The Little Things
January 7, 2014

At the start of 2013 I set 13 challenges for myself. I set “challenges” being completely ok with having to change up the mileage of things if needed. This year didn’t pan out exactly like how I planned, but I did hit more mileage than I planned (but just in different amounts than I set).

13 Challenges In 2013

  1. I challenge myself to run 250 miles. I ran only 184.5 miles this year. YIKES! I feel sad about this one, but I had to cut way down on running due to the tendinitis that flared up in May. When I set this goal I said that I would be smart about it, and I feel like I was smart with the situations I had to deal with.
  2. I challenge myself to walk 500 miles. In 2012 I walked 395 miles, but this year I managed to only hit 263.9miles. This I’m pretty sad about as well, but most of the times I spent walking after work last year were spent biking this year. I’m ok with that.
  3. I challenge myself to bike (either road bike or indoor cycling) 300 miles. I biked just over 200 in 2012, and in 2013 I managed to hit 601.9 miles! I doubled my mileage with this, and I couldn’t be happier about how my biking has grown this year.
  4. I challenge myself to swim between 15 and 20 miles. This was totally unrealistic, and I thought that when I wrote out this milage. I don’t have easy access to a pool, so swimming (while I love it) is pretty difficult to do. I only swam 5 miles this year 🙁
  5. I challenge myself to 250 minutes of planks. DONE!!! I actually hit 253 minutes 12 days before the end of the month, so I gave myself the rest of the year off 🙂 My abs are appreciative of this goal…
  6. I challenge myself to go through all the clothes I own. Done! I went through all of my clothes this past winter, so it’s about time that I do that again! I got rid of 3 paper bags of clothing, and it definitely felt good.
  7. I challenge myself to finish the article I started in 2012. Ummm- no. I didn’t even open it once. I got busy writing another article instead, and I’m almost done with it!
  8. I challenge myself to finish typing up all the letters from war. DONE! In 2012 I started to type up all the letters my grandpa sent home during World War II. These letters are fascinating, but they span almost 4 years, and he wrote at least weekly. That’s a lot of handwritten letters to type up! I finished this by the end of January, and I’m so happy that it’s complete.
  9. I challenge myself to write down what I’m thankful for at least one time each week. Yes! I’ve loved this one so much, and I plan to continue to do this in 2014. I think that hunting for the provisions and blessings in life is important.
  10. I challenge myself to run 13 races this year. When I set this goal, I said that I would count both “in person and virtual” races, and I did it this year! You can check out all my race recaps (2 half marathons, 1 triathlon, 1 10k, and a bunch of 5ks!) here.
  11. I challenge myself to read 12 books this year. I just published a post earlier this week talking about all the books I read! I loved having this goal to push me, and I’m glad that I ended up reading more than 12! This was a huge source of relaxation and self care for me this year.
  12. I challenge myself to begin to write my book. “Ok, this one is sort of a far fetched dream. I have this idea for a book and I would love to write it. I challenge myself to dream big and start to write this book that I’ve already formulated in my mind!” <- This is what I wrote last January. Well, I haven’t done much more on this idea that start writing out an outline, but I think of the book often and have “written” lots of bits and pieces in my head 🙂 Does it also count that I came up with a 2nd good idea for a book and began writing it in my head too? 🙂
  13. I challenge myself to be present. (I wrote an entire post on this topic here). This goal I really really loved having! There were so many moments throughout most of my days where I paused to experience my present reality, and it brought so much more peace and enjoyment to my life. I’m definitely doing this one again this coming year!

So, I fully completed 8 of my 13 challenges, and partially completed most of the rest of them. The reason that I didn’t set firm “goals” for the year is that I don’t want to be rigid and pass up the good opportunities that might come my way. I didn’t want to be so stuck on writing a specific thing that I would turn down other opportunities. I didn’t want to be so stuck on a fitness goal that I gave up doing the exercises I really wanted to do in the moment. I wanted to be flexible, but I wanted to push myself too. I think I managed to do that!  My total cardio mileage for the year was 1,054.7 miles, and I’m pretty happy about that 🙂 My miles might not have fit into the categories that I wanted, but health is health and I’ll take it 🙂

Now it’s your turn to share! Did you accomplish anything exciting in 2013? Was there a “surprise” that popped up in the year for you (like cycling did for me!)?

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4 responses to “Final Update For 13 Challenges in 2013”

  1. Charles Leroy Smith says:
    January 7, 2014 at 1:19 am

    Glad you where present; Grateful to have discovered you & your journey; & Going to enjoy reading all about 2014

  2. cathyo says:
    January 7, 2014 at 11:25 am

    i love the idea of challenges rather than hard set things…makes it more realistic and flexible….and that’s key in today’s crazy world! happy 2014!

  3. Ja @Ja on the RUN says:
    January 8, 2014 at 2:41 pm

    Goodluck with the challenges! 🙂