2016 - Big Goals
Last year on New Year’s Day, after spending months writing, designing, tweaking, and revising, I hit the 'publish' button on this website. I knew nothing about websites or creating them but bit by bit, I created 'InTheLongRun'. Year one of blogging was a lot of fun and I'm looking forward to many more.
Now that 2016 is here, I have some goals. I always set goals, I love to have something to work toward. Even for a few days off work, I make a list of all of the things I'd ideally like to accomplish. I usually know that it’s not all going to happen but it keeps me from totally wasting all of my time and I like to physically check things off a list and be able to look at what I've accomplished. I'm looking forward to posting at the end of each month to follow up on my goals.
2016 Goals
- Run at least one race every month. I am registered or have plans for most of the months. I got the notion to make this goal several months ago and after a great run in the Baltimore Half Marathon, I knew the goal was a go!
- Save money, pay off debts, own less. This is sort of three goals but they really go together. I already save money but I want to be even more mindful of each dollar. I want to work harder at getting rid of those pesky student loans. I've recently become really interested in the 'minimalist movement'. I don't see myself buying a tiny house but I find the mindset to be awesome. I've been more serious about getting rid of things I don't want anymore and not acquiring things just to have them. I tend to get attached to things. Just because I throw away a sweater, doesn’t mean I have to throw away the fun memories I had wearing the sweater. This year, I want to be more serious about that. I'd rather have fewer things that I really want than lots of things just to have them. I’m not going to stop shopping but I want to be choosier about what I decide to buy.
- Run a sub 2 hour half marathon. This is really a reach. It's possible but it will take lots of work to get there. Ultimately, I may not be successful at this goal it’s something I’d like to reach for.
- Start my days earlier and be more mindful of how I spend my time. I love mornings when I allow myself to and morning productivity makes the rest of my day so much more motivating. I'd like to get back to my morning workouts because they really get my day started on the right foot. Spending an hour watching a few old episodes of a sitcom I've seen dozens of times is fine but I hate it when the hour suddenly gets away from me and that's now how I wanted to spend it.
- Get back to more regular food logging. I once logged every bite of food in My Fitness Pal and I've gotten away from that. I want to get back to more regular logging not because I want to torture myself but because I crave order and logging brings that to my life and I genuinely enjoy logging and keeping a food diary.
-Buy more local produce. Last summer, I was a part of a CSA (Community Sponsored Agriculture). By paying a fee upfront, members go to a farm once a week and pick up their share of the weekly harvest. I have not decided yet if I am going to join a CSA again mostly because it was difficult to use everything each week. If I decide not to join a CSA, at the very least I want to be more intentional about buying from local roadside stands. Right now, in the winter, this is difficult but once spring rolls around and there is more local produce, I'd like to be more mindful of stopping at the farm stands I pass on my daily commute rather than buying produce at the grocery store.
-Write/Post more. I want to post an update at the end of each month on my 2016 goals. I also post following each race so with at least one race every month, that will give me at least 24 total posts this year. I also want to keep up with posting recipes and other posts that cross my mind. I also have a notebook full of ideas and website updates that I would like to work at incorporating and implementing.
I hope you all had a wonderful 2015 and that you are looking at 2016 with positivity. What are you goals for 2016?