Hello everyone! I know I’ve been gone for a while again, but things have been a bit busy. But I am back today to talk about goals.
This may not come as a surprise, but, I’m a bit rigid about my goals. If I’m committed to them, I commit 100% and cannot settle for not meeting them. That means, if things change in making those goals, I get upset or even frustrated. It wasn’t going how I planned? I WILL NOT STAND FOR IT.
For example, I set a goal for this year of learning to run and completing a race. I joined a running group through Chicago Endurance Sports and was set to run a 5K with my group today.
I did not run that race :(
As I’ve written here, not long after I started running, I was sidelined with a frustrating and annoying injury that had me laid up for 2 weeks and in physical therapy (which I’m wrapping up now).
So, I didn’t get to “meet” my goal of learning running and completing a race, well, not completely. And leading up to today, I’ve struggled with feeling like I’ve failed. But I didn’t. And I have to remind myself of that because my goal of doing this is for 2013, which isn’t over yet. There is still time. And just because I didn’t run this race, doesn’t mean I won’t run another.
To help me get out of this spiral of negativity, I decided to make my own, unofficial 5K. The “Lakeview 5K,” where I mapped a 3.5 mile course in my beloved Chicago neighborhood.
So, this morning, I got up, stretched, dressed and set out to run that course. And to be safe, I brought my bus pass and credit card in case of emergency.
But I didn’t need them. Because I finished.
I ran/walk the entire course at at a 3/2 interval (as prescribed by PT), and kept a consistent 12.3 minute mile, which I was pacing at before I was injured.
I made it through the entire run with absolutely no pain and only a few moments of feeling worn out. There were moments that I wanted to give up and just walk, or I felt a tingle in my ankle and feared the pain would start again, but I just said, “you can do this, keep going,” and I did.
3.5 miles running/walking may be nothing to many people but for me, this is a huge accomplishment. I cannot stop smiling and feeling a sense of immense pride in myself.
So I didn’t complete my full goal yet. But I will.
