Plans for 2011

I got the new issue of This Mother Can Run, a monthly, online publication offering inspiring, humorous and informational articles for running moms. The article that caught my attention was "Set Goals Like a Mother".

I like the ideas that have been put forward, and prefer to think of them as goals rather than resolutions.

Here is my list of (some of my) Goals for 2011:

Run for A Cause: After I have qualified for The Comrades Marathon,I will sign up to raise money for Amabeadibeadi.

Volunteer for a Race: I'm not sure which one this will be this year. last year I volunteered at the City to City 10km Walk.

Introduce Someone to Running: It looks asif I have already done this - over the holidays, the mother of my daughter's friend came to collect her and over a cup of tea we were talking about my running and she said she would join my running group (RWFL) once school goes back in the middle of January.

Make it Social: I am the president of the South African Chapter of the Barefoot Runners Society, and I plan to hook up with other barefoot runners in South Africa. This is a big goal!!

Set a PR: This wont be too hard to do in races because 2010 was my first year of running so (almost) all the races that I did can only be bettered.It'll be a little more difficult to get a PB (we call it a Personal Best rather than Personal Record) in our monthly 4km TT. My best to date was set in October 2010 and was 20:19. My goal will be to do it under 20 minutes. My big race of 2010 was the RAC Tough One 32km that I did in 4:03:27. This year I would like to do it in 3:45:00.

Injury Proof Your Body: I will continue with my Pilates class twice a week which definitely helps with my core strength. I will carry on running in my sandals but introducing more and more barefoot running because I find that it really helps in maintaining 'proper' running form.

Switch It Up: I plan on doing more trail runs this year. I completed 4 Trail Runs in 2010 and really enjoyed them. This year I would like to participate in the Trail Series Winter Series which starts in June, as well as the Summer Series which starts in October.

Enter a Race in a Dream Location: I entered and was accepted into the Skukuza Castle Lager half marathon on August 6, 2011 in the Kruger National Park. This is one of the races on my bucket list and I'm very excited that my entry was "pulled outta the hat" (my dad also entered but he didn't get in). Now all I need is to find accommodation for that weekend.

The final two Goals are Take up Yoga and Better Nutrition, both of which I currently do in an acceptable (to me anyway) manner.

I wish you well in planning and then achieving your 2011 goals and more importantly I wish you LOADS OF FUN while attempting your goals.