The Evolution of a Running Goal

If you read my post on Friday, you would recall that my very first race was the Disney Royal Family 5k. After that race, I knew that I was going to continue to make a Disney race an annual thing. Around that time my sister continued to run more long distance races and I thoroughly enjoyed being her cheerleader on the sidelines.  I knew I could never run a 10K or half marathon so I was just happy to show support and hold a sign.

After experiencing the excitement as I cheered for her at the Rock n Roll Virginia beach half marathon, I made it a goal of mine to become good enough to actually run the Rock n Roll 5k race. I was happy running the Disney 5Ks but I thought it might be exciting to run a race that is actually chip timed and earn a real medal, not those rubber medallions that Disney gives out.

Yup, so this was my only goal, to run the Rock n Roll 5k race because I didn't think I was capable of anything else.  I really wanted to run one of the larger Disney races so I thought maybe, just maybe I could run the Tower of Terror 13K relay.  But then Disney changed that race to a 10 miler so that was absolutely out of the question.

The following year, after our 3rd Royal Family 5K at Disney, my mom and I made a pact that we were going to train for the Princess Half Marathon.  I couldn't believe what I had just agreed to. I couldn't imagine completing a 5k and then having to run 10 more miles! During that time I gradually increased my race distance. I actually did run my first timed 5K, (but it wasn't RnR VA Beach), I ran a 7K, 8K, and a few 10Ks  and a half of a half, before I finally took the plunge.

I've come along way from my only goal being to run a timed 5K.  Since I started training for actual "timed" races my goals have been this.......

To run a 5K under 30 minutes - Check, did that
To run a 10K under 60 minutes- Check, did that
To run a half marathon under 2:30 - Crushed it!

I never thought I would run a marathon so just finishing was my goal! Did that twice.

These were my very first running goals when I didn't even really know what I was capable of. Quite honestly I don't even know how I came up with these times as goals. I think I just picked them out of a hat or something...haha

2016 is my year to enjoy running pain free and so far it's going well. I am probably due to work on getting those time goals down even further since my PR's are very old, but I'm not sure if working on speed quite yet is where I need to be.   How did you know when it was time to adjust your running goals?  -M

Oh, and by the way, I never did get to run that Rock n Roll 5K race in VA Beach.

We will be linking up with the gals from TOTR.

What's in a time?

So what's in a time anyway? When most people set running goals, it's mostly about wanting to get their time down and setting a new PR. We're  both gonna talk a little bit about our thoughts on racing for time.

1. When I first started running, I had two goals. 1) to run a 5K in under 30 minutes and 2) to run a 10K in under an hour.  To many people these are not very tough goals to reach, but I admit I worked hard for this and I crushed it! But now I am perfectly fine being consistent at this pace. Does this make me lazy because I don't strive to get my 5k time under 25 min? That would be the next logical step right?  (M)

2. I recently had a running friend ask me about my marathon times. I told him that I ran Big Sur in 3:51 and Shamrock in 3:50 ( last year was 3:47). He asked how in the world I could run the flattest course and the hilliest course in practically the same time.  Does this mean that I did really well on the hills at Big Sur? Or does it mean I could have stepped it up a notch at Shamrock?  I think it just means I am consistent and that's okay.  As long as I keep my full marathon time under 4 hours and my half marathon time under 2 hours, I am happy!  ( L)

3. One of our favorite running books is Running  Like Girl by Alexadra Heminsly. In the book she makes this statement ""Why should I be trying sooo hard to get twenty minutes faster? What's the purpose? What would I ever do with that extra twenty minutes?"

 (I found that part to be extremely funny because it is the raw truth, but as runners we are always trying to improve our times)

But maybe you've found out, 20 minutes can mean the difference between having post race food and not having any post race food left by the time you finish.

At Disney races, 20 minutes can mean the difference between getting a pictures with your favorite Disney Character or not, ( or waiting for that character and having a secondary one come out to replace him or her).

20 minutes can also mean the difference between getting a post race massage, and just missing the tent as it closes up shop.


4.There has been a lot of talk around the interweb lately with people saying "I didn't run this race to "race" it". And that's ok! Sometimes we have "off" days, sometimes we are running with a friend or family member who doesn't run at our pace so we run with them just for the experience of running together, and then there are times where we just wan to take in the scenery and just have fun like at a Disney race!

5. And just for fun, we want to tell a quick story about our friend David. David ran the Jacksonville Bank Marathon without a GPS or any other timing device. He said he wanted to just run on how he felt. He must have felt pretty good not having that "worry" about his time because he ended up qualifying for Boston with that race. Good job David!

So what are your thought on time? Do your running goals often include improving your time?


Thanks to Courtney and the gals for hosting the Friday Five link up where the theme this week is goals.