This was a weekend I did not want to end. What started out as a somewhat questionable morning with a low energy level and burn out from the previous week, quickly turned into the perfect weekend that I needed.

Getting out of bed Saturday morning instead of sleeping in turned out to be a good decision. My alarm went off at 6:00 am. Even though it was an hour later than my weekday alarm, I did not feel rested. I stumbled through my coffee and drove to meet my trainer, Mark, desperately wanting more sleep but determined to keep my commitment to myself to put my health and fitness first. .

Mark had me laughing in no time and combined with the exercise and sunshine coming through the window I started feeling more alert than I had all week. By the time Sunday evening came around I had spent time in Old Town Fort Collins, gone on a hike, spent time with my family, snuggled with my cat,  finished my weekend chores, and taken a bike ride. I felt relaxed and at peace.  Being out in the fresh air and seeing people I care about did more for my soul than sleeping and hiding away could have ever done. Sometimes amazing things transpire just by making a commitment to get up in the morming.

With my mental and physical batteries recharged I began thinking about the summer. Summer is when I have the most opportunity to work on my fitness goals. I am committed to health and aging as well as possible. The past two years have been a challenge as I adjusted to my knee injury and worked on regaining my strength. I am feeling stronger than I have in a long time and I am ready to set some personal fitness goals for summer 2018.

Goal 1: Climb a grade 1 or grade 2 14’er

Colorado has dozens of mountains with peaks over 14,000 ft. These peaks are rated according to difficulty and technical skills needed for the climb. Grade 1 and 2 peaks are within the capability of reasonably fit people. The trails are well marked and no special skills or equipment are needed. My main challenges will be getting my knee ready for a 3,000 ft elevation gain and getting my lungs used to hiking at higher elevations than I have the past several years.

Goal 2: Explore bike trails in different towns.

Last summer I spent a great deal of time on my bike. In the end I fell short of my goal of doing a 55 mile ride. Not only did I not meet my goal, I got sick from the heat during the ride and the end result was I became very burned out on bike riding the rest of the summer. Today, however, as I rode from Greeley to Windsor along the Poudre trail, I knew I was ready to enjoy my bike again.  There are some things I have admit about bike riding. First, and foremost, I do not like riding in traffic. I will, if I have to, but it causes me great stress. I do, however, love riding on the car free multipurpose trails found in every city. These trails often connect to other trails allowing a person to ride 50 miles or more without ever riding to close to a semi truck going 65 miles an hour or  distracted driver. In addition, many towns now have bike paths in newer neighborhoods where traffic less congested and speeds are much slower. I can work towards my goal of a 55 mile ride on my terms while seeing many of my favorite towns and exploring new towns from my bike seat. I have not decided as of yet if I will sign up for an official ride this summer. I will see where the summer takes me.

As always, I would love to hear from you. Did you have a good weekend? Do you have any fitness goals for the summer?

Until next time,

Laura