January Motivation

[cnf]

How did 2023 end up shaking out for you? What are you hoping to work towards or accomplish in 2024?

[cnf]

Happy New Year!

I know I had goals to run and ride 800 miles respectively. I also have been trying to get my prepregnancy weight for forever now. I ran 974.6 miles and rode 954.4 miles, so I did great there. I went back and checked and I lost about 8lbs this year.

This year I'd like to get to 1000 running and riding miles. I need to bump my mileage minimum up from 70 miles per month to 83 miles per month to make that possible. It's doable I just have to be more intentional. I'm also doing the 365 days of core challenge through reddit. Yoga 4-7 days per week and strength (other than core) 2-4 days per week is the goal there. I ended with 23,024 minutes on peloton, so 20k there again is the aim too.

I'm registered for a half marathon this October and I've been eyeballing Syracuse half, but I'd have to do all of my long runs and training during the two coldest and snowiest months of the year, so I'm going to sit on that for a bit still.

I'd also again, like to try to lose the baby weight. I'm about 12lbs away, so back to tracking as much as possible.

Non-weight and workout related, I'm going to work on having a better skin care routine. I can always tell a difference when I'm on top of this and I need to be consistent here. I also plan to read 100+ books and we have a plan to wipe out all of our debt (minus house, cars, and camper, so the bad debt, lol) by the time I'm out of school for the summer.

Today-
30 minute new year run with Tobias
5 minute core with Emma
5 minute stretch with Camila

30 minute yoga on deck for tonight.

[thatgolfb]

Happy new year!

I started the day with OTF. It was a really good class. This particular coach always brings the energy, and it was much needed this morning bc I stayed up later than normal reading. 😂

I lifted heavy on the floor, and set a new increased base pace for the year. It will be 6.2 going forward.

I also signed up for the transformation challenge this year. I was iffy on it, but it would be nice to drop a little from my midsection bc I’m uncomfortable with it. But I did realize that I have to weigh in literally the morning before we leave for London, and I will be on vacation for a week. lol. So we will see how that goes.

[jaidit]

Happy new year! Best wishes to everyone for 2024- I hope we all reach our fitness goals!

While my dad was visiting over the holidays, we decided that we’ll try our first marathon together when my family visits over the summer. It won’t be an official race, we’ll just do the distance (it will be from our country house to a local castle and back). My brother and H, both of whom have done marathons before, will join. I’m very very excited for the challenge!!

My other goal is to run a sub 50 minute 10k. My previous PR is 51 minutes so I think with training, it’s doable. I started the year today with a 10k and it felt good!

[beepers]

Happy 2024!!

Started today with a family gym trip. Squat day for me. DS worked out with MH. Nothing amazing, as expected after falling asleep after 2 am 🥱

Working on hydrating the rest of today, bedtime after the Michigan game 💙💛

[coldcoffee]

2023 went pretty well overall

2024 to try more mindfulness. Getting outside with the family more.

Started today with 30 min NYD recovery run
Then took the family and dog to the park and walked 2 miles.

[MelanieCarmichael]

I’m so glad to be turning the page on 2023. Most of the year was pretty good, most especially my milestone birthday in Maine in September, but the last 3 months of the year were really rough.

We rescued a kitten in early October from
a restaurant parking lot and she had a tail injury right before Thanksgiving and a tough recovery after her spay surgery due to being so rambunctious. Our oldest orange kitty, Leo, was diagnosed with early kidney disease the week before we rescued Chloe. ☹️ He’s doing well thanks to his kidney food, although he got an abscess a few weeks ago due to some bad molars that had to be pulled. MH and I scaled back our gifts to each other due to all the vet bills.

But also because we weren’t feeling Christmas. My mom had a fall in late October and thankfully only had a small fracture of her left radius. But it’s becoming more apparent at 80 years old, that she needs more assistance and I live 3 hours away with not a lot of reliable local help. She, of course, thinks she’s just fine to keep living in her too-big-for-her home. Sigh. I had been coming to see her every other week for 3-4 days at a time since COVID hit but I have to pull back to once a month at this point for my own sanity and (hopefully) to make her choose to move back closer to me. We shall see but I’m letting go of the outcome at this point.

Worst of all, and the biggest reason for me “eh” feelings around Christmas is that the day before my mom fell, my mother in law fell. She had a significant head injury and, sadly, died in early November. I miss her terribly and MH has been struggling a lot with the loss. He has been slowly losing her since her Alzheimer’s diagnosis several years ago but this is so final. 😞

From a health/fitness standpoint, I was being pretty consistent up until late October but other than some walking and stretching and meditations, I haven’t gotten in a formal workout in a while. I lost almost 20 lbs in the past two months. Stress diet, of course. Do Not Recommend. I’ve gained roughly 5 back now that I’m eating like a normal person again but will use this for the positive as I’d like to lose another 10-15.

Other goals are to get back in the workout groove with strength 3x/week, running 3x/week and yoga at least 1x/week. Sleep has not been great these past few months and I know working out always helps me with that. I splurged on a new planner (Blogilates) to track my workouts, goals, meals, moods, etc. I’m also back to tracking meals again to see how I do be my macros goals.

I, too, need to get back into the skincare habit so I’ll be giving myself a facial (of sorts) before bed tonight and aiming to be in bed between 10 and 10:30pm and putting down the electronics in favor of a good books. I’m aiming to read at least 2 books/month and also start using my daily prompt app again to get back in the creative writing swing again.

Sorry for the novel. 🙃

Wishing all a happy, healthy 2024 and so glad to be posting again with such amazing, inspiring women. ❤️

[MelanieCarmichael]

Today’s workout (my first in A While 😃) was just what I needed.

- 20 min KISS Full Body Strength with Andy (I suspect I’ll repeat this week)
- 5 min Core with Emma
- 5 min Full Body Stretch with Emma

[coldcoffee]

MelanieCarmichael sorry for your loss.

[cnf]

MelanieCarmichael I am so sorry for the last few months. That all sounds incredibly difficult and stressful. I truly hope this can be a reset for you going into the new year.

[loki]

Hello all! I'm hoping to get back in here. I realize I disappeared for a long time. My back hurt, then it felt better, but then my knee hurt and I lost all motivation. I'm better now and I'm ready to move.

My goal for this year is to get consistent with working out again, hopefully without getting hurt again. If things do start to hurt, I want to not feel bad about asking for help. No specific goals beyond that at the moment.

I started the beginner strength program on Peloton this weekend and plan to use the 6 week program to get back to some kind of consistency.

[gimmeaQ]

Hi. I am making myself go here. It’s been a while so I hope you’ll have me back.

2023 was not a great year weight (and therefore related health-wise)

I’m back on the BODi bandwagon and started today with T25. I intend to do 3 T25s and 3 Liift4 per week so I don’t get bored of T25 since I’ve done it several times before - even though it was literal years ago, they repeat.

Goals are:
5-6 workouts per week in addition to walking the dog
Aiming for 15lb loss before our spring break trip in 7.5 weeks. It feels aggressive but it’s only like 7% of my body weight. I’m at my highest weight ever.
My ultimate goal is 30lbs

I turn 40 this year and need to turn some things around to not become diabetic, hopefully help with digestive issues and some chronic pain that I’m thinking may be weight related.

So hi, it’s me. I’m the stereotypical resolution person but I intend to annoy you people frequently.

[budders]

MelanieCarmichael sorry for all of the tough things in 2023.

[CurlieWhirlie]

Happy New Year! Here’s to a fresh start and good things for everyone.

I did not have a specific goal in 2023, but I ran my first half marathon in May, and then two more in July and November, with some 10k’s in between. I joined a women’s trail running group that I have really enjoyed. In all, I ran over a thousand miles in 2023. My easy run pace dropped from around 10 minutes per mile to 9:30. I feel really good about all that, considering I have always been an “I hate running” person.

In 2024 I will be tackling my first full marathon at Big Sur in the end of April, so that’s my focus for the first half of the year.

Started off the new year today with JTR’s 30 minute outdoor New Year’s Day run, followed by a 30 minute strength with Adrian.

[budders]

Popping back in. I was incredibly ill throughout the entire month of December, and spent most of last week anxious and depressed on top of it so it was a full month of no real exercise and not great eating habits. 2023 was a really rough year all around, so the shift to 2024 has been surprisingly motivating and uplifting for me. I did a 20 min New Year's ride on my bike earlier and also weighed and tracked everything in my lunch for tomorrow.

I'm trying to be more flexible with my goals in 2024. Since I had covid in May 2022, I get very sick quite often, and many of my goals were completely sidelined by illness this past year as a result. Between not being able to run regularly and experiencing depressive episodes from lack of physical outlet and frustration from not being able to move, I have gained back all of the weight I had lost over the previous 3 years and most of my fitness.

BUT I am determined for things to go differently this year. My one and only fitness goal is to rebuild the healthy habits that were so ingrained in me a few years ago. Regular exercise, even if it's just walking, weighing and tracking my food, and also figuring out my mental health. I had considered pursuing meds in the fall, but never did, so that is something I plan to address this year. I'm just generally feeling very unhappy in a lot of areas of my life due to anxious and depressive thoughts and I think it could make a big difference for me. I will be 40 in 2024 and it just feels like there is a better way to do things at this point in my life.

[jaygee]

2023 was probably the hardest year of my life. And I’ve had some doozy years. The silver lining was that moving my body was the one really consistent and positive thing all year. The consistency of my routine and the positive mental and physical health benefits saved me. I don’t know how I would have handled stuff without exercise. In fact, the last two years have been the most consistent exercising I’ve done in decades. I’m so content with that. Just seeing myself as an athlete that consistently shows up has done amazing things for my self esteem.

So on this front, I hope to do the same in 2024. I cycled a lot more than running last year trying to heal my hamstring (still not fully healed) and because I was obsessed with my new friends on the bike. But I want to do races this year so I’m going to be trying to switch the focus this first quarter. I have a tentative 10k in April and my cousin and I are seriously considering a half in Nov.

I do want to keep up on the core and strength classes like I have been. And of course yoga and mobility.

A couple of changes/goals on the margins:
Add more pre/post stretches
Monthly Thai or sport massages (I think I did 4 all last year)
Trying to stop food intake after 7pm (I think it’s messing up my sleep)
Sleep hygiene consistency
Water, water, water

Happy New Year to everyone and welcome to new friends. I’m so grateful for this group. You don’t even know how much y’all motivate and inspire me.

[sterling]

My December goal was a sort of miss in terms of my running mileage, but I hiked about 30 miles this week, so I’m calling it good 😂

My 2023 was great from a health perspective. I lost 25 pounds (thanks drugs!), I ran a half in January and a 10k in February, went to PT and discovered a potential source of my back pain, gave up on the bike, have had no back pain since September, and got back to running more and faster than I have in a long time. I also stayed active and outside, hiked some hard mountains, and overall just feel so happy and proud of my eating, health, and fitness.

My goal for 2024 is more of the same. Get out, be active, run, lose ten more pounds, don’t hurt my back anymore, and just enjoy being able to do the things I love. I want to do at least one 10k this year too, maybe more, and be more consistent with my strength training. We’ll see if more goals get added to the list but the main goal is to be kind to myself and move because I want to move, not because I’m trying to torture myself.

[jaygee]

Today was an active recovery day for me. And boy did I need it. Not stretching after my strength class and then again after my ride yesterday was a whole problem for me today.

5 min pre run warmup with Hosky
30 min New Years recovery run with Joslyn (took this as a walk + jog due to heavy legs - but still felt significantly better after)
Took the dog for a long walk (weather was on fire today)
20 min New Year full body stretch with Adrian (great playlist)
10 min New Year meditation with Kirsten

Then I took a long epsom salt bath and I’ve been a couch potato ever since.

[jaygee]

Oh, I think I’m going to do the Yoga by Adrienne Jan program - Flow. She does one each year and I didn’t do the last couple because the class times varied too much to work into my schedule. But I noticed this year all of the classes are 20-27 minutes.

[beepers]

budders 💕 so sorry for your December! I’ve noticed a change with breathing with any colds too. I don’t get a bad cough or continual wheezing really but at least once after each head cold, weeks later, I hack up a big mucus plug (😣 sorry for the description) like a perfect cast of a bronchial tube. It’s gross and of course my breathing feels better after that. Ugh.

[jorkzy]

Last year’s goals weren’t accomplished but I survived 3 surgeries so 🤷‍♀️
This year I am determined to run a half. So o hope to build consistency with 3 run days a week, 2-3 strength workouts a week. Kicked it off with a full rest day today as I went out for NYE last night and clearly can’t hang anymore 🤣

[coconutbacon]

Happy New Year! I was thinking 2023 was a complete bust because of injury. But, looking back, I did manage 11 races, including 3 half marathons, all between February and July. I’m certain my total running mileage was abysmal, and I don’t want to even look it up. But my total cycling mileage for the year was 1824.15 miles, which averages to a little over 150 a month, which I’m happy with.

My goals for this year: get my ankle/ foot healthy so that I can finally start running and setting running goals again. I meet with the surgeon again this month, and hopefully can go forward with Tenex. I hope to do at least one spring half, and then at least one fall half and full.

I would also like to have a 350+ mile cycling month. That averages to a little under 12 miles a day, which is about 45 minutes of riding, and seems very doable.

Started the year off with CDE’s NYD ride, another 10 minutes of “just ride” and a 10 minute lower body stretch with Ross.

[budders]

Jan 1, 2024 21:15:56 GMT -6 beepers said:

budders 💕 so sorry for your December! I’ve noticed a change with breathing with any colds too. I don’t get a bad cough or continual wheezing really but at least once after each head cold, weeks later, I hack up a big mucus plug (😣 sorry for the description) like a perfect cast of a bronchial tube. It’s gross and of course my breathing feels better after that. Ugh.

I'm sorry you're seeing lasting effects too. It's lowkey terrifying how much catching a simple cold can knock me down for weeks now. I get one at least every other month now, and it always results in a sinus infection and either bronchitis or pneumonia. I was super sick from Thanksgiving until a few days before Christmas -- low grade fever for two weeks, extreme fatigue, coughing nonstop and unable to sleep, severe sore throat and ear pain -- and it took two heavy duty antibiotics to finally clear the infection. I still don't have full movement on my right side because I bruised my ribs so badly from coughing. 

I'm terrified of catching actual covid again.

[cnf]

God damn that 4am alarm. I'd been sleeping until 7am most of break which is unheard of in my house, so this morning was a tough wake up call. I did get right up and get moving, so taking the win.

30 minute JKE NYE ride
10 minute core benchmark with Emma
10 minute arms and shoulders with Matty
5 minute cool down ride with Camila
5 minute stretch with Emma

20 minute yoga on deck for tonight.

Food is mostly logged and ready to go. I really need to get my shit together.

[sweetp]

Jan 1, 2024 19:03:53 GMT -6 sterling said:

the main goal is to be kind to myself and move because I want to move, not because I’m trying to torture myself.

I absolutely love this. <3

[newspapers]

So, I really struggled with regain this fall. I have gained about 15 lbs from my lowest, not helped by a) the holidays b) possibly the course of prednisone I had and now inhaled steroid inhaler I am on. Honestly, I would be fine losing maybe 3-5 lbs and staying under a certain #, which is higher than my lowest. I am focusing on workouts, hydration, and sleep hygiene and the weight will fall where it will.

30 minute intervals and arms with Cody
5 minute post ride stretch with Bradley Rose

[sewfi2]

I ended 2023 with a long run on Sunday (65 min run per my watch's directive, ended up with 5.59) and started out 2024 with an easy run last night. Ended up with 3.5 miles and got some pictures of lights. The park close to me put lights up in the trees and it's so pretty:




And one of the houses in the neighborhood has this like net of lights on the ground. It looks like snow when you drive by it, so cool.

[MelanieCarmichael]

Jan 2, 2024 6:37:10 GMT -6 sweetp said:

Jan 1, 2024 19:03:53 GMT -6 sterling said:

the main goal is to be kind to myself and move because I want to move, not because I’m trying to torture myself.

I absolutely love this. <3

I love this statement, too, sterling. I remember having a light bulb moment when Peloton Emma said, I workout because I LOVE my body, not because I hate it. Or something to that effect. 

[sewfi2]

MelanieCarmichael, I hope 2024 is kind to you that 2023.

budders, the long-term effects of covid are so maddening.

[MelanieCarmichael]

Sending hugs and healing thoughts, budders and beepers.