2011 By the Miles

Each year I like to look at how my running journey went, how many riles I ran and what else I accomplished during the year. This is my 2011 by the miles annual recap.

2011 by the Miles

January: 3 miles

The year started out slow. I found myself battling a hip misalignment issue in January which left me irritable and whiny. I only managed to run 3 miles that month. I spent a lot of time on the elliptical and in spin class.

February: 13.5 miles

In February I worked on getting better after seeing a sports medicine doctor and learning physical therapy exercises that would help strengthen my glutes, hips and calves. I also vowed to shape up my eating and tried calorie counting around this time to lose some holiday weight.

March: 29.20 miles

In March I received a pair of Vibram FiveFingers, to try out for the blog and thus began my interest in barefoot running — something I started reading up on around the time of my injury.

I started walking in the shoes and soon found myself running a few miles at a time. Around this time I also rediscovered my passion for yoga while at an all-day free yoga event in Fort Wayne.

Related blog posts:
• Barre3 Review: Tips and Advice for Your First Class
• My 8K Training Plan
• Orangetheory Review First Class What to Expect
• 2013 Goals

April: 47.30 miles

In April I was still just getting back on my feet, literally. I went through the anguish of having to drop out of the Glass City Half-Marathon, and instead ran the 5K race.

May: 43.93 miles

By the end of May I was back running 3 to 5 miles like no problem and ran a 5K and came within about 15 seconds of the PR I set in 2010.

June: 63.45 miles

I continued to chase that 5K PR in June, coming close again. June and July entered a racing blitz for me, running smaller races nearly every weekend, although the ones in July were so hot a PR was laughable.

Over the summer I also continued my involvement with the Three Rivers Running Company run group, attending group runs usually once a week.

July: 49.70 miles

Over the July 4th holiday weekend I got tech savvy with this blog and made the big switch to WordPress self-hosting — and still haven’t looked back. I highly recommend it!

Since then I’ve been able to more freely tweak the design of my blog and even respond to comments. Running-wise, the summer was HOT. Despite the heat I still managed to shave about three minutes off my 10K PR. I also ended my calorie counting around this time.

August: 60.45 miles

The heat continued in August. I also ran my first “barefoot” 5K that month. By late August there were rumblings around our household about moving. In early September I announced the husband and I were moving to Cleveland!

2011 by the Miles

September: 54 miles

In one fell swoop — we were back in our home state of Ohio. As we settled into our new city, I continued to build on my mileage, up to 7 and 8-milers, with the hopes of tackling a fall half.

I signed up for the Cleveland Fall Classic Half-Marathon and my training plan went viral. (Just kidding, I did announce it though).

October: 74.70 miles <— HOLLA!

Things got pretty hardcore in October, and I managed to run nearly 75 miles in one month. That’s a lot considering I am a lower mileage runner, usually only hitting the pavement three times a week.

I also PRed at the 5K twice in October. The cooler temperatures worked in my favor and I was able to PR the last time by about 36 seconds from my 2010 time.

2011 by the Miles

November: 50.85 miles

November was the culmination of my 2011 racing calendar. I ran my second half-marathon and PRed by about three minutes.

I endured a lot of discomfort during this race, which included uneven pavement on much of the course, but my recovery time was much quicker and easier.

December: 22.50 miles

Late November and December included a bit of R&R, shorter runs for “fun” and a lot more yoga — including trying hot yoga for the first times.

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2011 Total Mileage: 512.58

I almost threw the towel in on my 2011 goals recap post. I mean, that was so last week. But then I realized I would be sad if I didn’t archive my progress somewhere on the blog. Without further adieu here is my 2011 goals recap.

2011 Goals Recap

Complete another half-marathon (possibly two) and PR (aiming for 2:15)

Completed a second half and PRed but no where near 2:15 yet.

5K PR (I’m thinking 27-ish if I can get some speed work going)

Final PR came in October, finishing out at 28:09.

Become a less injury-prone, and stronger runner: (More icing, deeper stretching, more intense strength training, taking rest when needed and listening to my body)

Accomplished. Less pain after my half in 2011 and no new injuries!

Maintain a healthy diet and improve upon diet: (Fewer trips to Starbucks (1x per week), better hydration, eat more vegetables and better post-workout refueling)

I tried several new fruits and vegetables and joined a CSA. I was more conscious of my hydration yet still went to Starbucks a lot. No real change in post-workout refueling.

Run with a running group.

Completed in Fort Wayne, but yet to be tried in Cleveland.

Other Year in Review Posts:

• 2020 Year Review
• 2019 Year Review
• 2018 Year Review
• 2017 Year Review
• 2016 Year Review
• 2012 by the Miles
• 2010 by the Miles

In Summary

This was my 2011 goals recap. My goals included running related goals, fitness and health and personal goals. Every year I try to write out my goals for the year, share them on my blog and then recap at the end of the year how they went.

Sometimes I also include events in my daily life as part of my recap for the year. I have recaps from 2010 until present day, many of which include running goals.

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What do you hope 2012 will bring you?

And if you are feeling nostalgic, you can also check out this post to see what my goals back in 2010 were.