2012 recap and new goals for 2013

So my goal to run 1,000 miles in 2012, as well provide consistent updates in this blog, did not quite work out as planned.  My total for the year was 430 miles, which is fairly disappointing considering that most of this total occurred in the first half of the year.   

I hate excuses, but I do have a number of them that contributed to my inability to reach the 1,000 mile mark:

1) The goal was too lofty based on my previous running experience.  It was really tough maintaining a consistent effort of greater than 19 miles each week.  It was a mental and physical drain that I understand and think I can manage much better now.

2) I got shingles over the summer.  The overall experience was not that bad, except for feeling unusually tired for about a month and a half.  This made getting up at 4:45 a.m. each morning to run exceedingly difficult, and usually resulted in me just bailing on the run for that day.

3) I did not plan enough races throughout the year to keep me motivated.  I did one 5K in the spring and that was it.  Having interim goals would have helped with the day-to-day grind.

4) Running in the summer sucks.  As I mentioned before, I did most of my running during the first part of the year when the weather outside was cooler.  I need to devise a better approach to running in the heat.

I have decided to recommit myself to running, with a slight modification to the overall goal.  In 2013, my goal is to run 750 miles and perform 20,000 push-ups (I'm also working on getting Pam to run a 10K with me, but that's more of a goal for her and the subject of a future blog).  I think that 750 miles is a much more attainable target for my patience level and physical constraints.  Adding in push-ups is also a way to break up the monotony of just running.  I would like to integrate in other strength training as well, but I like the push-up goal as a way to ensure that I ultimately have a physical balance with the running.

I'm also going to attempt to update the blog more frequently.  Committing to an update every week may be ambitious, so I will be aiming for an update at least every couple of weeks (and will ensure that the posts are much more entertaining than this one).  

Happy new year to everyone and be safe.

(In memory of my cousin Mike, I will be rounding up the total miles and will donate $250 to the American Cancer Society).