I didn't write a new year's resolution post this January. I had some goals in my mind, but I wasn't sure where the year would take me and I was focusing on being happy in the present. I can get overwhelmed when I focus too much on where I want to be, rather than just enjoying where I am. Things were great and progressing nicely, there was no need to put any undue pressure on myself by announcing lofty goals on the internet.
Instead of making a whole life overhaul on January 1st, because I already know from 41 years experience that never works, I made a few small achievable lifestyle changes, named a few goals and made some plans to get me there. ResoGoalPlans, you heard it here first, folks.
MID-YEAR CHECK IN
I am happy with how this year is going so far (politics and social issues aside). In April I started as a bootcamp instructor and running coach over at ComCardio in Hurst. It's really fun and I am enjoying it every step of the way. I am hoping to come home from IDEA World with some new ideas for my class.
I hosted a bootcamp for Premier Protein in June as part of my ambassadorship, which was a blast!
BLOG GOALS
One of my ongoing goals is to grow my Lea Genders Fitness Strength & Running blog and my plan to achieve that goal was to post consistently, three times a week. I started writing all three posts over the weekend and scheduling them out for the week. It takes up most of one of my weekend days to write, edit, take pictures and create graphics. I found once I got into a groove I could easily pump out several posts in one sitting, faster than I could by starting and stopping several times during the week. Now that I am working over at ComCardio a few times a week, I have even less free time in the evenings. It's been working well. I really love writing about health and fitness, so it has been a wonderful creative outlet. I started off kind of slow but I am happy to report that over the last few months, since I have been posting several times a week, I have noticed a small uptick in traffic, so it seems like my efforts are already paying off.
LIFE STYLE CHANGES
One of my small lifestyle change goals was to walk (or run) at least 10k steps a day recorded on my FitBit. I am thrilled to report that six months in, I have never missed a day. Most days it wasn't too challenging to achieve, but I did have a few grumpy miles on the treadmill at 9pm because I wasn't quite at my goal yet. My husband is a huge supporter and would often walk with me after dinner to make sure I got in my daily steps. He made it a lot easier to achieve my goal because he was willing to do it it with me. Ollie, of course, would never pass up a chance to walk or run, so his enthusiasm helped as well.
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| Ollie's enthusiasm for running |
Another lifestyle change was to cut out alcohol for awhile. I didn't drink any alcohol from January through June (I had wine for the first time in 2016 while in California for the San Diego Rock 'n' Roll half marathon). I generally find it is easier to maintain my weight, I feel better and have more energy when I cut out alcohol. Even though it is nice to relax with a glass of wine, most of the time the negatives outweigh the benefits for me. Treating alcohol as an occasional treat works well for me and my lifestyle. I realized during my five months without alcohol that I didn't miss it.
I also planned to cut out screen time and social media scrolling/checking, but have failed miserably on that front, so I am planning to reevaluate and reset those goals for my mid-year resolutions.
MID-YEAR RESOLUTIONS
LIFESTYLE CHANGES
On the weekdays after I get home from work, I usually work out (or teach my class), eat dinner, clean up after dinner and by that time it is usually 8:30 PM. My habit is to sit on the couch (with my husband) in front of the TV while scrolling social media on my iPad before I go to bed. Besides the wasted time, there are potential negative effects on my sleep patterns from staring at a screen right before bed.
I am not suggesting that every minute of my day needs to be hyper-productive, sometimes down time is exactly what I need, but I can definitely use that time more productively in the evenings. I have a stack of health, fitness and self-improvement books that are unread, plus I am perpetually behind on my Run-Fit certification. My lifestyle change goal for the end of the year is to turn off electronics by 9:00PM and spend that last hour of my evening reading or relaxing doing something that does not involve electronics.
BLOG GOALS
My goal is to learn Photoshop, Illustrator and InDesign. My plan to reach my goal is to start up my online Photoshop classes again. I used to take the online class with my best friend once a week for an hour. Over time we both got busy and it fell off our radar. I will also use Photoshop more in order to practice. I tend to revert to Canva or PicMonkey for blog graphics because it is easier for me and I can pump out graphics a little faster. By using these other programs I don't give myself the opportunity to learn-by-doing in Photoshop.
I also want to spend more time learning my DSLR camera. I figured out the basics, but I want to improve my photography and photo editing skills. I signed up for Skillshare last year and never took a single online class.
FITNESS GOALS
My goal is to remain consistent with my strength training. I have discovered that committing to just 15-20 minutes a day of strength training has pushed my progress and results through the roof. Turns out being consistent with just 15-20 minutes a day is much better than being inconsistent with planned one hour workouts. Who knew? (The whole world, I know.) I have been thrilled with my progress so I plan keep the momentum going for the rest of the year.
What about you? How is your year going? Do you make mid-year resolutions or re-evaluate your goals through out the year?
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Keep Running,
Lea
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HAVE SO SO SO MUCH FUN!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteIm sad Im not going this year, but as I redefine my goals (even now. midyear.) it just didnt fit.
xo
There will be a time I meet you! I know it!!!!
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