It’s already June and half the year is over. The Fourth of July is right around the corner. In January, we talked about goal setting; we also set some goals for the year. Since we’re halfway through the year, it’s time to check in to see how we’re doing on our goals. Some of us set personal goals and some of us set professional goals. How are we doing at this point? Are we still working on our goals? Have we already forgotten about them? Do we need to rejuvenate ourselves and get back on track? Is it time to review or modify our goals?

Last year I set a personal goal to run four races and complete the Monster Dash Race Series. Each time I ran a race I received a triangular-shaped stained-glass medal. Each piece represented a race and the season. The spring medal had a shamrock for the Get Lucky Race; the winter medal had a snowflake for the Polar Dash Race, etc. When you complete the race series, all of your medals fit together and form a pie, a complete circle. On January 1, 2012, I completed the series and fulfilled my goal. I received my final medal, completed the pie and ran all of the races necessary to achieve my goal. It was hard to do, as two of these races were half marathons, 13.1 miles.

My “Sole Sisters,” the girlfriends I run with, were always there to cheer me on. They helped me to train and helped me to keep my eye on the pie. I was running with these women every week and they got inspired too. My friend Amy completed the pie on St. Patrick’s Day and Katie completed hers in June. We now have all completed the pie and race series. Together we achieved a common goal.

After completing the pie, my Sole Sisters asked me “What is your next goal?” Since it was January 1, the day most people make New Year’s resolutions, I was ready to state my goal. I had been working out for two years and could not get past a size 12. Size 12 was when I was training for a half marathon and running a lot of miles. When I returned to recreational running and scaled back on the miles, I went back up to a size 14. I got tired of this and decided I was turning 40 this year, so my goal was to drop 40 by 40! I set a goal to lose 40 pounds and become to a size 10 by May 23. I had plenty of time, almost five months and it was a reasonable goal — about eight pounds a month. I would have to change my workouts, slightly adjust my eating habits, and make the commitment by saying it out loud to my friends.

On January 7, I joined Jazzercise, aerobic classes with today’s popular music and dance movements. I also added another boot camp class to my workouts. So here is what I did: I went to boot camp Monday through Friday and attended a Jazzercise class immediately after. Saturday is my day off and my body recovery day. Sundays I ran three to six miles with my Sole Sisters and then attended a Jazzercise class. I watched what I ate as always, but I need to add more protein because of the amount of exercise I was engaging in. I was focused on the exercise and getting in more cardio and protein. My girlfriends were giving me support and I made a commitment to get measured and weighed weekly at book camp. This was to keep me accountable and clear of my intentions. In January, when I started I was back up to a size 14. I started my workout plan and by February I had dropped weight and become a size 12. By March, I was size 10 and by April size 8. I had surpassed the size 10 goal that I had set; I was a size 8 now.

By May I was right on schedule, I had lost 36 pounds and several pant sizes. I was on fire! I had about three weeks to go and I was four pounds way from my goal. I was totally on target and so excited I was going to reach my goal. The first weekend in May, I went to a friend’s cabin and on the walk in, I rolled my foot. I fortunately was with two friends who are physical therapists. They iced my foot, elevated it, and I had the best care for the first 48 hours. I had a bad sprain; I could barely walk, I had to stop working out and running.

I had suffered a set back, but I was not going to let it ruin my visions of reaching my goal. Are you experiencing a setback? Have you been sidetracked? What have you done to get past it? Check back next week for the rest of my story. You’ll also find a helpful checklist to help get you back on track to reaching your goals. Defining goals — one more way to help you stand out above the rest and become the BEST!

— Jill