2016 The Year of Everything and Nothing -- A retrospective

So you are probably thinking I forgot all about this blog, my promise to my mom and my goals, right? The answer is both yes and no. I never forgot but life got in the way, as life tends to do! It's the beginning of 2017 and it's been four years (!!) since I last blogged but I thought I would dust this account off and start tracking my progress on some different goals.

2016 was one of the most interesting years in recent memory. On a national level it was filled with divisiveness, anger, loss, change, and confusion. For me personally it's hard to really to classify. It was the year I turned 40. Society says I should struggle with this age, but in truth I feel more comfortable in my own skin than I ever have. It was a year of immense changes at work that necessitated a lot of long hours handing multiple jobs. Yet, it was also a year filled with many professional successes such as chairing a national association board, presenting at a national conference and seeing much success locally.

It was also a year that I decided to get out of credit card debt. That debt was an albatross around my neck and I felt deep shame and an overwhelming powerlessness to change it. Then I sat down with a friend who is a financial planner and we put a plan in place to try to tackle it. My original goal was to pay it off in 18 months and truthfully that seemed like wishful thinking at the time. Yet, I'm very blessed to say that if all holds I should be paid off sometime in the next 6 weeks, just about 13 months after I started!!! (No secrets, just doing the cash envelope budget system and putting all available $$ towards my debt.)

In March 2016, buoyed by my success with my debt and after several months of just overwhelming stress and pressure, I felt convicted to try to find something to be thankful for everyday. I started with a goal of 3 things but almost immediately every day had 4-5 different things. Truthfully, there were some very difficult days where I had to think really big picture about thankful things. But most days were filled with individual blessings, normal, humble and mundane (and a few extraordinary ones). I started to notice how this act started to change my attitude and outlook during stressful times. It's a habit I'm keeping in 2017.

2016 had one last gut punch for me -- learning that my beloved dog, Ginger, had terminal lymphoma and our days together were numbered. I had adopted Ginger just a little over a year after losing mom. She has been my faithful companion and best friend through some of the most trying days of my life. To say the diagnosis was devastating is probably an understatement. But after my initial despair I pulled it together to try to make Ginger's last months filled with lots of love, kisses, snuggles, treats, walks, rides in the car with her head out the window and all the things she loves.

I started this blog post to write about 2017 but I guess I needed to write about 2016. So tomorrow I'll fill you in on what I'm planning for this upcoming year! Happy New Year!

A beautiful day for a run...

Wow...we've had sort of a miracle happen here in Rochester lately.  The sun. Shining. In March.  It was day 2 of gorgeous blue skies and sun.  I had to miss my morning group run with Fleet Feet due to a Rotary meeting but after having lunch with my Gram, I headed out for a run!  I decided to leave my pup at home today. I wanted the luxury of being able to run without having to worry about what she was doing or if we would see any other dogs.  I ran a little over 3 miles at about a 14:30 pace (averaged). I started faster but slowed a bit at the end. But I felt good the whole way.

In two weeks it will be my one-year anniversary of running!  It was a beautiful day, much like today, a year ago that I decided to start the Couch 2 5K program. I readily admit that I had no idea a year later that I'd still be running, but I am thrilled about it!

So I guess it's time to share one of my goals for the year: run a half marathon.  Yep, 13.1 here I come!  That seems crazy to even type, but after I did the Race with Grace 10K (6.2) at Thanksgiving I started to believe that with time and the proper training, I too can join the ranks of half marathoners.  Will a full marathon be in my future....who knows? I don't have any plans to run one now but if I continue to train and lose weight...the sky is the limit! :)

I have a couple other goals for the year...I'll try to share those in a separate blog post.  Thanks for all the lovely comments and notes of encouragement.  This is a long, slow process (much like my running...haha) but it's been most worthwhile. I wholeheartedly believe my mom is up in heaven cheering me on to success.

Happy Saturday!

It's about time for an update...

Wow.  Time flies!!! I can't believe that I haven't posted a blog since Thanksgiving...yikes.  Well the good news is, I have still been working away at my goal.  I'm very pleased to say that through the holidays I've maintained my weight loss. I'm still hovering around the 25 lbs lost mark.  I admit that once the Fleet Feet No Boundaries running program ended mid-December that I really backed off of running for a while.

I ran only a couple times during the whole month of January. I had some foot pain so part of that was just resting my foot but part of it was just that it was so dang cold outside! ;)

NoBo started back up a few weeks ago and I'm proud to say that I've been able to make most of the training sessions so far.  I'm also very happy that my times are steadily hovering around the 14 minute a mile mark.  I'm hopeful that in the next couple weeks that I can push myself to go up a little bit to the 13's group.  I'm still in the process of picking my races for the year but I'm excited to say that 11 months after I first went out for a run that I'm still running all these months later!!!

I've been putting together some goals for the year (I know, I know...it's already almost March) and I plan to share those in the next few days.  I'm just a few days away from the 2nd anniversary of my mom's passing.  It seems fitting that I unveil these goals for the year as I get ready for that day.  Thanks for all the wonderful support...it really means the world to me!

Week in Review

 

So I am heading here in just a few hours :).  But before I do I wanted to do a little bit of a week in review post to capture some of my current thoughts.

The Good:
**I walked 3 miles and did 100 crunches 3 times this week.  Up until now I haven't added in any coordinated exercise routine. It felt good to get out and stretch my muscles again.  I figure that since I'm losing weight and also training to trek in the Himalayas every step I take in training is a step in my journey!

**I took my  lunch every day this week.  I haven't officially started Weight Watchers again but I know that most fruit and vegetables are 'free' points now so I've been trying to get ahead and eat a lot of those with my lunch. They are filling and good for you!

**I have started working in drinking water to my daily routine.  I would say three out of five days this week I managed to drink an extra 16-20 ounces of water over what I normally drink.  Obviously that needs to go up, but it's a start!

Needs Improvement:
**Well next week my goal is to do for my dinners what I did for my lunches (ie. get them under control).  I continue to believe that the last 30-40 lbs. that I have gained are almost all related to my lifestyle.  Eating on the go, not cooking for myself, not exercising..etc.  So some of this weight will come off just by changing those things (clearly to take off all of it I will have to do more than that, though).  My dinners this week were a struggle as I ate out for four of five and the fifth one I cheated and got a ready to eat meal at Wegmans!

Goals for Next Week:
**Eat dinner at home at least 2 nights (with a real home-cooked meal).  Hopefully each week I can increase the amount of days I eat at home by one but this week we'll start with two!

**Increase my daily water intake.  I'd like to try to double what I am drinking now.

**Work out again 3 times and play tennis with my cousin!  I do realize that I can't always rely on walking for my fitness (boring!).  Tennis, yoga, fitness classes...something will have to be thrown in to change it up a bit!

All in all a pretty good week.  Coincidentally it was also a quiet week at work. We'll see what happens when that starts up in full speed again.  I weighed myself on Monday and was down a total of 11.4 lbs.  After my disastrous dinners though I gained a pound and a half back by Wednesday (now you know why it wasn't a weigh in Wednesday).  But this morning I'm back down again and actually at 11.8 lbs!

Enjoy the weekend everyone!

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That elusive virtue...patience

I used to joke with my friends in college that patience was a virtue........that I didn't have!  (Hey, I never claimed to be a comedian.)  Certainly those who have known me longest might find some truth in my joke.  However, as with many other things in life, the truth isn't quite as cut and dried as that. 

I readily admit that I can be incredibly impatient in certain situations.  For example, after driving for two years in Washington DC when I was younger I have a very limited amount of patience behind the wheel.  I'm not proud of it, but it is what it is at this point.  That's exhibit A.

And yet, I have been known to have patience as well.  Many years ago I worked methodically to pay off some debt I had accumulated.  It took a couple years, and was not without failure, but in the end I accomplished it.

In LA I had a chance to visit the Getty Center, which is this incredible art museum perched atop a hill in the Santa Monica mountains. The view was absolutely breathtaking.  Actually, the museum itself was a work of art and quite intriguing to visit.  The major piece that they have on display there is Van Gogh's Irises.

It's a very famous piece of artwork.  From this view the work of the painter comes together seamlessly.  I'm hardly an art scholar but even I can appreciate a masterpiece!  But let's take a closer look:

Looking at the painting a bit closer you begin to see the individual brushstrokes that went into this masterpiece.  I love looking at paintings up close like this and marveling at the genius of the artists.  Van Gogh must have been able to envision the end result even before he put a single brush on the canvas.  The paint is very thick in some places and you can see that he must have had to spend some significant time completing even just one part of this piece. Artistically, I have no creative bone in my body like this and to study it up close just boggles my mind! I am left in awe of what this talented person left behind.

In creating a painting of this size, Van Gogh also showed an incredible amount of patience. He painted this in the year before he died, a time of prolific creation for him.  His patience wasn't demonstrated by the passage of time but in the careful patience of an artist who was bringing a vision in his mind to life. Each stroke brought him closer to his goal.

I reflect on this because it reminds me that the goals I have set forth for myself are 'masterpiece' goals. I am not aiming to complete a paint-by-number goal, where the work is laid out before me and very likely one-dimensional.  No, my goals are many, layered and very complex.  This blog is a chance for me to step back from the area where I am working and view my work in totality.  Patience is absolutely essential for my success!

Unfortunately, I don't have the talent of a master. I am a mere, fallible mortal after all.  However with God's help I am working to accomplish the impossible!

Just for fun, here's a photo from the Getty Center (I highly recommend a visit):

Nepal...here I come!

So this is a photo from base camp and approximately where I will be going in November 2013 if all goes according to plan (keep in mind that the top of that mountain is roughly where a jumbo jet cruises - 29,000 ft.).  While it isn't a technical climb, it is 14 days of treking between roughly 8,000 ft and 18,000 ft.  The altitude will be a huge challenge in and of itself (and that's with Sherpas carrying our belongings).  However, I also need to begin building my endurance and ability to hike long distances without tiring.

I played tennis and softball in high school and actually think that if I stick to my careful plan I should be able to do this.  The leader of the trek said the most important thing is the ability to walk for long distances for many days.  So here's my plan of attack over the next couple years:

2011 - before I can start any serious training I need to lose roughly 40 lbs. so I'm focusing on that this year.  I will also begin walking 3-4 days per week and once fall comes I plan to try hiking on some area trails (I am shocked at how many there are) just to get myself used to the journey a bit.

2012 - In addition to continuing to lose weight and weekly walking/hiking I have a couple other goals.  First is to run three 5K's (one each season: spring, summer, fall).  I might not be able to run the whole way at first but I want to start to train for them over the winter.  This will help me with endurance.  Additionally, I plan to hike the tallest mountain in NYS: Mt. Marcy.  It's 5,344 ft. so only a quarter of the way I will be going but still it's a days journey and great training.  It's also special because my mom climbed it back in 2006 (more on that in the future).

2013 - In 2013 I hope to be able to climb a couple more Adirondack high peak's during the summer as well as continuing hiking, walking and running.  If my running goes well I may attempt a 10K. That's a big goal since I'm not a runner by any stretch.  Again, with hard work and dedication the majority of my weight should be off by then so running should be a bit of an easier prospect.

I may try to go out west a little bit in 2012/13 to start to figure out how I do with the altitude. I was in Colorado Springs 10 years ago and that was no issue for me, so perhaps a fun trip like that might be thrown on the schedule but it isn't a must.  The company paces everything purposefully so you can acclimatize along the way.

I get really pumped up planning it all out and thinking about what it will be like.  I am not always the most patient person in the world so having a plan that spells out how what I am doing now will help me achieve the end goal is important. 

Thanks for all the encouraging comments. So far no one has told me I'm absolutely crazy so that is a start! :-)  By the way, a great song to get me pumped about this trip is the new Coldplay single "Every teardrop is a waterfall". You can listen to it here.

Weigh In Wednesday

I've been a little distracted so I haven't had a chance to update the blog.  But I haven't been distracted from my goals.  Today is "Weigh-in Wednesday" and I'm pleased to report that since last week I've lost 3.4lbs! Yay!  I know that it won't come off that easily always but it's an excellent start.  (And actually from the highest weight I've lost about 10 lbs!)

Today I want to write a little bit about mission statements.  Mission statements are very common in business and organizations.  What do they do?  They outline the purpose of that organization and helps them to stay on track.  It also helps them to outline how they want to do something.  For example Nike's mission statement is:  To bring inspiration and innovation to every athlete in the world. 

Mission statements can be company-wide or project-specific.  Again, in my work life setting mission statements has been tremendously helpful in achieving success.  So I decided to set a personal mission statement to help me achieve these goals.  It encompasses all my goals in a succinct way:

I will work to combine the promise I made to my mom before she passed away (to lose weight) with my deep desire to travel off the beaten path while raising money and awareness to help find a cure for cancer.

More to come...

Imagineering

Anne Shirley: Don't you ever imagine things differently from what they are?
Marilla Cuthbert: No.
Anne Shirley: Oh Marilla, how much you miss.
(from the movie Anne of Green Gables)

I can identify with the fictional character of Anne Shirley in a number of ways but in my opinion this quote captures it best of all.  I have always had a great imagination.  I had imaginary friends when I was a kid (they were even creatively named - that's a different story though) and was always thinking up creative stories when I played with friends.  I think that may be why the "Harry Potter" books so enthrall me because those stories really capture my imagination.

As adults the imagination we cultivated as children can help us to achieve goals and overcome obstacles in our life.  I played sports as a kid and before we ever took to the field for a game, our team always had many practices to prepare ourselves.  In fact it would be crazy not to practice first, we certainly wouldn't be successful without practice.  I do a fair amount of public speaking as part of my job and before I deliver a big speech or participate in an interview I practice (it only makes sense, right?).

So I can't practice losing weight (you either do or do not) but I can visualize the success that I could have by reaching my goal.  Does that make sense? It's late as I write this and I realize it may not. To look at it another way, when you travel, isn't it always easier to go someplace you've been before?  So by visualizing my success it gradually becomes easier to attain it.  I don't want to sound too crazy. I'm not exactly just sitting around all day having visions or anything, ha, ha.

I love the English singer Adele (saw her in concert recently too!). She has an amazing song called "One and Only" and it contains the following lyrics which probably capture my muddled thoughts better than I am explaining them:

I don't know why I'm scared, I've been here before
Every feeling, every word, I've imagined it all,
You never know if you never try to forget your past

 

Incidentally, Weight Watchers also identifies this technique in their "Tools for Living" section. They call it 'mental rehearsing' but its the same thing. It doesn't mean I'll never slip up, surely I will.  It does help me get back up when I do slip and get back on the road to success.  If you can see it, you can do it!

By the way, here's a link to that amazing Adele song. 

 

Goal #1

I promise I will share what my second goal is soon.  I'm trying to be deliberate in how I tell this story so you will know that this decision isn't just a whim.  That one will be a bit of a surprise for people...so I want to make sure I share my thought pattern behind it.

My first BHAG is to lose weight.  Well actually to 'lose weight' isn't really a BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal).  My BHAG is how much I want to lose.  I have a number, which I'll share at the end but to put it into a percentage, I am trying to lose 50% of my current body weight.  Yikes!  Yes, that's a lot of weight but it wouldn't be a BHAG if it wasn't Big, right?

I've given this a lot of thought and want to make sure that the process is healthy, realistic and attainable. I've been tripped up many times in the past by trying to do too much at once.  My goal is about 6 lbs. per month or 18 lbs. per quarter.  It will probably come off faster than that at the beginning and much slower than that at the end. I'm not too concerned with the exact timing as long as I trend that way over many months.

I want to say right now that I'm NOT ON A DIET! :)  I'm making a healthy lifestyle change.  A diet is a short-term thing and this is something that I'm doing that will impact me for a much longer term.  As such, nothing is off limits (so please...no food police - "are you supposed to be eating that?") as long as the portions are in reason.  Of course, over time I will naturally start to select healthier eating options but I'm not making any drastic cuts. I am trying to limit my intake of some things (ie. mochas only on special occassions-drink hot tea instead, and severely cutting down on pop).  In mid-August I plan to go back to Weight Watchers with my dad who is also joining me on this journey of weight loss.  I've had success with their plan before and they follow my theory of nothing being off limits as long as you account for it.

I do have some exercise goals as well but those are more related to my other idea so more on that later.  Since I'm doing this in honor of my mom, I've decided that every quarter that I reach my goal I will donate some $$ the American Cancer Society to help find a cure for that nasty, nasty disease.

So friends, I have a much more detailed plan, but I'll be weighing in on Wednesdays and plan to keep you updated. I'm pleased to report that the first week of this (which started before the blog) I lost 2 lbs! :)  Making healthy choices, taking one step at a time and having an undiminished faith that with God's blessing I can accomplish this I believe will bring me success.  Thanks for all the wonderful support.  More to come soon!

What's in a name? BHAG's

I've always dreamed of writing a book.  I probably never will, but I'm looking at this blog as the next best thing, a chance for me to tell a story.  As I mentioned yesterday, the story will unfold in the coming months and years, however I want to take a couple days to outline the overall themes.  When you read a book (a good one, at any rate) you generally get the outline of the plot within the first couple chapters.  A boy finds out he's a wizard (Harry Potter). A hobbit inherits a great weapon (Lord of the Rings). A single man moves into the neighborhood and encounters a fiesty and independent woman (Pride & Prejudice).

In my story, I have a BHAG.  What is a BHAG you may ask?  No, it's not a typo, nor a character in Harry Potter.  A BHAG was coined by author Jim Collins in the book Good to Great.  It's a business book and not necessarily one you might naturally turn to when trying to transform your life. But I have achieved a moderate level of success in my career and organizations that I led by having a BHAG so I figured, what can it hurt to have one (or two) for my personal life?

A BHAG is a Big Hairy Audacious Goal.  In my humble opinion, a BHAG is thinking beyond what you think you can do and figuring out how to accomplish your dream.  It should stretch you to a limit and ultimately take you out of your comfort zone.  It should challenge you to reach to new heights and not accept the status quo.

I have 2 BHAG's on this journey. The first is the promise I made to my mom (which if you've read the description to the blog, you've already figured out).  If I cannot accomplish the first BHAG I have no hope of accomplishing the second one.  So what are they and how do I plan to accomplish them?  Rest assured that I've already taken the first steps on my journey and more will come...the plot begins to unfold and even I as the author can't say for sure which turn it will take.