Happy 2022. Can you believe we are entering our 3rd year of this crazy alternative universe, aka the Covid Pandemic? Many of us have made adaptations to our “new” way of living and learned a lot about ourselves, what makes us happy, what fulfills us, what our priorities are. The beginning of a new year always makes me reflective of the past year and entertain the possibilities of the new year. While I am not a person who makes resolutions, I do LOVE goals. I spent my little “staycation” these past three days setting my goals for this year. I have a few on my list, like running the NYC Half Marathon with my daughter in March and beginning to clean out the boxes and boxes of photos that I have stored away, organizing and tossing out bad or duplicate pictures. I have my training plan in place for the race and I have a goal of 1/2 a box every weekend from now until the end of April. Do you have any goals for this new year? I know you know this already, but when setting goals, make sure that they are SMART.

Specific. Specific refers to what you are going to do. Use action words such as exercise, eat, and coordinate. Think about why you are choosing this particular goal. A good idea of a SPECIFIC goal is: I am going to walk 3 miles in 45 minutes by March 1st.

Measurable. If you can measure it, you can’t manage it. Choose a goal with measurable progress. You may have a long-term goal, but have smaller measurable steps along the way. For example, if you want to run a 6-mile race in the spring, you should set your training program to build your mileage each week.

Achievable. Set goals that are achievable for YOU and you only. Your friend may want to run a marathon in May. This may not be important or attainable for you. You may need to set a goal of running a 5k in September!

Realistic. This does not mean easy. It means Do-able. Set the bar high enough to feel satisfied when you attain your goal, but not so high that the thought of your goal is overwhelming. For example, rather than setting a goal not to eat sweets all month, it may be more realistic to set a goal to eat only one sweet per week.

Timely. Set a time frame for your goal. Next week, next month, by spring. Putting a clear target in front of you gives you something to work toward and allows you start on it right away. Remember though, if your time is more than a few weeks in the distance, set interim goals to get you there.

I would love to hear from you about your goals for YOU in 2022. Good luck and let us know how we can help.

Recently I was reading a blog post by one of my favorite authors and self help gurus, Gretchen Rubin. She discusses September as another January, a clean slate on which we can write new possibilities. To many of us, September IS like January. Through years of schooling we have been conditioned to think of September as a chance for renewal. Our vacations are over, a new season is upon us. Is this September different? Our lives have been upended for six months now. I know I have gone through peaks and valleys of my mood, my eating and my exercise motivation. Last year at this time I was training for the Gulf Coast Half Marathon with my daughter, feeling lean and fit and strong. Now it feels like every run is LONG enough. But while September will more than likely not return us to the life we knew before quarantine, I BELIEVE we can use it as a beginning. To begin to refocus on some of the things we may have let fall to the wayside as we began to suffer from quarantine fatigue. September FEELS like a good time to make a RESET. Perhaps with the change of temperature, we can get outdoors and exercise more, maybe meet a friend for a social distancing exercise session. With the onset of autumn vegetables, maybe we can be motivated to try new, healthy recipes and focus on the weight we wanted to lose when the change of habits in quarantine interrupted us. Perhaps we can add the virtual workout that we have lacked the motivation to find the time and space for, whether it is a class or a private session. Whatever the change you want to make now that we have seen the summer go by, in the words of Gretchen Rubin, “ September gives the same feeling of an empty calendar and a clean slate”. The air seems charged with possibility and renewal.” I am going to challenge myself, and I encourage you to challenge yourself, to add something to make your life healthier and happier. And, as always, I am here to help you in any way you need. Think about it.

Link to the original post by Gretchen Rubin:

https://www.betterapp.us/posts/7882769?notification_id=888754193&utm_campaign=notification_space_post_create_notify_all&utm_medium=email&utm_source=transactional_emails

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SMART GOALS for 2022

Is September is the New January?