The Winter days are cold, windy, and can get long, especially if you try to keep fighting through it by yourself. Your mind starts playing games with you, and you starting coming up with excuses to do anything except go exercise, and this whether it is outside, or inside. This makes Winters feel really long.
So what do you do to try and get through these long Winter blues? Who can you rely on? What can you rely on? First, there is no question, if you are going to exercise outside, whether running or walking, you have to have the right gear to wear. This not only from a comfort standpoint, but a safety standpoint. Between the long hours of darkness, and what the cold can do, safety needs to come first.
Everything needs to be covered, and you not only have to see where you are going, you need to be seen as well. I touched on this in some of the last posts. This weekend in particular is especially important when it comes to the cold, and the dangers of the wind chill as well. Sometimes you may have the right gear, but it is still safer working out inside. There are options with this as well.
I will go on the treadmill if there are really no other choices. But for me, this just gets really boring. I prefer something different then, and that can include the elliptical, or the stationary bike. Music, and/or having the TV on helps immensely!
Working out with weights, or doing resistance exercises in general is also a good alternative. For me, I have a corner of my garage set up for this. That is also a heater up in the top portion of the picture as well, so it really is nice working out in the garage. Otherwise, this is where places like the Wellness Center, or other gyms, can come into play as well. If nothing else, just to have some variety in the choices of what you can use. But if I have my choice, I still prefer to be outside!
It really helps when the city plows out certain sections of the trail. For a lot of our runs, we go to the Zoo and park, and then go out on the trail from there. This way, we are off traffic, and can be much safer in general. This is also a good time to be out with friends!
I have lost count of how many runs I have been on, Winter or Summer, with Tom! In Watertown, he has been, and still is, one of my prime training partners. Wear the right equipment, no excuses, and just get your butt out the door! Our run club is also good for this as well.
When you are out in a group, it is much easier to get motivated to show up. You are all there for the same reason. To get outside and get some exercise. We all keep each other going, and pushing each other. Sometimes I wonder if it really is about running, or just showing up to spend time with friends! I am not sure it really matters at this point. Spending time together is definitely a motivating point.
As Jill shows here, there is always time to wave and smile. Bring it on Jill! Show us how it is done! Each week brings new adventures, new challenges, and new weather conditions to deal with. What else does it bring?
Of course! Memories! So when you put all of this together, this is how you get motivated. You have to figure this out for you: what is it gonna take to get you motivated? What are your goals? Are you trying to achieve them yourself? The road to success is always lonelier by yourself. You need to find somebody to help you, push you, make you accountable…and before all is said and done, somebody to help make memories with!
Are you really motivated? Is it just all talk and no action? As I stated last week, Imagine! Believe! Achieve! Repeat! Repeat! Repeat! Motivation starts within, but can definitely be helped by many other factors, and many other people! Keep moving everybody!
2019 Brought a lot of changes for me, as I am sure it did for you too. For me, it brought me back to the reality that I am human. It also took away from me something that has been a part of my life for many decades–running! It has been a battle trying to get back to what is part of me, but it is slowly coming. A friend of ours, Jill, is trying to get a bunch of us together to make a vision board for this year. I have to admit, I had to do some checking on this to even see what a vision board is! It basically comes down to what do you want to see out of your life for this year. It is a way of reflecting on your goals, and attempting to come up with ways for us as individuals to figure out what we want out of our lives. What is a good life? What makes life valuable or worth living? Before you are gone in this life, what is it you would hope to have accomplished? What activity or hobbies do you already do, but want to get better at? What are your relationship goals? The list could go on and on. For me, it will start with the main focus: running!
My life revolved around running! I spent time with my family running. Some of my closest friends I have met running. I tell my patients every day they have to work on their diet and activity, and I don’t just tell them, I was living by example. When this was taken away from me for awhile, I admit, I felt lost. I was depressed for awhile. My body could not do it, and then it messed with my mind, which only made it worse. I was trying to figure out my purpose in life. My kidney doctor basically told me I donated my right kidney, but nobody else got to receive the benefit of having it. Wow! I spend my life taking care of other people. This point hit hard. It is one thing to lose my kidney, but why couldn’t somebody else at least have gotten it instead? I struggled with this for awhile, and still do, but am coming more to grips with this. My vision board will take off from this picture!
It starts right here with all of us. If we can’t believe in ourselves, we are not going to get very far. If we don’t care for ourselves, the same thing, we won’t get very far. In order to believe in something, you have to believe you can do it. I had to convince myself that I could run again.
You need to keep digging, and keep fighting, to find the courage within yourself. Never give up. Keep saying “I will try again tomorrow”. Do not give up on yourself. There may be obstacles in the way, and setbacks, but you keep fighting. I have said this on my blog many times that there will be good days and bad days. Keep moving! Keep trying!
I was looking back at some of my running pictures, and this one caught my eye. For me, it showed how I had the grit and determination to push it, to keep trying, to keep running forward. I will be looking at this picture many times this coming year. I had that drive and determination once, and I can have it again! The goals may be different. It may not be about times for awhile, but more so about the fact that I can do what I once did. Time is, after all, only time. How many people have every run a marathon, or even a half marathon, ever? Perspective!
Repeat! Repeat! Repeat! Daily!
One thing for sure, I, and you, do not have to do this alone. We have friends and family for support. For me, those running friends are like family!
They were all running for me, and supporting me when I was in the hospital. Laying in the hospital gave me time to figure out the reality of all of this. My health was no longer going to be the same. My consecutive exercise streak came to a halt. Almost 12 years without missing a day! It is pretty safe to say, I was at the lowest point in my life that I could remember. Looking at this picture when I was laying there helped me get through it. No words can ever express how much this helped me!
Can it really be said any better than this? I want to be remembered as somebody that was there for somebody else when they needed help as well. We never know when that time may come. I guess this also what is involved with being a doctor as well. I do, or try to do, this every day. This is something I will be working on forever. I have to keep reminding myself to do this as well. But the next line is what will be my ultimate goal, not only for this year, but forever!
We are all unique. We all have our own special traits, quirks, habits, annoyances, attributes, etc. We all can work on improving ourselves, but we can start by helping to make somebody else feel like somebody–somebody special! Friends and family!
And especially to Sarah! She has been beside me through this whole roller coaster. She often times takes the brunt of things as well. When you struggle, your spouse puts up with a lot as well. Hang with me! I may need to keep being reminded. All of these pictures shown here will be on my vision board to keep reminding myself as well. Maybe reviewing them several hundred, to several thousand times, will help something sink in more. I signed up for my first half marathon in April this year. It will be my first in over a year, and the first since I have been sick. It is time to start living again. It was fine being a spectator for awhile, but now, enough is enough. I want to be back on the running end of things. I want to be me! Running is part of me. It is me! Imagine! Believe! Achieve! Keep moving everybody!
Well, Christmas is wrapping up, and it is time to get ready for the New Year. It was great having Megan back home for good. She actually got to help Sarah make sugar cookies for Christmas! I helped too…I was willing to eat them! Delicious! We also welcomed 2 additional members to the family this year–Dobby and Dakota!
Here Nick is with Dakota! She is getting bigger every day! She had a ball tearing around the house while we were opening presents. She had fun with the paper!
Here is Megan with her dog, Dobby. A rescue lab/pointer mix who is almost 3 years old already. He is getting used to being a part of the family as well. He was very intimidated by me to start with. I am not sure what kind of an owner who had him before, but we don’t think he was treated very well. If you have a dog, and are not going to be kind to it, then it is better to give them up to someone who will care about them.
As you can tell, we are now good friends. He just had to know that somebody was going to care for him, and that he was not going to go anywhere anymore. Time for them to have a new beginning, with a New Year as well. The weather changed some of our plans as well, and we will be seeing Sarah’s side of the family this next weekend, and then my other daughter, Molly, and son-in-law Tanner, will be around then too! It was tough not having them around over Christmas!
Of course, Sarah and I were out on Christmas getting in our run. The trails were for the most part pretty clear, so we could be off of the road. Will have to see after this weekend how much snow we get. It will be a challenge again, but we do this every Winter. It was very neat going for a run on Christmas. All of the trees were frosted, and there was some fog. The winds were actually pretty calm as well.
What was really nice was the peace and quiet. Every holiday season gets busy, and you just need to slow down…and take the time to slow down! I was reminded of this with the bench out in Jackson Park.
Take the time to sit and think. Think about 2020 coming. What changes do you have in mind? What changes need to be kept in mind? What are you going to do to take care of yourself? Who/what is important in your life? Keep focused on those things, and create goals that actually have some meaning to you. Don’t just make a New Year’s resolution, but make a lifestyle change that will have a direct impact on your life! Take care of you, and stay active, so you have more time to spend with your friends and family not only during the holidays, but everyday! Keep moving everybody!
This weekend we made it down to Sioux Falls for the Reiffenberger Christmas get together. Unfortunately, there were several who could not make due to illness, including my daughter Molly and my son-in-law Tanner. Molly came down with the stomach flu early Saturday morning. We will luckily be getting back together later next week when we go to Huron for Christmas for Sarah’s side of the family. In between, we will be home, and celebrating. And, there really is no place like home for the holidays. Time spent with the rest of the family is great, as we don’t get together that often. But now with our kids grown, we will be starting our own holiday traditions in our home. Another chapter about to begin! Some day we will have grandkids involved!!
We all gathered at my mom’s house. She has been in that house now for the last 50 years. I grew up there, and it still holds many great memories for me! It always feel like home yet! She is still on her own, and doing well. Hopefully this continues as well! It was great seeing many of my nieces and nephews, and now their kids. It is always fun watching the look on the kids faces when they are ripping open presents!
My niece Jess, with her son Finn. That is my brother Ray, the oldest, in the background.
Finn and Keegan…brothers! Always a ham for the camera!
We get as many of us crammed around the old ping pong table as we can when it comes time to eat, and open presents. Then rotate around when opening presents. This tradition began before my kids were even born, and my oldest are now 25!
It is always nice getting together to celebrate the holidays, and catch up on how everybody is doing! I am looking forward to next week when my kids will be coming home and celebrating at home with us, and carrying on our own traditions! It is great having Megan back home for good, and not worrying about plane trips, and the weather, who can get here and who can’t!
Sarah and I are looking forward to those traditions carrying on what we started with our kids. Amazing how fast time goes by! It still feels like our kids should be that little yet. Megan, Sarah, and I got our run in Saturday morning before we took off for Sioux Falls too! No excuses there either. You just have to plan and figure out how and when, and then relax and enjoy the rest of the holiday time!
Enjoy the holidays! Enjoy family time! Enjoy them for as long as you can, as time really does go by fast! Keep striving, keep surviving…keep living! Keep moving everybody!
I have a special group of people that I run with, and even more important, they are people I can call friends. A few of them are part of my direct family, but the rest are a part of my running family. Today we met at Caribou for coffee, and exchange gifts for Secret Santa. We may have met for coffee…but it really had nothing to do about coffee. It was a time to get together, after our run, and just talk, and laugh! The coffee was just added bonus to it all. The following pictures of us just having a good time!
It was a great day to start off the morning, even when the wind chill was well below zero. Yes, we ran, and we like to run, and that is what keeps us coming back for more. But it is the friendships we make along the way that keeps us all going. Here we are all just posing for the camera!
Now, a couple people that I would say are originals for the run club were not able to make it today. Tom Beaudry, and Paula Nurnberg. Believe me, you were both there in discussion today! How could we possibly meet as a group and not have you two come up in the discussion! There were many others that are part of the group as well who have joined along the years, and had other activities going on as well. We will just have as many of us to meet as we can each time. One thing is for sure, there will be more times as well. The more of us there, the better. Maybe not to Caribou as we kind of take over the place, but hey, we are buying things there!
Cheers to you especially Tom. We have been running together for many years!!!! Runs just are not the same when you are not there. We have been through many marathons and training programs together. Many a run we have spilled our guts out to each other helping to solve problems. No amount of words can describe all the benefits that those runs have provided over the years! The last couple of weeks you have been running again, working your way back recovering from your foot injury. We both make quite the pair with injuries and illness this year. Let’s hope 2020 brings much more fun, and run times, and not health/injury times! Old running partners are always around for each other. I want to keep it this way, and look forward to many more years ahead! Thanks for all of the good times, and runs Tom! Keep moving everybody!
