Why RUNivation

I have been thinking about starting a blog for.. oh, about 3 years now.  I started one, and stopped. Why? I don't know.  For some reason, I feel like now is the time.

 I have such a hard time picking names. I feel like a blog name is just as hard as naming a child.  My husband and I had the worst time trying to pick our son's name and we settled on my husband's middle name, Cole, for our son. 

So why RUNivation?  I find the name to be very fitting.  My goal for RUNivation is to help motivate others to live a healthy, balanced lifestyle, and offer motivation and support.  Unfortunetly, our society makes living a healthy lifesyle very difficult.  Also, balancing work, family, running, and healthy eating can be a challenge.  My goal is to help provide ideas and ways to fit it all in.

I have been reading a variety of blogs for a few years now.  I feel like they have changed me in many ways.  They have helped me remember to include strength training into my workouts, provided me with some tasty recipes, given me running advice, and made me think deeply about life and being the best "me" that I can be.

My hope is you can take something from RUNivation to better your own life.

Why do I feel so passionate about running? Running makes me feel alive.
 It does so many wonderful things for me:

• it helps me deal with difficult or challenging situations
• it helps put things in perspective and clears my mind
• it is my time for prayer, my "me" time
• it helps me prioritize
• it makes me a calmer mother, wife, and teacher
• it energizes me
• it makes me more focus and helps me with time-management
• it makes me feel strong and confident
• endorphins!
• decrease stress and anxiety

Ever since I started running, I feel like a calmer version of myself. I don't "sweat the small stuff" as much as I used to.  Anytime I cannot run (injuries) I feel my old self creeping back.  I think my husband would agree, I am much more enjoyable person to be around if I have been out for a run.


What I would like to document on RUNivation:

1. My Runs.  I will share what I run each day and the reason/purpose of each run.  I would also like to share some of the highlights of my husbands cross country team and their achievements.
2. Healthy Eating. For me, when I do fall into the trap of unhealthy eating habits, I find that other areas of my life are affected too.  My energy level drops, my mood changes, and I feel uncomfortable.   That is why I try to follow the 80/20 rule.  80% healthy, 20% maybe not so healthy.  My hope is that I can share some healthy meals I enjoy, and help motivate myself and you to make healthy choices.  (Thank you to my husband for making some delicious smelling peanut butter blondies tonight; somethings are just too hard to resist)
3. My life. I love to read blogs where readers share some of their personal life.