It’s Time for a New Running Bucket List

You know why?  Because I’ve CHECKED MINE OFF.  That’s right.  EVERY. LAST. BUCKET. LIST. ITEM.

Check it out.

I posted in July of 2013 about some things that would be neat to accomplish with my running.  Social goals, fun goals, distance goals and time goals.

Let’s take a look:

In July, 2013 I said: I have not, but would like to:

• Beat my current PR for a 5k (29:58) while pushing the kids in the double jogger

Done! Savage Memorial 5k, May 4th 2014 AND The Wellesley Wonder Run

Do a race with a friend where costumes are encouraged (maybe one of the Halloween races, the New Year’s Day race where people run in pj’s, tutus, etc)

Done! Ok, so the costumes were encouraged by ME, as I celebrated my first year of running by returning to my very first 5k and finishing it with two friends in tutus in under 30 minutes 🙂  The race was for a local improv comedy group… tutus were NOT a problem.  These were very funny people.

Keep up with Greg for a quarter mile at his regular running pace without having heart failure

Done! Ok, so I kept up with him for a quarter mile at his marathon pace… but I totally sprinted a quarter mile to take a photo of him at a water station after he ran by us at the halfway point for the Boston Marathon.  And I had jeans on.  One of the water station guys was impressed, so I’m going to say this counts.  I also ran track repeats in September where I maintained a sub 8 minute pace for 4 quarter mile intervals – I also think that counts!

Run the entire three miles with the mother’s forum running group at their conversational jogging pace (ie, without them slowing down a ton for me)

Done! Maintained a sub 10 minute mile pace with another mom for three miles.  We were a little behind the pack… but we were still moving!

Run the half marathon in September!

Done! Oh, and throw in another half marathon in November for good measure.  YEAH.

Run the same race two years in a row and do better the second time

Done!  Several times over!  Every repeat 5k I’ve run I have finished faster than I ran it the year before.  Still haven’t repeated a 10k or half marathon… so maybe that’ll be on my next bucket list 🙂

Run from my in-laws house in Maine to my parents house (5 miles, but hilly)

Done it… AND BACK.  And done it again.  I did this as part of a training run for my September 2013 half marathon, going to my in laws, PAST them a bit to my brother’s house, and then back to my parents for a 12 mile total run.  I also ran from my in-laws to my parents house as one of my first runs after my half-marathon.

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None of these individual items is incredibly impressive to me NOW… although many of them required a good deal of effort.  But what I love about this list is that some of them seemed like such a far reach back when I wrote it.  That I accomplished all of them, had fun doing it, and need to make a new list is just awesome.

Some of the items, like my first half marathon, I targeted diligently, planned for them, and executed them with deliberation.  Others, I haph-hazardly completed.  (Like chasing Greg down the Boston Marathon course over sidewalks to take a picture… I’m sure you think that’s cheating, but I won’t let you have it!)

I like the idea of having a bucket list that’s mixed with some goals that you work towards, and others that you gleefully cross off when you have the opportunity because it’s been in the back of your mind.

Time to work on a new bucket list.

What would be on yours?