I Live My Love

Hi May.

April was kind of a bust. so rather than set any May goals, I’d just like to actually accomplish the ones I planned to accomplish in April. Second time’s a charm, right?

(Source: georgiabharris)

It’s 9pm on a Saturday night and I’ve been slaving away on a giant work presentation for most of the day. I need a break, so I figured I’d do a monthly check-in:

February 2013 update:

• Cancel/pause all my reoccurring subscriptions: I cancelled StitchFix and pvBody/Ellie (I wanted to love these - but the clothes were so meh, that I didn’t feel any twinges of remorse when I unsubscribed. I really have liked my graze boxes, and for $5/week, it’s money well spent. I also called Sirius/XM and got a major discount on my subscription (I’m now paying $25 for 5 months). It seems silly to pay for radio services, but my commute is so long/tedious that sometimes I really like to zone out to the Sirius/XM stations.
• Set up budgets on Mint: check! Realistic budgets were set, and for the most part, they were followed.
• No buying a single item of clothing (workout gear and outerwear included): check!
• Use the public library system: check! While I didn’t read as much as I wanted to this month, I visited the library by my office and stocked up on some reading material.
• Go to the grocery store no more than once per week: I was good at this. The husband, not so much. Even though I tell him that all his little shopping trips add up, when he’s in the mood for something, he must buy it rightthatsecond, and instead of rummaging around our fridge/pantry, he just goes to the grocery store. This is still a work in progress.
• Do something active every day: Towards the end of the month, I was great at this. At the beginning, I don’t think I even remembered I set this goal.
• Track my meals: Nope - I probably only tracked my meals about 50% of the time.
• No eating out unless someone else is paying (gift cards, work travel, etc): In terms of going to an actual sit-down restaurant, we were good at this. But, we still need to break our Jimmy John’s addiction. We go at least once per week (I can’t get enough of their Beach Club!)
• Take part in Meatless Mondays: I think I did this once. And then I got bored of it.
• Save $XXX: This was an easy one, thanks to my quarterly work bonus. Also, since I really cut back on shopping in February, I transferred quite a bit of extra money into savings. And - I increased my 401(k) contributions. Yay!

For March, I’d like to continue to work on some of the habits I started in February, namely:

• Save $XXX
• Eat out no more than 2x per week (lunches, dinners, take out, and restaurant meals are included here)
• Drink more water (I used to be so good about carrying a water bottle around with me at all times. Right now, not so much.)
• Do something active every day
• Track my meals
• Embrace the philosophy of Intuitive Eating

March will be a busy month for me. Already, I have two work trips planned (one to FL and one to AR), a wedding to attend in Key West, and training for the Brooklyn Half Marathon begins (or kicks into high-gear). Although I’m exhausted (a 10m run followed by 10 hours staring at PowerPoint will do that do you), I’m ready to give March my all!

(Source: ehanset99, via reachyourpeak)

Ah, yes. February. A short, cold month. If it’s February 1, it’s time to set monthly goals!

January 2013 update:

• Run a marathon: check! done! yay!
• Go to yoga 5x (extra points if I make it to hot yoga 5x): Hmm. Not even close. I went twice. Although, I was out of town for 16 days during the month (Vegas, Houston, Chicago), so I’m not really sure how I planned to make it to 5 classes.
• Get rid of at least 3 bags of clothes, accessories, and misc. stuff: The stuff is collected and bagged and now sitting in our spare bedroom, I just need to drop it off to Goodwill.
• Take my vitamins daily: I did so well at this! Granted, they were chewy vitamins, and they tasted delicious, but I’d say I did this at least 95% of the time.
• More often than not, read (not watch TV) before I go to bed: yes! done! Because of this, I read more books than usual (5 this month) and dare I say, I’ve been sleeping better?
• Buy only budgeted items (which in January include new glasses, a bag which is big enough to hold my laptop for work, and a extra battery for my phone): Bahhh. No, I bought wayyy too much stuff, including the aforementioned bag (I decided on the Madeline tote from Banana Republic), a bra and run swiftly tank at lululemon, New Balance cold weather running gear (what can I say? Last week’s cold spell had me drooling for these tights, this jacket, and this top [which is supposedly better than the lululemon Run Swiftly long sleeve]), and blazer from Banana Republic. I did not buy new glasses (I didn’t like the Warby Parker frames - gasp!, I returned quite a few things to J Crew that I bought in December and did not want/need, and I sold a few things on eBay. But even these positive things cannot save my bank account from all the unplanned shopping that happened in January.
• Embark on some sort of healthy hair regimen: I’ve been trying to blow dry less, my new go-to hairstyle is a messy braid (rather than a ponytail), and I’ve been using leave-in conditioner and hair masks, but I really think the only way to fix my hair may be to get a pretty serious haircut. I still need time to digest this.
• Track what I eat: Eh. I’ll give myself a C on this. I (mostly) didn’t track during the beginning of the month, and then I’d track really well for breakfast and lunch but forget to track dinner. But there were times where I’d track for a whole week. 
• Set up actual alerts on Mint and stick to a budget this month: Based on all the shopping I did, it’s glaringly (and embarrassingly) obvious that I did not stick to a budget. I also did not set up Mint alerts (I guess ignorance is bliss, right?)

I’ve been kinda half-assing my goals/workouts/work/plans/life, so since February is a short month, and since I no longer can use the excuse of ‘I’m training for/just ran a marathon” (which I used in situations it didn’t even apply), I’m ready to commit fully to these goals:

• Cancel/pause all my reoccuring subscriptions (Graze, Hello Fresh, pvBody, StitchFix, etc)
• Set up budgets on Mint (and stick to them!)
• No buying a single item of clothing (workout gear and outerwear included)
• Use the public library system. No buying any books!
• Go to the grocery store no more than once per week. All these little shopping trips are getting expensive.
• Do something active every day
• Track my meals
• No eating out unless someone else is paying (gift cards, work travel, etc)
• Take part in Meatless Mondays
• Save $XXX

(Source: thepreppyhippielife)

January 2013 goals:

• Run a marathon
• Go to yoga 5x (extra points if I make it to hot yoga 5x)
• Get rid of at least 3 bags of clothes, accessories, and misc. stuff
• Take my vitamins daily
• More often than not, read (not watch TV) before I go to bed
• Buy only budgeted items (which in January include new glasses, a bag which is big enough to hold my laptop for work, and a extra battery for my phone)
• Embark on some sort of healthy hair regimen (including blow drying less, wearing a bun/braid instead of a ponytail, and trying to stop all the breakage I’ve seen recently)
• Track what I eat
• Set up actual alerts on Mint and stick to a budget this month

hahaha. Yes, Gizoogle. These are the same stupid-ass goals and I totally need to re-up my hustlin’.

I cannot believe it’s December. Honestly. It feels like I’m saying that every month, but really - where does the time go?

For the last few months I’ve had the same basic goals:

• Commit to running
• Commit to yoga
• Commit to eating right
• Commit to saving money
• Commit to being a responsible homeowner
• Read three books
• Take more photos
• Do a cleanse
• Appreciate every day

I’m in the swing of my training plan for the Houston Marathon. Although work (and a hectic travel schedule) has been super busy at times, I’m getting in most of my runs, and I’m definitely making running a priority. November was my highest mileage month ever (!!!), and besides some slight niggles here and there, I’m feeling good!

I’ve gone to a few yoga classes, and have been eh, about eating right. For some reason, I crave salt when marathon training and I use it as an excuse to eat whatever I want (think: all the salt and vinegar chips and lo mein, and no cleanses). 

I’ve cut back on my Starbucks trips (down to once or less per week!) and I’ve changed homeowner’s and auto insurance to save nearly $900/year. The husband tore down our old fence and we’ve scheduled an installation of a new, vinyl (read: overpriced) fence, but I like to think this is adding extra curb appeal to our house and makes us responsible home owners. 

I’ve read a few books (Little Bee, My Life on the Run, Normal Gets You Nowhere, and Clean) and have quite a few more in-process. I’ve been writing down (manually!) something that I’m grateful for/appreciative of each day, and I’m taking more impromptu photos.

These last few months haven’t been perfect, but they’ve been good to me.

Here are my December goals:

• Go to yoga 4x
• Eat in every night, except when traveling or at a holiday function
• Write down everything I eat
• Stick to my running/training plan at least 85% (no more than 4 missed workouts this month)
• Enjoy the holidays! Get in the Christmas spirit! 
• Don’t buy random stuff - check to make sure we don’t already have whatever I’m planning to buy (since I like to stockpile extra things and buy in bulk)

I love this time of year!

Guys, thus far, November has been totally crazy. I’m gonna skip my monthly check-in and monthly goals, and just say that I plan to keep on keeping on with October’s goals (carrying them into November) and I’m going to welcome November with open (albeit sweatshirt or down jacket covered) arms.

(Source: cupofchi, via ohheyychrissy)

• Commit to running: While I took quite a few rest days, September was the highest mileage month I’ve had since March 2012, which was pre-injury. I’m slowly inching back into training - which is smart, right? I had quite a few bad runs this month, but I had a 7m tempo run on Saturday which felt great, so I’m starting to feel like my old self again (or at least I hope I am!)
• Commit to yoga: I went to my favorite yoga class three times in September, which is pretty good, considering I need to leave work by 4:45pm to make it happen. I also took a pilates seminar, which concentrated on foam rolling, which helped my creaky body.
• Commit to eating right: ugh - I did not do this (unless you could eating Reese’s peanut butter cups and tater tots, as eating right).
• Commit to saving money: While I didn’t move much money into my (our?) savings account this month, I did commit to not buying unnecessary stuff. In fact, the only piece of clothing I bought was a $15 dress from Banana Republic (after a sale + my Birthday Coupon) for a wedding. (It was a late September, NJ beach wedding - and all my dresses were either too summery-beachy, or two fall-formal, so an ikat strapless dress was perfect!)
• Commit to being a responsible homeowner: The husband (and his dad) fixed our leaky shower (no more dripping sounds waking me up in the middle of the night, and no more fear of breaking the porcelain handles when I turn the knobs super tight). We also closed our pool and I took steps to replace our rickety fence.

I really liked my September goals - they were all-encompassing, focused on the big picture, and a little non-specific. I’m actually going to keep the same goals for October, except add a few new ones:

• Read three books
• Move some serious money into my savings account
• Do a cleanse
• Take more impromptu photos
• Appreciate every day - find something to be grateful for every day, and do not rush through (eagerly awaiting what’s next)

October, let’s do this!

(Source: divinesecrets)

1. Do not buy all the things. Stop being such a consumer. Guys! I did SO well on this goal! My trips to Target were limited to buying necessities (I didn’t pick up random items because they were on sale) and I really made a dent in the misc. things (read: candles, body washes, shampoos, canned foods) cluttering up my house.
2. Control my portion sizes. Stop eating the same amount of food as the husband. Eh, I think I forgot about this one this month.
3. Work out 6x per week. Stop being lazy. Between work travel (I was gone for four different work trips) and vacation and being sick, this was my worst month for working out in months. I’m surprisingly okay with that.
4. Do a detox. Just for a day, or a few days. Total fail. I also forgot about this one.
5. Have fun. Enjoy life. Stop being a stressball. I think I did okay with this! I tried not to stress myself out (and I’m definitely being more laid back at work) and I scheduled lots of things just for fun (see: The Color Run, vacation with the husband, not stressing about not working out).
6. Tackle a home improvement project. Nope. Not done.
7. Lose 5 pounds. Check! Well - I lost 4.2lbs, but I’ll take it!

I feel like I overextended myself in August - or at least set myself up to be overextended. I’m going to keep it simple in September. The theme is COMMIT.

• Commit to running: it was awesome to run only when I wanted or felt like it this summer. I (re)found my love for trail running - and it was great sleeping in and only tackling a few long runs. However, I have a half marathon to run in October (and we’re only 19 weeks out from my marathon!) so I need to commit to upping my mileage and time on my feet.
• Commit to yoga: My body is getting increasingly creaky and I know it’s because I haven’t practiced yoga regularly in awhile. Make time for yoga classes.
• Commit to eating right: ‘nuff said.
• Commit to saving money: or just commit to not buying unnecessary stuff.
• Commit to being a responsible homeowner: and clean/decorate/tackle projects.

Yup. I’m ready to commit to September. How about you?

(Source: nmattea, via muchtoyourchagrin)

I cannot believe it is August already. I honestly feel so old saying this, but where did the time go? I’ve absolutely been enjoying my summer (early morning runs, weddings and baby/bridal showers, spending time by the pool, and lots of relaxing) - and I’m so not ready to admit we’re 2/3 of the way through!

I had a few goals in July, namely:

1. Eat clean. Eat as few processed foods as possible. Eat at least one fruit/veggie with every meal. I did pretty well with this! I added spinach to my morning egg sammies, extra veggies to my dinners, and snacked on fruit. 
2. Track what I eat. I did this at least 75% of the time. Although I tracked what I ate, I didn’t limit what I ate (maybe that can be step two?)
3. Try some sort of different workout this month. Done! I ran a 15k trail race. (Or, I hiked? Walked? Stumbled through?) Regardless, it was great - since I had no time goal, I didn’t stress out, I took a long break to eat watermelon on the course, and I enjoyed myself.
4. Workout more days than not. While not a great month, I totally worked out more often than not. Woo hoo!
5. Have fun with running - don’t stress out, compare (to others, or to where I used to be), or panic. It’s supposed to be fun. Check! Not needing to follow a training plan in July was great! I ran when I wanted (which actually was only 2-3 times per week), rather than feeling like I had to run.
6. Get my computer back in working order. Done-ish. iTunes is restored (well, all the files we had on our phones), most of my photos have been reloaded, and I backed up all the miscellaneous files I had.
7. Take more pictures. Fail. Absolute fail.

August is going to be for:

1. Not buying all the things. This is less about saving money (although that’ll be a nice result), and more about being more cognizant about what I buy. Do not buy more clothes (especially those damn lulu tanks with the built in bra - they are not flattering nor necessary), nail polish (I have more than ten pink shades. One of them will do just fine), tactical/tangible ‘stuff,’ or misc. Target purchases. For real, only buy groceries - and make do with everything else you have. (Read: use the shampoos you do not like, wear what you own - even if that means thinking of new ways to style them, finish all the half empty containers of Visine, etc). Stop being such a consumer. Consume less.
2. Controlling my portion sizes. Stop eating the same amount of food as the husband.
3. Working out 6x per week. This does not mean it needs to be an intense workout - restorative yoga is surprisingly hard, even though the movements are slight. Stop being lazy.
4. Doing a detox. Just for a day, or a few days.
5. Having fun. Enjoying life. Stop being a stressball.
6. Tackling a home improvement project. TBD which one - but there are more than enough around here. Stop being ambivalent about it - and decorate! 
7. Lose 5 pounds. Stop talking about it and make it happen!

I guess you could say that August’s theme is STOP, right?

Hello July! This month will be filled with weddings, a random mid-week day off, lounging by the pool, picnics and bbqs, trail running, and settling into the New Job.

Here’s an update to Junes goals:

1. Participate in Eat in Month: I planned my meals for the most part, and we didn’t go to any sit down restaurants, but our weekly (or bi-weekly!) trips to Jimmy Johns still happened. (I’m a glutton for the Beach Club. The provolone + avocado combo is delish!) Still, we did better than we usually do - and eating in more often is definitely something we’ll keep up.
2. Do a detox from alcohol. I’ve/we’ve been drinking too much recently and it’s definitely been catching up with me. I only drank 2x in June - once when I made an awesome peach and berry sangria for my mom’s birthday and once when I went golfing (‘cause c’mon, for me, the two go hand in hand) - this is another thing I’ll try to keep up - less gratuitous drinking.
3. Run 80 miles: Ease back into running, but actually run. I’m totally not sure what I was thinking when I wrote this. I did ease back into running, but jumping to 80 miles, after running 13 miles in May, would have been a big leap. I ran 52, which was my lowest month in a year (excluding my injury-laden May), but I’m still taking it easy and learning to like running again.
4. Lose 8 lbs. Fail. Such a fail.
5. Keep saving money by not shopping excessively - besides essentials, buy only budgeted items. I totally saved a decent amount of money this month, but that’s mostly because of my sign on bonus, and not because of lack of spending. In June, we bought a new dining room table (which we’ve been lusting after for awhile) and a new washing machine (after ours started smoking and emitting an awful smell) - neither of which were budgeted, but at least they weren’t clothing purchases, right?

In June, I worked out 24 times, settled back into eating better (by planning my meals, packing my lunch, and eating cleaner), and started running again. The scale isn’t reflecting these changes (probably because they were sporadic at best), so in July, I’m going to keep my goals simple:

1. Eat clean. Eat as few processed foods as possible. Eat at least one fruit/veggie with every meal.
2. Track what I eat.
3. Try some sort of different workout this month. Spice up the routine. 
4. Workout more days than not.
5. Have fun with running - don’t stress out, compare (to others, or to where I used to be), or panic. It’s supposed to be fun.
6. Get my computer back in working order. Yes, I lost all my files post-2010. Start rebuliding my iTunes library.
7. Take more pictures. If there are no pictures, it didn’t happen, right?

(Source: itsonbitch, via mavieenrose)

Welcome June! This means the summer is officially here - with the start of pool/beach season, summer sandals, and hot pink pedicures. Before I get into my June goals, here’s how May turned out:

1. Clean out my closets: Done! There are five giant bags of stuff (mostly clothing, mostly mine) that the husband and I cleared out. Now I just need to decide what I’ll donate, what I’ll sell, and what I’ll trash.
2. No shopping at lululemon (it’s been a rough few months for my bank account) or buying clothes in general: Done! I honestly spent $0 on clothing (or workout clothes!) in May. Woo hoo!
3. Do a cleanse - or at least incorporate lots more veggies in my diet. No - I did not do a cleanse (although my body is begging for one right now), but I did try to eat more veggies.
4. Fix my running gait: In progress. I haven’t been running enough (in distance or frequency) to really test myself, but I have been trying to concentrate on not opening my hips and trying to push off the appropriate place on my big toe. Hopefully, I’m setting up myself for a strong summer of running by taking time off in May and by concentrating on my gait.
5. Lose 8 lbs. Fail. And I can’t even say I tried until about three days ago.

Here are June’s goals:

1. Participate in Eat in Month: both my waistline and my bank account will appreciate this. Plus, we’ve been eating out so much that it’s no longer exciting (nor a treat). 
2. Do a detox from alcohol. I’ve/we’ve been drinking too much recently and it’s definitely been catching up with me (I’m feeling puffy and hangovers have been hitting me especially hard - guess I’m not 21 anymore).
3. Run 80 miles: Ease back into running, but actually run. 
4. Lose 8 lbs. For real this time.
5. Keep saving money by not shopping excessively - besides essentials, buy only budgeted items (which in June are classified as: trail running shoes, Nook books, undergarments, Mineral Veil, and one trip to Banana Republic).

Alright, June. Let’s do this!

Hello, May! I’ve been waiting for you!

April was full of tears (job and running related), but ended on an awesome note - a West Coast vacay with my mom and my Aunt.

Here’s an update on April’s goals. (Spoiler alert - I did not accomplish a single one in its entirety.)

1. Figure out what’s going on with my calf. And fix it: Eh, I’ll give myself a C on this one. I found out what was wrong (strained soleus and a tear in my gastrocnemius), which meant no more running for me, but I have not yet fixed it. Supposedly lots of rest and PT will work.
2. Run a marathon without a time goal. Finishing is major enough: Fail. Total fail. Thanks for reminding me, k?
3. Get rid of all the things. Donate, trash, sell, etc.: Not done. oops. I still have all the things and clutter is taking over!
4. Find some sort of class to take - since bettering myself is always better!: Also not done. But new job has a great tuition reimbursement program (for certificate programs too!), so hopefully I’ll take advantage of this in the next few months.
5. Get a new fence for the backyard. Major investment, yes. Major necessity, absolutely: Not done. 

Oh well, at least I survived April. Here’s to hoping I accomplish more items (and cross off more items from my list!) in May:

1. Clean out my closets - and yes, get rid of all the things!
2. No shopping at lululemon (it’s been a rough few months for my bank account) or buying clothes in general.
3. Do a cleanse - or at least incorporate lots more veggies in my diet.
4. Fix my running gait. I’m going to make the assumption that my torn muscle is due to some sort of issue I have and perhaps I should learn to run properly. Let’s hope the PT can officially fix this so I can get back to running.
5. Lose 8 lbs. This really should not be hard, seeing how I ate all the things in San Francisco. Since I didn’t run the Big Sur Marathon, I drowned my sorrow in sourdough bread.

I’m ready for May. Ready for change. Ready to do this!

A few days late, no? Anyway - welcome to April!

Because I love everything list and goal related, here’s an update on my March goals:

1. When home (read: not traveling), cook dinner every night for a month. No eating out for dinner. Eh - not so much. But according to my Mint account, I spent less on take out and restaurants in March than I did in February and in March ‘11, so I’ll take it.
2. Create some sort of nightly routine, including removing all makeup, flossing, applying a night cream, etc. Again - not so much. I did great with flossing and using mouthwash for about three days, but then I forgot about this goal and got lazy.
3. Embrace the post-run ice bath. Done! I took one after my 18.5 and 17 milers, which was like 50% of the Sundays in March. The other Sunday I didn’t run (damn calf issues) and I didn’t take an ice bath after my half (I was too busy commuting home). I learned two valuable secrets about taking an ice bath - wear a sweatshirt and start with cold water, adding the ice after you get in.
4. Revamp my resume big time. You’ll never know when this will come in handy. Done! It’s now much more strategic and results-focused, instead of listing strictly job duties.
5. Set a PR at my half marathon on March 18th. Done! I ran 3 minute PR, even with a tunnel which caused a slight panic attack. Yay!
6. Have much more balanced weeks of workouts. Even though my training schedule was a mess due to my injury (I shudder just typing that), I did go to yoga, cross train, and run each week.(Side note - am I allowed to call it a training schedule if I’m not following it? yikes.)
7. Do not cry at work. Well, I made it 19 days without crying. And I only cried once. That’s an improvement, right?
8. Stop putting it off, and organize all the hard copy recipes which are cluttering my house! Done. Yay!

And now on to April’s goals:

1. Figure out what’s going on with my calf. And fix it.
2. Run a marathon without a time goal. Finishing is major enough.
3. Get rid of all the things. Donate, trash, sell, etc. My house (and life!) is becoming too cluttered.
4. Find some sort of class to take - since bettering myself is always better!
5. Get a new fence for the backyard. Major investment, yes. Major necessity, absolutely.

let’s do this, April!

(Source: gema4ever21, via projectjenny)