Goals for 2011 (NOT Resolutions!)

This last year has been wonderful.  I have worked like a dog, at times, and fallen short of what I hoped to do (more than once), but overall I'm not unhappy.  In 2011 I took on my dream job (teaching at the graduate level), and found my running mojo again (we ran two half marathons in 2010!), and lost 18 pounds (not lot of weight, I know, but please remember that I am very short! So it represented a change from a size 6-8 to a size 2-4 for me.  That's pretty significant!).

And it's time to set some goals for 2011 - I refuse to call them resolutions because I am never good at keeping resolutions.  I am goal oriented, though - I know, semantics, but whatever works, right? They have to be reasonable goals, because I start my doctoral coursework in January and I can't afford to compromise that at all.  But, I don't want this to be a repeat of anesthesia school, where I barely exercised and ate crap and gained weight.  So, sensible goals are in order.

Here goes:

1. Run 1200 miles in 2011.  I thought about trying to run 2011 miles in 2011, and then I calculated up the weekly mileage required, and looked at my schedule, and, well, nah! I think 100 miles a month is more sensible.

2. Do three destination races in 2011.  The first is Disney, in January.  The second is probably Louisville, Kentucky in April (I think Melissa has her heart set on that one) and the third is St. Jude, in Memphis in December.  If I find a cool summer/early fall destination run I'll certainly add that to the mix, but if not, three is good.

3. Complete a triathlon (or two!) - I have my eyes on a couple of local ones that are supposed to be noob-friendly.

4. Lose five or six more pounds.  I really think that dropping five more pounds will significantly impact my speed. I don't need to be a speed demon (as if!) or set any records. I'd really just like to (someday!) get back to my 8-9 minute/mile pace!

5. Get serious about the strength work.  It doesn't take a lot, nor a long time and there's really no excuse for not working in a couple of strength-training sessions a week. I want her back:

6. Find yoga again - I used to love, love, love it and I stopped practicing and my life is poorer without it.  

7. Complete one sewing project every two months.  I thought about one a month, but it is really tough to work full-time and study and train AND get a big sewing project done in just four weekends, particularly if (like my current project) it's a quilt. My creative side needs an outlet, though, and there's so much beautiful fabric in the world and so little time to play with it! So, a project every 8 weeks is probably manageable.

I feel like I'm cheating with these goals a little bit, because I was doing many of these things before the holiday and my bout of illness and injury.  But knowing that I am capable of them means (hopefully) that I'm likely to keep doing them, and 2011 is going to be a great year!

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