Five Goals for 2015 | Friday Five

It's time to welcome in a new year. I recently took a look back at 2014. In this week's Friday Five linkup we're looking forward to 2015. This week's topic is

Five Goals for 2015

1. Run more

Number one on the list is to run more. I had a good year racing and have really enjoyed running. When I looked back at my totals, they were not as good as I would have liked. In 2015, I want to run more total miles, largely by running more consistently. That was the reason for the hit to my miles. I wasn't training regularly during the year. This year, I want to turn that around. I want to run more, run regular and run for me.

2. More PRs

This past year was a good year for racing: I finished my first half marathon, then followed that up with a new PR. I also finished the year strong with 2 PRs on my 5K, breaking it in two straight races. This year, I want to keep that ball rolling. First, I want to push my half marathon time down. My goal is to break 3 hours. I feel with some good training I can really accomplish this one. Second, I want to really push the short distance. My goal is to break a 30 minute 5K. This one feels like a bit of a stronger push but I feel with hard work I can drop my time enough to get here.

3. Grow my social media

My last year saw a great push on social media for me. I really grew my Twitter account, from nothing to just under 2,000 followers. I also started a Facebook page for my blog and more recently rebranded my Instagram and Pinterest to match my Twitter. I want to keep growing my Twitter base, but also be more active on and grow the other three. I want all of my accounts to grow, but want to do it the same way I did my Twitter, by being active and interacting with others and the running community.

4. More blogging

One thing I've really enjoyed this past year has been writing here on my blog. I've had a great time writing about a wealth of topics: from Friday Fives like this to race recaps to my Disney Mickey Monday posts. My first goal is to ensure I keep writing regularly like I have the end of the year. This past year I even updated the look of my blog with a new template. One thing that has been sitting in my todo list are some additional pages for the blog. My goal is to create those pages to create a more well rounded blog.

5. Get fit, get healthy

I usually have the goal to lose weight. It also doesn't always happen. This year, I want to lose weight, but my goal is to let that happen while accomplishing my other goals. I'm working hard to eat healthier with WeightWatchers. Pairing that with #1 should help get me on my way with weight loss. I plan to do more than just running to get fit. Getting fit and getting healthy is really my paramount goal, which is why I'm ending my Friday Five here.

Linking Up

Check here for some links out to others sharing, staring with our three lovely hosts: Courtney, Cynthia and Mar. Check their posts (Eat Pray Run DC, You Signed Up for What?! and Mar on the Run to see the full set of links). I will add some others, usually randomly, as I read them to share the love. Go visit and keep reading!


Our hosts:

Mar on the Run

Eat, Pray, Run DC

You Signed Up for What?!

Some other good reads, pulled from the link up:

Liz @ Loving to Tri

Nicole @ Fitful Focus

Amy @ Run with Perseverance

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This Summer I Will... Friday Five Updated

I'm finally back to the Friday Five linkup. I've missed a couple of weeks. Things got a little busy with #2 on the list below, so I think it was acceptable. I'm jumping back in this week on a Free Friday, where you can write about anything you want to. I thought I'd use this one to provide an update on a previous Friday Five, when I wrote about "This Summer I Will...". This week's topic is

This Summer I Will ... UPDATED

1... see my daughter earn her first "ornament"

On 4th of July, my daughter ran her first race. She also earned her first bling. I'm so proud of her. She did a great job. I just now realized I never wrote a proper write up on it, so I may have to rectify that at some point. For now, you can check out my Five Fitness Snapshots to see her in her cute tutu and bib.

2... have a 4th member added to our family

On July 18th, our family grew by one. Our wonderful son Timothy was born. He's an amazing little man. While we had some up and down moments the first week and a half, everyone is doing well now. I'm slowly remembering all the things I learned the first time around. You can see the cute little man on My Newest Reason to Run.

3... run on much less sleep 

On August 14th (yesterday) I finally got back out on the pavement. I've been functioning pretty well on the broken, small amounts of sleep. It's nothing a #bowlofcoffee can't fix. I hadn't gotten out and run at all the first 3 weeks, but broke that streak yesterday with a run after work. I need to keep getting out more, but it's a start.

4... buy a jogger stroller

On June 25th (I'm liking this pattern of putting dates to things) our Graco jogging stroller arrived. We purchased the Graco FastAction Fold Jogger Click Connect Stroller . You can take a look at it before our first run on twitter. And with breaking the streak on #3, I did so running with my daughter in our jogging stroller. After a couple more runs, I plan to post a full review of it. Initial opinions are very positive. And when I say "very positive" I mean "I love it." This may be evident in my tweets with @restlessrunner on the subject.

5... lose 20 pounds

On August 6th I joined a Dietbet to get my weight loss going. I had be doing alright, but then reverted just before Tim was born and thereafter put on pounds. I figured throwing down some money on a set goal of 4% in 4 weeks would help give me the kick in the pants I need. Hard deadlines often do help us procrastinators. My goal weight will get me down 10 lbs from where I started but still leave me about 14 to my first goal weight I have in mind. I will still have work to do, but I hope this will get the ball rolling back on the healthy track.

Don't Forget My Giveaway

In case you missed it, I'm running a giveaway for reaching 1,000 Twitter followers. I'm giving away some of my favorite things for others to try and enjoy. That includes a Bondi Band, a KIND mini bars variety pack and some Nuun.

Check out the post for the Rafflecopter.


Go now!


I'll wait...

Linking Up

Check here for some links out to others sharing, staring with our three lovely hosts: Courtney, Cynthia and Mar. Check their posts (Eat Pray Run DC, You Signed Up for What?! and Mar on the Run to see the full set of links). I will add some others, usually randomly, as I read them to share the love. Go visit and keep reading!

Our hosts:

Eat Pray Run, DC - 5 Things About the Leesburg 20K

You Signed Up for What?! - 5 Ways the Second Whole 30 is Easier Than the First

Mar on the Run - I Heart Vacation!

Some other good reads, pulled from the link up

Deborah @ Confessions of a Mother Runner - 5 Cools Things from Runnerbox

Fairytales and Fitness - 5 Tips for Letting Your Pet Swim in Your Pool

RTGWS - 5 Ways to Reclaim Your Mojo

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This Summer I Will... - Friday Five

It's that time of the week, Friday Five linkup. This week's Friday Five was one of the more open ended topics. It covered a list of things you'll do. I thought of making it all goals, but that wasn't as much fun. I decided to include some things that are going to happen, some of which are very exciting and some of which are things I will be working around living through (see #3). This week's topic is

This Summer I Will ...

1... see my daughter earn her first "ornament"

This summer, thanks to the lovely folks at Potomac River Running, my 2 1/2 year old daughter will get to run her first race. Not only that, during this children's fun run, all the kids get a bib and medal, which my daughter lovingly refers to as "daddy's ornaments". I'm excited because many times she says "I have to run in da race like dad". Now she'll get her first chance.

2... have a 4th member added to our family

This July, we'll be having our second child. I say "we" but let's be honest, my wife is doing the bulk of the work on the "having". I can't wait to see who they'll be. My daughter has been obsessed with babies for a while (trust me, her daycare teachers say so too), so I'll think she'll be good with the role of big sister.

3... run on much less sleep 

See #2. This will be both figurative (operating coherently) and literally (I must keep up my training, which includes running).

4... buy a jogger stroller

As mentioned in #1, my daughter asks to come run with me some days. To help include her, we've been looking into investing in a jogger stroller. We've been watching the requisite Craigslist and eBay for one of the higher end brands (such as Bob) at a more affordable price level. None have really been in our price range, so we'll go with more mid range and a better price. When #2 occurs, it will also help keep #3 on track while giving mom some time with just the little one. Keeping #3 on track will help with #5...

5... lose 20 pounds

This is my initial goal for the end of the summer. I actually don't know summer's actually "end" date without looking it up, so it might not be exactly the summer. However recently I've started making good progress in my weight loss. I want to keep this up and keep going strong. I will stay strong. I will put my WeightWatchers point counting and run walk training to good use as a power tag team. My long term goal is more than this, but this would be a huge accomplishment, getting me back to where I was last time I lost weight which was leading into my wedding. Of course, that's not the end goal, but the first check mark.

A Note on Kids Running in Northern Virgina

Are you in the NoVa area? Do you have a young'n who wants to run? Maybe they have the bling fever too? Well, it's not too late. First, I would like to direct you to Potomac River Running's Mighty Mile. This is a kids race series, with a mile run (in several age waves) for kids 6 - 14, a half mile for 4-5 and even a tot trot for those younger. There are 2 more dates coming: 6/29 in Fairfax and 9/7 in Leesburg. It's all about the kids. They even get swag in the form of a t-shirt and finisher's medal.

In addition, you can check out the PR Races page for their full schedule of races they're involved in. They are a part of a lot of really good ones. Many have a kids fun run associated with them. Some, like the Firecracker 5K that I'll be at (per #1), has a fun run where the kids run "a couple hundred yards", get a bib and finisher medal AND there's even an inflatable obstacle course to play on and face painting afterwards. Sounds awesome, doesn't it? Jealous of the inflatables too? I thought so. Plus, this race will have me.

Linking Up

Check here for some links out to others sharing, staring with our three lovely hosts: Courtney, Cynthia and Mar. Check their posts (Eat Pray Run DC, You Signed Up for What?! and Mar on the Run to see the full set of links). I will add some others, usually randomly, as I read them to share the love. Go visit and keep reading!

Our hosts:

Mar on the Run

Eat Pray Run, DC

You Signed Up for What?!

Some other good reads, pulled from the link up

Run Jenny Run

Running Muffin

Grab Your Kicks

Got2Run4Me


Image Credit: Mighty Miles - Potomac River Running

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