Ian's 2010 Sporting Goals - Running

Well I never write this stuff down. I always sort of dream stuff up in my head that morphs and changes as the year goes on. But everything I read says, "start with goals," write them down and achieve them. So what the heck, I think I will write these things down and see what I can do to achieve them as the year goes on.

Rather than one really large and annoying to read super post, e I will make this into a multiple posts over the next little while and will start with my running goals for the coming year.

Last year was the first year I actually did any serious running. And I will be the first to admit that my motivation for training in running is rather low as I would so much rather jump on the bike and ride, or even sleep on the sofa. But with little training and a cheap pair of running shoes I managed some (to me) impressive results last year, starting with the Bluenose Marathon's 10K race. I had planned to run that beast in 50 minutes last year and managed 48 minutes having never run 10K in training (I know, I know). This year I have some training under my belt, an 11K training route and a much nicer pair of shoes. Not to mention I have already started training months ahead of last year. So I expect bigger and better things from me. So here we go.

Bluenose 10K. I need a top 100 finish (last year 165th) and a minimum finishing time of 45 minutes (last year 48:43). The ideal result will be a PB, which for me in the 10K is 43:40 (set in Beford on a cold, rainy autumn day). I have already signed up for this event.

I also look to better my 5K PB. I only ran one 5K race last year in Bedford on Bedford Days. I look to do this race again this year and beat my time of 19:30 (ish) and better my 5th place finish.

I want to run in at least 3 stand alone running events this year, more if my time allows. With the sporting season seeming so far away, I will plan on doing The Credit Union Atlantic Lung Run 5K in April. This moves the season up and gets me training and thinking about the season much earlier. And to keep my training and motivation in the world of running at a high, I will look to find events that are in summer and autumn.

Next post: Cycling

Swimming Update

Well now I think I have been taking swimming lessons for 6 weeks now. the thing I have really learned is that swimming right isn't easy, especially when you are trying to make up for 30 some odd years of poor swimming. But I have been persevering and I think I am finally seeing all my hard work come out. My breast stroke and whip kick are dynamite, and my back crawl isn't too bad. But of course it is truly the front crawl that I am most interested in.

This stroke has been my nemesis. Mostly due to my avoidance of breathing while putting my face in and out of the water. But slowly and surely I have made progress. I can now do 2 lengths without stopping (so 50 meters) and I am sucking less pool water up my nose now, so that is great as well. I fully see myself actually being able to compete in a full triathlon this summer. My first goal being a Super Sprint distance, due to the swim portion being relatively short at 300-400 meters.

My next goal in triathlon / event training, is to make a list of this years goals. And actual list, written down somewhere, and not the ever changing version I usually do in my head. In fact I may even post it on the blog for all the none of you to read (ha ha).