Do one thing that scares you...

"The future belongs to those who believe in the beauty of their dreams."

- Eleanor Roosevelt

I am a firm believer that setting goals helps keep tasks and initiatives in perspective. Goal setting provides focus. Goals may inspire you to complete tasks. 

Different methods of goal setting works for different people. Personally, I work best off of checklists. At the beginning of each week, I sit down with my schedule and set smaller goals to help me achieve the larger big picture goals. Below, please find my step by step guide for setting goals. 

Each Monday, I will share a weekly goal (drink more water, drink less diet soda, make a positive affirmation each day, write down five positive things each morning, and the list goes on and on) and at the end of each week, during my training recaps, I will share the progress of my goal. I challenge you to think of your own goal and comment about your progress each week.

In addition to short-term goals, I also like to think of the big picture. I like to set 1 year goals, 5 year goals, and 10 year goals once a year and this is what works best for me.

1. Schedule 30 to 60 minutes for "me" time to goal set. Go to your favorite place. It may be a coffee shop or your dining room table. Just select a place that is nice and quiet with little to no distractions. 

2. Create a word document, excel spreadsheet or put pen to paper. Make 3 charts or lists: (1) 1 year; (2) 5 year; and (3) 10 year. 

A great resource for goal setting is the Lululemon website.

3. Document at least 2 personal goals, 2 health/fitness goals, and 2 career goals in each table. When writing down these goals make sure they're in the affirmative.

4. Once you have created your Goals document, post it somewhere where you will see it everyday. It does not have to be on your refrigerator or in a public place, but select a place that you come across every morning and every night. This will help you keep track of your progress and how close you are to achieving that goal. 

5. If the 1 year, 5 year and 10 year goal periods are too lengthy or too-long term, why not try 1 month, 6 month and 1 year goal periods. Think about a time frame that you can handle, and give yourself enough time to successfully reach those goals.

On Sunday, my 25th birthday, I will be revisiting my goals. I will post my goal sheet and my experience of goal setting early next week. 

I will also post an excel spreadsheet and word document to help you with your goal setting adventure. 

Happy goal setting and I look forward to hearing about your goals :)

Legally Goofy,

Anais

Two weeks off from running- Revenge of my evil ankle

Back story: During the Baltimore Half Marathon, the charming city of Baltimore welcomed me with a pot hole at mile 5. I rolled out my ankle and continued the last 8 miles hating the pothole and my ankle for being so weak. For a week following the Half Marathon I iced my ankle and didn't run. I also went to my orthopedic to make sure I didn't have a serious injury. During that two week period that I was banned from running, I focused on strengthening and healing my ankle. I didn't run and limited my exercise to walking, cycling and lots of yoga. Rather than being hard headed, I followed the advice of my doctor and my doctor wannabe, my boyfriend. 

I've read multiple articles about nursing running-related injuries and one common theme permeated: Your body is sending you a message. During the time off, I visited my orthopedic not only for my ankle, but for my back. I've been having a lot of back pain related to lots of school related-stress and sitting for long hours at school, the library, and my desk at home. 

I also went to my Gastroenterologist. I've had a long history of stomach-related issues and I've been ignoring them for a while. In addition to my ankle injury during the half marathon, I also endured my typical stomach pains from mile 8 until the end. For months, I've endured stomach pain during runs. According to my doctor, figuring out my stomach issues is a long process of elimination. In the past I've suffered from acid reflux and heart burn. So, I've decided to eliminate processed foods from my diet, alcohol (I am not a big drinker so this isn't painful), and limiting my caffeine intake.  I think limiting my caffeine will be the hardest. I am addicted to diet coke and eliminating that delicious habit will be hard but worth it. My doctor also advised that I don't eat during any of my runs, as my stomach is already weak and can't handle the extra stress of having to process solid foods during a taxing run. This means that I have to find an alternative to solid calorie intake during longer runs.

Time off was a scary thought for me. Running is my source of therapy. It gives me time to think and gives me time away from my law books. For the two weeks I was healing, I was a bit depressed. This really worried me because I don't want to be the girl who finds all her happiness in running, nor do I want to become consumed or obsessed about running. I am never going to be a competitive runner. I might place in my age group in much smaller races but I doubt I'll be an uber competitive runner. Time off gave me the time to prioritize my goals. My goal is to become a successful attorney, not to be a competitive runner, triathlete, or a supermodel (in my dreams I'm the only 5' 1" supermodel). Since I was a little girl my sole goal was to become an attorney. Yes, at five years old I sat my parents down and told them I wanted to become an attorney. The next two months need to be about finishing the fall semester strong and with great grades. Running is there to complement my school and work schedule, not to complicate it. Running also helps keep my weight down and keeps me thin and toned.

I am a true believer that life is about balance. A balance between personal, family, work and health. In order to achieve a better balance, I sat down and wrote down my one year, five year and ten year goals. I wrote down 2 personal, 2 career, and 2 health goals for each year mark. I may post my goal worksheets in the future in a blog post because everyone should take the time and set their goals. Setting goals helps keep things in perspective.

I'm looking forward to going back to logging my miles, but I did appreciate the time off, and so did my body and mind. 

A small request for any readers:

Please help my amazing boyfriend. He is participating in the Dolphins Cycling Challenge this Saturday. Any little bit helps!

Dolphins Cycling Challenge 2011 - Patrick Bimonte's Page