August was a month. That is about all I really want to say about it. I have been in a funk of some sort through most of August and it has shown in both my marathon training and other parts of my life. The funk is undoubtedly influenced by many little things I call life stressors that are happening right now. Hopefully, by slowly checking these off my “to-do” list, the stress will dissipate and things will get back to normal.

I started August off with good intentions of starting to build a better core. I joined Kat’s Challenge and managed to stay with it for four days. I was just not into it, though I should have been, and it went by the wayside. I am going to go back to some of these moves that I did not do in August and use as the fall begins and marathon training continues. Everyone knows a stronger core makes for a stronger runner.

August moved me two steps closer to my 13 races in 2013. I ran Tromptown Half Marathon on the evening of August 8th. It was not my best and may, if I were to go back and look, have been my worst time ever but I had fun. I have never run a race where I was worried from about the half way point that I was going to be pulled from the course due to weather. Everyone, but Paul, that I spoke to said they ran this one about 15 minutes slower than normal half marathons. If that is true, then this was just an average half for me. I also ran the Women’s Distance Festival 5K – another evening race. These two evening races are good practice for my “I don’t know what time I’ll be running” Ragnar legs at the end of this month. I am now at 12 races for the year. Number 13 will be my three Ragnar legs or a 5K in October as I am not sure how to count the Ragnar legs.

In what I thought would most likely be my biggest mileage month yet, August fell flat. I ran a total of 101 miles and eeked out that going over the 100 mile mark on the evening of the 31st as I did a two a day to practice for Ragnar. I am not sure where things went wrong here but it does seem I didn’t run a lot. My annual total for running miles is  up to 856. I will definitely bypass the 1000 mark but do not think I will hit my goal of 1500 miles this year. Let me put this in perspective. I set the goal of 1000 miles three years in a row before finally reaching the goal. This is only year two of 1500 so if I do not get it, I will be disappointed but not unhappy. I keep putting one foot in front of the other and running. I walked 20 miles this month – both in cool downs after my runs and just in getting places (at least one walk home from volunteering at the golf tournament and one walk to the grocery as cross training). My total mileage with everything – running, walking, biking, swimming – included year-to-date is 943. I really had hoped to stretch and hit the year in this total but am realistically looking at hitting the 1500 mark.

I have an update on my use of MyFitnessPal.com coming up. While it does help me watch my total intake, I am not sure it is helping me “eat clean.” I am looking to put nutrition in the forefront for the last third of this  year.

Unfortunately, and maybe this falls into why I have felt so off in August, I read no books at all in August. This puts me way behind on my reading goal of 24 books for the year. I do not feel it puts the goal out of reach, though. I’ve been known to take a weekend and do nothing but read so I anticipate this goal is well within reach.

So for September – my birthday month – I fully intend, and am putting this out there publicly, to get back on the blogging wagon. Sometime this month, I will hit the 1500th blog post!

Do you have small, non-annual goals? How are  your goals for 2013 coming along?