Saturday I turned 52. I’ve been working without a day off since the day after Labor Day, and Saturday was no exception. I was at the Ontario Universities Fair in Toronto, a “trade-show” style event where over one hundred thousand people — high school students and their parents — come through the Metro Toronto Convention Centre to find out about Ontario universities.
So I woke up in Toronto on Saturday ready to work my second day of the fair and went for an early morning run so I could start the day off well. And not just the day, the upcoming year.
When Sam and I started this blog back in 2012, we had just embarked on our Fittest by 50 Challenge. Through that challenge, in the lead up to our 50th birthdays, running became an important part of my life. So it made sense to me that even though I would be on my feet for about 8 hours a day, three days in a row, a great way to clear my head and start my birthday shift would be with a run through downtown Toronto. And I’m glad I did.
I’ve not had a lot of time to take stock, which is something I like to do when birthdays roll around because it gives me a sense of what’s changed and what’s ahead. But here are my plans for the upcoming year.
- I’m trying to make some decisions about my future on the bike. You may not know this if you’re not a regular reader, but I’ve got a bit of a phobia about training on the road. So that’s held me back for the past couple of seasons of triathlon. In 2015, I cancelled two Olympic distance events. This past summer I didn’t even bother to sign up. I sold my road bike to Sarah. But I still have my TT bike. In the short term, my winter bike goal is to do two spin classes a week at the Y.
- I’ve signed up for the Key West Half Marathon on January 15, 2017, along with Rebecca and Anita. I’m considering a training clinic, either for a half marathon or for the Around the Bay clinic (not sure if I wish to do the 30K on March 26, 2017). We’ll see.
- I got one of the precious spots in Gabbi’s triathlon swim training group at the Y on Tuesday and Friday mornings. That starts up on October 4th and I’m totally committed to making it out for that on a regular basis because there are 30 people on the waiting list and I would hate to sit on a space that I’m not using.
- Clearly I’m swim-bike-run training if I stick with all of these plans, and that would set me up well for a triathlon season next summer. I’ll very likely to Kincardine again and need to think about what else.
- Another thing on my agenda this year is gaining more self-compassion. To that end, I’ve started reading The Mindful Path to Self-Compassion by Christopher K. Germer. At different times in my life I’ve had a regular meditation practice. But that’s fallen to the side lately and I want to get it back. And I also want to loosen up my schedule so that I’m not dashing from one thing to another all day long, every day. Being kinder to myself is going to be a major part of my upcoming year.
- Finally, Sam and I have our Fit Is a Feminist Issue book coming out in the Fall of 2017. It’s a long time from now but we would (of course) love for the book to be a success. So doing what I can to get the book into the hands of as many readers as possible is another thing on my to-do list for the next year.
What do you think about when your birthdays come around? What are your plans for the year to come?
