Jogging Through 2015

2015 was my third year of meticulously logging miles. Let's call it an... interesting... year of running. The first quarter of the year started well, then work got the best of me and the rest of the year went wobbly. I can't excuse my running performance by work, but my mental energy and penchant for running uncharacteristically decreased throughout the year. The low of the year was certainly San Diego 100. I had strep throat and found myself uneasy and uncomfortable in Southern California when I should've been sharp and stoked. Life had caught up to me. I'm having an increasingly difficult time coping with work/life/run balance. The more I care about running the less I care about work, and visa-versa. I'm not sure how to solve that problem. Happy to report that currently things are looking positive--I'm running more. I KNOW that I am happiest when I run a significant amount of volume. The more I am outside running, camping, being...

Without further adieu, the 2015 numbers. 

	Miles	Vert	Inclusive Time
Jan	229.2	39,337	43:03:00
Feb	256.9	35,216	43:09:00
March	327.4	43,858	50:10:00
April	247.7	35,836	39:27:00
May	238.8	40,715	43:43:00
June	93.96	14,690	16:49
July	257.6	37,609	44:37:00
Aug	322.3	56,979	54:55:00
Sep	199.5	37,172	40:57:00
Oct	173	29,734	28:33:00
Nov	232.8	33,189	35:30:00
Dec	216.9	30,961	33:40:00
Totals	2796.06	435,296	474:33:00

Opposed to 3,673 miles, 575,833 ft of vert, and 630:37:32 total activity time in 2014. 

Significant differences. I realize that every year cannot be more than the previous, but 2015 was admittedly sub-par in the numbers category. I am motivated by numbers, so they are important to me. If you're interested in what happened in the individual months I'd be more than happy to discuss them with you. 

It was just a different year. A full year of working in the real world, I can't say that it was a bad year but I do have an odd taste in my mouth about it. I learned a lot about life. I went from doing manual labor to managing a a full crew. I went from infatuation to heartbreak to independence to dependence--"all the feels" as Kelly Summers would say. 

My best days were spent with SFRC or traveling or camping. My best days are spent with the people I love. My worst days were the regular days where I get into my head too deep and pressured myself unnecessarily. It is difficult to be confident in your running when you live in an ultra-mecca with 25+ guys way faster than you, but it is also very inspiring. You get better by surrounding yourself with people that are better than you.

I didn't meet my 2015 goal of running 3000 miles, which was almost all due to being sick in June, but that's alright. I didn't read a book a month either, which I'm going to try to do again this year. I did run with SFRC a lot more and have made some great friendships in that community. I love the ever-present stoke. When I am with the people I love life is good. 

2016 is going to see some positive changes. I'm going to average reading a book a month, and I'm going to run more than 3,000 miles. I'm also going to run at least one 100 mile week again. Attainable yet not easy goals. January is off to a great start and I'm ready to tackle the year with confidence. Let's go.  

Boom.