
12-13 7k slow
12-14 7k slow + resistance bands
12-15 rest + yoga
12-16 6k slow + resistance bands
12-17 5k treadmill + yoga
12-18 rest + resistance bands
12-19 7k slow + yoga
12-20 5k treadmill
12-21 7k easy + resistance bands
12-22 rest + yoga
12-23 7k slow + resistance bands
12-24 5k treadmill + yoga
12-25 rest
12-26 5k treadmill + yoga
12-27 6k treadmill
12-28 7k slow + resistance bands
12-29 rest + yoga

December Total: 142k
December Goal: 170k

January Total: 161k
February Total: 167k
March Total: 181k
April Total: 191k
May Total: 200k
June Total: 156k
July Total: 180k
August Total: 172k
September Total: 176k
October Total: 189k
November Total: 180k

2020 Total through November: 1953k

LIVE total for 2020: 2095k

Cloudy, upper 20s F, snowing, and little wind today. Rest day anyway.

When you pop in here claiming your December 2020 mileage, what accomplishments will you have made?

Return to a good running weight of 175 lbs -- Fail
Run at least 4 5k races -- Fail
Get a 5k PR -- Fail
Average at least 138k per month, to meet my Run the Year pledge of 1,020 miles - Completed 10-11
Stretch goal: If I can average 169k per month, I can run 2020k in 2020 - Completed 12-12
Run the Year Team: Pavement Pounders -- Completed 9-29

2020 races:

9-8 to 9-13 "Virtual Boston with Vincent" Time goal 5:15:00; actual time 4:47:01

quilteryoyo · December 2020

@katharmonic Thanks. Goals for next year will be sparse, I'm sure. Sounds like you made a wise choice to wait until later in the day to run. Did your friends run in the sleet? I think that would hurt. You've done great this year. I like your countdown theme for New Year's Eve.

@marisap2010 You are right. You can only do what you can do. It's hard when the workload doesn't decrease, but the people to get it done does. Congrats on your positives for the year. Losing 35 pounds is HUGE!

@Tramboman You did great this year too. Not having actual races made it hard to bet PR's, so I wouldn't kick myself too hard on that one. Your mileage for the year is amazing.

mbaker566 · December 2020

I was supposed to run last night but my temp dropped so i stayed inside. ran this morning with minimal groaning. I thought i went faster than i did but it was a nice run. maybe i did because i was in workout mode and that doesn't autopause and we had stoplights and potty breaks. it was cold. but not that bad for 14f

polskagirl01 · December 2020

Easy 5k in the woods today. Met the monthly & yearly goals

but plan to run tomorrow, too. It was nice and sunny, not too cold and actually really muddy in some places. I slipped and fell yesterday on mud during my run, so I was a bit more aware of it today.

December Goal

katharmonic · December 2020

@marisap2010 sorry about your ongoing work overload. You were so dedicated in training for and completing your marathon this year, that's very impressive. And huge congrats on your 5k PR and your weight loss!

Nice run @RunsOnEspresso! Love the frosty look.

@polskagirl01 congrats on meeting your monthly and yearly goals!

Date :::: Miles :::: Cumulative
12/01/20 :::: 2.2 :::: 2.2
12/02/20 :::: 3.7 :::: 5.9
12/03/20 :::: 3.5 :::: 9.5
12/04/20 :::: 9.1 :::: 18.6
12/05/20 :::: 5.0 :::: 23.6
12/06/20 :::: 3.1 :::: 26.7
12/07/20 :::: 3.6 :::: 30.2
12/08/20 :::: 2.0 :::: 32.3
12/09/20 :::: 1.9 :::: 34.1
12/10/20 :::: 1.8 :::: 35.9
12/11/20 :::: 5.5 :::: 41.5
12/12/20 :::: 5.3 :::: 46.7
12/13/20 :::: 3.3 :::: 50.0
12/14/20 :::: 2.2 :::: 52.3
12/15/20 :::: 3.1 :::: 55.3
12/16/20 :::: 4.1 :::: 59.4
12/17/20 :::: 3.0 :::: 62.4
12/18/20 :::: 8.1 :::: 70.5
12/19/20 :::: 5.2 :::: 75.7
12/20/20 :::: 4.5 :::: 80.2
12/21/20 :::: 2.2 :::: 82.4
12/22/20 :::: 4.5 :::: 86.9
12/23/20 :::: 3.2 :::: 90.2
12/24/20 :::: 4.0 :::: 94.2
12/25/20 :::: 4.0 :::: 98.2
12/26/20 :::: 5.0 :::: 103.2
12/27/20 :::: 5.0 :::: 108.2
12/28/20 :::: 5.4 :::: 113.7
12/29/20 :::: 3.1 :::: 116.8

I woke up to snow this morning. I had thought about running later in the day outside but decided I better just get it done at the gym this morning while I was there anyway. So I did 15 minutes, went to yoga class, then got talked into going to strength class, and finally I wrapped up the other half of the run on the treadmill.

In the strength class the finisher workout was to do 2021 air squats, collectively as a group. Which was better than when I thought he meant we all had to do 2021 squats for sure. I contributed 200. That was kind of a fun group challenge but I am so happy it wasn't more than that.

Camaramandy648 · December 2020

Morning!

Checking in - 168 posts behind! Lord.

I feel terrible about that because it's so hard to keep up and respond to each of you individually.

Still running. Still miss you all.

I am on day 2 of the Aravaipa Across the Globe event. That's kind of all I can think about between the kids and work and their therapies, etc.

The pandemic is still really bad, getting worse. We are still not shut down, which does not make any sense to me.

We had a really great and peaceful Christmas.

I can't remember what my 2020 running goals were - I think they were to run a marathon and be consistent.

I have now run eleven ultra distances and have been incredibly consistent. I don't know what goals to set for 2021. If you as my coach, I should set a goal to be faster. Truth be told, I don't care about being fast. I care about being strong and healthy and uninjured.

Maybe for 2021 I'd like to sleep more, rotfl.

Camaramandy648 · December 2020

Oh!

Not including today's mileage (I am not done with today yet), I am at 2145.9 miles for the year! Surpassed my 1200 mile pledge and have now surpassed the 2020 mark. Just keep going, I guess.

Tramboman · December 2020

Camaramandy648 wrote: »

Oh!

Not including today's mileage (I am not done with today yet), I am at 2145.9 miles for the year! Surpassed my 1200 mile pledge and have now surpassed the 2020 mark. Just keep going, I guess.

Well done!!!!

December 2020 Monthly Running Challenge

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