I haven’t set race/running goals for a year now. I think marathon training burnt me out last year and this year I decided to focus on some new, fun events rather than setting PR’s in distances I’ve already ran. So this spring I focused all my energy on trail running in order to complete a 25K trail race (that ended up being a 27K mountain climb) and then this summer I focused my energy on cycling, swimming and brick workouts to prepare myself for my first sprint triathlon.

For the last seven weeks I’ve had one focus and one focus only: A sub-2 hour half-marathon. So for the last several weeks nearly every single run has had a purpose. Whether it was a bunch of 400 metre repeats around the track, a goal of doing 4-miles worth of pick-ups (sub 9:00 minute miles) on my weekend 12-miler, or sustaining as close to a 9:00-min/mile pace as possible over a 4-mile hill run.

I’ve been hitting my paces pretty consistently, so I think I have it in me physically to do this race. It’s the mental part that will be a challenge.

This will be my fifth half-marathon in 2.5 years. My previous half’s and times:

Vancouver BMO Half-Marathon – May 2009 – 2:15:40

Vancouver Scotiabank Half-Marathon #2 – June 2009 – 2:12:26

Kelowna BMO Half-Marathon – October 2009 – 2:01:40

Kamloops Boogie the Bridge Half-Marathon – May 2011 – 2:10:14

OK, so here are my goals for Sunday’s race.

A GOAL: 1:59:59 or faster!

Ideally I’d love to have a bit of a safety net as I come into the finish line and run it in closer to 1:57 but I’ll take 1:59 as long as I break two hours

B GOAL: Under 2:05

My B goal is not to PR because if I run it in faster than 2:01:40 and don’t break two hours I’ll know that I didn’t push hard enough mentally. If I run the half in less than 2:05 that’ll still be a really good time for me and I’ll be happy with it.

C GOAL: Under 2:15

If I can avoid getting a personal worst, that is definitely one of my goals! I’d rather not run my fifth half slower than I ran my first one

D GOAL: Finish and have fun!

A goal for any race I run! If all else fails, I feel like crap and I’m walking more than running I want to at least have fun. This is a gorgeous course that runs right along the Pacific Ocean so at the very least I want to smile, take in the views and be in the present moment the entire race!

***

Race goals aside, I am really looking forward to a fun weekend away with three of my absolute best and favourite blogging friends!

Questions of the day: What is the last goal you set for yourself? Did you achieve it?

Any advice on achieving my sub-2 half?

Today I am 23. I usually do a “birthday comment request” post on my birthday (21st birthday, 22nd birthday) but this year I’ve decided to share a post that I’ve been writing for a few weeks now. It was inspired by Ashley’s 10 year vision posts which I absolutely love reading.

After reading her most recent vision I sat down and started writing my own. Here is what I came up with!

{Photo via Rebekah}

My Life in 10 Years

I open my eyes and look at the clock. It’s 5:45 AM on my 33^rd birthday. I burrow under the covers a little further and cuddle up to my husbands back before rolling out of bed to get ready for my run. Eric has agreed to get the kids up and ready for the day. I head out for an easy 4-miles on the trails. I’m preparing for my 5^th marathon, which I’ll run next month.

After my run I unroll my yoga mat on our back deck and go through my sun salutations. I became a certified yoga instructor five years ago. I teach it on the side, mostly for fun and to share my love of the practice.

I walk into the kitchen sweaty and refreshed to find Eric making pancakes. I give him a kiss good morning while I pour myself a cup of coffee and he pulls me in for an extra tight squeeze, whispering happy birthday in my ear. We celebrated our 9-year wedding anniversary exactly two months ago.

I sip my cup of coffee as I wander upstairs to the shower. I head for the bathroom to have a long hot shower. After I’ve showered and dressed I go into my office and sit down at my desk, still sipping on the same cup of coffee.

I hear Eric getting the kids – ages 2 and 4 – out of bed and herding them into the kitchen. “Blueberries or chocolate chips in your pancakes?” Eric says. “CHOCOLATE CHIPS!!!” is the response. I smile to myself wondering why he bothers to ask.

Chloe comes wandering into my office and lies down in her dog bed by my desk. “Hey, old girl. How do you feel today?” I scratch behind her ears as she lazily gazes up at me before laying her head down to sleep. Webster is perched on his cat stand by the window; he doesn’t leave there very much anymore.

I settle into my office chair to get some writing done. I still work about 30 hours per week but most of it is spent at my home desk. I spend my days with my children and work in the early mornings and at night after Eric gets home. I’m also in the middle of writing my first book.

I gaze at the screen for a few moments while I sip my coffee and then shut it before I even have a chance to open my inbox. I will spend the day with my family and work can wait until next week. Tonight I am going out for wine and appies with my girlfriends and tomorrow our family is going out to the lake where we bought property a few years ago. Eventually we’ll build a cabin.

This morning we’ll go down to the Farmer’s Market and pick out some fresh produce and baking to take to the lake with us. We eat a mostly vegetarian diet and the kids love trying new and colourful foods.

My family means the world to me. Life is good and I am very happy.

***

Questions of the day:

Do you believe in “envisioning” your goals? If so, what is your 10 year vision or 5 year vision? 

And, if you don’t have a vision to share, when is your birthday?!

We’ve stayed up until midnight watching Dexter the last two nights in a row – we just finished season 4 last night. Holy Crap! Most intense season yet, by far! Right at the beginning of season 4 I predicted that the person who died was going to die but it still kind of shocked me and was super sad. I digress.

Due to staying up till midnight and getting up at 6, I’m currently working on 12 hours of sleep in two days. Might be a lot to some, but it is not much for me. So, for the last two days I have been detouring a few streets over on my way to work and picking up my latest obsession:

Tim Hortons large coffee with one cream. I have been getting one of these 3-4 times per week lately!

I seem to switch up where I get my coffee from. I used to be obsessed with Starbucks lattes but lately I am so over lattes and find them way to sweet for my liking. Then I was obsessed with a local coffee shop, Cowboy Coffee. Now, it’s Tim Hortons.

At $1.70 a pop, my new obsession isn’t that detrimental to my wallet, but that money still adds up. I think I need to invest in a reusable coffee mug so I can start bringing my French Press coffee from home again. 

I am, by the way, doing much better with drinking less coffee. I’d say I’m drinking about 1-3 cups per day now and I try to go one day per week with no coffee at all (this always results in a screaming headache). I’m hoping to get to the point where I can drink coffee when I feel like it but on days I don’t I won’t be plagued with a headache!

Are you a daily coffee drinker? Do you make your coffee at home or buy it on your way to work?