We’re three weeks into the new year now, which means that 43% of people have already given up on or been unsuccessful at achieving the resolutions and/or goals that they set for themselves as the calendar shifted to January 1.  While I generally don’t advocate for setting New Year’s Resolutions precisely because their success rate is so abysmal, I do think it’s helpful to discuss ideas and behaviors that can help keep us making positive progress toward the goals we have set that are important to us.  After all, setting goals is a foundational aspect of endurance sports training.&nbs ..read more

As cool and iconic as some races (such as the Walt Disney World Half Marathon) can be, choosing races first is not necessarily the path to success. A recent article by Kashmir Hill in The New York Times made a bold (but truthful!) statement: “This time of year, everyone asks what you like least about your life, but they phrase it as, ‘What’s your New Year’s resolution?’” Since endurance sports not only parallels so many other facets of our lives, but embodies them, we often see answers to this question popping up in the endurance sports world in the form of fitness-related New Year’s Resolutio ..read more

A frozen stream in sunny, snowy forest lanscape. The calendar has turned to a new year, and for those of us living in the Northern Hemisphere, that means that Winter isn’t just coming, it’s here.  I have countless conversations with athletes during this time of the year, many of which are centered around how we can best utilize this time period.  If I could give one piece of advice to athletes during this time of year and have them take it to heart, it would be this:  Winter isn’t the time to go fast and/or to try to realize big gains.  Winter is about preparing the body fo ..read more

Jennifer Pearce rang in 2024 by running the Resolute Runner 5K in Arvada, Colorado on New Year’s Day! Jennifer was excited to ring in the new year with this race.  After working on some specific running skills over the last couple of months (including hill strength, cadence, and quality form), Jennifer really sought to put all of the pieces together in this race and see what she could do. I’m delighted to tell you that Jennifer’s first Post-Workout Note in Final Surge was “Ok, totally rocked this.”  She pushed herself while focusing on all of the elements we’ve been practicing in her ..read more

Sunsets show us that endings can be beautiful. During the last weeks of 2023, our conversations centered around common end-of-year themes of reflection, goal setting, and forward thinking.  As we start our path into 2024, I want to share a personal story about a valuable perspective that I learned several years ago.   So much of the narrative this time of year is about goals, resolutions, and changes that people propose to make in their lives.  While my life experience thus far has demonstrated that setting resolutions is not productive (and research backs me up on this), I ..read more

I did a lot of reading in 2023.  (If you’re interested in seeing all of what I read and/or discussing them, I invite you to follow me on Goodreads.)  This year ended up being a year when I reread some books, so I didn’t read quite as many new-to-me things as I have in past years.  That being said, I still read enough to find things I loved, some things that were mediocre, and some other books that I honestly wish I hadn’t wasted my time on.  I wanted to share the books that impacted me the most this year, so I compiled this list of  my Top 8 List of Fiction Books as we ..read more

I did a lot of reading in 2023.  (If you’re interested in seeing all of what I read and/or discussing them, I invite you to follow me on Goodreads.)  This year ended up being a year when I reread some books, so I didn’t read quite as many new-to-me things as I have in past years.  That being said, I still read enough to find things I loved, some things that were mediocre, and some other books that I honestly wish I hadn’t wasted my time on.  I wanted to share the books that impacted me the most this year, so I compiled this list of my Top 10 Nonfiction Books as well as a li ..read more

For the last several weeks, we’ve discussed topics that pertain to themes that pop up around this time of year: Reflection and forward thinking.  This week’s conversation builds on the conversations from the last few weeks and leans into the forward thinking that many people often engage in at this time of year. What’s Next? “What’s next?”   That’s always the question that athletes are asking…both of themselves and of fellow athletes.  An athlete will no sooner cross a finish line or accomplish a goal, and someone – sometimes themselves, sometimes someone else – is asking ..read more

A finger pointing at YOU…because the simple and hard truth is that that is what is preventing you from reaching your goals. The end of a year can be an interesting and complex time.  For many, this time of year prompts reflection and forward thinking.  While somewhat paradoxical, I do think that both things are helpful, both for us as humans and for us as endurance athletes. Last week we discussed what it actually means to set a goal.  This week, we’re discussing what I feel is the natural counterpart to that conversation: What is preventing you from reaching your goals? Reflect ..read more

It was a holiday-themed running race weekend for Full Circle Endurance athletes! It’s A Wonderful Run – Seneca Falls, New York Run with Rudolph – Carson City, Nevada It’s A Wonderful Run Lisa and Christina really had a wonderful time! Christina Barker and Lisa Crockford headed to Seneca Falls, New York on Saturday, December 8, 2023 for It’s A Wonderful Run! Seneca Falls, New York is considered by many to be the “real-life” Bedford Falls.  Take a stroll down Main Street and you’ll see many landmarks that look eerily similar to Bedford Falls, the fictional town in Frank Capra’s famous mov ..read more