I have a lot of races on my schedule for this year. You probably noticed in my little sidebar over to the right. I like the energy of races and they are also a great way to meet people. I also have the "race yourself into shape" training philosophy. Not all races are "as important" as the others but scheduling them forces me to stick to my training plan and not slack off. I always regret it when I slack off. I used a similar model when studying for some Security certifications I have. I just picked a date, scheduled the test then I was forced to study. With that being said… here is my plan and goals. Writing them down also helps make them more reality 
7-May xterra 4 mile (no specific goal. sub 50 minutes would be nice)
14-May vail 10k (no specific goal – just support "training" run)
21-May saddleback 5k (I’d like to break 27 minutes here)
4-Jun holcomb 15 (no goal – just upping my race mileage)
16-Jul tahoe 50k (no specific goal – preparation for longer races)
30-Jul wild west (no specific goal but want to run well to not drag down my team
13-Aug waldo 100k (goal is to finish. I’m taking the early start to help accomplish this)
20-Aug bulldog 25k (no specific goal. if I’m not trashed from Waldo I want to run the 50K here)
3-Sep baldy 8 mile (no goal – just fun "training" run)
10-Sep heart 5k (I’d like to set a PR. I run this race every year because of my heart surgery. sub 26 minutes would be awesome but I’ll settle for anything under 26:20)
24-Sep noble rat 50k (no goal – training for JJ100)
1-Oct tc marathon (looking for a marathon PR – goal time is 4:45)
22-Oct jj100 (goal is to finish and not settle for the new "I wimped out 100k" option
19-Nov 9trails (goal is to break 11 hours, and I’m shooting for 10:30 – last year was 12:02)
26-Nov highdessert 50k (no goals)
So in reality, my "main" races are:
- Wild West Relay
- Where’s Waldo 100K
- Heart 5K
- Twin Cities Marathon
- JJ100
- SB9Trails
I also have the bigger goal of 7 ultras in 6 months (+ the marathon).
Hmm… then there is my diet/nutrition/weight issue. Late last fall I met with Julie Vuksic to talk about my nutrition plan. She specialized in endurance nutrition. I started a plan and that quickly fell to the wayside when I got injured. She spoke to OCTR last weekend and that re-ignited my desire to eat smart. I dug out the stuff we went over late last year and am reviving it starting this week. I signed up for calorieking.com because they have a great tracking system and pretty thorough food database. So far this week I have realized I eat too much fat and not enough carbs. The other problem is that in December/January I was only about 5-7 pound away from my goal weight. Well… today I hate to say it but I’m now about 14 pounds away. Yikes. What happened? I maybe don’t look it if you see me, but I do feel it. So I’m working on that and hopefully by JJ100 I’ll be at my goal which means about .5 pound loss per week. Pretty reasonable.
So there. Now my goals are in print. I said them. It’s the sort of accountability that I need.
Happy Running,
Jessica
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yay for goals!!!
and YAY for JJ100!!!!!!
okay – so will you fly into Phoenix or Tucson? The race is up in Phx, but if you fly to Tucson, it’s easier for me to pick you up/drop you off, and also I can show you some of my haunts – Sabino Canyon, etc. although I totally don’t mind going up to Phx. It’s prob cheaper to do Phx! Also – we’ll need to figure out if you want to camp out at the start the night before, crash at my mom’s house (she lives about 45 min from the start) or stay in a hotel (the closest ones are about 20 min from the start (I think that’s about right). My mom doesn’t mind if we stay at her house – although we’d prob be on a mattress on the floor
Do you want me to pace as well as crew?
Love your goals!!! I am the same…I need to have alot of runs on my schedule to keep me in “training” mode. As far as eating clean, I am right there with you. I do not eat like I should and need to “clean” it up a bit. Can’t wait to run some of those races with you!!
You’re so ambitious, that’s awesome! I am exactly the same way about accountability (part of the reason for my blog) and the whole racing into shape thing. Quality is always better in a race, even if you are just “taking it easy.” I am so psyched you are doing TC, that was my first marathon ever! It’s a beautiful and fast course with a lot of spectators, a great place to run a PR!
Race yourself in shape is a big part of my training cycle as well:) It works! And yes, I do sign up for races so I don’t slack off. Go for it! Awesome that you want to do 100M!
Looks real good Jessica! I like your smart nutrition plan too – very reasonable.
Looks like some good, ambitious goals! Wow, a nutrition plan. What a concept. I wish I could be that disciplined.
Hi! I just followed you over from Angie’s blog. After all, anyone that Angie will crew for has to be special and worthy of notice, right?
Looking at your schedule I realized that we’ll rub elbows twice this year: at Waldo and at JJ. You’d better ask around and find out if I’m a stalker ::grins::
The other way I’m totally stalking you is on the weight loss thing. But Hippos have a lot more weight to lose so we’re not talking about .5 pounds per week.
Good luck!
I hear you on the nutrition aspect of training. I’ve tried to be more focused on that, and its seems to be helping me recover faster after a race.
Now, if I can only find out who that character was at PCT50 who told me that I didn’t have a runner’s body. I mean, really, what’s that supposed to mean?
As for the concept of goals in general, I have no doubt that you’ll meet them.
For some reason your new posts hadn’t been popping up on my reader. : (
Good luck with your goals – both running/racing and nutritional. I have the calorieking software and really think it’s the best of its kind. The database is great and actually contains stuff I eat (unlike fitday). We’ve been thinking about heading over to Waldo to check it out and perhaps volunteer. So maybe I’ll see you there! : )
Your posts haven’t been showing up in my reader either… anyways, I’m doing the Wild West Relay again and I registered for Twin Cities last week as well
Jessica – Found you on CRN. great goals. I’m the same way. If I write them down and make them public, I strive to accomplish them. I also have loads of friends who will ask me about how things are going. Take a look at my blog – I have a page just races and race results.
http://www.adventuresofrussellandgreg.com