13 in 2013 – February/March Recap

Hey everyone! Hope you all had a fantastic Easter weekend! We were pretty busy but managed to sneak in a little down time, and even a family nap on Sunday – it was awesome!

 

It’s time for a 13 in 2013 Recap. I totally missed February’s so here’s a February/March combo post letting you know how I’m making out with my 13 goals for 2013.

 

1. Spend less, save more – I am happy to report, we are spending less and saving more!

How are we spending less? Well, we are planning meals, grocery shopping only once a week, buying many items in bulk from Costco, and have not eaten dinner out in what seems like forever!

How are we saving more? Back in January, I came across this idea to help save money. We started right away and since it seemed so reasonable and allows for some flexibility, we decided to double the weekly amount. So, 14 weeks in we have just over $230 saved and didn’t notice it from our budget at all. By the end of the year, we will have set aside $2756! So easy!

 

2. Run a 1:58 half marathon – I plan on running two maybe one half marathons this year. My original plan was to run one in the spring and one in the fall, however, I’m thinking the spring one is not going to happen. I’m a little bummed about it, but really, I’m not loving running right now, and finding/making time to do it has been difficult with my husbands crazy busy work schedule. I’m disappointed because for the first time in forever, I actually ran over the winter. I joined the Winter 100 Challenge and it totally motivated me to run all winter. It was awesome, and I loved running. However, once the training schedule came out and running needed to follow a structured schedule, it totally took the fun out of it for me. Running hills on my lunch, taking time away from my family every Sunday, and having to miss out on other workouts I love, made me start to not love running anymore 😦 

So, with that being said, I’m going to get back into running for fun. I hope to run 5,6, maybe 7k on my lunch a couple of times a week, and hope my mojo comes back!

And if I’m loving running again, maybe I will sign up to do a half this fall and aim to do it in 1:58!

3. Try one new clean eating recipe a week – As far as Clean Eating goes, February and March were pretty good. I made Dark Chocolate Chip No Bake Cookies, Blueberry Crumble Muffins (Clean Eating, Aug/Sept 2012), Potato, Leek and Cheddar Soup (Clean Eating Classic Comfort Foods), Oven Baked Chicken Parmesan (Clean Eating, March 2013), and Kale Chips.

You can find some of these recipes on the NEW Clean Eating Recipes Page above.

 

4. Become a certified RPM instructor – I am was totally planning to on attend(ing) the March 23/24 training weekend HOWEVER, with my husbands crazy work schedule, and the launch of Gillian Michael’s BodyShred at GoodLife, I decided to hold off. As much as I love RPM, I would really, really love to get certified in BodyShred! Unfortunately for me, so would like a million other instructors and since numbers are limited, I’m not actually sure when this will happen for me 😦

In the meantime, I’m super excited to let you all know I am officially on the schedule teaching BodyAttack starting next week! WooHoo!

 

5. Do 10 chin-ups – This is yet another thing that totally took a hit when my half marathon training started 😦 I got into a funk and working out was of little interest to me – which is totally crazy, cause I love it! I will make this happen though! I’ve incorporated a chin-up challenge into both of my fitness classes this semester and will be re-starting the program mid-May.

 

6. Build Strength – I am getting stronger! Mixing up my workouts, adding in some CrossFit, Tabata and a bunch of other stuff is working! How do I know? I actually did the ENTIRE push-up track in Attack yesterday morning WITHOUT modifications, well, on my knees of course, but that’s how I roll! Amazing!

 

7. Go to bed earlier – I’m totally rocking this one! I have no idea when the last time I saw 10pm was!

 

8. Blog more – My goal was to blog 5 days a week – which would mean about 40 posts since my last update. How’d I do? Well, in February I posted 17 times and in March I only posted 11. So, my plan is to get back on track, make better use of my time and hopefully I will get back to 4 or 5 posts a week.

Anything in particular you’d like to read about? Let me know, I’m always looking for ideas!

 

9. Run 3x a week – As I said in goal #2, my plan is just to get running again. I hope to be running 3 times a week before the end of April. I want to keep if fun and love it again!

 

10. Drink more water – As always, room for improvement here! Bring on the warm weather so I can stop drinking WARM tea and starting drinking COLD water!

11. Read 52 books – Week 14 and I’m on my 9th book. Not bad. Maybe I need to chose some shorter books! Hehehe! Check out the Books I’ve Read page to see what I’ve been reading. Have you read a good book or two lately? I’d love some recommendations!

12. Take at least 2 family trips – Work in progress… Our trips will most likely occur during the summer, so we have a bit of time to choose where we will go and what we will do.

13. Date night once a month – Our February date night was dinner out at one of our favourite Mexican restaurants. We hit up Made in Mexico where the food was delicious and the Corona was cold!

I don’t think we actually made it out for date night in March 😦 Will have to try for two in April!

 

So that’s where I’m at. Not great, but not too bad either! I’m hoping April is the month where I get back in track, have time to enjoy the things I love, and continue to grow as a Happier, Healthier, More Fit Me!

How are you making out with your 2013 goals?

13 in 2013 – Week 4 Update

Wow, it’s hard to believe we are already approaching the end of January! It’s crazy how fast time is flying by!

I know you are not ‘average’ so you don’t really fit in with this stat, but did you know that of those who make resolutions or sets goals for the New Year only 64% stick with it through the first month!

Source

Are you part of that 64%? Will you be part if the only 8% that stick with it all year long? I guess it’s time to ask yourself…

I am happy to say I am still doing well with my 2013 goals. Although I’ve been sidetracked with illness and injury, I feel as though I am still in control and on track. After 4 weeks, here’s where I’m at:

1. Spend less, save more – as always, this is a work in progress. As I was browsing the Internet for easy ways to save money, I came across a couple of great sites that I thought I would share with you:

Money Saving Mom, a blog dedicated to helping you find great deals, stretch your hard-earned dollars, and live on less than you make, so you can save more and give more. Each Monday in 2013 Crystal will be sharing a different way you can save money this year, check it out!

The Nourishing Gourmet is doing something similar with 52 ways to save money on a healthy diet. Check out her site for more money saving ideas!

This weeks money saving focus: do laundry only once this week – on the weekend, during low cost hours.

2. Run a 1:58 half marathon – Things are coming together! I’ve decided on a 12 week training program to prep me for my May 5th half marathon. Training officially starts February 12th! I will post a copy of my training schedule over the next few days if you are interested.

3. Try one new clean eating recipe a week – Last week I made 2 clean eating treats.

I made Dark Fudgy Brownies with Avocado from the January/February 2013 issue of Clean Eating Magazine. They were absolutely delicious! You should give them a try!

I also made Eat Clean Apple Crisp that was probably the BEST apple crisp I have ever had. You can find the recipe here.

4. Become a certified RPM instructor – I’ve finally made it back to RPM! It almost killed me after such a long time off, but I loved it! This latest release is intense!

5. Do 10 chin-ups – Week 3 of my chin-up program was put on hold as I dislocated a rib last Monday and needed to give the surrounding muscles a chance to heal. I will be taking another week off and getting back into it next Monday.

Maybe I’ve finally learned to start listening to my body!

6. Build Strength – I’ve also had to put my strength training workouts on hold too, but will also be restarting those on Monday too.

7. Go to bed earlier – I’ve mastered this one! Last week I went to be ridiculously early – like 7:30 early – on more than one occasion. It was awesome!

8. Blog more – Last week was another great week in the blogging world. I posted 6 times and I’m hosting my first ever giveaway! I am also working on building a Happier, Healthier, More Fit Me Pinterest account and Facebook page.

9. Run 3x a week – Last week was a terrible week run-wise. With the crazy cold front that hung around most of the week, running outside was pretty much impossible. I did make it to the gym for a treadmill run once, but overall, I’m pretty disappointed with my progress last week 😦

Stats: 1 run, 4 miles, 38:29, 424 calories.

Goal Check: 100 miles by February 28

Yikes! Better get running if I’m going to reach my goal!

10. Drink more water – Getting better, but still need to drink more water!

11. Read 52 books – Last week I finished my 2nd book of 2013 – The House of Sand and Fog – and I’ve now started to read Gone Girl by Gillian Flynn and Run Less Run Faster by Runner’s World Magazine.

12. Take at least 2 family trips – planning in progress

13. Date night once a month – Thinking dinner at the Keg to celebrate hubby’s birthday will be our night out this month!

So, overall, not too bad. I can definitely say some of these goals have become habits and are now no brainers. There are a few things I still really need to focus on, but I feel as though I am moving in the right direction! Now that I’ve made it though the first 4 weeks, I am going to be doing monthly rather than weekly updates.

How are you doing with your 2013 goals? Are you on track? Losing momentum? Or kicking butt? I’d love an update!

13 in 2013 – Week 3 Update

Well, we are a full three weeks into 2013…how are you doing with your goals?

So far, I’d have to say I am doing quite well! Of course there are things I am still struggling with, but I have definitely made progress!

Here’s where I’m at:

1. Spend less, save more – Although we were on track again last week, we need to get back to meal planning and grocery shopping only once a week. Why? Well, because by meal planning and shopping only once a week we save because…

• I don’t have the chance to buy those on-a-whim, usually not-so-healthy extras – since I’m not in the store!

• I prepare meals that provide leftovers for lunches and/or another dinner which helps us avoid expensive lunches from the school caf and last-minute take-out meals for dinner on busy evenings.

• I plan Friday night treat meals, like Buffalo chicken wraps and sweet potato fries, which satisfies our urge for take-out, without the added expense and extra calories!

2. Run a 1:58 half marathon – Well, I’ve officially signed up for the Goodlife Fitness Half Marathon in Toronto on May 5th.

Now to decide on which training program I am going to follow to help me finish in my goal time…

Do you have an awesome Half Marathon training program you swear by? I’d love to see it and find out why you love it.

3. Try one new clean eating recipe a week – I’m totally loving this goal! I can honesty say that if I had not committed to one new recipe a week, I would have skipped out on it for sure! It has been great trying new meals and have found some that will become regulars.

This week I made Kung Pao Chicken from Clean Eating Comfort Foods 2012. The recipe is quick and easy and DELICIOUS!

4. Become a certified RPM instructor – I didn’t make it to RPM last week, and with it being LMI release week, I may only get there once this week – Friday. I am so looking forward to next week and the beginning of semester 2 when I can go to RPM on my lunch! Woohoo!

5. Do 10 chin-ups – Week 2 of my training program is complete and I can now do 2.5 continuous chin-ups! I am defintley motivated to continue with these results! The program amps up these week, but I’m ready!

6. Build Strength – Week 1 of my strength program went well, however I have decided to switch to a 3x/week program that is very similar to the 5x/week program I started with. The main are reason for the change is that this new program has 3 strength and 3 cardio workouts a week (rather than 5 strength and no cardio). This fits in much better with my plan of running a half marathon in May and getting my RPM certification. I feel that this is a much more balanced workout plan and will only require the odd double workout day as opposed to multiple per week.

This weeks workout schedule looks like this:

• Monday – BodyAttack
• Tuesday – super sets workout
• Wednesday – run
• Thursday – circuit workout and BodyAttack
• Friday – core workout and RPM
• Saturday – fitness blast workout
• Sunday – rest day 🙂

7. Go to bed earlier – Heading to bed before 9:30 is working well. I have a bit of time to tidy up, relax, and hang with my husband. What it doesn’t really allow for is time to read and comment on other blogs, which totally sucks! I think I’m going to have to figure out a way to squeeze that into my lunch, or after work – before picking up the kids.

8. Blog more – I feel like I have now developed a blogging routine and 5 days a week works really well for me. Finding time to blog on the weekends is a bit harder since I am busy with family stuff, and although I will continue to try and at get in at least one post in on the weekend, I still kinda feel that any weekend blogs are a bonus 🙂

9. Run 3x a week – last weeks run stats (on the right):

I am hoping to get in a couple of runs this week, unfortunately we are in a crazy deep freeze and temperatures are around -25 Celsius with the windchill! Looks like I will be hitting the treadmill – which is way less convenient 😦

10. Drink more water – Getting better, but still room for improvement! It’s so darn cold here that all I want to drink are warm beverages!

Click the image below for some great tips to drink more water.

11. Read 52 books – I’m still on book 2 – my mini goal is to finish this book before the weekend.

12. Take at least 2 family trips – Planning in progress…

13. Date night once a month – Brainstorming February date ideas. It’s hubby’s birthday so maybe a nice dinner at the Keg is in order! Yum!

13 in 2013 – Week 2 Update

1. Spend less, save more – this weeks money saving strategy…making my own tea rather than heading to Starbucks for a chai latte (or two) a week. Since I used up my gift card this past weekend, lattes are back to costing me $4.80 each 😦

2. Run a 1:58 half marathon – We have pretty much decided to run the GoodLife Fitness Toronto Half Marathon on May 5th. Next step – decide on a training program to get me race ready!

3. Try one new clean eating recipe a week – Last week I actually made TWO clean eating recipes.

• Clean Eating No Bake Honey Peanut Butter Balls

• Spaghetti Squash with Chicken, Pears and Parmesan

Both recipes made a ton! There’s enough for lunch all week!

4. Become a certified RPM instructor – I didn’t make it to RPM last week, but did ride the bike a bit at work. I definitely need to get my riding legs back if I’m going to go for training at the end of March. With BodyAttack release week just around the corner my focus this week will be on learning choreography, so realistically I will only be able to make it to one RPM class this week. I’ve penciled in a bike workout for lunch on Thursday with plans of returning to at least two classes a week starting the week of January 27th.

5. Do 10 chin-ups – After only 1 week of the program, I can already do 2 FULL chin-ups in a row! Crazy! I’m super impressed with my progress and feel like I might actually be able to do 10 chin-ups by the end of June!

6. Build Strength – This week I am starting a 12 week strength training program. It calls for 5 workouts a week, which I think is a bit much considering everything else I am doing. So, for now, I’m planning on doing 3 “hard and heavy” workouts a week.

• Monday – Quads, Glutes, Chest and Biceps – I actually did this one yesterday and loved it!
• Wednesday – Core
• Friday – Hams, Calves, Back, Shoulders and Triceps

7. Go to bed earlier – I did much better at getting to bed earlier last week, making it to bed before 9:30 every night except for Saturday (date night) and Sunday (9pm soccer game). I think this is the biggest contributor to my finally feeling better, and will make it a focus again this week.

8. Blog more – 6 days last week, yay!

9. Run 3x a week – Last week I actually ran 4x, Tuesday, Wednesday (twice) and Friday. I ran a total of 13.3 miles which took me 2:07:32, giving me an average pace of 9:34/mile. I burned 1356 calories.

I have now completed 27 miles…only 73 to go before the end of February!

10. Drink more water – I’m still struggling with this one. I lost my Nalgene bottle two weeks ago at soccer and was drinking from a metal one and did not like it at all. I could taste the metal when I drank and it was deterring me from drinking. So I bought a new BPA free plastic water bottle over the weekend and I’m trying to drink one full bottle each period while at work. So far, so good!

11. Read 52 books – I’ve just started my second book – House of Sand and Fog, by Andre Dubus III, and am having a little trouble getting into it. I’ve heard it’s a great book – it’s part of Oprah’s Book Club – it’s gotta be good, right? Hopefully after a few more chapters, I won’t be able to put it down!

12. Take at least 2 family trips – ​Still in the planning stages for this summer’s big adventures.

13. Date night once a month – Dylan and I went on our first date night of 2013 on Saturday, it was awesome! You can read a bit about it here.

How are you doing with your 2013 goals?

Share your successes and struggles in the comments action below! Lets keep each other on track.

Date Night Fail(ish)!

Yesterday was an awesome day! For the first time in I don’t know how long we finally didn’t have anything to do – no parties, no appointments, no real plans….it was so nice!

Our morning started out with Ryan’s weekly gymnastics class – she started gymnastics about a year ago and this is her third session. She absolutely loves it, although she’s not a fan of the warm-up (she actually doesn’t participate in it at all), she does love the bars, tumble track and little circuits they set up. This week they tried the beam for the first time, so fun!

After that, Ryan and I ran some errands then headed home for lunch with daddy and Tanner.

Next up, naptime!

While the kids napped I made No Bake Peanut Honey Peanut Butter Balls from the Eat-Clean Diet website. Although they took me a little longer than the 5 minutes they say it will take, they were delicious and totally worth it. They look a little funny because I used Christmas rice krispies 😊

While the peanut butter balls chilled I actually got to sit down and relax…last time that happened…who knows!! It was amazing! I caught up on last weeks Grey’s Anatomy while enjoying a nicely chilled Corona…ah, heaven!

When the kids woke up, we finish up the peanut butter balls and got organized for the babysitter. Yep, hubby and I went out for our first date night of 2013 – one of my 2013 goals.

We had a Bon Appétit dinner and movie gift card and decided that we would head to Kelsey’s for a bite to eat and then head across to a 7-7:30ish movie. There were 4 movies that started within that time, so we figured we would play a little movie roulette and see whatever movie was playing next when we got there.

The wait for a table was suppose to be about 20 minutes so we headed to the bar for a drink. When our table was ready – about 45 minutes later – we ordered the 7 Layer Dip as an appetizer – which took forever and actually showed up about 3 minutes before our meals did. For dinner I had a Sonoma Valley Salad with Chicken and Dylan had the Balsamic Chicken dinner. They were both really good. We wolfed down our dinner, paid the bill, and rushed across to the movie. Apparently everyone in Newmarket goes to the movies on Saturday nights and all the movies were sold out. Our back-up plan was to head to another theatre about 10 minutes away, but unfortunately the movies pretty much started at the same time and there was no way we were going to make it.

Thinking it wouldn’t really be fair to our sitter if we went home 2 hours early, we headed to Chapters and browsed for some new books to read. I love Chapters. I don’t know what it is about that place, but I could hang out there for hours. I found a ton of books I’d like to read and flipped through a few magazines. I was so nice to roam freely and take my time, something I don’t get to do when I have my kids in tow.

After perusing pretty much every isle of the bookstore, Dylan and I headed to Dairy Queen for a little dessert. We took our treats to go (cause there was a group of kids I teach hanging out) and took a drive through a few of the older neighborhoods in town, talking about how much we would both love to move into an older home with a big yard and some character.

Despite not being able to see a movie, we had an awesome evening. Don’t get me wrong, I totally love hanging out with my kids, but having some quality time with my husband was amazing. We actually had real, uninterrupted conversations. We talked about family, work, our future, it was perfect! I am already looking forward to next months date!

How was your Saturday? I hope it was as awesome as mine!

13 in 2013 – Week 1 Update

Well, we are officially one week into 2013…how are you doing with your goals?

Here’s where I stand after week 1…

1. Spend less, save more – 👍Our budget is pretty much set, money is set aside for saving, pension buy-back and the kids RESP’s. Our home phone is cancelled and we got a better deal on our cable and Internet…bonus!

2. Run a 1:58 half marathon – 👍 Off season training has begun. I’m running regularly and have started lifting weights to build strength.

3. Try one new clean eating recipe a week – 👍 This weeks recipe was Eat Clean Hash Brown, Sausage and Egg Muffins from the Nov/Dec 2012 issue of Clean Eating Magazine. They were delicious! I’ve eaten them for breakfast and lunch and still have a few more left!

4. Become a certified RPM instructor – 👎 I only made it to one RPM class once last week and it absolutely killed me! I am still having difficulty breathing and my endurance has definitely declined from being sick for so long! I’m hoping to build up to 2 classes a week once my pneumonia fully clears up, but in the meantime, I will continue to struggle through one class a week.

5. Do 10 chin-ups – 👍 Week 1, workout 1, complete! I found out I actually CAN do a chin- up, who knew? Workout 2 is tomorrow, and 3 will be on Friday.

6. Build strength – 👍Starting next week I am going to be following a 12 week strength training program, so this week I am doing random workouts. Yesterday I did this workout designed by Fitness Cheerleader, and to be honest, I’m a little sore today!

Thursday I will be doing the Fitness Blender 1000 rep workout, and Friday I’m doing Tone it Ups, Toned in 12 Ab Circuit.

7. Go to bed earlier – 👎 I totally sucked at this one! For various reasons, I just couldn’t get myself to bed by 9:30! This is definitly going to be a focus this week.

8. Blog more – 👍 Last week I blogged 5 days which is exactly what I was hoping for, but I didn’t blog at all on the weekend, which is something I would like to do.

9. Run 3x a week – 👍 Done! I ran Monday, Wednesday and Friday, for a total of 1 hour 53 minutes, I went 9.6 miles and burned 958 calories.

10. Drink more water – 👎 I do really well with drinking water while I’m at work, but since I wasn’t at work last week, I did not meet my goal of 2L once! Brutal! This too will be a focus this week!

11. Read 52 books – 👍 I am 2/3s of the way through my first book and hope to finish it in the next few days. I have the librarian at my school pulling her favourites and hope to start book 2 by the weekend. Any recommendations?

12. Take at least 2 family trips – 👍 I would really love to take the kids on a beach vacation, but do not want to be using credit to do so. So, I’ve started a little savings account with hopes of having enough saved for a 2014 March Break vacation. As for our 2013 trips, I’m thinking camping for sure, and still need to come up with a few more ideas.

Any Ontarian’s know when bookings open up for provincial parks?

13. Date night once a month – 👍 My husband and I have tossed around a few ideas for our first date night of 2013. We are hoping to go out next weekend and will be securing babysitting tomorrow…hopefully!

Overall, I’d say I’m doing quite well!

I’m reading, I’m running, I’m lifting weights, I’m saving money, I’m trying new recipes and I’m blogging more!

Yes, I realize we are only one week in, but I’m super excited about goals I have set and the plans I have made. I think that my goals are very realistic and attainable.

My focus for this week will be drinking more water and getting to bed earlier.

How did week 1 go for you?
What did you accomplish? What did you struggle with?
I’d love to hear how you are doing! Share your highs and lows in the comments section below!

My Action Plan

Yesterday I wrote about my goals for 2013, now I need to take it one step further and devise a plan of action. So, here we go:

1. Spend less, save more – For this to happen, we need to create a family budget. Since my husband is self employed, our family income is constantly fluctuating, which makes budgeting for our family a little more difficult. I will be doing some research over the next few weeks on creating a budget with a fluctuating income and will have our budget hashed out by the end of January.

Right off the bat, I can think of a few small changes we can make to save more money.
– Meal plan and grocery shop only once a week.
– Get rid of our home phone (which we actually did today).
– Borrow books from the library rather than buy them.
– Shop at Costco for items we use/eat frequently.
– Eat out less.

2. Run a 1:58 half marathon – I plan on running two half marathons this year, one in the spring (May) and one in the fall (October). I have training programs that I’ve used in the past, and will be starting my official 12 week training program for my spring race in February.

3. Try one new clean eating recipe a week – I have a ton of Clean Eating magazines and cookbooks with recipes I want to try already flagged. Each Saturday I will choose what I will be making for the week so I can pick up everything I need on my Sunday grocery shop.

I’ve already selected my January recipes:
– This week: Hash Brown, Sausage and Egg Muffins – Clean Eating, Nov/Dec 2012, p. 40
– Week of Jan 6 – Spaghetti Squash with Chicken, Pears and Parmesan – Clean Eating, Nov/Dec 2012, p. 75
– Week of Jan 13 – Kung Pao Chicken – Clean Eating Classic Comfort Foods, p. 96
– Week of Jan 20 – Dark Fudgy Brownies – Clean Eating, Jan/Feb 2013, p. 56
– Week of Jan 27 – Leek, Potato and Cheddar Soup – Clean Eating Classic Comfort Foods, p. 26.

4. Become a certified RPM instructor – I am planning to attend the March 30/31 training weekend and will submit my Certification Assessment video before the end of June.

5. Do 10 chin-ups – I am very fortunate to teach two fitness classes this semester, and next semester too, and found this 3x/week 8 week training program so I’m all set to go!

6. Build Strength – I am committing to 3 strength workouts per week. I’m not yet sure whether I’m going to follow a specific program or do a variety of workouts, but will get that sorted before I head back to work on Monday.

7. Go to bed earlier – For me to be in bed by 9:30, I need to get the kids to bed by 7:30, make my lunch and give myself a bit of time to relax and unwind.

8. Blog more – My goal is to blog 5 days a week.

9. Run 3x a week – My plan is to run at work Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays. I will run on my prep or my lunch and if the weather is too bad and I can’t run outside, I will stop at the gym on my way home for a treadmill run. To be successful I need to run before picking up the kids because there is very little chance of getting a run in after that.

10. Drink more water – I will carry a water bottle with me everywhere I go.

11. Read 52 books – Read one book a week (on average).

12. Take at least 2 family trips – Our trips will most likely occur during the summer, so we have a bit of time to choose where we will go and what we will do.

13. Date night once a month – In preparation for monthly date night, we need to choose a date, secure a babysitter and choose an activity.

For more information on how to Plan For Success, check out Fitness Cheerleader’s 31 Days to a Healthier You.

Well, it’s 9:40, I’m off to bed!

Have you written out your goals for 2013?
Have you devised an action plan?

I’d love to hear what it is you want to accomplish in 2013, let me know in the comments section below!

13 in 2013

I’m not really one for New Year’s resolutions but definitely have a list of things I’d like to accomplish in 2013. So, here are 13 things I would like to do this year (in no particular order)…

1. Spend less, save more – I don’t really consider myself to be a big spender, but I’d like to be more aware of where our money is going and pay off more of our debt.

2. Run a 1:58 half marathon – This past October I ran my first sub 2 hour half and this year I would love to shave 2 minutes off my PB.

3. Try one new clean eating recipe a week – Since returning to work at the end of November I have struggled to prepare clean meals. I love eating clean and hope that with a little planning and the commitment to try a new recipe each week, I will get back and stay on track!

4. Become a certified RPM instructor – I’m planning on going to instructor training in March, so hopefully I will be a certified instructor by June!

5. Do 10 chin-ups – Currently I can do…ZERO!

6. Build Strength – The majority of my workouts are cardio based (BodyAttack, RPM, running) and I really want to make strength training a bigger part of my workout routine. I’m looking forward to trying out some new workout styles and mixing things up this year!

7. Go to bed earlier – I’d love to make a habit of being in bed by 9:30 every night, with the idea of being asleep by 10. I definitely function better on a good night sleep and I really feel that there is a strong connection between sleep and overall health.

8. Blog more – I really enjoy blogging and want to grow my blog. I’m not exactly sure how to do this, but with more consistency and fresh ideas, I hope to make it happen!

9. Run 3x a week – I definitely need to run more consistently if I am going to reach goal #2 , especially in the off season. Realistically, with all of the other cardio I do, three 5k’ers would be awesome!

10. Drink more water – I’m aiming for at least 2 litres a day.

11. Read 52 books – I love to read, but unfortunately only make time for it before falling asleep each night. My goal is to read a book a week, which might be a bit much, but if I actually do go to bed earlier, I can squeeze in a bit of extra reading time 🙂

12. Take at least 2 family trips – Ideas include mini-vacation, camping, cottaging, or maybe even a beach vacation….

13. Date night once a month – My husband and I rarely find/make time to go out on a date and I vow to change that this year! We will go out on at least 12 dates – nothing fancy, just dinner and/ or a movie, something like that – a chance to catch up and focus our attention solely on each other, rather than dividing it between us and the kids.

What are your goals for 2013?