The Year in Rewind

Is it just me, or did the New Year sneak up on you just like me?  It feels like I was just writing my goals and recap from 2009!  But here we are, on the eve of 2011 and I have a feeling it will be just as awesome as 2010.

I had a few goals for 2010, and I think that I accomplished almost all of them.  Once again, I spent my year running and racing.  I ran 24 races this year, more than double for 2009!  I ran 8 half marathons, 6 trail races, 4 marathons, a 10 miler, a relay, a couple of 10K's and a fun 5K while I was in Boston - I would say that was a success!  But more than anything, I met all of my time goals that I had hoped for.  I really wanted a sub 1:40 half, and I got that in November!  And I really, really, really wanted a low 3:30 marathon, and I finally achieved that with my final marathon in December.  I learned to push myself when I didn't think I had anything left.  I learned to dig deep and come out on top when I really wanted something.  I also wanted to learn what it felt like to hold on to a pace that had always seemed so far off for the majority of my runs, and I can finally say I am there.  This was a year of growing for me, I learned that running is so much a part of who I am, and I truly find myself when I'm out there running towards the finish line.  I also finished off the year today  with 1,916 miles - about 100 miles short of the 2010 I wanted, but still almost where I was last year.  I'll take it!  I also went through 6 pairs of shoes!  Hahaha!  Maybe 2,011 miles in 2011?  We'll see!

2010 wasn't just about time goals, miles and finish lines, though.  I also met some pretty amazing people this year, and made a friendship with a running buddy that means a ton to me.  I also made the blog world a second home, where I could open up to all of you and share my success and failures while supporting all of you.  I found out that blogging is very much an important accent to my running and that sometimes just knowing that all of you are here rooting for me on any given day fueled many of my runs.  Thank you from the bottom of my heart. 

I went into a bit of detail yesterday on what I hope my 2011 looks like.  You all gave me amazing support as I shared with you my newest finish line.  All of you gave me the support I needed as I venture into 2011 with a pile of unknowns - but more than anything you gave me the confidence to know that what ever happens, it will surely be another fantastic year.  So again, thank you for all the kind words and support - you really know how to make someone feel pretty dang loved ;)

Aside from the dreams of becoming a mamma this year, I also want to make sure that I keep some goals in mind with my running - weather or not I get to start my family.  I want to be able to keep racing.  Many of you mentioned that running while pregnant is very possible, and that maybe I should focus on shorter distances.  And I think you're right - I don't need to run 4 marathon's in a year, or a half dozen half marathon's to feel like I'm still in the game.  I will focus on a few key races as long as I am able to in the mean time, and keep my fitness up.  I would love to continue to get faster, incorporating more speed and core work.  I don't want to forget all the hard work I did this year, so until "things" change, my focus will be keeping up my base.  And who knows, NY marathon could still very well be a possibility.

Without recapping each and every race from the year, I'll leave you all with some pics of the highlights of 2010 - it was a very, very good year.

Bear Creek Trail Half with some amazing ladies and MUD!

Running the Great Highway for the Kaiser Half Marathon in February

My cousin Sarah and I at the Valentine's Day 10K - LOVE her!

Shamrockin' Half with Aron in March

Santa Cruz Half with Sarah  in April

BOSTON! (with the flu!)

B.A.A. 5K with Lauren and Morgan in April

Boston Marathon with my BFF Jill in April!!!

Big Sur B2B challenge in April

The Relay in April - love these girls!

Sunset Run in San Francisco with Juliane!!!

San Francisco 2nd Half in July - with the fam

SVE Dirty Legs 10K with RBR and Punky

SF Sunset run with Kristen in August

Buffalo Stampede 10 miler with Buggy!

Lake Tahoe Marathon in September

San Jose Half with Kristen in October

Healdsburg Half with Aron, Punky and Tara!!

Stockton Half Marathon with Layla and Punky!

Summit Trail Half Marathon

Punky and me after the Summit Half

CIM in December

CIM

Crying in the finish chute at CIM

The fam at CIM



Wow, going through all those the pics really reaffirms for me, that 2010 was a really awesome year for me.  And I TOTALLY noticed I dropped some weight this year!  I had no idea I was that big! LOL!  The one of me crying at CIM still chokes me up, and it's my biggest accomplishment to date.  I hope I can relive that feeling once again in 2011.  Thank you again to all of you for your continued reading and support.  I can't wait to see what's in store for all of you in 2011!
Happy New Year!

I wanted to leave this with all of you, since it was a song I just loved the past few months while running - it's "Rolling in the Deep" by Adel.  I ran with it in CIM and definitely hit repeat a few times out there!  It has some great beats and strong lyrics - enjoy! (don't read too much into the lyrics , though!  It's just a good running song!)