family

2019 Running Stats!

/ Anna @ Piper's Run / 20 Comments

I’m so far behind! It’s the middle of January and I’m still living in the past. Fingers cross this will be my last post about 2019.

I finally sat down and tallied up my running stats (and cycling, soccer games, yoga classes etc.) a little while ago but just posting about it now. It’s something I like to do every year and track it each month in a bullet journal. Yeah, yeah, I could just use my Garmin or Strava – which I do but I really like the visual of my bullet journal.

This is what my 2019 year looked like:

Running 431.30 km, Cycling: 609.79 km, 40 Soccer Games (injuries: 1), 18 Yoga classes, 8 days of skiing, 4 times skating with my daughters, 1 Gran Fondo and paced 1 race!

The other thing I was counting last year was books! I’m really not a big reader, I never really loved it until last year. I finally found a great app (some of you likely use it) called Goodreads and that’s what helped kick start my reading habit…oh and my calf strain injury in April.

My plan was to read 12 books: 1 per month. Which really isn’t a lot but to me, that was a lot of reading that I honestly didn’t think I’d achieve. However, I did. I actually finished 18 books! I think my favourite book was Daisy Jones which I wanted to give up on a few times but kept with it and loved it in the end.

2020

Well it’s going to look the same as last year: run, ride my bike, play soccer, be active with my kids, hike, swim, lay on the beach in PEI, complete another Gran Fondo, ski and snowshoe more, read more and lots of family adventures. I’m returning as an ambassador for Endurance Tap, Nuun Hydration and Tiux Compression Socks; all products I love and use religiously.

But for real….I’m aiming for 1000 km running, 1000 km cycling and 2020 km between all my activities (run, cycle, swim, soccer). Anything that I can count distance in, I’m aiming for a collective 2020 km.

Oh and last, a big goal for me will be to NOT fall off my bike as I recently got new cycling shoes that clip in. It’s a whole knew cycling world!

This should be fun!

Follow along with my adventures on Instagram!

Do you record all your training in a book or an app?

What are you 2020 goals?

What’s your number one race for 2020?

Goodbye 2019 & Happy 2020!

/ Anna @ Piper's Run / 4 Comments

Happy New year!

Hope those still reading my blog had a lovely holiday and are enjoying the new year.

I’ve wanted to blog lot more but haven’t made it a priority in my life over the last year. We’ll see what 2020 brings for this blog….now on its 8th year as of December past! (Happy belated blogversary).

2019 wasn’t an awesome running year. I started off the year sick (new years day) and it took weeks to shake the cold. In January, we flew to England to visit my husband’s family, a trip we wish we could do again and again. It was aovley trip and our girls had a blast flying, seeing the country and spending time with his family. We skied a fair amount last winter and the girls loved skating on outdoor rinks.

Running has never been a priority for me from January to March as we love to ski, skate and I play indoor soccer but I managed to get a good handful of runs completed before getting a bad injury in April.

Yes, the injury was soccer related and no I’m not quitting the sport I love the most. That’s like telling a runner they should stop running because they got injured while running once, likely not going to happen…am I right?!?!

That had me super sidelined: crutches for 10 days, no driving for three weeks was the worst for work, physio and kids sports. Thank goodness for husbands, amazing neighbours and taxi’s too. Also, I’m super thankful for an amazing physiotherapist who deals with sports injuries daily and understands my love for an active lifestyle.

Spring was SLOW going because of my calf sprain but I managed to do more cycling and saw a new light in the distance of more riding. Between physio, cycling and slow running I was getting back to normal come June. Soccer picked up again for both me and my oldest who was playing competitive soccer. She loved it and I loved watching her. Watching your kids do the things they love makes all those hard times worth it.

We had a great summer of soccer, swimming, vacations and increased cycling mileage for me. Early August I finally broke down and bought a new road bike I’ve wanted for 2 years and counting. My husband and I had a weekend without the girls that include some long distance trail rides.

Eventually, I’d start riding less on the trails and seeking out some back roads for longer rides….something I NEVER thought I would do. I’m learning to “never say never” and stop setting limitations for what I think I can do.

Despite getting super sick with Shingles (yeah at 39 you can get them) for 2-3 weeks, September brought a new adventure of completing my first ever Gran Fondo in Claire (amazing event). I thought I hated (running) hills before but I really hated them during this ride. I said a lot of “f yous” climbing hill after hill but was loving every minute of it (3:13).

When everyone else was getting close to wrapping up their running season in October, I was getting ready for my first running race if the year! I paced the 1:15 – 10k at the Valley Harvest Marathon in 1:14:50!!!! 10 seconds off! Pacing a race is so much more rewarding then running for myself. It’s one of the best things in running I’ve done over the last 3-4 years and I want to continue to pace others.

November was a busy month of basketball for my girls, work was nuts, any form of physical activity was almost non existent but we did celebrate being married for 12 years.

In December I managed to get back on track with the help of two challenges on IG. I ran 44km, cycled 26km, played 3 soccer games, swam twice during my youngest swim lessons, went to 2 yoga classes and went skiing once.

We had a Christmas concert, enjoyed running & walking with Carmacks and lots of family time over the holiday with cousins, aunts and uncles and ate all the food!

Despite low mileage, being injured and sick a lot last year (Jan/April/May/ Sept), losing interest in running over the summer, I can’t complain about my year. Life happens and I kept moving forward as best I could.

I’m really looking forward to 2020, setting some goals, creating memories with my family and friends.

Happy New Year…and maybe I’ll blog more than once this month! You can always find my *almost* daily posts on Instagram @pipersrun.

How was your 2019 year?

Are you setting goals for 2020?

What’s one thing you want to do this month?

Three Days a Week

/ Anna @ Piper's Run / Leave a comment

That’s it. I feel like I can manage running three days a week right now.

I look back to previous years and can’t understand how I was training for races left, right and center…..4-5 days a week. I mean, I was fully committed to training for those races and this year I’ve only run one race and I was a pace bunny (my favourite kind of race).

Life is just busy with kids and work as I’m sure many of you can relate. Both girls have been doing swim lessons and basketball this fall, so I’m a really good chauffeur. Joking aside, I love that my girls are active and learning life long skills, but it’s exhausting.

Making sure meals are made in advance, prepping lunches days before, relying on grandparents to help out when my husband is working and I’m on be road for work.

Early morning run on the road

Somehow, I’ve been struggling to find time to run as I’m prioritizing sleep over anything else. Having shingles back in September was horrible and I’m trying to avoid THAT burnout again.

So, three days a week is what I am aiming for. Run three days, throw in a soccer game here and there, keep up with my PT exercises, a random yoga class when life permits and getting my bike back on the trainer is a top priority.

I’m already thinking about winter and spring races to run which makes me excited! For now, three days a week it what I am focusing on.

Running with Carmacks

Carmacks and I had a great 7km trail run yesterday. This is his second run this fall, he ran 3k last Wednesday morning with me. Talk about a happy dog!!

Anyone else focusing on short term goals?

Planning any winter or spring races?

What’s your number one go to when you don’t have time to run or workout as much as you want to?

August Adventures

/ Anna @ Piper's Run / 1 Comment

Oh, I think August is my favourite month of the year. It’s hot, vacation time, soccer season, stupid HOT, perfect beach weather, watermelon heaven and hot. I’m not a fan of the muggy heat we’ve been having (who has) but I love the heat when I’m in the water – beach, lake, pool….sprinkler too!

I started two weeks of vacation late July and into August and have done so for the last number of years. It’s kinda the perfect timing of almost being burnt out from work but we can still enjoy the summer days with our kids.

We hit up PEI for a short trip due to some car troubles (BIG SAD FACE). We got to visit with family, spend time at our favourite beach and had a lot of car time together (not always fun with young kids).

We spent a lot of time at my parents place swimming in their pool, took an unexpected trip to Peggy’s Cove (again, due to the same car troubles) and had tones of ice cream. I’m pretty sure we ate ice cream twice a day for 3-4 days….I’m not complaining.

If you’ve been following me on Instagram, you’ll know that I bought a new bike!!!! I’ve been wanting a new bike for a few years now and finally broke down and bought the Liv (Giant) Avail 1. It’s awesome and I love it.

I’ve still yet to name her so if you have any suggestions, leave them in the comments. I’m feeling Besty or Blue, I dunno. Hit me up some some suggestions. Though I seem to be getting in some nice rides (44km long ride with my husband), I’ve only managed a few runs.

As I mentioned on IG, I’ve been struggling with my interest with running mainly since I got injured in April but even before that as I barely ran any km this year. I’m trying hard to get in 2-3 runs a week and that’s beyond any soccer games (which yes, is running), riding (once, maybe twice a week) and yoga randomly.

Summer has been busy for our girls with soccer practices twice a week for L and games EVERY SATURDAY! Actually, make that TWO GAMES EVERY SATURDAY. We are exhausted from all the soccer but she’s loving it. H is has been doing some private swim lessons which have been amazing for her. My girls and I went on a trail ride last week (8.61 km), lots of visits to the library, the beach, a friends cottage and even the dentist! Who plans dental appointments during vacation? That was clearly a VERY BAD idea.

Any…way. Summer vacation was good to us and it’s back to work now (BIG SAD FACE AGAIN). Only three more weeks from today and SCHOOL STARTS!!!!!!!!!!!! And one more week of vacation for me 🙂

How’s your summer going?

Anyone exhausted from their kids summer sporting commitments?

Loving running lately or not?

Bike name suggestions?