Welcome To My Off-Season

Welcome to 2018! Welcome to January! And, welcome to my off-season!

First of all, I'd like to invite you to pull up a chair (or stretch out on a yoga mat) and join me for some chatter. There's a few things I'd like to discuss...


Let's start with  2018 Goals. It's a brand new year and most people use this time to make positive changes and set some new, year-long goals for themselves. I respect that rhetoric, but I'm of a different train of thought. An entire year is simply too long for me to be focused on one thing.

Instead, I'm (again) going to focus on monthly goals/challenges. I do much better with a shorter time frame when it comes to goals or challenges. Since my monthly goals are only for a short period, I can be a little more aggressive with what I want to accomplish. Also, there's much less risk of burnout because I know the end is in sight (more detailed thoughts on this HERE).

For example, January. One focus is daily cardio (a minimum of 20 minutes), whether it's walking, running, stair-climbing, or even basic calisthenics. I will still be running, but not very far or fast, and certainly NOT daily. Another big focus will be to rejuvenate my strength training.

I'm still basking in the 40 Days of Awesome Running Streak afterglow. I ran (outside!) everyday from Thanksgiving through New Years Day. Ironically, this was the easiest streak I have ever done. There were no dreaded "just gotta get outside and get it done" runs. It also was the coldest streak I can remember...the final 10 days or so we had single digit temps (most days) with "feels like" temps below ZERO. Although I never hesitated in getting the daily runs done, it felt pretty euphoric to run those final three miles on what wound up being the coldest day of all. Knowing I was able to persevere and finish the streak rewarded me with a tiny semblance of runner's high.

Since the Running Streak was my final hurrah of the year, my (running) off-season began promptly as I climbed into my car following that frigid run on New Year's Day. My off-season is not really a time of total rest and relaxation, but more of regrouping. I still try to run 3-4 times each week, but (as mentioned above) I don't obsess over the mileage or the pace. Also, the off-season is a perfect time to recharge my strength-training. Even though I do strength work year-round, it tends to taper off a little towards the end of the year (usually when I'm saving the bulk of my energy for my streak runs).

This week, I wrote a new lower-body circuit session, and it was tougher than I anticipated! Take a look:

This workout involved 10 circuits. Each circuit had 10 flights of stairs, 10 reps of lower body moves (weighted forward lunges or weighted reverse lunges or a 1-minute wall sit or sumo squats or walking lunges), and 10 sets of upper body moves (hammer curls or bicep curls or upright rows or triceps extensions or shoulder presses). I went through the total rotation twice...which meant 100 total flights of stairs were climbed, 100 lower body maneuvers (on each leg) were executed, and 100 upper body moves were done as well. It took me 45 minutes and I was an exhausted mess when I finished. And, there may have been some DOMS entering the picture about 28 hours later....just saying.

Lastly, I do have a word in mind for 2018...Reality. How's that sound? I have learned, no matter how lofty any goals are, there will be some unforeseen challenges and roadblocks thrown at me. There may be undesirable weather, unfortunate injuries, or the influx of too many other commitments that take precedence. That's not all bad, but it's reality.  Instead of dwelling on the stress that may arise, I am hoping to cope with whatever I'm dealt...and then move on.

Anyways, that is what's happening in my little world as I enjoy my (running) off-season. How has your new year been so far? Is 2018 off to a great start for you?

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I'm linking this with Meranda and Lacey and Rachel for the Friday Five 2.0. 

And, since it's the first weekend of the month, I'm also linking with Deborah and Coco for the Ultimate Coffee Date. What would you share, if we were having coffee and chatting about life?