I used to be a bunter when it came to running, racing and setting goals. I didn’t aim out of the ballpark because I didn’t think I could hit a home run. I believed a nice double was possible, so I would go with that. During the past 8 months, all of that has changed. I trained with more discipline than I ever had during the latter part of 2013 and, most importantly, I started believing in myself and what I could do.

That’s when I started hitting it out of the ballpark. Achieving goals. Exceeding goals.

July is the perfect time to think about the goals we set for ourselves at the beginning of the year and assess how we’re doing toward achieving them at the mid-way point. Are we bunting, or are we aiming out of the ballpark?

I set 7 goals for myself at the beginning of this year. Below is how I’m doing with each goal. As I glance back at the first 6 months of this year, I’m incredibly proud of where I am and I’m excited about what lies ahead.

Goal #1: Run a half marathon in 1:45 or faster. COMPLETE
Nineteen days into 2014, I was able to check this goal off my list (hooray!). I ran the ZOOMA Florida Half Marathon in Amelia Island in January in 1:39:54. This was a great weekend with some wonderful friends and inspiring women. Then last month, I ran the Rock ‘n’ Roll Seattle Half Marathon in 1:38:24. The weather was perfect, the weekend was amazing and the company was the best. Perhaps 1:35 is where my next sights will be set.

Goal #2: Run my 6^th marathon and have fun doing it. COMPLETE
I ran my sixth marathon – the Albany Marathon in Albany, Georgia – on March 1, 2014, and had an awesome experience. I felt great during the race, tried to focus on the mile I was in and smiled along the way. Although I didn’t have any time goals for this race, I ended up running an 8-minute PR.

I have signed up for marathon #7, which will be the Chicago Marathon on October 12. I also hope to have fun with this race, but I have some bigger goals associated with my performance. My new marathon goal is to break into the 3:30s at the Chicago Marathon in October. John Dewey was right when he said that arriving at one goal is the starting point to another, so I’m going to try to dream big and work hard to achieve a big marathon goal this fall.

Goal #3: Set a new PR in a shorter-distance race. COMPLETE
At the end of last year, I ran a 5K and 10K PR, even though I wasn’t specifically training for those distances. I had a lot of fun running races in my local area and really wanted to do more of those races this year. In June, I ran a new 5K PR of 21:30. I’m running another local 5K in August and am looking forward to it.

Goal #4: Start training with a heart rate monitor. IN PROGRESS
Through my coaching certification process, I learned a lot about heart rate training and how it can help enhance overall performance. Although I haven’t officially started training with my heart rate monitor, I have purchased one and recently got my VO₂ max and heart rate zones professionally tested. I’ll be writing about that soon, but in the meantime, I’m going to start using my heart rate monitor during my last 14 weeks of training for the Chicago Marathon.

Goal #5: Improve my swimming technique, efficiency and knowledge by taking private swim lessons with a coach. STALLED
At the beginning of this year, I was excited about competing in some shorter distance triathlons. Since that time, I’ve found that swimming and biking haven’t brought me much joy. They have felt more like chores instead of activities I want to do, and I continue to find myself drawn to just running. I’ve decided to put swimming, biking and triathlons on the back-burner to pursue bigger running goals. At first I was feeling guilty about this, but now I’ve accepted and embraced it. Therefore, I haven’t scheduled a swimming lesson this year and I’m not sure if I’m going to. I would love to become a better swimmer, and I definitely plan to at some point, I’m just not sure if it will be this year or another time.

Goal #6: Consistently incorporate 2 days of strength training into my regular training regimen. NEEDS WORK
I’m flat out not doing well with this goal. I haven’t been integrating strength training consistently. I know that to achieve my goals for the Chicago Marathon, strength training will be important. I’m re-committing to this goal today. For the rest of the year, 2 days of strength training is going to be a big focus for me along with running higher mileage.

Goal #7: Finish my coaching certification and take on 3 new clients. IN PROGRESS!
I started my journey to become a certified marathon coach in November 2013. I chose to become certified by the North American Academy of Sport Fitness Professionals, and the process has been very in-depth. I completed the final portion of the certification process in June and am currently working to submit my final paperwork. I have taken on 2 clients and look forward to working with more runners this year and in the future. If you’re interested in learning more about my coaching services, please email me at runladylike@gmail.com.

In addition to the above goals, I also wanted to focus on the following things. Here’s how they are going:

• Be more diligent about my warm-ups and cool-downs before and after every workout. Thumbs up! I’ve done a consistent job with formal warm-ups and cool-downs this year, and it makes a huge difference in terms of how I feel. You can read more about my warm-up and cool-down regimen here.
• Eat within 30 to 45 minutes after every run and hard workout. Thumbs up! I’ve been doing a good job with this and have been much more aware of eating soon after running and hard workouts this year. I’ve started drinking Vega Sport Recovery Accelerator (apple berry flavor), in addition to eating a real meal that has a good balance of protein and carbs.
• Wash my face immediately after every workout. Thumbs down! Ehhh, I could be doing a much better job of this. I did well in January and February but have kind of tapered off since then. This is a good reminder for me to get back on track with this.
• Go to bed earlier so I can wake up earlier to work out. Do at least 2 of my weekday runs/workouts in the morning before work. Thumbs up and down! I haven’t been going to bed earlier, but I’m doing more of my workouts in the morning. It makes a huge difference starting my day with a workout.
• Limit my consumption of grains and sugar. Fail. I did recently do a 7-day sugar and bread detox, but I’ve got to get back on the horse!

Here’s where to find me on a daily basis as I work toward my remaining goals and some new ones:

• Twitter: @rUnladylike
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/runladylike
• Instagram: instagram.com/runladylike
• Pinterest: pinterest.com/JesicaD
• Daily Mile: dailymile.com/people/Jesica
• Follow on Bloglovin: https://www.bloglovin.com/blog/4066335

How are you doing on your 2014 goals? What will you be focused on during the second half of 2014?