First off, I have a few goals for the new year. I hate to call them "resolutions" because that isn't really what they are. I'm resolving to attain some goals. So what I'm really doing is setting goals. Last year I made a list "13 in 2013." I basically set them and then forgot about them. When the end of the year started to loom ahead I started feeling guilty about all of the goals I hadn't reached but when I sat down and actually took the time to analyse what I had accomplished I wasn't as disappointed as I thought I'd be. Last year's 13 in 2013 were as follows:
1. Lose 50lbs -- This was the big one and I knew it was a big one. I knew I would have to work hard at it. I gave it a few earnest tries but, in the end, I'm bigger and heavier than I was when 2013 began...which is disheartening but I'm trying not to be disappointed. We lead very busy lives and I accomplished A LOT in 2013. Many things that weren't even on the list!
2.
Buy new cowboy boots -- I'm not sure what it counts for but I did go in
and try some on, only to find out that my calves were too big for
everything. I got discouraged and didn't bother going back or looking
further.
3. Log 750 walking or running miles -- I'm sure I put on a good 100 but nowhere near close to goal.
4. Go on one trail ride -- ACCOMPLISHED!!! I went on two, in fact! I am very proud of myself and I would like to continue to ride and get better on the horse.
5. Paint inside of house -- Mostly ACCOMPLISHED. We painted A LOT of the inside of our house including the family room, living room, dining room, kitchen and part of the hallway. One of these days we'll finish the hallway and paint the bathroom, bedrooms (x3) and bathroom. Someday.
6. Fold laundry promptly. -- Mt Laundry was a disaster almost all year but, somehow, on a sick day before Christmas I got a bee in my bonnet and got organized. Since then, even with hosting Christmas and all of the things that go along with the holidays (wrapping paper, new things, clutter...) the house has stayed clean and I've stayed on top of the laundry pile. Let's hope this continues. It doesn't exactly count for accomplishing this goal but at least I will leave 2013 will a clean bill of...err...laundry.
7. Revamp work budget. -- ACCOMPLISHED!!!
8. Refinance house -- ACCOMPLISHED!!! This ended up being a bigger mountain to climb than it sounds like. It included getting permits retroactively up to code and jumping through a lot of hoops but it is done and we are SO HAPPY.
9.
Go on at least one vacation that lasts more than two nights. -- Didn't
happen. We tried a couple of times but between Tom's job and my job it was difficult to find time.
10. Go camping at least once. -- ACCOMPLISHED!!!
11. Take some time off this summer to make soap. -- Nope. I thought about doing it a lot but got bogged down by work and getting a puppy.
12.
Talk Tom into taking dance lessons. -- Actually we did do some online
tutorials but it didn't last very long. It was fun. I'd like to get back
into it.
13. Expand the garden. -- I tried but got distracted. Work was hard last summer.
Even though 5 out of 13 doesn't seem all that great, I do feel proud of our accomplishments and I'm looking forward to what 2014 will bring. My 14 goals for next year are...
1. Lose 50lbs
2. Run a half marathon
3.
Go on a real vacation that lasts longer than two nights
4. Finish dental work and keep teeth
healthy for the entire year (and beyond)
5.
Look into braces and see if they are an option (financially and
realistically)
6. Put at least $8k into our general savings account
7.
Find a healthy place at work
8. Take at least 2 months worth of saxophone lessons,
consider joining a band
9. Hire a house cleaner to do a least two deep cleans of the house
10. Finish painting the house
11. Run or walk with Belle 3x per week
12.
Buy new (or used) furniture for and rearrange the guest room
13. Clean up yard and get grass looking nice again
14. Get Josie enrolled in swim lessons and one sport
I'm calling 14 in 2014 the BIG project because I really want to focus on me. Especially the weight loss and dental health part.
Thursday, December 26, 2013
Monday, November 11, 2013
Starting over
Once you start a working on something, don't be afraid of failure and don't abandon it. People who work sincerely are the happiest.
-- Chanakya
It feels weird to be here. Again.
A few years ago I was the one motivating people. I had motivation coming out of my ears. I had lost 75lbs, was running half marathons and training for a marathon...and I was on top of the world. And I looked like this...
And for whatever reason, here I am again. Ready to lose weight. This time? My motivation has gone missing. So...without motivation I'm here to start over.
My schedule is tight. I look at it and feel dizzy. I'm in a leadership position with a small nonprofit which basically means I do almost everything from cleaning the floors to talking on stage in front of thousands of people. It is great (really!) but stressful and my schedule leaves time for little else and with a family and down time?
But I find lately that I'm struggling to sleep. I can't put my mind or my body at rest enough to stay asleep for more than a couple of hours. I feel fat and awful and always greasy.
Something has to change.
My friends urge me to find time and make yourself a priority. While that is all really sweet and makes sense...the problem is that I really have no idea how to. As I mentioned above, my schedule is tight. I work in a semi-public job where I have tons of meetings to schedule around and have to be dressed up and look like this a good portion of the the time:
I will be completely honest, it is really fun to get dressed up and look pretty and powerful but it takes time and effort (and shape wear). When I just spent 2 hours perfecting my hair and makeup, the last thing I want to do is drop everything to take a lunchtime spin class to get sweaty and ruin it all.
I thought running at night after all of my chores at home were finished and the Peach (my daughter) was in bed or at least on her way to bed would be the perfect outlet. And for a few days (a couple of weeks, even) that was the perfect solution. It wasn't especially fun to move my 280lb body down the road in the dark but it was better than nothing. It gave me a chance to clear my mind and get some exercise...however, as soon as the cold weather kicked in, so did exercise induced asthma.
Right now? I feel so absolutely lost.
What I feel like I need is a plan...
Let's start simple...
* A blog. This. You're looking at it. I've had this blog sitting around for years now. I will update here in an effort to keep me honest. I like the name. I promise to post at least on the days when I workout.
* An eating plan. Tomorrow I'm going to write out an eating plan. It isn't perfect and will probably include some kind of meal replacement shakes because my life just doesn't lend itself well to packing lunches (I'm in and out of the office too much!) and I've found that having simple bars and shakes while I'm working helps (even if I don't like admitting it). It will also include lots of crockpot meals because they are easy!
* Fitness goals. It worked before and I'm determined to make it happen again. I so miss running and working towards a big goal. I figure, why not set my sights high? So right here, right now I'm committing to two big races. One is a half marathon in April and the other is a full marathon in October. Long distance running doesn't often lend itself kindly to weight loss. Even though I ultimately would LOVE to lose weight (okay, that is a big part of my frustration), I'm going to go out on a limb an say that the most important thing to me right now is just getting healthier and feeling better. Running usually has a way of making me feel better about myself no matter what my weight is so I'll stick with that.
* "Make time for yourself." It sounds so simple but this is the biggest one. My goal here is four times per week. It might not sound like much but for now it is going to be to get out and do something active by myself four times per week. It can be squeezed in between meetings (if I feel like going sweaty), in the mornings, after bedtime...whatever. Four times.
-- Chanakya
It feels weird to be here. Again.
A few years ago I was the one motivating people. I had motivation coming out of my ears. I had lost 75lbs, was running half marathons and training for a marathon...and I was on top of the world. And I looked like this...
April 6th 2008 -- Race for the Roses
And for whatever reason, here I am again. Ready to lose weight. This time? My motivation has gone missing. So...without motivation I'm here to start over.
My schedule is tight. I look at it and feel dizzy. I'm in a leadership position with a small nonprofit which basically means I do almost everything from cleaning the floors to talking on stage in front of thousands of people. It is great (really!) but stressful and my schedule leaves time for little else and with a family and down time?
But I find lately that I'm struggling to sleep. I can't put my mind or my body at rest enough to stay asleep for more than a couple of hours. I feel fat and awful and always greasy.
Something has to change.
My friends urge me to find time and make yourself a priority. While that is all really sweet and makes sense...the problem is that I really have no idea how to. As I mentioned above, my schedule is tight. I work in a semi-public job where I have tons of meetings to schedule around and have to be dressed up and look like this a good portion of the the time:
I thought running at night after all of my chores at home were finished and the Peach (my daughter) was in bed or at least on her way to bed would be the perfect outlet. And for a few days (a couple of weeks, even) that was the perfect solution. It wasn't especially fun to move my 280lb body down the road in the dark but it was better than nothing. It gave me a chance to clear my mind and get some exercise...however, as soon as the cold weather kicked in, so did exercise induced asthma.
Right now? I feel so absolutely lost.
What I feel like I need is a plan...
Let's start simple...
* A blog. This. You're looking at it. I've had this blog sitting around for years now. I will update here in an effort to keep me honest. I like the name. I promise to post at least on the days when I workout.
* An eating plan. Tomorrow I'm going to write out an eating plan. It isn't perfect and will probably include some kind of meal replacement shakes because my life just doesn't lend itself well to packing lunches (I'm in and out of the office too much!) and I've found that having simple bars and shakes while I'm working helps (even if I don't like admitting it). It will also include lots of crockpot meals because they are easy!
* Fitness goals. It worked before and I'm determined to make it happen again. I so miss running and working towards a big goal. I figure, why not set my sights high? So right here, right now I'm committing to two big races. One is a half marathon in April and the other is a full marathon in October. Long distance running doesn't often lend itself kindly to weight loss. Even though I ultimately would LOVE to lose weight (okay, that is a big part of my frustration), I'm going to go out on a limb an say that the most important thing to me right now is just getting healthier and feeling better. Running usually has a way of making me feel better about myself no matter what my weight is so I'll stick with that.
* "Make time for yourself." It sounds so simple but this is the biggest one. My goal here is four times per week. It might not sound like much but for now it is going to be to get out and do something active by myself four times per week. It can be squeezed in between meetings (if I feel like going sweaty), in the mornings, after bedtime...whatever. Four times.
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