CLE Running/Walking Club and FreshStart 5k Participants,

I wanted to thank you all once again for your efforts and contributions that made our first annual FreshStart 5k an overwhelming success.  Many of you have generously offered your support, feedback, and appreciation of what the race has meant for you.  I’m inspired and amazed at the response from the community and the experiences of learning and growth that have occurred through running the race.  What a great way to start 2012 off indeed!

A special congratulations once again to Jay Ohms and Cassie Bobart the top overall male and female finishers with times of 18:26 and 21:35 respectively.  Also a congratulations to both Joe Hoffer and Nancy Owens on their top performances in the master’s division with finishing times of 23:50, and 24:25 respectively.  The rest of the official race results can be found here.

For those of you who also need some inspiration as you step into the new year many runners added their goals for 2012 to the FreshStart banner before and after the race.  Click here for the goals from the community to inspire and motivate you in the coming year.

Lastly, if you are interested in adding more physical and emotional fitness back into your life this year, consider joining us on Saturday January 28^th for our monthly CLE Running and Walking Club.  Email nancy.rollins@cle.us.com with any questions and for more information on meeting time and location.

I hope you all are having a great year so far and continue to run strong in 2012!

Links:

Race Results: www.cle.us.com/2012/01/freshstart-5k-race-results

FreshStart Goals: http://cle.us.com/2012/01/freshstart-5k-goals-for-2012

Well, we went ahead and did it.  We had our first annual FreshStart 5k race and goal setting event on Dec. 31st, 2011 to run full speed into 2012!  Excited to report that we had over 50 participants on the bright, sunny and surprisingly mild December morning.  Thanks again to everyone who helped to make this event possible.  Listed below are the results from the race.

race results

FreshStart 5k Dec 31^st, 2011

—————————

Female Overall- Cassie Bobart 21:35

Male Overall- Jay Ohms 18:26

Female Master- Nancy Owens 24:25

Male Master- Joe Hoffer 23:50

—————————–

1. Jay Ohms                     18:26^*

2. Peter Campbell           21:13

3. Ryan Mercer               21:22

4. Cassie Bobart              21:35^**

5. Valerie Bobart             22:05

6. Nancy Rollins              22:26

7. Laura Calhoun             22:54

8. Jeff Johnson                 23:38

9. Joe Hoffer                   23:50⁺

10.  Anne Hoffer                23:51

11. Nancy Owens              24:25⁺⁺

12.  Amana Mbise             24:42

13.  Neale Williams           24:45

14.  Susan Lamon               24:59

15.  Karyn Herndon            27:00

16.  Heather Conlon           27:21

17.  Ryan Middleton          27:27

18.  Natalie Wanders         27:55

19.  Layla Bechtle              27:56

20.  John Loritsch               28:13

21.  Jacque Unzicker          28:35

22.  Kelley Biondolillo        29:25

23.  Jen Marino                  29:26

24.  Lauren Schifferdecker 29:35

25.  Fran Clavey                 29:36

26.  Katie Gierke                29:37

27.  Nicole Nixon                30:09

28.  Maria Welch               30:11

29.  Quentin Bobart           30:37

30.  Nancy Nimz                 30:52

31.  Chelsea Gallagher      31:48

32.  Barbara Cintado         31:56

33.  Sue Blue                      31:57

34.  Renee Varghese          32:49

35.  Denise Denholm         33:01

36.  Wendy Klinkner           33:03

37.  Susan Beyer                33:08

38.  Josephine McLaughlin 33:13

39.  Lily Gould                    34:12

40.  Elaine Weisz                34:23

41.  Sheryl Gould                34:24

42.  Mark Starczynski         34:30

43.  Mary Evans                 34:36

44.  J’kai Smith Cantu        34:39

45.  Andrew Mercer          34:41

46.  Christy Bobart             38:06

47.  Runner #7851             39:27

48.  Runner #7837             39:42

49.  Kathy Hofschield         41:57

50.  Cindy Gallagher          42:28

51.  Myrna Marsh Fuller    43:46

52.  Harrison Gerard          47:27

53.  Bob Gerard                 47:31

54.  Pam Sheppard             48:24

55.  Laura Hepker              48:29

^{*     indicates top overall male finisher}

^{**   indicates top overall female finisher}

^{+     indicates top masters male finisher}

^{++   indicates top masters female finisher}

Be sure to check out our 2012 FreshStart Goals submitted from the more than 50 participants at this years race!

]]> http://cle.us.com/2012/01/freshstart-5k-race-results/feed/ 0 http://cle.us.com/2012/01/freshstart-5k-goals-for-2012/ http://cle.us.com/2012/01/freshstart-5k-goals-for-2012/#comments Thu, 05 Jan 2012 20:35:29 +0000 Andrew Mercer http://cle.us.com/?p=1248

As a part of the first annual CLE Running and Walking Club FreshStart 5k, we asked participants to develop and submit their personal and fitness goals for 2012 to help inspire them to run full speed into the New Year.  The response was overwhelming and the goals were too good to let float away and be forgotten in a few short hours.  So here they are, in no particular order, the goals that our running community are striving towards in the coming year.  Feel free to think of your own or use the ones below as inspiration so that 2012 is a year of emotional and physical fitness and abundance.

Thank you once again to everyone who came together to make this event possible, and remember to save the date for next year as well- Saturday Dec. 29th, 2012!

goals for 2012

These goals have been submitted by the CLE Running and Walking Club community:

• Apply to run the NYC marathon
• Train with others and run a marathon this fall, if not NYC
• Work on bringing my pace down to 9 / 9.5
• Evaluate my work alternatives by Jan 31st to see if I want to make a move
• I will focus on taking better care of my whole body health to reduce injury (hopefully an injury free year).
• I will cross train this year which will include weights/strength training and spinning/biking.
• I want to get stronger with biking, and a stronger core.
• Continue speed workouts.
• I will run one 1/2 marathon, and PR in 5k.
• Run a 1/2 marathon this year
• PR my 5k time
• Do two Sprint triathlons this year and have a PR in each
• To take on new challenges with enthusiasm and invite others to join me.
• I plan to go for a PR in the DC half marathon….that’s would be less than 1:58!
• I also plan to do my first HALF IRON Man triathlon in July.
• I will share my fears and get support to train well. I will move more into trusting the outcome will be a good one and find abundance in whatever that is!
• I will get support when I am complaining about running and shift my thinking in order to be more positive and relational.
• I will paired share with someone new each running club. Seek out people I have not paired shared with.
• I will contribute food and share what I am learning during our group time each running club.
• I will get help when I am feeling potential injury. Massage and chiropractor.
• Chicago Half Marathon in September:  Kill last years’ time.
• Glenview Sprint Triathlon in July.
• Run 4 – 5k’s:   8 min. miles.
• MC200 Wheel Man!  Drive faster than last year
• I will run a half marathon in under 1:51 (8:30’s)
• I will go for community in at least 5 other races – join those who have put out races before me
• I will do speed work, yoga and spinning to vary my exercising and beat the running slumps when they come
• Start a blog about the parallels in my life with running and growth work
• Will run without music 1 time per week  – learn to play guitar instead.
• Do 2 strength training classes per week.
• Do the half in Door County.
• Track workouts.
• No Pop tarts although I love them a lot in the morning.
• No snacking predominantly after 7 PM.
• Commit to 2 early runs 2 times per month before 8 am.
• To take better care of myself by remembering to take my supplements and to eat healthier.
• To do yoga once a week.
• To run 2xs a week.
• To continue to lift weights 2xs a week.
• To have more meaningful relationships.
• To join Evanston Running Club or another Club in my community where I can practice on becoming a better runner.
• To run two half marathons and/or several smaller races.
• In the community of the CLE Running Group, I will train and run to the best of my ability.  I will frame the race as “fun” and look forward to the special time I will have with the group when we all come together on race day.
• I will coordinate longer runs for CLE runners in my pace group and with other faster runners.  I will also find and run several local races and will invite other runners to join me.
• Do pre-hab, gluteus maximus and minimus exercises to prepare for surgery
• Keep doing mild exercise (walking, swimming, strengthening) to stay fit and strong
• Get surgery & and do recommended rehab over summer
• Maybe start running by this time next year!!
• Run 3-4 times per week (M, T, W, Sat)
• Run door county half marathon
• Complete one sprint and one Olympic triathlon
• Push through fears and resistance in training and racing and go for pr’s in each distance in 2012. (5k, 10k, 1/2 marathon), believing that I can do more than I think I can.
• be authentic: accept all of myself and tell the truth in love.  seek intimacy and connection in all relationships.
• I’d like to put running back into my regular routine by running about 3xweek.
• Run a 5k and 10k
• To sign up for the Half Marathon in Door county
• To not complain about doing it
• To make a plan to train for it
• To get support from my running buddies to make it fun
• My real work is in dealing with my anxiety about it and to enjoy the process and the things I can learn and grow through it.
• Complete first half marathon end of January 2012
• Complete first full marathon Oct. 2012
• Join a Ragnar Relay team for summer 2012 Find people who will support me in these goals and reach outAsk to be pushed and challenged Learn to use my competitiveness in a beautiful and good way
• Don’t get stuck in the winning and losing, use it to fuel me forward and be open to the learns
• Keep attempting things I’m not sure I can do (like the Half Marathon — and leading a Satellite Group — and dating consciously) in order to fuel my growth
• Continue to intentionally work to increase my speed — by working on my core strength, integrating interval training into my workouts, etc; I always have work to o in the “doing more than I think I can” area!
• Seek help for my injury
• Qualify for Boston

Be sure to also checkout our race day results from Saturday Dec. 31st, 2011

Secrets to Effective Communication from Christian Life Enrichment | CLE on Vimeo.

In this presentation, I explain the approach we use to find out the answer and help us pursue what it is that we really want. At the Center for Christian Life Enrichment, we use an emotionally-focused approach to understanding our clients and ourselves. Watch this 20-minute webinar to learn the basics of these powerful strategies.

This 20-minute presentation was originally broadcast on May 25th, 2011 and is now available for you to enjoy at your own convenience. It is best viewed in full-screen mode (the button with the four arrows) to better read the slides.

Feelings: How to Make Them Work for You from Christian Life Enrichment | CLE on Vimeo.

Download mp3

We all want to finish well. Whatever race or battle we are in, we want to triumph over all our challenges and adversities.  The Apostle Paul wrote:

“Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one gets the prize? Run in such a way as to get the prize. Everyone who competes in the games goes into strict training. They do it to get a crown that will not last, but we do it to get a crown that will last forever. Therefore I do not run like someone running aimlessly; I do not fight like a boxer beating the air. No, I strike a blow to my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize.”

1 Cor 9:24-27

The Leadership Group for Graduates (LGG) is going to be an exceptional venue in which graduates from CLE’s Assignment Groups will be able to further their growth and training in order to continue to live exceptional lives. Without ongoing support and coaching, all of us will lose our edge and suffer the effects of transformational erosion.  Though we are tempted to slip back into the illusion of self-sufficiency; wisdom knows that we all will gradually lose our effectiveness without the kind of ongoing support and training we received while we were in our Assignment Groups. We know the CLE model for personal transformation works. What meaningful reason would we have to not continue?

To facilitate that ongoing support, we have created an advanced leadership program that will inspire you to take your life to the next level of power, meaning and satisfaction. You will build on the foundation you have laid in your Assignment Groups and be encouraged to fight the good fight of becoming our most Christ-like selves. Candidates for LGG must have graduated from a CLE Assignment Group and are presently (or willing to start) leading a group. Groups may include CLE Satellite Groups, small groups at church or in your neighborhood, and training groups at work.

We would love to have you consider this powerful avenue to continue your growth work and will be kicking off the start of the LGG with an all day training on Saturday, May 21^st from 7:00am-4:30pm.  During this interactive workshop, participants will have an opportunity to take part in shaping their own Ideal State Action Plan (ISAP).  The ISAP is a tool devised by Bob Wright that helps leaders and organizations create a strategic plan to transform their lives and or businesses.  As a result of this all day workshop, you will get a jump start in identifying your life mission, vision, and purpose.  You will learn how to identify a BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal) and use it to inspire your growth.

At CLE, our dedication to mutuality, self-knowledge, and a relentless pursuit of the truth informs the LGG approach to leadership and leadership development.  What better way to deepen the positive potential impact you can have on your world by continuing to build and sharpen the skills you have already begun to   develop.

The LORD God said, “It is not good for the man to be alone. I will make a helper suitable for him.” (Genesis 2:18)

At the Center for Christian Life Enrichment, we are divinely designed for relationship. Created in the image and likeness of God, we are born with certain traits that encode us for connection. Even our personalities are shaped by experiences we have with others. From our nature to our nurture, we hunger and yearn for safe, nourishing, affectionate, comforting, supportive, mature, and intimate relationships.

And yet, we spend so much of our time trying to hide from others. As much as we long to be seen and known, we constantly try to conceal ourselves behind masks and facades. The reason, I believe, is that we see ourselves as flawed and lacking, and somehow totally unworthy of being loved. Afraid of being exposed as objectionable and unlovable, we try to become invisible, or else we project a superior air to keep everyone else at arm’s length. Out of fear and shame, we hold back our spouses, families, friends, and even God. We are even disconnected from ourselves.

This epitomized my life in the late 1980s when, as a Christian counselor, I joined a therapy group in downtown Chicago led by a man named Bob Wright. It has been suggested to me that I participate in Bob’s groups in order to become more alive and potent. I came to this experience being very comfortable with groups. I had been participating in them all the way back to high school, and I had been leading groups in the ministry for ten years.  This group, however, was nothing like any of my prior experiences. First of all, it was not a traditional group in which people talk about their issues or recent experiences. It was what Bob called an “assignment group,” meaning people were intently focused on learning, growing and experiencing genuine openness and honesty with each other in the here and now. I found it totally chaotic, confusing, and unnerving.

Although I pretended to be engaged, I sat back and observed, silently judging everyone else. I couldn’t connect with these people because I saw myself as superior to them. The truth, however, was that I was terrified! With their emotional intensity and angry confrontations at times, the group made me extremely uncomfortable. What I couldn’t see, however, was that the source of my unease was myself—not them.

As soon as group was over, I tore out of there, sometimes literally running down the hall under the guise of catching my train. One night as I rushed to leave, Bob Wright raced after me and literally pushed me up against the wall. With his finger in my face he yelled, “I know your game. I know what you’re doing. You come across as if you are so caring and kind, but you’re mean and judgmental. You’re not what you make yourself out to be.”

My first instinct was to fling this guy off me. But on a much deeper level, I had the completely opposite reaction. For the first time, I was seen and known. As Bob ripped into me, exposing me as a fraud to myself, he gave me the most loving of gifts—the truth. Only by embracing that difficult truth could I ever break through the shell I had built over the years in hopes of becoming invulnerable to pain and hurt. Only then, could I truly connect with others, to see them as they were and to allow them to see me.

My relationships with others and God have been the foundation of my journey of transformation. Reaching out to others for feedback about myself has been the cornerstone of the remaking of my most authentic self. The truth I have received from others has been the raw materials used in the reconstruction of my most Christ-like self. I now trust that for me to become like Jesus, I must be fostering authentic community with others who are dedicated to our mutual transformation through the sharing of truth with each another.

This blog is from the first chapter of my new book, Grappling with God: The Battle for Authentic Faith, which is going to be released soon. Watch for the pre-release resources we will be making available.

• Live Your Vision -  Once you’ve given birth to a vision, you need to engage in a daily process to make it a reality.  You start by being conscious of your vision moment-by-moment with every decision you make.  Ask yourself “Is what I am choosing now aligned with the vision of who I want to become?”  In order to achieve your vision, break it down into weekly and daily goals that are positive, measurable and attainable.  Share your vision and goals with someone who is engaged in the same process, shares similar goals and cares to hold your vision up for you.  Be sure to learn from your breakdowns and celebrate your victories.

• Expand Your Vision – When we have a vision for our lives we can limit ourselves by not continually being open to our vision enlarging and changing.  Changing our vision does not mean that we didn’t get it right the first time.  As we continue on our journey of transformation, the vision we began with will undoubtedly expand in order to reflect the growth in our personality, our passions and our character.  Expect that our vision will continue to grow as we grow also.