2020 New Years Resolutions

Wow 2020 feels weird to write! Let's get this decade off to a good start. Last year I didn't make any resolutions because I knew I was going to have a baby halfway through the year and I figured trying to reach new goals while spending half the year feeling gross (in December/January I was battling crazy morning sickness which went away but I didn't know that at the time) and the other half the year taking care of a small human, wasn't a good idea. While both those things went a lot better than I'd imagined, I'm still happy I wasn't balancing it with striving to knock out a list of goals or feeling disappointed in myself for abandoning resolutions even though I had something bigger going on.

I'm actually a very goal oriented person so that's an important point to touch on when before we get going. It's why making a resolution list has been a big thing for me every year and why I like sharing it here. Even though I didn't set out the year with a set of goals, I ended up making some along the way because I knew it would help motivate me in a way that other things just don't.

Here are some of the things I accomplished in 2019:

• Signing up for a 10k shortly after giving birth and set (and completed!) a lot of goals around the training and completing of that race.
• Breastfeeding. Once we realized I was capable of it, holding onto that goal got me through the challenges of making it work well for us (now it's the easiest thing!).
• Planning out what meals I was going to make for the week. This helped me plan out what to grab from the freezer (since most of our protein comes frozen from Buthcerbox, it requires some planning ahead), as well as planning more complicated dishes when Dan was home to help with baby and having leftovers when he wasn't).
• Multitasking! This was HUGE after baby was born. I've always been good at multitasking but getting things done with a small baby was another level. Eventually we figured out how to get things done while watching Brooke. Somethings are easy to do when she can play on her mat and some things I can do while she's napping and some things just need to wait until she goes to bed or Dan is home. Figuring that out helped so much with getting things done. 

Some people hate New Years Resolutions but I love them. I love the chance to look back on my year (or life!) and think, "what do I want to do better?" I'm in such a great place for that. With an almost 6 month old, I have a better idea of what motherhood is about and what are realistic goals for how much time I have in a day. I've spent the last month or so thinking about good goals that fit into my life and the life I'd like to have and I'm really excited about this list.

One last thing - this list revolves a lot around goal setting and what works for me. I've been doing this serious resolution list for like 12 years and I've learned a lot about what motivates me. Those things are: achieving a goal, rewarding myself, and competition. The best competition I've found has been against past Nikki. I'll crush her any chance I get. If you find yourself hating resolutions, maybe turn it around and figure out what motivates you. Everyone is different but we can all do great things.

Exercise More!

If you read this blog, it's no surprise that fitness is a big part of my life. Not being able to exercise to the same extent is one thing I really disliked about being pregnant and the postpartum journey. Once I got cleared to workout, I did a great job. I eased into exercise and then ramped it up in preparation for my race.

..and then life happened! It got dark early so I couldn't run after work. The holidays came and balancing that preparation with a baby and work was a lot. I stopped dead in my tracks and honestly, that feels way worse than not being able to workout because I had a baby.

So I need a plan to get back into a fitness routine... and I have one! First, no wine unless I've worked out that day. It can literally be anything - a walk, a 15 min yoga video, ANYTHING. The point is just to get moving and to reward myself for getting back on that.

Second, train with a purpose! I am way more likely to take my fitness seriously if I have something to train for and I do. I signed up for a short Spartan race in the early spring and a half marathon at the end of May. I'm excited to train for these and get back into racing.

Third, get on a schedule. I've found the hardest part of having a baby isn't changing a diaper or any of the daily tasks, it's that I don't have the freedom to just do things at my convenience. I either need Dan to be home to watch her or I need to take her with me (which doesn't really work with a daycare-less gym). I'd like to work on a combo of things: going to the gym in the morning more when Dan is around to watch Brooke, working out with my videos and equipment at home while she's playing, and trying out the daycare at the YMCA (a membership I've been paying for months and haven't gone since 9 months pregnant). Brooke will also be big enough to ride in the running stroller which is a big part of my half marathon training plan. If I can take her running along a bike path during the day when it's safe, that will be huge in getting my fitness back on track and I'm sure she'll like the view.

As tempting as it is, this goal isn't about weight loss. I do have a goal of remaining baby weight I'd like to lose but if the year ends and I've worked out most days and weigh the same, I'll feel pretty good. It's also not about dieting. I threw around the idea of doing a January Whole30 because I know it works I'd probably easily knock out ten pounds if I did. However, I ultimately decided not to for two reasons. 1) As a breastfeeding Mom, my proiority is feeding my baby. Right now what I'm eating has helped me have a great milk supply so why mess with that? 2) Being a mom can be really hard and full of sacrifices. I don't want to add food as another thing I can't have right now. I also don't think we necessarily eat bad but I also don't deny myself some chocolate snacks or rich cheeses. I love food and I'd like to keep that simple pleasure right now.

Grow My Etsy Shop

A couple of years ago, I had a goal of making some passive income. I made an Etsy shop full of cross stitch downloads and it's done alright. I've basically stopped adding patterns to it since mid-2018 but the ones that are in there sell pretty well. It's not a large amount of money coming in or anything, but maybe it could be? I'd like to get patterns up on the site more regularly. I'm not going to set a strict goal because it's easier to do a bunch of patterns at once, but if I could keep my shop current with new pop culture trends (I'm looking at you Baby Yoda!), it will keep doing business in the background.

Upgrade

This one makes me feel a little greedy but, Dan and I are looking into getting a bigger house. We're so lucky to already own a home, but we always knew when we bought it that it wasn't our forever home. Having a baby has definitely made a big impact on the amount of space we have, but so has the loss of my mom. The latter has meant that holidays are spent at our home which just isn't really big enough to host a large dinner party next to the Christmas tree that takes up half our living room. As someone who love to cook, I feel limited by the amount of counter space I have to work with and usually I'm overflowing onto the dining and coffee tables to have enough prep space. It's definitely a little bit of a selfish problem to have but when we realized that we might be ready for a new house, why stay in a space we're not totally happy with?

We'd like our next home to be our basically forever home. By that, I mean someplace we'd like to stay unless outstanding circumstances changed things aka we win the lottery and can buy our absolute dream home. We've started looking and thought a lot about what we really want out of our next house which means we're not in any rush but getting something new in the next year would be ideal.

It's also really scary thinking about buying a new house though. Buying AND selling at the same time means timing needs to be perfect which can be tough in a competitive San Diego market. I'm also wary of the economy right now. I'm hoping that things work out well for us, but I always like to be cautious about making big moves.

De-Clutter

The older I get, the less interested I am in stuff. I have a lot of knick knacks that just take up space and are a pain in the butt to move. I think I'm pretty attached to what I have already and I've worked on not accumulating more stuff in the past year....

...but if we're going to move, it's definitely important to thin out what we have. While the idea of getting a bigger house is to have more space, I don't want us to be hermit crabs instantly filling that space with a ton of stuff. I'd love for more space to mean more open space. One thing I dislike about this house is how small the rooms are. This was made really evident when we brought the baby home and having her bassinet in our room meant we couldn't open our closet. It made me realize how nice it is just to have some open space in your house and I'd rather have that than lots of objects lying around.

 I know I can clear out a ton of clothes. Becoming a mom means a big lifestyle change and also just some things I've had forever and will likely not wear anymore. I also need to take a serious think about the things I hold onto. I have  a lot of things from my mom that hold a lot of sentimental value but are not useful (like shoes that don't fit me). Is the sentiment worth keeping things I can't use? Can I thin it to some pairs I saw her wear instead of keeping every pair I thought looked nice? On a similar vein, I have a TON of craft stuff from well meaning projects I never finished and sometimes never even started. Will I realistically do any of these? What would I need to be able to do these projects? A different space? (potentially solvable) More time? (a little trickier) A different life? (unlikely to work)

In the next couple of months, I want to do a huge clear out and really think what definitely needs to go and what we might want in our new home. I don't want to bring things just because we'll have more space but because I think we would use the things if the layout of our house gave us easier access to it (e.g. being able to have a dedicated gym space so it's easy to workout instead of having to set up a bunch of equipment each time, a good place to work on crafts projects).

Excited to use these trackers from Elise Joy to stay motivated.
Yes, filling in a bubble is motivating to me.

 Complete a Big Craft Project

Speaking of those crafts... one thing that would help me justify keeping all those supplies would be a finishing a big craft project. Ideally it would be something I already have the supplies for. It's probably not going to be my big Batman Cross Stitch but maybe a smaller one for Brooke? Or a Halloween costume for her? I have so many supplies and I'm trying to balance baby with things I like to do so this will be a good test of that.

Probably not this
(and yes it looks finished but this is like 1/10th of the final image)

Be Reliable

Having a kid this past year has taught me a lot about reliability. Like I said above, the hardest thing about having a child is that you lose the freedom to just go where you want, when you want. You need to have a plan for everything - a plan for someone to watch the baby or a plan for bringing the baby that revolves around their diaper changes, feedings, and naps. It's tricky.

but they missed out on visiting this 

I also felt extremely isolated after giving birth. I had so many people saying they wanted to visit before the baby was born but very few actually did. It hurt my feelings so much that people couldn't take 15-30 minutes to come by, give me a little company, and hold the baby for a few minutes so I could eat something. It was seriously the only thing I wanted from anyone then. (and important to give a big THANK YOU to everyone who did visit, invite us out with the baby, or show up to something you knew we'd be at. It meant so much to me.)

Those two things combined, made me realize that I don't want to be that person to someone else. I know I've told friends with babies that I would go visit and didn't. I've made plans and then changed my mind because it was inconvenient. I see now how crappy that is for the other person and I want to be better. It's something I've been working on for the last few months, but I want to keep the notion in my head when I decide to commit to something.

I do want to add the exception of the baby though. I definitely understand that I'm not always going to be on time for things because that's not how babies work. I also know that I might have all of the best intentions of doing something and she might get sick. Those are reasonable exceptions though and the spirit of the resolution is still good.

And Life...

I always have a few things up my sleeve that I don't put here either because it's just for me or because it doesn't make sense as a goal. In the past, I've had resolutions like "be nicer" but when you can't quantify something, it's hard to know if you did it well. Yes, there are things I'd like to do like "be more present" or "have more patience" but  I can work on that constantly without making it into a list item to check off. Plus, I think accomplishing the 6 goals above will be a big improvement on our daily lives.

A Year of Athleticism

A particular good day at the gym

Last year, as part of my movement to build my habits, I created some monthly goals to really push the best out of myself. August was Athletic August and I had a serious of things I wanted to focus on over the course of the month:

• Do 30 burpees a day
• Do Pull-ups 
• Work out every day of the month
• Show a noticeable increase in the things I do already
• Try to do well on my kickball league
• Take advantage of promotional month at a gym we'd been wanting to try

For the most part, it all went really well. Nothing was perfect but it was probably an A- (except pull ups - anything that ends in "up" is still the bane of my existence). 

The biggest thing though - was that it didn't end when August ended. I used the month as a jumping off point for a whole lifestyle centered around fitness.

AND GUESS WHAT - I had the foresight to take a picture of how I looked on August 1st 2017!!!!

8/1/17

Honestly, not too shabby. To be really real here - I wasn't out of shape when I started this project. I was already going to the gym about 3 days a week and going on a hike or walk another 2. So 5 times a week, I was doing something active. I ate healthy. I was skinny. For most people, this was already goals.

But I had bigger goals. I always wanted to get the Spartan Trifecta. It went on and off so many resolution lists. I wanted to be better at things - faster, lift heavier, climb harder climbs, have more endurance. Athletic August wasn't about being really awesome for a month - it was about making a habit of fitness so that it was easy to keep it all going.

So here's where we are a year later!!

8/1/18

It's probably hard to notice a lot of differences but I can definitely tell. There's more muscle definition, I'm standing more confidently, I love the shape of my arms, and, most importantly, my clothes still fit. My goals have never been to lose a ton of weight - I always wanted to just build muscle, but it goes both ways. You can work out a lot without becoming stick thin or turning into a hulk. Those things take a lot of focused effort. You can exercise and still look feminine.

But that's not all! Obviously people work out to be really sexy, but like I said, I already started out fit. Changing my looks wasn't my main goal and frankly, it's not the main thing I got out of this.

So here are all of the other things I've learned or accomplished from my year of fitness.

Actually Work Out Everyday - OR MORE!

We even workout on vacation! - like once

In the lead up to the Spartan Beast, I really wanted to push my fitness to the max as well as challenge my endurance (it was a half marathon length obstacle race after all). I really wanted to try to get to the gym or do something every day. Some days I'd come home from the gym and still have energy so I'd pop on a workout video that was more cardio and stack my workout. That would give me two hours of high intensity fitness time.

By the last few weeks I was doing 12-14 workouts a week and just feeling like an actual beast. I'm sure I should have taken more rest in there. Some of the second workouts were yoga or walks so it wasn't all craziness. I'd also take it easier if I felt like my body was actually maxed out.

Stay at the Gym We Tested

I mentioned that we did a 30 day gym trial that August. Well, near the end of that month, we decided to sign up for a 6 month membership... which then rolled into another 6 months. We're pretty regular fixtures at the gym now and the owner jokes that we're on the lifetime membership plan. We've made a bunch of friends at some of the regular classes we attend, participated in competitions with them, and are part of their obstacle racing team. When we don't show up for a few days, they ask where we've been (which is actually tricky when "No Excuses" is in the name of the gym). It's nice to mix something I love with a sense of community and having my fitfam has been a big positive presence in my life.

Do What You Love

For the longest time, that was rock climbing for me. I did it because it was fun and I never took myself too seriously. I would constantly learn things and slowly improve but mostly I liked the level I was at because I enjoyed those climbs.

However, over time, I noticed that the climbing community isn't ok with that. I constantly felt pressure to be more and do more. If I didn't jump on the extra climbing wagon, I was left behind and made to feel less than because climbing wasn't my whole life. It finally came to a head when someone actually told me that I couldn't possibly know something about climbing that they didn't because it wasn't my number 1 hobby. That definitely began a lot of reflection for me and I realized that after joining NXPT and feeling a really supportive gym community, it made the lack of that in the climbing world glaring to me. I wasn't excited about doing something where I constantly felt judged or like I could never give it enough. It wasn't fun anymore and after almost a decade, I decided to no longer be a rock climber.

I like being in a community where we hold each other up

 Hit a Wall and Climb Over It

At some point, in the beginning of this year, I was worried I was hitting a wall. I knew I hadn't reached my max potential but I felt like things I'd been working on for months were still challenging. I mentioned it to one of the trainers and to Dan and they were both like "nonsense." They started putting heavier weights in my hands during classes or pushing me to push harder during my workouts. I started attending the lifting class more regularly. I used any frustration and motivation to fuel my climbs. I dug deep and after a few weeks of really pushing myself I noticed I'd pushed through that wall. On days when barbells were set up, I noticed I wasn't always going for the lightest ones, I was burning calories faster on the assault bike, I was non stop on my ab work while others had to rest. It felt good to jump over my hurdle and seeing that progress helped motivate me to continue to want to push harder.

Within the last couple of months, I really shattered that wall. I noticed that I was keeping up with some of the really athletic members of the gym when we did free flow circuits. I finished the warm-up first one class. I started lifting weights I couldn't even consider before. It felt great to go from feeling stuck to feeling like I'd risen to the top of the athletes at the gym.

Weight Gain

Take a look at my before and after pictures again. I look pretty much the same right? Well, I actually gained about ten pounds in the last year. That is 10 pounds of pure muscle gain. It's also one of those reminders that weight is not the most important thing. There has been this chart going around about acceptable weight for you height. 1) it's bullshit to begin with 2) according to the chart, I'm overweight. There is not a doctor or mentally sound person who would think I was overweight. That's because weight doesn't tell you everything. If you want to start a fitness plan, I'd recommend doing a body scan every few months to track how your size changes. These will help you determine how much of your weight is fat vs. muscle and more accurately reflect the changes in your body. Don't have access to a scanner or can't afford one? You can do it manually by measuring key areas of your body and tracking that over time. There are a lot of resources online to help you do that.

Power of Positivity

When I started Athletic August last year, I wasn't really in a great place. In hindsight, I was probably depressed. I had so little confidence, I was upset about several losses in my life, and I was feeling generally unsure about a lot of things. By the end of the month, I could tell I was already in a better place. A year later, I feel like a different person. Working out makes you feel better mentally. It gives you more confidence (not just because you look better and are stronger). Sometimes I feel like my friends here are still getting to know me because the me today is more like me than the me they met a year or two ago. It also makes me feel like its ok if they don't like this side of me. I'll be ok.

And sometimes you just feel better when you get to punch something

TRIFECTA

An obstacle I'd never been able to do before

Of course this is my pride and glory. The Trifecta has been a goal for years and I kept thinking that I couldn't really do it or I'd never really be fit for it. A couple of years ago, I'd decided that it probably just wasn't ever going to happen for me. Joining NXPT changed that for me. It brought out a fire and showed me I really can do more than I think I can. The longest race, the Beast, definitely was the hardest thing I've ever done. I definitely walked off the course ready to retire from Spartan. A few months later - I'm still on indefinite hiatus but I know I'll be back on those courses some day. I just don't recommend doing a Beast at elevation - that was too much for me.

Other Accomplishments

4th class of my 6 class day

I've also been able to do so, so much more. I finally got to the top of the rope in class (which is scary when you have a cement floor 8 feet below you). I've been able to run up hills (something that I always claimed to be allergic to). My Spartan finishes were in the top 10% - amazing for someone who loves to quote Baymax's "I am not fast." People at the gym see me as someone who works out hard. I did a whole day of working out (6 classes) FOR FUN. This year has been completely crazy for me in a good way. I did so many things I was afraid of and it's made me so much stronger physically and mentally.

Lastly, it's probably important to mention that this has all been great for Dan and I as a couple. We did all the Spartan races together and try to go to the same gym classes as much as possible (one of us insists on getting her beauty sleep which makes it difficult). I've heard frequently that working out together is great for couples in which case we're in for a long haul. It's also nice to have someone to always push me. On my own, I probably wouldn't always be as motivated as I should be but since Dan eats exercise for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, he doesn't really put up with my crap when I say I'm too tired to go to the gym. So... thanks my love!

So What's Next???

That's a great question! And I don't have a lot of answers for it. The past two months since I finished the Trifecta have been meh for me in regards to the gym. I think between finishing a really difficult goal, going on vacation, and getting a lot more responsibility at work, it's been really hard for me to get back into this intense gym mindset. I also don't have a goal right now. There are some good reasons for that, but I'm starting to think that a solid goal is really what I need. I'm a goal oriented person and while I love working out, it can be hard for me to go to the gym just because.

I'm thinking about signing up for another half marathon so I can focus around that goal. I also have some ideas on how to train better knowing everything I know now and I'm excited to try it out.
I still have to make a decision but it seems like a good idea. Otherwise (or in addition to), I need to start making some training goals for myself so I can keep up all the hard work I've accomplished in the last year.

I also think some basic goals around exercises I don't like would be good. I still struggle with pull-ups and push-ups (those up exercises kill me) and making a solid effort to improve them would be really good for me. In fact, I think I'm going to start thinking about all the things I struggle with and don't like and come up with some plans to target those trouble areas.

Guess I might be doing this noise again

Also, I haven't (or have... whichever) forgotten about the World Cup Eating Challenge. Life has been crazy lately and it's frankly just not high on my priorities. I'm trying to focus on a few different things that are making it harder for me to want to take on a new project.

Steady September 2017 - Update #9

Wow, I feel like I totally lost track of this month. I was looking at my browser and saw the Blogger tab and thought, "I should probably start writing the September post even though the month ends in... 2 DAYS? Wait, really? How are there only two days left??" Crazy fast month.

Anyways, this post is a little late. I've been dealing with some neck issues that have really affected all the areas of my life below and blog writing. This post is going to be a little shorter because of it but hopefully I'll bounce back this month.

Designated Date Time/ Family Time

We luckily started the month with a long weekend out of town. We got to spend a lot of time eating out together (which is something we don't do much) and also got to see a lot of friends. It was awesome to spend the weekend on a relaxing note.

We've also been trying to go to the gym together more. Normally, I like to go when it's less busy but my schedule didn't allow that this week. The plus side was getting to go at the same time as Dan. I've heard that working out together is a great way to strengthen a relationship and I'm happy we get to do that.

Stick to a Regular Fitness Schedule

This started out so well - coming out of Athletic August into a new month, I had great habits set up. Even when I didn't really want to work out, I knew I'd feel good afterwards so went anyways. It was great!

Around the 3rd week of the month though, I hit a wall. Between work stress and other plans, I missed the gym a few days. All in all, I think I just needed the break. I started the following week with yoga. The next day, I went climbing and was just crushing it. I felt so much more confident and was trying harder climbs. The third day, I had a super busy day at work and was so excited to sweat it out at the gym and that workout was awesome too. I left feeling like my light week was the perfect way to rest my body and come back stronger... and then I got hit with a migraine. I honestly don't think I've ever had one before because I always thought they were just a bad headache. It's so much more than that. I was left with a stiff neck for several days after which also kept me from doing any more exercise.

It's hard when you miss the gym because you're busy or stressed.... it's even harder when you want to go and physically can't. It's crazy because I workout and eat healthy so that my body is always in tip top shape and going through something like a migraine where your body really turns against you - it's a little scary. I hope it's just something that was triggered by an especially stressful day and not a regular occurrence.

Meal Planning

Since this was a busy month for me, I was more dependent on organizing our meals for the week and also using the slow cooker. People also ask how I can manage working two jobs, exercise, and cooking. Meal planning is a huge part of that.

I have two other tricks that I've mentioned before. The first is the slow cooker/ instant pot. It's so nice to be able to prep a meal and have it cook while I'm working or running errands. The second is to just do really easy meals. One of my favorites is to make something that is 100% in the oven. That way I can take a shower or take care of other things while dinner is cooking instead of tending to something on the stove.

I really love this particular habit because it's a big "do it all" habit. I don't want to sacrifice eating well in order to work on other things. Just a little bit of prep goes a long way in making that possible. 

Take an Annual Trip with My Husband

I loved having the time at the beginning of the month for our long weekend. With how busy work has been this month, it's got me itching for another trip. I definitely wouldn't mind starting to think about where we can go next year. As homeowners, we have some tax benefits that will hopefully lead to a good refund. That should pad our savings enough to help us meet this goal next year!

Read a Book a Week

Right on track here! It felt like I was on a roll at the beginning of the month and then I hit a book that was a slower but interesting read. I'm trying to avoid those for now but it's still hard when I come across something that looks good.

I'm also trying to listen to more audiobooks. I'm in my car a lot more now and audiobooks are such a great way to kill that time while getting some reading done as well. I'm always a little hesitant about them because some books work better than others for it. That's where learning how to put a book down comes in handy. I started one audiobook and could not follow it from the get go so I ended up turning it off and listening to This American Life instead.

Me Time

My neck injury had one upside - a lot of me time! I spent the last day of the month in bed with Netflix. Healing from a migraine or concussion or whatever happened means a lot of rest of darkness and quiet. So I messed up on the quiet but staying in and taking it easy was a great way to help that healing.

I also seem to keep having a day a month where Dan is busy - either working or with his own plans. I know I could take that time and catch up with my friends but I've been choosing to take that time to relax and read and catch up on my own projects... and it's been so nice. It's really been the definition of what I meant by this goal and I love it. I hope I keep being able to have a day or two just to take care of me. 

Steady September

This was a really tough one for me. It was about balance and bringing everything together. The month started really well... and then it fell apart. I don't want this to be about excuses so we'll avoid those. I think sometimes doing it all requires some things to fall into place more out of luck than anything. It was already piling on but then my migraine and subsequent head and neck ache really just blew it open. The last week of the month was just totally useless for me and I hate ending on a fail. I definitely want to keep this goal in front of me because it really is THE GOAL but it didn't happen this month because of forces out of my control. 

Outgoing Octopus October

This totally sounds weird. Early last month I said to Dan, "Hey - I thought of the goal for next month!" and he said "Octopus October????" so I gave him a "really???" face and never told him what it was because he didn't ask. When it came up later in another conversation he asked what happened to Octopus October. I told him that doesn't even make sense and he explained that I could try to do 8 new things. Ok, that's not so bad, but I still liked the Outgoing October idea... so why not combine them? Do 8 new things with the goal of lowering inhibitions and fears. 

If you know me, this might seem like a weird one. I'm not super shy. I don't have a hard time talking to strangers or public speaking or anything like that. I know how to be polite and friendly. However, it just hasn't all felt like it's clicked lately.

Honestly, I've felt a little not like myself for a while. I've had a tough year and I think it's really shaken the core of who I am. I lost my mom, I had troubles with close friendships, and frankly, Dan and I still are fairly new to San Diego which can be a lonely feeling all on it's own. At the end of the day, all of that has left me feeling like a more subdued and self conscious version of myself.

Pair that with real estate, a career that requires confidence and a huge personality, and it becomes a big issue. I go to all of the real estate training that I can and I come out of them with a list of ideas and plans to build my business - and then I freeze. 

So this goal is really two fold. The first, and most obvious is to make that real estate push. It's to connect with strangers and bring up real estate more. It's to call people and do things that are a little outside my comfort zone. The worst thing that can happen is that someone says no or doesn't want to talk to you but it's still a tough one.The second goal is to keep trying to build my San Diego community. I love being surrounded by many different types of people. I think I've made a lot of good friends so far and then stopped trying to keep building that community.

---

That's it for September! I'm happy to report that after a week+, my neck is finally feeling much better. I'm definitely still feeling cautious and plan on taking it easy for a few more days just to be sure but I'm really feeling antsy to get back to the gym and feeling normal.

Athletic August 2017 - Monthly Update #8

Hmm.. this feels confusing. I probably should have had a better title for my weekly updates so that the monthly one stood out.. Oh well!

Designated Date Time/ Family Time

Oh look I changed the name again! Actually, this month, I spent more time with the rest of my family as well. Dan and I had a race in LA. I invited my dad to come watch and afterwards we all got dinner. We all had breakfast together as well. That may not seem like much but we spent hours talking. My dad has been in real estate forever so it was great to bounce some questions and frustrations off of him. He's also been talking more about his life experience and it's been really interesting. I know how important this time together is and I feel like we've connected more on these visits since my mom passed away.

I also have a brother who lives in San Diego and we've made some more time for each other this month. Despite my races and his travel, we managed to have a day we were both in San Diego and he invited me boating with him. It's nice spending more time with him and I like that we can get along as friends as well as siblings.


Lastly, of course, I still needed time with Dan. We're still trying to do nighttime family walks with the dog whenever we can and that time is always nice just to chat about our days. I felt like the race weekend was the most connected though. The day after the race, we stopped on the way home for a nice lunch date and some shopping around Downtown Disney. We were still sore and tired so to have just a nice, lazy Sunday together was so nice. Since the dog was at home with the dog sitter, it kind of felt like we didn't have "the kids" for the weekend and it was really pleasant.

Stick to a Regular Fitness Schedule

This was totally THE goal for the month. Of all my monthly habits, this is the one that I always felt like I was failing at. I had my climbing schedule and semi-regular body pump but that was only 3 things a week. My goal was way more than that. I feel like I finally hit it and have set up some ways to make sure I continue to keep it up in the future... but you'll read more on that later.

Meal Planning

This goal has been a slow improvement month over month. Since I spent so much of August running to and from gyms, I really needed to set up dinners that would be easy for me to make and would last a few days.


Luckily, I had just received a new cookbook that focused on this kind of meal planning. One of the first recipes I made from it, was called Sunday Gravy. It's a tomato sauce full of vegetables and different meats. I made a ton of it and we were able to make a lot of meals out of it and freeze some too. I also did this with soups and pulled pork and other things that can be made in large quantities. Our dinners were a little less exciting this past month but it happens.

I've also gotten so much better at doggy dinners. I had started making 2-3 dinners for Harley at a time so she wouldn't need cooking every night. If I had more than 2 made, I would freeze the extras. That way, when we went out of town, I could just pull her meals out of the freezer for the sitter. 

Take an Annual Trip with My Husband

Not even on our radar but we finally finalized all the travel for the 3 weddings in 2 months that we have coming up! It's going to be a busy Fall, but it's nice to have a good reason to use our Southwest points and see friends and family.

Read a Book a Week

This went so much better this month. I still felt like I was reading a lot of heavier, slower books, but I finished Alexander Hamilton which was a huge win.

Near the end of the month, I also had a huge realization. I let my books be governed heavily by what I get from the library. I was getting really burnt out on non-fiction and heavy, dense books. I really wanted to read something light or suspenseful - quick reads. However, I got another historical fiction from the library. It's been renowned as one of the best books of the year and I'd been waiting for it for a while. I really wanted to read it... just not now. I needed a break from this type of book. I didn't want to get back in the hold line, but then I thought "...why not?" It's got a little bit of a wait but it's not crazy. The book is being made into a movie next year anyways so reading it closer to that makes more sense for me. Lastly, why keep pushing myself to read books that I'm not feeling at that moment. I would enjoy the book so much more if I could read it in a couple of months when I've taken some distance from this genre so that's what I decided to do! Such a relief.

After coming to that conclusion, I stuck to reading what I wanted: quick reads! Whether they are suspense or chick lit, I'm heading into October with a pile of fun reads.

Me Time

There's something really interesting about adding more to your schedule. I knew focusing so much more time on exercise had the potential to overwhelm my schedule. It actually had the opposite effect. 

I found myself choosing quiet, me time over going out a lot. The first weekend of the year, Dan was out of town for a bachelor party. I was worried about being really lonely and had thought about making a lot of plans with girlfriends. That Saturday, my friend group had made plans to go to a cheap concert. I wanted to spend time with them but I wasn't excited about the concert itself or driving a long distance at night, in a situation where there was drinking. I was torn over my options and in the end, decided to just stay home. I caught up on work, made an amazing dinner, read, drank a bottle of champagne, and played video games. It felt amazing and it made me realize I don't do it enough. It set a standard for the month of doing less sometimes and really helped me remember why this goal was so important. 

Athletic August 

This is going to be more of an overall summary of how this month went. The picture above are my pre and post fitness test results and it makes me so happy to see so much improvement. The rest of this post is going to get into some more of the summary and how the month went for me overall. If you want more of a day to day feeling for what I did and how it felt as I was going through it, I also have weekly posts:

Week 1

Week 2

Week 3

Week 4

Week 5

• 30 burpees a day - I definitely skimped on this after my race. I think doing a little bit of an exercise doesn't make as much of an impact as doing a whole lot all at once. While my burpees got better, it feels like a side effect more of the boot camp gym. With that said, this might be a good goal to continue in a different vein. Maybe doing 100 burpees every Sunday so it's one big focused push.
• Pull-ups - .You know, I never really attempted an unassisted pull up. I'm sure I could do one now though. With all of the rock climbing, and rope climbing, and assisted pull ups, that area is so much stronger. I did see my assisted pull-up number go up a lot so this is on the right track.
• No days off - I skipped maybe 3 days total and had another 3 where I did something really light that's hardly a work out. I think that's awesome. It's not perfect and I would have preferred 6 light days instead of doing nothing but it's still a solid effort. 
• Level up - This one makes me so happy. I definitely was doing harder climbs by the end of the month and I had several AHA moments of using a technique that I'd seen but didn't know how to implement. If you look at the chart above, my fitness test results totally improved across the board too. Except running. I still hate running. 
• Kick it! I've been really loving kickball. I've felt my athleticism improve because of my other fitness pushes. I'm still not amazing. I started kicking fly balls instead of foul balls though. I learned that I can catch the ball. I'm really fast the rare times I get on base. It's cool to feel ok at sports. 
• 31 days of fitness - We totally loved going to the boot camp gym (Which is called NXPT btw). I'm not going to lie, I could have done a trial there 100 other times, but I was afraid. I've seen their team at races and I was intimidated that I would be the worst in the class. 1) I wasn't. 2) It wouldn't have mattered if I was. The gym isn't about competing with your class. It's about competing with yourself. I think the trainers do a good job of knowing when you can push harder and when you're trying your best and motivate you appropriately. I'm excited that we have another 6 months there and ever since we extended our membership I've been trying to make it more of a community. 

I also feel like I learned a lot about myself through this goal. Prioritizing fitness and exercise rippled through so many other areas of my life:

• Drinking Less - I love a good of wine. A lot. Sometimes this has been a reward for getting through a tough day of work or another challenging situation. Through this goal, I was going to the gym after work. Even after a workout or my race, I felt so tired and dehydrated that I just wanted a lot of water before anything. After other races, I'd go get bottomless mimosas. This time I had one light beer and then just wanted all the water. I definitely still had a few fun weekend days but I can see my focus changing and that's big.
• Less Stress - The first two weeks of the month, my boss was in Europe so I had many more responsibilities in his absence. I was still juggling this with my exercise, real estate job, and all of the above goals. Things that would have normally stressed me out, just really disapated. Even when I dealt with some drama, it just didn't bother me as much as it would have. I think when you're physically tired, you don't really have enough energy to be emotionally tired as well. The only thing I'd have capacity for were mental challenges which is way better.
• Weight - I ended up gaining about 6-8 pounds this month. It's definitely due to muscle tone. I'm pretty much the same size but you can see my ab and arm muscles much more clearly. It's definitely conflicting seeing a higher number but I know that it's a good change. Do I still have areas that I'm sensitive about and would like to tone up? Totally. However, you can't target specific areas of your body to shrink through fitness. You need to do that through diet. I eat super clean already and there's not a lot left to cut out. The changes I would need to make in my lifestyle aren't really worth the tiny change in my thighs so I think weight gain is going to continue as long as I keep building muscle. 
• Laundry - omg, when you work out like this, you are changing clothes and showering several times a day. We had to do laundry so much more often. It wasn't even about going through the clothes - Dan was just worried about the smell building up in our laundry basket. Definitely an unexpected side effect. 
• Sleep & Time Management - I'm not a great sleeper. Now that it's been a month, I'm noticing that I'm so tired by the end of the day, that I fall asleep quickly and sleep through the night. That also means that I'm naturally waking up earlier and with more energy. What that also means is that the time I'm getting in the morning from sleeping better makes up for the gym time. I also just feel more focused through out the day and I'm going into September with a better mindset. 

All in all, this whole month felt like such a win for me. Of all the goals I've had, this was the most quantifiable. You can't look at me or the numbers and not know that it went really really well. I feel great and I have so much enthusiasm to keep this up. I love it.

This month also really felt like my Whole30 month. It was a similar idea - 30ish days of a personal challenge that required hard work and sacrifices everyday. Some days were hard. Even though it was a win at the end of the month, many times along the way I felt like giving up or that I just didn't want to do it. I think that's a very normal part of any long term, consistent goal. It takes time for you to mentally and physically adjust to a change, even if it's positive. A lot of the beneficial feelings I had, didn't really start to come about until the very end of the month. The point is - be patient and believe in yourself whenever you're trying to build a new habit. Push through the hard days to get to the good ones.

Steady September

Now that I finally feel like I've had a month where I nailed the monthly habits, I don't really feel the need to build on it. Athletic August went so great. I did well in my other goals, but really nailing the workout habit took from other areas. Now that regular gym time is a solid part of my life, I want to make sure everything else with work and family and life is fitting in together well. It's not about adding any new goals, it's just about making things work.

The beginning of the month has already been filled with some wins and losses. We started September off with a weekend out of town for a friend's wedding. We got to see a lot of people and do a lot of fun things. We then came home to an extremely full schedule where we had plans just about every waking hour. We had to take a step back and realize that's not manageable. I remember how much I liked having that day off to myself in August and I'd like to make sure I have some of those this month as well.

So yea, September is all about finding balance. It's about making real estate and exercise and time off all work together. It's about doing it all and then taking some time to breathe.

Athletic August - Week #5

It's the end!!! We managed to get 5 full weeks out of this somehow. Oh August, you're so full of tricks.

Sunday

I took another day off. I don't even have a reason. I just didn't do anything. It's definitely not how I wanted to start my last week of Athletic August. All I can do is accept it and try to do better.

Monday

Well, definitely no excuses now - it's time to finish strong! It was time to go back to the boot camp gym because this week, we are back to the fitness testing we did at the beginning of the month! For me, this month was all about a big push to increase my stats and build better habits. Joining a gym with a fitness test this month was an amazing way to track actual results.

Today, we were testing squats, deadlifts, and the half mile run. I improved all across the board but for specific numbers you'll have to wait until the month end post.

I ended my circuit on the rope climb. It was the last thing I did and after the deadlifts, my hands were torn up. I made an attempt to climb but I decided that I wasn't going to push it and not be able to go to the climbing gym.

While I felt like my grip was a little beat up from the bootcamp and I was kind of tired. You know what though? I still showed up to the climbing gym and I didn't take it easy. I still pushed myself to try the harder climbs. My partner and I tried an 11a (which is just about the level we still have a lot of trouble and don't always finish). We definitely struggled on one part but we tried and tried until we got it. Later in the climb, I tried a move that I'm familiar with but never know when to use. I had a total "AHA" moment when the way I used it made the move so much easier. It was so cool to feel like I made a breakthrough. And for those that climb, it was a heel hook.

Tuesday

The second day of testing involved the mile run. At the beginning of the month, I did it in the noon class. I remember it being hot and terrible and making it hard to do the thrusters after. It was supposed to be even hotter this time around so I decided to help myself... by waking up early and doing the test at 7am when it was cooler out. Waking up early to exercise is not my thing. But... all of my running races are early so obviously I can do it. This seemed like a good time to play that card. Also, it meant Dan and I could attend together since he usually can only go in the morning.

Thruster!!!

The first time around, we started with the run. While this makes the run way easier, it definitely affected my thrusters (this is basically a squat that thrusts you into a push press. The first time around, my legs were jellos from the previous days' squats and the run. Starting with them, didn't seem like a terrible idea. And that's what I did - we could pick where we started our testing and I went to the station that gave me the most trouble first. I went from 2 thrusters to 14. I truly felt like I couldn't do another one after too. No really, I had Dan take a picture of me doing one after the class and it was a struggle.

I also went from 20 pull-ups to 27 (with the resistance band). My mile increased 7 seconds though. While that probably counts as breaking even, getting even 1 second faster would have felt like an improvement.

Working out in the morning also felt like victory. This was the second time I made it to the 7am class and... it wasn't that bad. It definitely gives me a burst of energy to make it through the day.

Wednesday

Push ups, burpees, and sit-ups oh my! If you've read my other posts, you know I hate push ups and burpees. I didn't even do the initial testing day because 1) I hate them and 2) I was so sore and wiped out from the other two days of testing. While I had some soreness, it wasn't enough to stop me from seeing what I could do. It's crazy how I went from avoiding these exercises to really embracing them and trying to improve. Big steps!

What about the sit ups? So these were smack and taps - meaning you fully extend your arms over head and fully sit up and slap the ground in front of you. I'm not sure that description makes a difference to most of you - they're sit ups! I actually love sit ups. I know a strong core is important to all of fitness and... I can do a bunch without feeling tired! But I got there by making myself do a whole lot all of the time. I used to hate sit ups the most. Maybe push ups and burpees will get there too. Who knows.

Anyways, I had to wear my T-Rex Hates Push Ups shirt and it was a huge hit in the class. I also was really happy that I fit in 30 burpees in the 3 minutes. I didn't test it but I was trying to do 30 burpees a day and I had to break them into little groups to do this. This was definitely an improvement. I had just read about how burpees are a great way to improve overall athleticism and it made it even more poignant that they were a big piece of Athletic August.

Thursday

I finished of the month with one last climb! My original plan was to try to work out later too but I have a lot of chores to take care of so it was nice to just end on this.

My partner and I did a variety of levels and frankly, we struggled on some of them. It stinks when you're trying to get better and you get stuck on some really hard climbs. We had to just give up on those this time but luckily, we were able to power through some other hard ones and finish on a good note.

It was really a good metaphor for this month. I had my struggles and days where I didn't meet my goals but I finished strong. Monday-Thursday of this week have been shining examples of what you can do when you work hard. I've gotten so much better in different areas of fitness and even my climbing is looking stronger.

This may be the end of Athletic August but I'm excited to keep these habits going!

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So no end of the week summary since it ended on Thursday and I have the free version of the app so I can't customize things. Oh well! The good news is, it's the end of the month! There are a whole lot of thoughts and summaries and stats.... that will be in my monthly report. Yup! You have to read another whole blog post! Or just scroll to the bottom for pictures! I'll never know!

Athletic August Week #4

So close to the end! Somehow August has like 100 days though and this is going to spill over to a 5th week so you get some extra updates.

This week has been night and day from last week. I think last week was really my hurdle to get over. Seeing how I did after my Spartan race and getting into more of a stride were really what I needed to keep going.

Sunday

Treat Yo'self

The day after a race, I'm never going to go big. It doesn't make sense. If I have then energy to do a big workout, I didn't try as hard as I could during my race. Dan and I both fell asleep really early Saturday night and were super sore on Sunday. We still had to drive all the way home to San Diego so we decided to just to have an enjoyable, easy day. We spent the morning eating breakfast and talking with my dad. We then drove to Orange County and took a pit stop near Disneyland for some lunch and shopping. I'm sure you could count that as "walking" and it probably was more distance than I walked last Sunday but I wasn't tracking it and I'm really not that concerned with it. Today wasn't about working out - it was about recovering and celebrating a race well done.

I also decided this was a good time to suspend the burpees challenge. After the race, their usefulness was gone for now and fitting them in late at night or on days I was really tired wasn't very enjoyable.

Monday

Back at it! My climbing partner asked if I'd still be up for climbing since it was only a couple of days post race. In the past, I'd still be too sore a couple of days after a race, but I was already feeling better. Knowing that all my hard work had shortened by recovery time was a big added bonus. Being sore stinks so being able to get back to something I love a couple of days after a race was awesome.

We also had a great day climbing. I didn't go nuts but we tried a couple of higher level climbs and were able to do pretty well at them which was a great feeling. We also planned out what we would tackle on Wednesday when I'd had even more time to recover from the race.

Tuesday

Now that I was fully better, it was time to head back to the bootcamp gym! It was crazy to think I took a week and a half off. Even though we've only been going for a few weeks, I've already grown really attached to the gym and the challenging workouts. They really kick my butt but each day is different enough that I don't get bored with it. I always look like I jumped in a pool after class which makes me feel a little guilty that I usually go grocery shopping after. Sorry other shoppers!!!

It also was pull up day! I tried to challenge myself but using less resistance than last time but I actually struggled a lot more than the testing week - even when I used more assisstance. I think there was still some soreness from the race and climbing holding me back. Hopefully there's still some improvement before next week.

Wednesday

Since Wednesday is a climbing day but I was loving the feeling of going back to boot camp, I decided to do their 30 min lunch time class... and it was shoulders. Perfect from a pre-climb workout (sarcasm). We started the class with a ton of burpees as a birthday gift to one of the other members. Our stations then involved a lot of core and shoulder work including pushups, push presses, and more burpees. It was a tough 30 minutes.

Luckily for the gym, Dan and I decided before that class that we would sign up for another 6 months at the gym! We've both really enjoyed it were feeling sad that our month trial was coming to an end. We worked a way to make the cost more manageable so we could justify signing up for more time.

I still had climbing to go to though and on Monday we had picked out a bunch of hard climbs to try. One of them totally kicked my butt. I pushed through one move and felt my back totally tighten and I just couldn't get through more than 75% of the climb. Even though I had a huge knot in my back, I didn't want to end on that note. I chose a few more physically easy but mentally challenging climbs. I love that climbing involves so much more thinking than normal exercise and being able to make that shift when I'm tired is a great way to change up the challenge.

Oh - and if you're worried about my back, I'm ok. It felt tight all night but I got Dan to massage out some of the knots. I'm going to pull through!

Thursday

Dan woke up and went to the 7am bootcamp class and reported that it was back, biceps, and squats - the three places I really need to recover. I definitely have to take the day off from the gym which stinks because one of the exercises was rope climb. I really want to keep practicing there but I do feel better knowing that we have 6 more months at the gym instead of 1 week. If we hadn't extended our membership, I would have felt compelled to go in and work the muscles that sorely needed a day off.

We ended up doing a family walk after dinner and it just reminds me how much I love those. No matter how I love them... Harley loves them more. It's adorable how excited she gets about going on a walk with both of us.

Friday

Back to boot camp! Friday's are always "best of" and you do the hardest workout from each day.  That meant another chance to try things I struggle with like pull-ups, thrusters, and the rope climb. Even better? I got to the top of the rope! The gym owner held it down for me and gave me some tips but the climbing was all me. It's nice to have checked that off my list and hopefully I get some more chances to try it before the month is up!

Saturday

Nothing to report here - Saturday was a really busy day for me. Dan woke up early to go to a special boot camp on the beach but I just didn't want to. I also had plans at 10 and knew it would be stressful to fit both in. Instead I had an easygoing morning before meeting up with friends. From there, I ran some errands, made lunch, spent time with Dan and then it was time to head out again. I was hoping to fit a workout video or something in there but by the time I could, it was time to shower and head back out again. I didn't want to keep skipping days but it would have been way more stressful to fit another day in and honestly, my body appreciated the rest.

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It was so nice to bounce back after the week before. It's not surprising that I hit a rut in this - it seems pretty normal when you're trying to build a habit. The key is being about to push over and get to the other side. It's so crazy that I'm coming into the last week of this.