Progress!!!

Happy New Year friends!  Isn’t there something about a new year that is so refreshing?  I’m not really one to make resolutions but I definitely make goals and this year is no different.

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The last week or so I’ve been looking back at the previous year and trying to find the areas where I made PROGRESS in the goals I had set for myself.  Obviously there are some where I feel like nothing changed but there is one area where I’ve made great PROGRESS and this post is about that.

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This month I was awarded the Be Inspired Spotlight in my Fitness Classes!

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A lot of you know about my health and fitness journey that I embarked on in November 2017 and made it a huge goal to continue for myself in 2018.  I wrote about that here in my post titled Commit and Follow Through.  I had a really good start to 2018 with my continued fitness classes and several fun races.

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My daughter Andrea and her friend Stephanie ran a 10 mile training run with me in March.  I was so unbearably slow but they ran right with me and encouraged me into the finish!

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A Memorial Day race with my son-in-law

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Freezing cold but all smiles before the start of the half marathon in April

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Running strong against the wind in the last mile of the half marathon!

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What I failed to write about last summer, and have had many comments and even a few emails asking me how it went, is the half marathon in April that I was training for.  I’ve done this race several years in the past but had set a goal in 2018 of running the majority of it.  (In the past I’ve done a little bit of running and a whole lot of speed walking.)  Well the amazing news to share is that I DID run it, it was a bitterly cold freezing day, and I was so happy and yes proud of myself.  My son flew in to run it as well as my son-in-law, my daughter and her friend Stephanie.  I set my running watch to a 9:1 interval… run nine minutes, walk one.  But the awesome thing was that I only ended up walking a few of the one minute intervals.  Most of them I was doing so good that I was able to just keep running.  What huge PROGRESS that was for me!!!   (We are all registered again for the 2019 run!)

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Enjoying the beach in August a little more fit and a few sizes smaller!

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Along with PROGRESS comes set-backs and I had a pretty big one in July.  I was cleaning my porches with water, wearing slippery flip-flops and hurrying around and I made an abrupt turn and twist of the knee and slipped and fell.  I kept pushing through for about a month until I knew that it wasn’t going to get better and had it checked.  I had torn my Meniscus pretty good (bad?) and in October I had knee surgery to repair the tear.  With permission from my surgeon I continued modified fitness classes and light running through the summer until time for my surgery.  (Remember my post here about my son’s ultra run?  I paced him the last 8 miles with a really painful knee!)  The good news is that I had a full and fast recovery that my surgeon credited 100% to my level of fitness!  And that, my friends, is PROGRESS!!!  By the end of November I was back full speed to my classes.  

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So here I am… 2019.  Same goal.  Run as much as I can of the Oak Barrel Half Marathon.  Continue my fitness classes.  Eat right.  Stay healthy.  Make PROGRESS! (I have other big goals too and maybe I’ll share those on another post!)

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Mile long loop trails around our farm have really helped me keep my running goals

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I’m absolutely not writing this to brag, or to act like I’m in this great physical condition!!!  I am NOT.  I struggle in my fitness classes every week. I leave exhausted, drenched in sweat, sometimes super dizzy, sometimes so discouraged that it’s only because of my sweet gym “sisters” encouraging me that I keep from crying.  But this is just to tell you that committing fully to a goal and sticking with it through all the setbacks brings PROGRESS!!!  It’s baby steps, friends.  And sometimes it is hard, hard work.   

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And now…. a recipe to help you sleep at night!  Especially after a big day!  In MaryJane’s magazine recently she had a little article on Bath Salts.  I took one of her recipes and tweaked it a bit and let me tell you; it is the thing I look forward to all the way home from my evening fitness classes or after a long run!  A hot bath with this Salt Soak and I literally feel my muscles relaxing… and then I sleep!   Please make some for yourselves!  It’s excellent for the end of a rough day!  Here is my recipe:

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You will need:

• Epsom Salt (the plain stuff with no scents added)
• Himalayan Sea Salt
• Baking Soda
• Essential Oil (I like either Lavender or Citrus)

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Pour into a large glass bowl:

• 4 cups of Epsom Salt
• 1 cup Himalayan Sea Salt
• 1 cup Baking Soda
• 20 drops of Essential Oil

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Mix together completely using a wooden spoon, being sure to break up any of the Epsom Salt chunks.

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Store in a glass container with a lid to keep moisture out.  Use 1/2 cup in a hot bath!

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These make the best gifts!  I made some and placed in half pint jars for Holiday gifts for some of the gals at the gym, but you can make a tag for any occasion and tie the tag on with a ribbon.   A great gift for a friend… or for yourself!

Whatever your goals are for 2019, you can do it!!!

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Until our gravel roads cross again… so long.

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Dori