January 2021 Monthly Running Challenge

SummerSkier · January 2021

Jan 2. Can't complain about the weather. I decided since it was still in the 30's to start out with my lined mittens but also to stuff my glove inserts in my pocket since usually about halfway thru my run my hands start sweating but it's still to cold to just pull my sleeves over them. That worked out well. I have been happy with a wool vest over a long sleeve lightweight jacket as it has nice pockets for kleenex, pepper spray and gloves. I used to use a flip belt also to carry my phone and found it pretty nice but when I switched to using the Apple Watch it's even NICER not to carry a phone. I was happy to see the charge on my airpods and the watch stayed quite healthy for my long run yesterday.

Today's run was speedier which goes with my goals of increasing my pace and although I could tell some muscles were a little tired from the long run nothing was broken so away we went for another 6.

I can't keep up with everyone but am enjoying reading all the posts. Very motivating to me! So I now have 17 miles in of 165 Jan goal. Altho if I am going to actually run the edge in running miles my daily avg has to be about 5.6 which means my goal for Jan might need to be 174 instead. <shrug> If time has taught me anything it is that Man Plans and God Laughs.

polskagirl01 · January 2021

libbyralls wrote: »

And does anyone have a good phone arm band recommendation? I’m looking to buy one

I don't use or recommend arm bands. The one I had caused chafing, bounced around, and made it harder to use my phone if I needed to. Instead, I use a small waist pack (turned around so the bag part is on my back). It's big enough for a phone, keys and some flat-ish snacks like a granola bar.

AlphaHowls · January 2021

I have my 247 Viz Hydration Running Belt

This holds my phone, GU gel, GU chews, two gatorade chew packs, zip lock bag in case of rain (for my ipod)

I also have SPIbelt, that I used to carry all my fuel, but over time have managed to get it all in my water belt.

TheMrWobbly · January 2021

I will take a little time to get the map together for the Run the World challenge as I have to map it out. We have started at Wawel Royal Castle in Krakow under the gaze of the Smok Wawelski

libbyralls · January 2021

Today was a day of firsts! It was my first run in a long time, my first run of 2021, and my first cold weather run!! It was around 30F and sleeting/snowing a bit. Since I have asthma that’s often worse in the cold, I wore a face mask between running sets and it worked well. I forgot to check distance on my running app, but I think I ended up running around a mile and walking around the same with warmup and cool down included.
5 min walk to warm up
run 3, walk 2 x3
5 min walk to cool down

libbyralls · January 2021

Sorry, I accidentally made another post and it won’t delete🤦‍♀️😂

quilteryoyo · January 2021

Great run @SummerSkier !

Thanks @TheMrWobbly ! Love the starting point!

Great running @libbyralls ! Yeah, you can't delete a post here, so you just have to delete the words and have an empty post. It happens to us all.

quilteryoyo · January 2021

I was thinking about my goals this morning. To be honest, it is hard to look too far ahead right now, not knowing how the surgery will go and what the recovery is going to look like. I spent a lot more time reflecting on my life to this point than looking to the future. But, I did come up with the following:

1 - Get rid of the aneurysm
2 - Follow doctor's orders to recuperate
3 - Start running and playing tennis again, as permitted
4 - Nurture relationships with friends and family

kgirlhart · January 2021

Beautiful pictures @katharmonic!

Love the starting point @TheMrWobbly!

Great day of firsts @libbyralls!

I think those are excellent goals @quilteryoyo.

VictoriaK1993 · January 2021

Complete newbie to the group and to running. I have done some C25K in the past, and somewhat recently about 5-6 weeks of the Running With Hal program. My goal for January is to run at least 15km. I know this is a very tiny number, but it will be a significant accomplishment for me

Glad to be here with you all!

Tramboman · January 2021

VictoriaK1993 wrote: »

Complete newbie to the group and to running. I have done some C25K in the past, and somewhat recently about 5-6 weeks of the Running With Hal program. My goal for January is to run at least 15km. I know this is a very tiny number, but it will be a significant accomplishment for me

Glad to be here with you all!

A number greater than zero is no longer tiny.
Great to have you with us!!!

katharmonic · January 2021

@quilteryoyo I'm so sorry to hear about your cousin and what your family is going through. I think your goals are perfect. The rest, take one day at a time.

Thanks for all the likes and comments about the hike pics. It's maybe repetitive but I can never decide from the dozens I take because it's so beautiful in the mountains every time.

Good job everyone on your starts to the year. Welcome again to our new folks. Great job on your firsts @libbyralls and great goal to start with @VictoriaK1993!
_____________________________

I still haven't run yet this year. I took another "rest day" (lol, I meant from running but yes that came across wrong). I went to the gym for a class at 9:15. It was a challenging workout with circuits of cardio and strength, but not running at least 5 miles before class as I have the last few weeks was a big help.

Tomorrow I will run, and resume a plan of 6 days a week of running with one rest day. I'll set my goal for this month at 100 miles.

marisap2010 · January 2021

I ran a 5k in my neighborhood this afternoon. It was in the 60s and quite humid.

Welcome to all of our newbies!

katharmonic · January 2021

I had a hard time coming up with very many specific goals for the year with all the unknowns. I don't want to be obsessed with miles or anything I have to do every single day after the experience of the past year. My job is going to have some significant changes in July which brings a lot more responsibilities and likely time commitment, so I worry that I will not have or not make time for training and the things I have really enjoyed doing, like hiking and climbing. So here's what I've come up with so far:

2021 GOALS

Complete the 2021 Half Marathon Monthly Challenge - run HM distance once a month (including in-person races if possible)
Finish hiking the Adirondack 46 High Peaks (21 peaks remaining)
Complete Goggins 48 miles in 48 hours challenge for second year
Complete Spartan trifecta (if possible)
Run new places (once a month?)
Set and achieve a new strength/training goal each month
Continue consistent training, running, and hiking even when job changes in July
Declutter and minimize at home and office (for less stress)

January strength/training goal: return to regular pull-up practice (at least 3x week) and work on hero pose (2x week)

The first 4 goals are going to be a big commitment but are doable with planning. I have 3 friends doing the HM challenge so that will be a big help to keep on top of that, and will get me to not slack off on my long run. The biggest challenge will be balancing the dates of those runs with the hiking and possibly Spartan races. For the 21 peaks for the ADK 46er challenge, I figured out yesterday that I need 10 hikes to complete them, as several are paired or grouped in one (long) hike. That seems achievable if I do one hike a month for the winter, and then more when things warm up and dry out in late spring and summer. I'm pretty skeptical that the Spartan races are going to be held at least before summer/fall, but I'm theoretically signed up for 5 races that I deferred from cancelled ones this year. The first is scheduled for April and I may be in serious trouble if that one actually happens both in terms of training and time management.

Avidkeo · January 2021

@TheMrWobbly that would be an intriguing area atm given all the changes etc with the virus.

No run for me today, rest day. I'm actually following the play! Haha. Did some yoga and now enjoying doing nothing

rheddmobile · January 2021

Rant below, you’ve been warned.

So, I took a go at my goals for 2021. And it just made me feel real tired. I am so tired of being afraid for myself and the people I love all the time and I don’t want anything else to worry about. And it occurred to me, no one is making me do this. Setting goals has served me well in the past, but if it’s not serving me well right now, no one will arrest me for not doing it.

What I want to accomplish by the end of 2021 is to still be alive, with my husband and my mother, all three of us high risk, all still alive. That is it. And since I am surrounded by crazy people in a crazy state which is currently literally the most dangerous place on earth as far as Covid is concerned, it just really is not up to me, so setting a goal I can’t control isn’t useful.

I can set some goals for the things I can control - I can promise not to be tempted into idiocy by the high risk behavior of the people around me. My winter race series, for instance, turns out to be in person. Nothing has changed to make this safe. Our rolling average of new cases in the county is much higher than when races were banned. It is so tempted to pretend it would be an okay thing to do, because everyone else is doing it, so it must be safe, right? But those people are all idiots, and running on narrow trails with a bunch of people who the only thing they have in common is being willing to risk getting Covid isn’t a good plan.

I can pray for patience. It may be a long time before I can get the vaccine. My dumb state isn’t even putting high risk people in the first tier. Diabetics in the cdc recommendations are tier 1, but in TN are at the beginning of tier 2, behind all senior citizens and all essential workers. But it will not be forever, so if I can just keep not being around anyone else in the entire universe for another six months or so, maybe they will get around to me.

HonuNui · January 2021

January Goal: Hike/Run the "A's" *

1/1: 3.39 Afghanistan, Albania
1/2: 2.41 Algeria, Andorra

Total: 5.80

*So, my New Years resolution is to hike all 193 (or 195 depending on your source) countries of the world this year. This will be difficult, since I don’t have a passport. But YouTube to the rescue! I have been using the site to take train “trips” recently, and have found them strangely motivating. Why not the world?

Avidkeo · January 2021

rheddmobile wrote: »

Rant below, you’ve been warned.
So, I took a go at my goals for 2021. And it just made me feel real tired. I am so tired of being afraid for myself and the people I love all the time and I don’t want anything else to worry about. And it occurred to me, no one is making me do this. Setting goals has served me well in the past, but if it’s not serving me well right now, no one will arrest me for not doing it.

What I want to accomplish by the end of 2021 is to still be alive, with my husband and my mother, all three of us high risk, all still alive. That is it. And since I am surrounded by crazy people in a crazy state which is currently literally the most dangerous place on earth as far as Covid is concerned, it just really is not up to me, so setting a goal I can’t control isn’t useful.

I can set some goals for the things I can control - I can promise not to be tempted into idiocy by the high risk behavior of the people around me. My winter race series, for instance, turns out to be in person. Nothing has changed to make this safe. Our rolling average of new cases in the county is much higher than when races were banned. It is so tempted to pretend it would be an okay thing to do, because everyone else is doing it, so it must be safe, right? But those people are all idiots, and running on narrow trails with a bunch of people who the only thing they have in common is being willing to risk getting Covid isn’t a good plan.

I can pray for patience. It may be a long time before I can get the vaccine. My dumb state isn’t even putting high risk people in the first tier. Diabetics in the cdc recommendations are tier 1, but in TN are at the beginning of tier 2, behind all senior citizens and all essential workers. But it will not be forever, so if I can just keep not being around anyone else in the entire universe for another six months or so, maybe they will get around to me.

Biggest biggest hugs. My heart goes out to you, and EVERYONE here. I think @ContraryMaryMary and @kristymn would agree that we always just feel so so incredibly lucky. Though we look out and our heart goes out to you all. And I mean everyone.

shanaber · January 2021

Welcome to all the newbies (@KristinScott8 @3greyhorses @VictoriaK1993 ) and those returning from being away for a while (@kirstymn @dreamer12151 @samthepanda) and any I may have missed!
@martaindale and @Teresa502 - congratulations on your races! Have to say I was a bit (maybe more than a bit) envious of your in person events!
@libbyralls - like others have mentioned I can't run with an armband either. I used to use a waist belt (flip belt or SPIbelt) but now I just make sure my shorts and running capris have pockets that I can stuff my phone, mask, dog treats and poop bags, into (yes it does all fit!)
@victoria1993 like you and @KristinScott8 I could not run even a mile when I started. It was literally, see if I can run to the end of the block. Keep with it and you too may become addicted to it and the craziness of this group. Just be sure to take it slow and don't try to do too much too soon. Know that it is still hard for most all of us to get out the door (or on the treadmill) at least some the time.
@HonuNui - love that you are running thru all 193 countries! Great idea!
@TheMrWobbly - thanks so much for setting up the Run the World challenge! It is going to be so much fun! Love where we are starting out!
@rheddmobile - You are right, TN and CA are right there together at the top of the crazy list. Our ICUs are at 0% capacity across the 5 or 6 huge counties in the So CA region. Heaven forbid you are in an accident or need non-covid emergency care. If you can get an ambulance you will likely wait hours just to be admitted to the hospital which is also why there are no ambulances available. I don't remember the numbers but the public health officer here made some statement that it was so widespread that you can assume that if you go in a store at least one person you come in contact with will be positive! We have not heard anything yet about vaccines for us or our 86 yo neighbor. So we go no where. My daughter (doctor in Seattle) got her vaccine last week, but she worries about her patients who are largely poor and have many issues (diabetes, heart disease, etc.) there is no plan yet to vaccinate them.

For those having issues with the ChallengeHound site. I only use the website and access it from the emails they send. I have not had any issues. If a run is missing (@Teresa502) you can add an activity manually by clicking on the Activities button/tab at the top. It will list all of your runs that it has found and there is a + to add an activity there.

My hamstring was really hurting yesterday so I chose to just do some stretching and strengthening instead. Also took down all of out outdoor Christmas lights and decorations. I did finally get out for a walk today though and walked and talked to my daughter for about half of it. I wasn't paying too much attention to how far I had gone so it was a longer walk than planned. My hamstring did not even complain which I thought was interesting after it being so sore yesterday. I did have to just try a little running. I kept it very short and primarily where it was flat or slightly downhill. It felt wonderful. Also it was about 65F and beautiful out

Beautiful sky!

Hobbes giving me a snarky look - no more pictures, mom!

Date..........Miles........Total
01/01.......0.00.........0.00
01/02.......6.06.........6.06

2021 Run the Year Team - LeftReingtLeftRepeat 6.06/1256 miles (running and walking)

2021 Planned and Completed Races
09/11/21 - Surf City Half Marathon (rescheduled)

eleanorhawkins · January 2021

@rheddmobile hugs. I know how you feel, and the goal of just surviving is more than enough! I was just saying to my husband last night that I can't understand how there are races running in the US. So sick of idiots, and dreading the result of the xmas madness. I was also horrified to hear that after my grandparents in the UK were given their 1st dose of vaccine on Friday they were told they won't get the 2nd for at least 12 weeks.

January 2021 Monthly Running Challenge

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