Monthly Archives: December 2010
The year of Twitter
I’ve already stated that I’m not doing a year in review — my highlights can be found in the 1,000-mile journey post. In fact I’m done talking about running in 2010 (I’m at 1,008 miles; I might shoot for 1,010 tonight), except for this one final thing.
Thanks to TweetStats, I have access to some useless information about how I’ve spend my year on Twitter. For those who don’t “get” Twitter, that’s fine. I’m not going to try and convince you to even get on it. However, I love it. I’ve connected with so many runners, had some great conversations, gotten free advice, launched #runchat and even had several healthy arguments debates. While my Twitter profile shows that I’ve been tweeting since March 2010, that is in fact not true. It’s taken a couple of accounts to get to where I am now, but I’ve been on Twitter since September 2008, which includes about 4 months worth of tweeting at my former job.
ANYWAY, what does TweetStats say about my year?
- I average 17 tweets a day. That’s a bit skewed as I somehow found time in October to tweet 735 times, far and away the highest month of the year.
- 781 of my nearly 5,000 tweets have been about #runchat.
- The next closest word is “run” at 418 tweets.
- At one point, I tweeted a lot about the “Biggest Loser” — #BL9 had 241 tweets; #BL10 had just 85.
- Despite #runchat having a regular 2nd/4th Sunday schedule, it’s actually the second fewest tweeted day of the week: 566 tweets. Saturday is the lowest tweeted day at 470 tweets.
- Tuesday is the highest day with 1,081 tweets. Combine “Biggest Loser” night with a night that my wife usually isn’t home and you get a bunch of tweets.
- I talk to @bklynrunner a lot. 264 @ replies to her. Michelle was my first guest blogger on here last year and one of the nicest people I’ve never officially met.
- I retweet #runchat co-moderator @iRunnerblog the most: 61 times.
- Awesome: 160 times tweeted.
- #beer: Just 1 tweet.
HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYBODY!
Making the Commitment I
COMMITMENT
a pledge or promise; obligation
RESOLUTION
a resolve or determination
I’m so tired of hearing people making “resolutions.” It’s interesting to note that dictionary.com’s meaning of resolution is “a determination.” Yes, we’re all determined to do new things come Jan. 1, but it’s not a promise. It’s not a pledge. It’s not a commitment.
And that’s what I want to do throughout 2011 — make commitments. The other day on Twitter I posted something similar to this and I got a great response. There are lots of people out there ready to make commitments … but I think they missed my point. Yes, you’ve signed up for a certain race or made it a goal to run 1,000 miles in the year — those are goals. How you get to those goals is where the commitment comes in.
My eagerness to make 2011 the year of commitments comes from my own failures learning experiences this month. At the beginning of the month I was determined (or shall I say resolved) to get my weight back to the 170s. It’s just not happening. Part of why it’s not happening is because I mentioned it once, got halfway through the month just fine and then just fell apart with my diet and have gotten lazy in the past week. A complete lack of commitment.
While I will continue to not focus on an end number, I am going to commit myself to including my weight once a week on my blog. My commitment is to weigh myself Thursday and Friday and take the best of those numbers and post it at some point every weekend. So that being said, my first official 2011 weigh in will be Jan. 6/7. (Having lost weight before and knowing the evils of a scale, the two weigh-ins work well. I’d hate for a big meal the day before to ruin a week for me.)
This is just the first of many commitments. I’m not making a punch list, but instead will make this a year-long thing. As part of making commitments, I will use the #2011commitments tag on Twitter throughout the year and use that same tag for related posts here. You may have noticed a slightly different title to this post using a Roman numeral. My commitment to making commitments will be to occasionally blog using the same title to keep the theme going.
I don’t want this to fall apart in a few weeks; I’d like to take the best of the best of these posts and reflect on them a year from now. Whether I use that title 5 times or 20 times will be determined, but expect to see the tag used quite often.
So who’s in? This isn’t a Twitter challenge or something to report to me weekly on, but I welcome anyone who wants to use the same title or tag on Twitter.
A solo #runchat
As co-moderator of #runchat on Twitter, I have taken a step back from answering the questions and just let the conversations go. It’s a lot of fun to watch, and co-moderator Scott and I talk behind your backs as you answer the questions. I KID, I KID! The conversations have been great and it’s so awesome to see runners of all abilities sharing their experiences with each other. We have some exciting plans for future #runchat sessions … but I can’t quite give those details away just yet.
So in between #runchats — which are the second and fourth Sundays of the month at 8 p.m. ET — I thought I’d take some of the questions from the past few chats and answer them myself — in 140 characters or less, of course. And if you’re unfamiliar with #runchat, this is how it works: We ask questions, you answer them. It’s easier than tying your shoes and going out for a run.
Did you get what you wanted for Christmas? If so, what?
YES! Matt Fitzgerald’s “Run …” book and a gift card to my local running store, which I used to buy socks.
What are your big goals for 2011?
To get rid of my ITB issue, and then to finish the year stronger than I begin it. I’ll figure out later what that means.
What’s one piece of advice you’d give to a new runner in ’11?
Start slow. One mile, one day, one week at a time. Little things add up to big results.
Looking back on 2010, what was the biggest goal you set and conquered?
A PR in a half marathon. So many choices, but that’s what I’ve wanted for a while. 1,000 miles was nice, but it’s just a number.
Do you feel that race fees are too expensive? What is the most you will spend to enter a race?
For many community races, yes. I think the reputation and number of entries should drive the price.
When do you switch to pants and/or long sleeves? What is your layering strategy?
Under 40, I switch to pants. Thin layers work best - 2-3 (maybe 4) on top, depending on the temperature.
What’s the longest time you’ve taken off due to injury? Do you rest, run through or seek help?
Unfortunately that time is now, but I’m not keeping track of time. I’ve rested, ran through and sought help.
Men, what do you think when you see a runner in a skirt?
I could care less. People should run with whatever is comfortable for them.
-> Don’t forget, #runchat returns at 8 p.m. ET Sunday, Jan. 9. More details coming very soon.
-> I’m looking to continue Q&A sessions and guest posts in 2011. If you’re interested, let me know! Visit my Contact page and we’ll make it happen.
A Christmas gift success!
It’s mine. Thanks Mom! And thanks to various comments on here and on Twitter this year encouraging me to read this book. I’ve only read the Forward, the Preface and the Introduction, but I can already tell I’m going to love this book.
2011: End it stronger than I begin it
Do you ever say something that doesn’t make sense one minute only for it to make perfect sense another? One great thing about Twitter is that those free-flowing thoughts are kept somewhere forever and you can go back and look at comments in hindsight.
Last night in a Twitter conversation with @irun2befit (Steena, who did a Q&A with me recently), I said this: “My goal for ’11 is going to be to end it stronger than I begin it. While ’10 has been awesome, this is not a good ending.”
When I first said that, I didn’t know what I meant. It sounded good, and what goal doesn’t sound good? But since I typed that, I’ve thought a lot about next year and my goals and I’m starting to realize what it means.
For most of this year, I’ve stayed focused and have been more determined than ever with my goals. Part of that was keeping my eye on hitting 1,000 miles for the year. Had it not been for that goal, I might not have made it to the start line of the marathon, injury or not.
While miles are important to me, the end number doesn’t define me. How I get to those miles is what is important. I didn’t run 1,000 miles just to run 1,000 miles — I think there’s some misunderstanding from some people out there about that. But I documented that well enough the other day and throughout the year.
So, here’s the deal. I’m going to start 2011 in a better place than I did 2010. Sort of. I’m going to weigh a decent amount less no matter what happens these last 10 days. I’m going to enter the year with an awesome base of 1,000 miles ran in the previous 12 months. The problem, though, is that I can’t exactly hit the ground running in 2011.
Running is a big unknown for right now. So what I want to do in 2011 is be able to be at this point next year feeling stronger and more confident about running than I do right now. I think most runners want each year to be better than the previous, so even if I’m not on top of my game in January, there’s no reason I can’t be next November and December.
It’s a really big picture way of thinking. I know that I can’t rush back to running, and I know that there’s a good possibility that I have to skip my usual winter training. I’m not giving up hope, but I know the reality of what I’m going through. I’m OK with that too. I also know that I could be running just fine in a few weeks and that the first three months of the year would just be a huge springboard for the rest of the year.
But the BIG goal is to not be sitting here a year from now not being able to run. In our “right now” society, it’s hard to wrap my head around that goal, but sometimes we have to slow down and think about the rest of our lives.
Make sense? Maybe not. But it does to me, and that’s all that matters.
No. 594
It’s that time of year in which bulleted blog posts are becoming the norm. There’s a wide variety of things on my mind with nothing really dominating. I was tempted to leave my 1,000-mile journey post as the last post of the year, but then people would get all worried about me. I don’t need any strangers knocking on my door right now. So, here’s a variety hour, blog post no. 594 since April 2007.
* My chiropractor appointments are going well. The leg stretches have proven to me that I’m no longer very flexible. I’m not sure that I ever was. It’s been a wake-up call that I should do some sort of stretching though, no matter what some people say. I’m not getting in the “to stretch or not to stretch” debate. Different things work for different people. I won’t stretch a cold muscle … and that’s all I’m saying about that.
* As a result of resting and getting my body fixed, I think that I can run again soon. Not that I’ve fully stopped, but less than 10 miles in 5-plus weeks isn’t really running. I ran 1.2 pain-free miles yesterday. All at once. It’s the first time since the marathon running more than a mile non-stop (I think). My hope is to give myself a Christmas gift this week and run 2 miles non-stop. We’ll see. No promises.
* Speaking of not really running, but still running, I’ve had ZERO 0.0-mile weeks this year. While I don’t like all these very low single digit weeks, this is another nice accomplishment to this awesome year, assuming I keep the streak alive in these final two weeks of the year. If I could give 2010 a theme, I would call it The Year of the Streaks.
* There are 89 days until the Shamrock Half Marathon. It’s either going to be Shamrock No. 5 in a row in the best shape ever or not at all. I’m not going to half-ass it or risk injury. If I can’t run regularly again soon, I’m not going to push it. But if I can run soon — at least getting to double digits comfortably in a week by mid-January — you better believe I’ll go for a PR again.
* So this getting to the 170s by the end of the year thing … let’s just say I’ve maintained, and I’m very happy for that. With very little running, combined with a cold from hell in the past two weeks, I can’t do everything I want to do physically. Maintaining in the first three weeks is a win for me. I’m not giving up hope on it though, but I’m also not going to work my way to a sickness that lasts even longer.
Here's Nermal a couple of months ago, lounging out in a kiddie pool.
* Lastly, on a sad non-running note, “my” cat died this weekend. Nermal — yes, after Garfield’s cousin (except my Nermal was a boy) — was 15 years old this month. He was a classic fat cat — probably about 25 pounds. He was as mean as a pissed off snake through much of his life. I use the term “my” because when I was a senior in high school, I just had to have him. But through college and a couple of apartments that didn’t allow pets, Nermal stayed with my mom and stepdad his whole life. Ironically enough — and perhaps very fittingly — he died by his food dish Sunday, probably on his way to some food.
While he was mean, he’ll be missed. Nermal’s death caps the year of animal deaths in my family — my aunt and uncle’s dog died this fall, as did one of my sister’s dogs. It makes me very appreciative that Duke is in such great health right now and to do whatever I can to make sure he’s around for as long as he can be.
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