Ready, Set, Go!

We have completed the first week of Mileage Club and are off to a great start. What I enjoy the most about the Mileage Club is seeing the elementary students in excitement as they reach the end of the playground route to complete a lap. Students of different fitness levels are committed to reaching their personal goals. The incentive of choosing hard working, dedicated students to the Mileage Club to attend a 5K Turkey Trot race on November 18th has really motivated some to try to achieve that goal. I have shared with students that dedication isn't about earning the most laps but about trying your best to improve your current fitness. Last year, I chose a few students that showed perseverance as they walked every recess, everyday even though they weren't the top students in the school. These students worked as hard as they could to their fitness potential and never gave up. I took 20 students with the help of elementary staff to this race. All staff reported that they had a great time visiting with students and their families. We cheered on one another as we passed through that finish line. My husband and kids also met me at the race to support this event. I am looking forward to attending the Turkey Trot 5K with students and staff once again.

Sweet Corn for Sale!

This was the first summer that Seamus grew sweet corn on our family Farm. It was a small corner of a field but it was something. Seamus has been talking about growing and selling sweet corn for years so it was exciting to actually try his idea out. Our plan is to eventually have our kids take charge of selling the sweet corn to learn responsibility, money earning, handling and budgeting. All the profit went to them. I was so impressed with Kieren's hard work when we picked the corn. I won't forget how he ran from the field to the truck with hands full of corn as he dripped sweat off his forehead in 90 degree weather. That kid was so dedicated to earning some money for school supplies and clothes. Unlike my son, Vivian did a great job complaining about how hot and tired she was. 

Overall, I would say that we had a successful year. Kids and myself tried selling corn by the dozen downtown and only sold a couple. I don't think I'll agree to do that again. That was quite an experience. We didn't sell much for the amount of time we spent hanging out and advertising our fresh corn sign. It was a good learning experience and the kids were so well behaved for not having much to do. However, we did sell quite a few dozen to our school district employees, some friends and family businesses. A brother in law that lives in Spokane took orders from his work employees and we were able to sell over 40 dozen. Even though, it took hours to pick the corn we were happy to get some business.  Our family made a trip out of it and delivered the corn to Spokane. We also donated 20 dozen of corn to our school district. Seamus is on the local school board and wanted to help support the welcome back to school BBQ. We are looking forward to growing sweet corn next year. We will be taking orders once again in August 2018 and unlike this year, I will be organizing a sweet corn 5k fun run next September at our local town Community Days celebration. I hope this event can be a start of a Community Days tradition.

Room for Improvement

I've improved my racing strategies, training and racing times over the past years.
5K- 23:00__18:33

12K- 53:41__50:54
Half Marathon- 01:42:31__01:25:22
Marathon- 03:40:19__03:23:55

I create my own training plans according to what I've experienced and learned. I would definitely consider myself to be a running nerd and am convinced that I have been able to see progress with my running because of it. I take notes and keep a running journal that includes all of my past training plans. This is how I keep track of my progress. I also use MapMyRun as a training log.

There is always room for improvement. No matter how great you are at a sport or how much progress you've made, there's always something more to work on. I strive to improve my running performance. Don't get me wrong, I do appreciate where I currently stand with my running fitness and that I have progressed with the sport but I also know that I can continue to improve. This can drive my husband crazy at times because as I reach a goal, I continue to set another. Or if I fail, I'm determined to keep trying. 

Running is an individual sport that allows me to compete with myself. I do get excited if I win or place at a race but what matters the most is that I continue to see self-improvement. It doesn't make sense to compare your running fitness to others because there are so many factors that play into why you or another runner is faster/slower or can run more/less miles. I hate being asked questions about my mileage per week or running paces to be judged or compared to. I appreciate the runners that are supportive and encouraging such as my group of crazy running friends that I've been able to learn from.

I try to stay positive as I continue to set new goals. This month, I didn't necessarily reach my goal at the Spokane Half Marathon but I did learn that I have some room for improvement. So, I would definitely consider that race to be a good self-assessment. I'm almost 4 months postpartum and am slowly working back into where I was at before and hope that I can only improve my fitness with time.

Upcoming Races:

Turkey Trot 5k, Nov. 18th

Wenatchee Marathon, April 21st

Spokane Bloomsday 12k, May 8th

Spring Fest 5k, May 26th