Focused Footsteps

Many people prioritize “fitness” in their efforts to improve their health, but it is only one element of overall health and wellness. More and more I see “fit” people struggling to function optimally in daily life and I question what is the point of “fitness” if one cannot live well?

As I’m recovering from my cold and rehabbing my heel this week, I’ve been putting more focus towards sleep, breathwork, hydration, and nutrition (the others also influencing sleep).

I’ve still got some ways to go but most importantly I’m making progress.

The motto “no rest for the wicked” is truly false. It’s simply ego getting in the way of what the body needs for true health.

Sometimes the quiet steps matter more than the miles.

Movement builds capacity not when we push for speed, but when we stay present.

Today, each careful step in the snow is practice for strength, focus, and awareness.

Often our traditional “measures of success” don’t zoom out enough to view the whole picture.

You could be nailing pace but find yourself sick, hurt, tired… whereas with presence you find joy and the path to true health and sustainable running. 👣

Are you writing running goals for 2026?

Hot take, but goals without systems are just dreams. This is why I prefer process goals versus outcome goals, because process goals lead you to the path of developing systems to support these goals.

Rather than an outcome goal of “run a 23 minute 5K by the end of 2026”, a better goal would be “run consistently 4-5 times a week, ensure at least 80% of my diet consists of real unprocessed foods, sleep 8 hours a night, and focus at least one hour a week on strength and mobility.”

The systems then could become:
✔️ Set an alarm daily to ensure my morning run is easy to do
✔️ Build and stick to a list at the grocery store
✔️ Turn off screens and wind down by 9:00pm every evening
✔️ Schedule strength and mobility into my calendar

Each of these systems and process oriented goals are fully within my control, versus a time on a clock which could be highly variable depending on race or weather conditions.

Maybe 2026 is the year you rethink your goals and instead focus on building your systems. It’s highly empowering to have your goals be fully within your reach.

Happy for a warm and sunny Colorado day for my final race of my 40s! I hustled as hard as I could but missed first place in my age division by just a couple of seconds (or a couple of weeks, depending on how you look at it!) - but I broke my time goal and felt strong so it was a great day all around!

Also running virtually our Holiday Hustle and doing my best to represent along with my favorite post race beverage 😊

Here’s to staying strong in my 50s and beyond! 💪

Happy to represent at the Colorado Springs Turkey Trot today! Started with a plan and stuck to it to execute one of my strongest races all year 💪

Happy Thanksgiving!! 🦃

Well, I didn’t achieve my goal…

YET.

Yeah I’m a little bit bummed that I’m having troubles getting through a 5K without a walk break, but I think my current strategy (go out hot and hold on) is not working for me right now with the low volume I’m running.

I’m going to try to approach the next one more like a half marathon… start comfortably hard and pick it up. That seems to work well for me in the longer distance, and perhaps as I build volume I can go faster in the 5K again.

Despite a rough middle section, I’m also glad I was able to pull myself back together in the last K since somehow I managed to win a nice AG award. 🥇

“in the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, in the expert’s mind there are few”

Feeling like a beginner runner again as I learn to dial in my new heart rate zones on my run today. Excited to be on this journey to see where it takes me. Let’s fly! 🦋

It’s hard for me to prioritize strength training when I’d rather be running - but I know that often the strength work is what’s best for me.

A few months ago I challenged myself to get to 50 barre3 classes before I turned 50 - and with a couple months to spare I completed that challenge today. It was a party this morning and with this awesome instructor and so much energy in the class - the hard workout became so much easier! 🙌

Now the next challenge is to get to 100 before the middle of 2026. I’m ready to take that one on! 💪

Well I’ll be honest - it was not my best race, I definitely still have some peace to make with that hill (and a few other sections now), but I was able to stay on top of my AG for this one and with some of the learnings and guidance from Coach Mom I was able to write out a new plan called Finish Strong 2025 for the remaining races ahead of me.

And proud to represent & on game day 🏃🏼‍♀️

Happy Octo-barre!! 💪

Love kicking off the month at zero-dark-30 🌙 in my favorite strength training workout (b3 Strength), and this month is the anniversary of making strength training a serious part of my life again one year ago.

Yes - running and walking, sleeping well, and eating healthy are all excellent ways to improve your health and fitness, but if you’re not doing consistent strength training - you’re only robbing your future self of happy and healthy senior years.

And although many days class is a challenge, I find myself learning new movement patterns and discovering muscles I didn’t know I had, and often I’m the oldest person in the class, a saying commonly sticks with me:

“Best to be the oldest person at the gym than the youngest person in the nursing home”

Make it the best day and month, friends!! ♥️