One day at a time

When things start to go your way there will always be someone who jumps in and tries to mess it up. It's just part of life and that's part of the challenge or journey. How you handle those things will be what defines you. Do you accept the challenge and face it or do you turn around and run. Take the easy way out, find another avenue and take it because at that time it's just easier. If that's the case, when you look back do you wish you would have not hung up your towel and continued to fight. When it comes to fighting do you fight for something regardless of what's going on? Or do you turn to something or someone else because it's more convenient in that moment? Make your choices carefully. 

For me I am still fighting a fight. I look in the mirror and I am still not where I want I want to be. I want to change things more. I want to cut more here, build more there. I feel like this will be a constant battle though and anyone will agree. As for racing I want to race. More and NOW. With wind chills around 15 degrees here though it's evident that winter is here and it's time for things to officially move inside, so inside I am. I need to continue to tell myself that race season will come and there will be plenty of warm weather to train outside. 

This past weekend I did 800's on Friday because I have a 5k coming up and when it comes to running I LOVE the pain when it comes to doing speed work.  When I first started running I was looking at well over 10:00/mile at least and it was a mix of walk jog even before that. Today I can pump out sub 8 with no problem. But I want MORE!! It took me almost a year to get there...it's going to take time. On Friday when I was done someone asked why I was doing 800's and I told them I had a race on Thursday that I was shooting to do well in. Their response? "I don't train for 5k's I just go out and run sub 22's and I'm good with that." Mind you this is a track and field person. Which is fine and I understand people don't look at races all the same. For me though it's a race and I want to do well, I always want to do well or better my last time even if it's a minimal gain....that's my goal, yours may be different and that's fine. I just don't like when people belittle what I am doing. But hey it happens. 

This 5k will be the last of the year with the temps and weather shift. From there everything moves inside. Today I had a nice run inside, some on the track and some on the treadmill. It frustrates me that I can be such a newb when it comes to training still and determining what I should be doing. I am thankful for the people I have in my life though who help me through every step of the way. 

Nike+ report from today. 

And of course it wouldn't be a run without chocolate milk after!

After my race in AC I was on a bit of a race high still and I decided I wanted to apply to become a part of a team. I thought my journey and solid finish at AC would be enough to just walk on to a team. Unfortunately that was not the case. I have been denied from a few teams already and it was a bit of a reality check. I am not ready for that yet and I got a little too big for my britches. Yes I have a fantastic story but I need more races to prove myself. The one team that I was accepted to made me an offer but unfortunately it's $135 a month to be apart of their team and right now just isn't the time. I'm taking it one day at a time though and keeping my hopes high for becoming a member of Wattie Ink. 

I am excited for things that are coming up and I can't wait to see where this road takes me. I do not post on here daily but if you would like to follow things further I post on twitter, Facebook, and Instagram daily. Links are on the right side of the page. 

Thanks for reading!

All for now. 

Keep FSU and Do It For Yourself

When does a dream become tangible?

Dreams, goals, ambitions...we all have them. They are big or small. They are personal or fitness related. They could be family oriented or something we are doing for ourselves but my question to you is when do they become tangible? When do they become something that we can actually reach and attain?

Most of my current goals are in relation to triathlons or racing. I have races lined up that I want to do and specific time goals or effort goals for those races. I know that I want to step up and complete an Olympic distance next season( 1 mi swim, 20 mi bike, 6.2 mi run). I have signed up for the Delmo Sports Escape the Cape Triathlon at this distance and with the help of my friends and tri community I will complete this race. 

Going further into the season I have a few other races I want to compete in such as Jersey State, Bethany, Cape, and some others. My A priority race for sure next year will be Atlantic City again. I have no trouble telling you that I will be training to take first place in my age group for this race. It is an attainable and realistic goal after looking at the times I put up for last year. 

Looking further into the future I want to land a teaching job so that I can continue to impact the lives of children everyday. After my experiences student teaching I know for sure this is exactly what I am supposed to be doing.  Even further into the future I know that I want to compete in a half Ironman and I want to complete a marathon. These are all attainable goals that can and WILL be reached. 

Now to the real story behind this post...I am going to share something with you that I believe only one person knows...if you're reading this you know exactly who you are.....here goes nothing...

I have a dream to move to California...

There I said it...yes California, all the way on the other side of the country. When I went there I fell in love and I have wanted to go back ever since. Some people say I saw a different side of this place...it's nothing like I saw when you live there...why would you ever want to do that? Etc. 

I have a few reasons...one I hate the cold, I love the climate there...why not go to the south? Because I loved that there was no hustle and bustle in California aside from in LA which is not where I want to live. The second reason is that I never went "away" for school...I have grown up outside of Philadelphia in the country and it's a very small town. I want to get out and see what it's like away from here for awhile. This brings up my second question...is this selfish? People ask if I want to get away from my family or if I would miss my friends? YES ABSOLUTELY I would miss them. I would miss all of them terribly. I love my family dearly and they have been amazing throughout this entire journey. I would have never made it here without their support. As for my friends...I can't even think about life without any of them. They have been equally as amazing as my family with their support as well. This is something that I have always wanted to do though. Then there is the group of wonderful people in the Tri Club who I would miss. It has been something I have thought long and hard about....and yet it is still in the back of my head everyday. So again, when does a dream become something more tangible? This becomes a quiet reality as graduation rapidly approaches in December. I still haven't made up my mind and I have told myself I am going to take the wait and see approach because I will not go anywhere without the safety of a job. It's just something I need to share with all of you. 

Lastly I would like to thank you, the readers for all of the support. Whether big or small you have absolutely made a difference. So thanks. If you're a new reader feel free to connect with me on twitter(@Foryourself15) instagram(@doing_it_for_yourself) or Facebook (Facebook.com/foryourself15) all links can also be found on the blog!

Thanks for reading!

All for now

Keep FSU and Do It For Yourself