Oh boy. What a weekend! In case you don’t know, I ran California International Marathon on Sunday. Every time I think about the race, I remember another thing I want to share with you all. For now, here’s a quick recap, more info in another post.

I raced my 8th marathon in drenching rain and heavy winds (against us on the point-to-point course the whole way) and finished in my 3rd fastest marathon time 2:54. I had a 7 week training cycle, with 4 races and 2 long runs along the way. I tried new things on race day, and they all worked out in my favor. I never hit the wall, fully enjoyed every minute, and came out hungry for more.

My speedy friend Mason and I were interviewed by the local CBS station immediately after I crossed the finish line. Watch below to see my strange facial expressions, how I looked when I crossed the finish line, and how my race-day french braids held up.

Before I post the full marathon recap (another day) I want to revisit my Sisters in Sport goals update for November. First, a little refresher. When I got my current Believe I Am Journal at the end of September, running a 2012 marathon was the LAST thing on my mind.

Notice my end goal of successful LATE 2013 marathon? Turns out, I accomplished part of my huge goal, just a year early.

When I made my goals and started logging workouts in my journal on October 1st, I told you I was working to build my hip/glute/hamstring strength – just a little piece of the end goal puzzle. Then in mid-October, a crazy week led to a few crazy ideas and the next thing I knew, I was signed up for California International Marathon.

After signing up for the marathon, the end goal (successful late 2013 marathon with sub 2:43 time) remained the same. The little pieces of the puzzle along the way remained the same as well. I was just throwing extra running into the mix.

October hip/glute/hamstring goals were proudly met.  November goals of continuing the October routine and adding core, drills and additional hip exercises started out great for the first two weeks! Then, taper weeks came and strength stuff fell to the wayside, as appropriate!

Now we are in December, and while I don’t want to give up the incredible strength routine I’ve been following, I am in marathon recovery and think I need to switch focus for the month of December. I’m going to focus on an entirely separate part of my goals page, my sleep.

I really need this much to feel great and perform my best.

For the past 2 years, I’ve been running on empty, never getting enough sleep to feel rested. While I have enjoyed my extra cups of coffee, I know I really need to sleep more. And maybe it’s a little sad that I need to make this an official goal in my journal to get there, but that’s what I have to do. I’ve identified all the little obstacles to achieving the 8 hours of sleep a night goal, and I’m actually feeling good about getting there, even with the holidays approaching.

I want to end this post by sharing a few things the journal has helped me with this month, aside from the stated goals:

• Visual cues – I have never been one to summon specific visual cues while racing. Since getting my Believe I Am Journal and reading fellow Sisters in Sport blogs, I used the Ninja Stars cues with great success. During my Turkey Trot, and a bit during my marathon, I focused on the words “Strength, Courage, Wisdom” in their ninja star glory and imagined throwing them right onto the shirt of the person ahead of me, pulling myself right up next to them, and then past them. I was in shock over how effective this tactic was! In the words of Yo Gabba Gabba “Try it, you’ll like it!”

Strength, Courage, Wisdom Ninja Stars

• Positivity pages – That’s not what they are officially called, but that what it is to me. A large section of the back of the journal consists of totally blank, and lined blank pages where you can dream. It’s just extra jot-it-down room and I really enjoy this section. I love filling these pages with positive ideas that I want to revisit often, especially before tough workouts or races. The journal tends to live in my purse so I can write down a few quick words here and there that help me later.