Goals for my 43rd Year

 

After running the Chocoholic Frolic with my oldest on my birthday

This is going to be my healthiest year yet. In the past I've struggled with my eating choices, and although I'm a healthy weight, my blood glucose and cholesterol numbers haven't been great. Eating too many sweets is the main culprit along with too much refined grain, so this year I'm setting some serious goals to bring my cholesterol and glucose back into the normal range.

Here are my goals for the year:

1.  Eat/drink one sweet a week or fewer.

Eating or drinking one sweet a week will be a big change for me. I've set this goal in the past, but haven't stuck with it as my sweet tooth won out. This year I'm going to be more dedicated and choose a sweet I really like rather than to just satisfy a sweet craving.

2. Drink one alcoholic beverage per week or fewer.

This one won't be too hard, but in the past I've had more than one drink in a sitting, even though I don't drink more than a few times a month.

3. Run a marathon.

I'm already signed up to run the Twin Cities Marathon for Team World Vision. I'm hoping training goes well and I can run a little faster than this year's race.

4. Break 20 minutes in the 5K.

This will be an over 75 second improvement from this year, but I think it's doable.

5. Run over 1,111 miles.

I ran 1,109 this year, so next year I'm going to bump it up by 2 miles, or 0.04 miles per week.

6. Hit race weight by May and stay there.

7. Write 14 blog posts.

8. Average one hour of strength and mobility per week.

I'm feeling optimistic about my goals as I'm pretty motivated to improve my health. I want to make my 43rd year my healthiest yet.

My 42nd year

Eagan parkrun

Last fall I set some goals for my 42nd year of life. I very much enjoyed my 42nd birthday as I once again ran the Chocoholic Frolic with my son. I decided to stretch my goals to Nov. 9 rather than my actual birthday, Nov. 5, since I didn't race a 5K for the whole year. Instead, I've been running the parkrun races with my son, so today he sat out so I could race. 

Here are the results of my goals:

1. Run a marathon.

I ran two marathons, but I'm not going to give myself 200%. I enjoyed running the Madison Marathon and really enjoyed running the Twin Cities Marathon.

100%

2. Do strength and mobility work at least 45 minutes a week.

I averaged 49 minutes. 

109%

3. Break 19:15 in the 5K

I didn't put in the training I needed to in order to run this fast. I was happy with 21:18, which was even a little faster than I thought I could run.

91%

4. Run 1,000 miles for the year.

I stayed fairly consistent and didn't manage to up my miles much for marathon training, but I still ended up running 1,109.

111%

5. Hit race weight by May and maintain for the year.

Didn't do so hot on this one. 

10%

6. Write 12 blog posts.

I only managed 10.

83%

Total for the year: 84%

The weight goal really brought me down. Next year I have some ideas on how to improve in that area.

Stay tuned for my next post where I'll set my goals for my 43rd year.

Twin Cities Marathon Race Report

Thanks to everyone who generously donated to Team World Vision and brought clean water to communities in need. Throughout the race I thought about each donor and the support they gave to those without access to clean water.

Going into the race I was hoping to run under 3:45. Training didn’t go as planned and I didn’t run as many miles or as hard of workouts than in the past. After a couple of long runs finishing at marathon pace effort, 8:30 miles or slower were about what I thought I could handle.

Before the race started, Laura and I rode the shuttle to the start. The ten mile started an hour before the marathon, so after hanging out with Laura for a bit, I found a spot to sit and then warmed up.

The temperature for the race was nearly perfect. It was very windy, but standing in the crowd of people lined up for the race I wasn’t too chilly in my singlet and shorts.

The race started out great. Last year, in Madison, I got to the start with only a few minutes to spare and ended up spending six miles or so weaving in and out of the crowd because I was lined up so far back.

At Twin Cities Marathon I was able to line up in corral one, and it was easy to run my goal pace. There was no pacer for 3:45 and I thought that 3:40 would be a little too fast, so I positioned myself between the 3:40 and 3:50 pacers.

As I ran I settled into running about 8:26 miles, which had me on track to run a little faster than 3:45, but I was feeling good.

On my wrist I had a band with the names of people who had donated to Team World Vision. I enjoyed dedicating miles they had chosen to the donors. It was nice having people to think about as I ran.

The first water stop offered a bit of a surprise. Usually I depend on whatever sports drink is offered for my calories, but this year  they were offering Nuun instead. I then had to make a decision: risk crashing from a lack of calories or take in calories from whatever I could get on the course and end up with stomach troubles.

I decided to do the latter and take my chances with stomach trouble. The first calories I took in was a mimosa. It was only a Dixie cup, so I wasn’t too concerned about the alcohol. Then, in no particular order I ate: bananas (once a quarter of a banana once a half), jelly beans, an orange slice, and a maple syrup gel.

I got some big boosts from seeing some people I know on various points throughout the course. I saw a former coworker, one of Laura’s coworkers, a former college professor, and a former cross country athlete I coached.

.

My biggest boost came from seeing Laura and the kiddos at mile 24. For a while I thought they were going to be at mile 22, but just after 22 I remembered it was 24. Thinking they were going to be at mile 22 and then realizing they were not made the next couple miles a little more challenging. Laura texted me while I was around 23 (I can read texts on my watch) telling me she would be on the right side of the road just after the mile 24 aid station.

As I continued to run, I couldn’t remember if she said the left or the right side. I remembered that she had always been on the right side of the road, but since I wasn’t entirely sure, so I ran in the middle of the road so I could look on both sides.

After passing the mile 24 aid station, I saw Laura jumping up and down to get my attention. I ran to the side of the road where Laura, the kiddos, and Laura’s parents were cheering. I gave the kids high fives and got to see the sign my older kiddo made.

After that boost I was able to really pick up the pace. I never hit a wall, and the random calories didn’t bother my stomach.

I finished the race in 3:39 and ran hard enough to the finish to pass a couple of runners including the 3:40 pacer. If I went with the 3:40 pacer at the beginning of the race, I think I would have ran faster, but I’m still happy that I ran over five minutes faster than I thought I could.

After the race I saw Jeff Webber, the coach I worked with when I was coaching track and cross country as Burnsville High School along with a former athlete I coached. We had a nice chat and then I headed to the Team World Vision tent where I met Laura and and the kids for pizza. As I came in to the tent, a World Vision volunteer asked me how much money I’d raised, then announced how many people were provided with clean water because of those who donated.

Running Twin Cities Marathon and raising money for World Vision was a great experience, and I’m thinking I’m going to do it again next year. Thanks for all the support raising money and motivating me to run — especially to Laura who supported and encouraged me throughout training and fundraising. 

Be well.

Team World Vision Training Update

Training continues for the Twin Cities Marathon as does fundraising for Team World Vision. These past couple weeks I've clocked some decent mileage and raised more money for Team World Vision.

This training cycle I haven't ran near the mileage I've run in the past for a marathon. I'm tempering my expectations and doing a couple of workouts that will give me an idea of what my goal should be for the marathon.

One workout I've done is a marathon-pace finish long run where I ran the last five miles at about what I think I could run the marathon. I didn't feel comfortable running at a 3:30 marathon pace, so I'm guessing my goal will be under 3:45.

Fundraising has gone well as I've raised $2,050 to bring clean water to communities in need. Fifty dollars brings that water to one person, so thanks to all my generous donors, forty-one people will have clean water.

Please consider a donation to Team World Vision. Your generosity will make a life-saving difference to a community in need of clean water. And, Team World Vision is a Christian organization, but it serves communities regardless of their religion.

Thank you to all of you who have already donated. And if you are unable to donate at this time, your thoughts and prayers for Team World Vision are appreciated. A link to donate is below:

Nathan Leckband's Team World Vision Donation Page

Team World Vision Training Update

It’s seven weeks until the Twin Cities Marathon. In some ways, that seems like a ways off, but in other ways it’s approaching too fast. My fundraising is going very well with just $80 to go to meet my $2,000 goal.

My training on the other hand isn’t quite where I’d like it. I’ve run a couple 30+ mile weeks, but I also had a 17 mile week mixed in over the past seven weeks. I'd really like to work my way up to a 40 mile peak week, but I’m not sure that will happen, especially once school starts.

I’d also like to up the distance of my long runs. I’m probably going to stick with a method I learned from the book, “Hansons Marathon Method” that maxes out the long run at 16 miles.

Thanks to everyone who's donated to World Vision so far. Bringing clean water to communities in need is life saving, and any donation, be it $5 or $1000, will change lives. Every $50 will bring one person clean water.

Here's a direct link to my fundraising page: Team World Vision Fundraising Page. I will also be doing a Facebook fundraiser soon.

If you are unable to make a donation at this time, please keep me in your thoughts and prayers. Thanks for your support!

Team World Vision Fundraising

 

As I look forward to the Twin Cities Marathon in October, I am once again raising money for Team World Vision. Team World Vision brings clean water to communities in need. Every day more than 800 children die from contaminated water, poor sanitation, and improper hygiene. 

While World Vision is a Christian organization, it serves communities and individuals whether they are Christian or not.

You can make a difference. A donation of $50 will bring clean water to one person. Any amount you're comfortable donating will help, whether it's five dollars or $100.

For any donation $20 or more, I will dedicate a mile of the Twin Cities Marathon to you.

For a donation of $50 or more, I will write you a semi-customized training plan for a race distance of your choice.

If donating isn't feasible for you right now, I ask that you keep me and communities in need in your prayers.

Thank you for all your support. You can find more information on my Team World Vision fundraising page Team World Vision fundraising page.

Goals Update

 It's been six months since I set some goals for the 42nd year of my life. Here are how they're going:

1. Run a marathon.

I'm signed up for the Twin Cities Marathon this coming October

2. Do strength and mobility work at least 45 minutes a week.

I'm on track for this one.

3. Break 19:15 in the 5K

This is going to be a tough one. I'm planning on starting to take a crack at this goal in August and September.

4. Run 1,000 miles for the year.

This one's going great. I've already logged 545,

5. Hit race weight by May and maintain for the year.

I missed the goal of getting to race weight by May. I'm hoping to be down to race weight by the end of August.

6. Write 12 blog posts.

Well... not doing so hot on this one.

Though all my goals are not going great, I'm feeling pretty good about the progress I've made. I'm optimistic about the second half of the year.

Hospital Anniversary: Don't Feel Bad for Me

Year seven of being hospital-free. It's a big milestone, and I've been blessed to stay well enough to not be hospitalized. There is something I want to address: pity.

It's a common phrase: don't feel bad for me. I understand where it's coming from. Some people just don't want anyone to feel pity for them. But, some people constantly want other people to feel bad for them. Neither one of these ends of the pity spectrum are healthy.

If one is constantly saying they don't want anyone to feel bad for them, they may miss out on sympathy and support that can feel good. If one is constantly trying to make others feel bad for them, they may wear out their friends and loved ones.

Having a mental illness sometimes makes this issue tricky for me. On the one hand, I don't want people worrying about me, so sometimes I don't let people know when I'm having a hard time. On the other, I don't want to wear out my friends and family by constantly telling them about my symptoms.

As I've gone through depressive, manic/hypomanic, and mixed state phases, there are things I've done and said that I wouldn't normally when I'm balanced. Same goes for meeting expectations and obligations.

For example, when I was a confirmation mentor at our church, a couple different times I asked a parent to chaperone a trip rather than doing it myself because I was feeling symptomatic.

I want to do better. I'd like to do a better job at meeting expectations and not saying thoughtless things just because I'm cycling.

It's nice to be able to have this blog as an outlet for describing what I'm going through. Thank you to all my readers and especially to my friends and family who have stuck by me when I've done and said things out of character. I am truly blessed with a wonderful support system, and I know not everyone with mental illness can say that.

So again, thank you readers for giving me that outlet, and thanks to family and friends who have loved and supported me. I am truly blessed.

Mental Illness and Character

Can people give themselves a mental illness? Some think so. Some think that mental illness can be caused by a lack of motivation or poor character. Some think that one can overcome a mental illness by trying harder or thinking differently.

People with mental illnesses can even fall into this category. They think that if only they try harder, their depression, anxiety, or other mental illness will get better.

It is true that there are things people can do to improve their mental illnesses. Taking their medications as prescribed, keeping healthy sleep habits, eating a healthy diet, and spending time connecting with friends are a few ways to manage a mental illness.

But in answer to the question of giving themselves a mental illness, the answer is, "no." While there are things one can do to mitigate mental illness and even get past certain mental illnesses, people aren't out there "giving themselves" mental illnesses.

When people say that others have given themselves mental illnesses, they should consider what would happen to them if they had a mental illness. From the outside, many with mental illnesses look like they are not doing well. They may not have stable relationships, or they may have a hard time staying employed. But it's easy for those without mental illness to look down on them. 

What, however, would it look like for those who don't struggle with mental illness to have a mental illness? They might not be as successful in life. They might not have the relationships they enjoy.

People with mental illness deserve compassion and understanding, not judgment and blame. When thinking about those with mental illness, people should take a pause and consider the struggles mental illness brings, not pass judgment or blame.

Be well.

Goal Update

It’s New Year’s Day, a time to make some goals, or, in my case, give an update of the goals I made on my birthday. Here goes:

1. Run a marathon.

No progress on this one. I need to pick one out and register for it.

2. Do strength and mobility work at least 45 minutes a week.

I’m on track for this one. I’m averaging 53 minutes a week

3. Break 19:15 in the 5K

I probably won’t race a 5K until May, but I know right now that I’d be lucky to break 20:30.

4. Run 1,000 miles for the year.

I need to average 3.74 miles a day for this one, and right now I’m averaging 3.3 miles-a-day, so I’m on track. I did, however, have a little procedure that will have me out of commission for a couple weeks, so I’ll have to do some catch up. 

5. Hit race weight by May and maintain for the year.

My weight’s gone up and down with the holidays. I’m not making progress as fast as I want, this goal is still doable. 

6. Write 12 blog posts.

I’ve got a couple posts sitting in my drafts folder, so I’ll be on track for this one soon.

Two months into by 42nd year, and I’m feeling pretty good about my goals. I’m looking forward to staying on track for the rest of the year.