"goals are dreams with deadlines"

running is one of my favorite things to do. it's a stress reliever. it helps me get some fresh air. it gives me quality time with God. and to top it off...i burn quite a few calories doing it, which is always a plus.

i started running during my weight loss era and it actually stuck with me. before i got "healthy" my mom always worked out and ran and did that lame stuff, but i never paid any attention to it. then, my dad (who was a bit overweight) started getting into running and really liked it...and ended up losing a lot of weight, too. still, at this point, i wasn't buying it. my infamous saying was, "i only run if i'm being chased." fortunately for me...i rarely got chased, so things worked out pretty well for me as far as running went.

it was one of the best things to happen to me though: mentally, physically, spiritually, even emotionally...running has been a great experience. the hardest part is getting started. it sucks in the beginning. who am i kidding...it can suck pretty bad once you're in it for awhile, too. it's just like anything else though...you gotta stick to it and keep at it.

right now emily and i are training for a half-marathon that's on august 21 (12 days 21 hours 22 minutes 39 seconds away.) my dad also made the mistake of saying he'd do it with me, so he got signed up for it as well. when i got serious about running i made it a goal to do a 5K, 10K, a half, and a full marathon. finally, we're at the point in this post where you figure out what it's all about: goals. according to wikipedia (the official online encyclopedia/information know-all of everything that is good and is always 100% accurate) a goal is "a projected state of affairs that a person or a system plans or intends to achieve." i think it's so important for people to have goals in life. it gives you something to work toward. it gives people a purpose. no matter what happens...you're striving to reach your goal(s) and nothing can stop you, right? mostly. i'm more of a believer in the saying, "only you can prevent yourself from reaching your goals." but there aren't too many feelings out there better than reaching a goal you've set. maybe during the summer in the middle of the night when you flip over your pillow to the "cool" side...you know what i'm talking about. other than that though...nothing.

so...the challenge is: set a goal. a short term goal or a long term goal. or both! and then, achieve it! if you've just recently achieved a goal...AWESOME!! how'd it feel? that's great...now set another! life is all about setting goals.

was this a really cheesy, wannabe motivational post? sorry.