goals

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I don't know about you but I am a goal oriented person. It keeps me on track. It gets me out of bed at early o'clock when I have a very full day to get my workouts done. It keeps me focused on the days when I get a little too riled up and on the days where I feel like a log.

One of my goals as a mother is to be there when my son gets off the bus. That keeps everything else in line. It forces me to work a few crazy shifts.... many times he doesn't know I am gone! It motivates me to work and train while he is at school and get my stuff done! After school time is Luc time.

One of my goals is to not put too much on my plate. (HA HA!). That's why I have a limit to the number of athletes I coach, a limit to the number of hours I work, etc.

But the goals of being an athlete are the most fun and are the ones that get me on the bike at a crazy early hour (not every day, just when necessary).

I know a lot of people who are almost afraid to set goals due to the fear they won't reach them. But part of like is failure.

Think of the artist, who has a passion and a commitment to painting. The artist isn't born with paintbrush in hand painting beautiful scenery. There have been many canvases scrapped, thrown out, cried over, ridiculed..... before that one perfect work piece is arrived at.

For most of us there are the races where we completely fall apart, fall down and get trampled on, before we reach that finish line at our goal time or on the podium or as the winner.

What matters is how we deal with not reaching the goal. My goal this season was to go sub eleven at Ironman Lake Placid. I ended up in an ambulance. Now what am I going to do with that? I will be back..... don't you think I am quitting Ironman racing. Hells no! Not quitting the Ironman, taking a step back from it. Yes, what happened was not in my control. Whatever. Of course it burns me that my goal was not met.

Absolutely. I can turn that disappointment into the fire for this season. As I return to the 70.3 distance and work on speed, getting leaner, getting stronger while stepping back from the long..... I am gathering what I need to return to Ironman to complete #5.

When too early o'clock comes around and I have a stacked day with a sick little 8 year old at home, then I get up if I want to get it done.

The why...... makes the how very easy.

So as you set up your goals for 2009 there are a thousand ways to do it. You can set big goals, medium goals, small goals. You can have your A list, your B list and your wish list. Whatever works for you, embrace it.

I like to write them down and place them where I can see them. I have one in the bathroom that I wake up to every single day. I don't over complicate things by placing quotes and such all over the place. I pick one to give me focus.

I often find that the athletic goal I set for myself..... I can apply it elsewhere as well.

By now we know sport is a metaphor for life. The lessons we learn now, the canvases we don't get right, the rides in the dark alone...... those are where the lessons happen. So let them.