Midnight Means Go

I wish I was signed up for a midnight 5k! Alas, I am done with all my sweating for 2012, gotta put on some sparkle and enjoy the rest the year has to offer. 

Normally, I'd be futzing about finding the best party or best friends to spend the evening with. This year, all I want to do is stay home. I'm going to ring in the new year solo, and I'm totally ok with that. I want to start 2013 fresh and ready to attack all my goals. I don't want to spend the last hours of the year fighting for parking, worrying about hout I look or fretting over what other people think of me. Sure I could go out and avoid a lot of that, but this year staying at home suits me just fine. 

So what did my last sweat of 2012 look like? 

45 minutes on the bike with 6x2 min sprints

followed by 1,100 yards with 8x50 yard sprints. 

It was perfect biking weather - 75 and sunny! Got a little toasty in the long sleeve and was coerced into leaving it at the water coolers before commencing my second lap. Oh yeah, I bike Flatwoods so often I'm kinda becoming buddies with the old men I see there during the week. Biker problemzz. 

The pool is another story. I'm still not feeling much faster or stronger in the water. And it doesn't help that all the men there swim with flippers!! One was trying to race me today and I was so over it. I don't even get the point. Most of them are really fit - flippers make them faster but not because they make their bodies stronger. Weird. It was nice to be in the sunshine and to complete a workout I was pretty set against. Last day for these excuses because I am going to: 

Leave my excuses in 2012. 

Yes I have been training. A lot. But I still have a lot of room for improvement. My nutrition needs to get consistently better. I need to commit to getting my training done when I schedule for it to be done (rather than procrastinating all day!). And I need to start getting more proactive in school. Maybe commit to the thesis some professors have been suggesting? Brainstorm about externships? No matter what: 

Yes, these graphics are all from Nike. No, I don't own very much Nike - a pair of shoes for cross training, a pair of crop pants and a sports bra is about it. But I love this new campaign so much! 

Getting not one, but TWO personalized messages from Nike on twitter sealed the deal. 

I'm sold. #makeitcount 

But seriously, I have some big goals for 2013. This year I will compete in my first Half Ironman, finish my first year of graduate school and start my first externship. Those are the biggies. There will be many smaller races, victories and battles. I want to take advantage of every opportunity, both physically and academically, that I encounter this year. That means training daily in both domains, so that I can be ready when those opportunities present themselves. 

I can't wait for the new beginning that tomorrow promises. I have never been a huge believer in New Years Eve or the New Year, after all, tomorrow is just another Tuesday, right?! Well this year, tomorrow feels different. This past year has been so wonderful, I'm more optimistic than I have ever been about the upcoming year. In 2012 I finished my post-baccalaureate degree at Portland State, continued my fitness journey, fell in love with running 5k for beer, was accepted to graduate school, ran my first marathon, drove 3,000 miles to start anew in Florida!, began graduate school, started blogging, joined the triathlon team, raced my first race two weeks later, turned 25, became the social ambassador at Running for Brews, and finished my first term of graduate school with flying colors. There have been some tears here and there, but mostly 2012 was my best year yet. With so much positive momentum going into 2013, what could possibly go wrong? 

Ok clearly things could go wrong. 

But over the course of the last year I have developed a lot of tools to help me through the hard times. 

I might not be awake when 2013 officially rolls into Florida, but I will be starting the year with all cylinders firing! Like I said, I'm not signed up for any midnight 5ks (darn!) but I will be ringing in the New Year in the morning with a 5k with my friends at Jet City! Nothing like a run in the sun in January, followed by coffee hand crafted by a proper Seattle barista. Just had to move all the way to Tampa to get it : ) 

After that I'm going to sweat some more on the bike! 

It's true. The white stallion and I have a love no one can tear apart. Not even the cute boy at Whole Foods giving free wine samples... one regret of 2012, not asking for his digits! 

What am I going to do for the rest of 2012 you ask? I have a Jodi Picoult book, a can of Sofia champagne (left over from my birthday) and a bubble bath screaming my name. After that I might clean up my room and put away my laundry. Then again I might not. I might just crawl into bed and wake up with a smile on my face in 2013. After all, I have all next year to clean!

xoxo Sweat&Sparkle 

What are your fitness goals for 2013? How did you celebrate New Years Eve? Have you ever fallen in love with an advertising campaign the way I have fallen in love with Nike's?!