Hello, October! We’re in the last quarter of 2021! Isn’t it crazy?
The year continues to fly by and I have been doing my best to maintain a reasonably healthy lifestyle, lol! I really enjoy sharing my monthly wellness goals on the blog, so let’s get to it!
I’m linking up with My First 5K and More, Running With Attitude, Run Laugh Eat Pie, Runs with Pugs, and Zenaida for Fit Five Friday and Coach Debbie Runs, Confessions of a Mother Runner, Mile by Mile, Runs with Pugs, and Laura Norris Running for Runners’ Roundup!
September Wellness Goals Recap
- Continue working hard in physical therapy. Grade: A-. Working in physical therapy was very intense in September, almost gruelling. I did a ton of legstrengthening and balance exercises and would feel pretty fatigued on almost a daily basis. The only reason I give an A- is that I did fall back from doing my PT in-between sessions, so I do think that my running relapsed a little with knee pain creeping its way back in. My physical therapist let me know that he was leaving the office AGAIN, so I decided to stop going in and just focus on doing the exercises on my own.
- Get back to a consistent yoga practice. Grade: C. I did a few days’ practice of yoga in September, but I was not consistent at all. While I do enjoy doing yoga before bed, I’ve just been so tired that I convince myself to skip the sessions on the mat. I have an alarm set, but I always turn it off, smh!
- Limit time on mindless social media apps. Grade: A. I actually did really well with this! My time on Instagram plummeted dramatically, and I have no complaints! It’s too easy for me to get caught up in the comparison game with other runners, especially mother runners, so I have to keep my distance. Twitter has become a lot more entertaining to me, but I only spent spurts of time on that app and keep away from negative subject matter!
October Wellness Goals
- Finish the Philadelphia Trail Half Marathon with a smile. My 20th half marathon will be taking place on October 16! Clearly, I did not have the typical training cycle, since I had several weeks where I needed to rest my poor knees. So my main goal for this race is to finish and be proud of this accomplishment. I’ve always wanted to run a trail race so I’m really looking forward to finally experiencing that atmopshere and to of course enjoy the scenery along the way!
- Incorporate PT exercises into a daily routine. This is absolutely one of my most important goals moving forward so that I can say goodbye to runner’s knee for good. I have to keep up my exercises and I’m more motivated than ever! I started logging exercises in my Believe Training Journal again so that I keep myself honest. I’ll be going to the gym at work to take advantage of the leg machines and TRX. It can be tough to create a habit, but I’m committed to making it happen this month!
- Enjoy my vacation days. This should be an easy goal to accomplish, right?! I have a few vacation days scheduled off in October, and they are long overdue! But it’s so easy for me to get so caught up in my to-do lists that it feels like I’m doing more work than actually relaxing on my day off! My vacation days will be opportunities for me to have time to myself, to do errands or heck, even do some window shopping. As much as I am an extrovert who is energized by being around other people, I really miss having quality alone time, especially in the middle of the day!
Do you have any wellness goals for this month? What are you looking forward to?
All the best for your half-marathon, Janelle!
Finishing with a smile is a great goal if you didn’t have an optimal training cycle.
Also, well done on reducing social media. It’s amazing how much more time you have for other things when you let go, right?
Thanks so much, Catrina! I am really excited to run my first real trail race, so I just want to focus on having fun and enjoying the moment! And it’s true, social media can be a real time suck, haha!
I’m glad to hear all the PT work you’ve invested in has been beneficial. While I have not been in any kind of official PT program or rehab, there are so many “prehab” exercises available. I’m kind of hit & miss with my consistency, though. I hope your trail 13.1 goes well for you!!
Thanks a lot, Kim! Prehab is so important for me given my injury history! I have to just remind myself to keep it up as another form of self-care.
You have been doing an awesome job with your PT work!! Huge kudos to you because it’s such an easy thing to fall off of (I’m always guilty about that). Good luck on your half!