Another year, another chance to set myself up for three seasons of successful, enjoyable, purposeful running. I leave my more practical goals for the beginning of each season (Mar-May = spring, June-Aug = summer, Sep-Nov = fall, and I don’t set goals for winter) and instead let my year long goals be more holistic.

1. 2019 mileage > 2018 mileage
   This is an obvious goal. One day I’ll stop setting this as a goal as I think I’ll reach a point where there are diminishing returns for additional mileage, but I know I’m nowhere near that point.
2. Do 100 pushups/day
   I keep saying I need to do strength training and keep failing to do it. This is a good way to do something measurable and achievable to jump start that initiative. My friend Jeff had an amazing year of running last year, and he did at least 100 pushups a day, even during FANS when he was 3rd overall in the 24 hour race! So why wouldn’t it work for me, too? Look for me to be winning races left and right thanks to pushups.
3. Run more new races/courses than old ones.
   I have been running a lot of the same races (Superior, Be the Match, Chippewa Moraine, FANS), and it’s time to branch out and try some new things. Be the Match 5K has ended, so that’s out, and I didn’t enter the lottery for either Superior Spring or Fall. I’ll still head up in September for the big party, but as a volunteer only. I’m still doing FANS and Twin Cities Marathon, so I’ll have some repeats. I’m doing Zumbro 50, so that counts as a new race even if it’s not a new course.
4. My highest category of training mileage will not be treadmill mileage.
   Last year, 42% of my workouts were treadmill workouts! 34% of my mileage was treadmill mileage, so if I made it out the door, the run was probably longer. It’s cold sometimes. It rains sometimes. I travel to places that aren’t great for running. The treadmill is convenient. But as a trail runner, I can’t have nearly half of my workouts be indoors.
5. Start taking a multivitamin.
   I am not a “clean” eater. I’m totally fine with that. I don’t want to be the type of person who refers to food by its macronutrient type. While I’m working on making incremental improvements to my food choices, I want to make sure I’m supplementing those efforts with the right micronutrients.
6. Volunteer at a race that isn’t put on by Rocksteady Running.
   I love RSR, I love supporting their events, and I will continue to volunteer at them, but I need to support other events as well! There are so many races in the area that need volunteer support, and I want to spread that love around a little more.
7. Go for a run in every county in MN.
   This is a multi-year goal I’m starting today (that is retroactive). It’s a bit of an homage to Gary “Lazarus Lake” Cantrell, except I’m not planning to run across every county.

Now that I have some direction, I can go out and start executing. Since my abs and chest muscles are killing me today, I can tell the push-ups challenge is going to be a good one… eventually.