Happy New Year! It's officially 2022 and we've survived season 2 of the pandemic but sadly we're onto season 3. First things first, let's leave behind the word cheugy in 2021 and I predict that 2022 is going to be the year of the Espresso Martini! lol My 2022 planner is in the mail because I bought it late, but I have all the stickers ready. I also love to write monthly goals in my planner. I am doing Dry January again this year. I know a lot of people choose a word of the year to encompass all that they want to embody throughout the year. However, I couldn't pick one, but these were my finalists for Word of the Year: discipline, consistency, unstoppable, grateful, adapt, positivity, abundance, glow, surrender. 

My birthday is coming up and I'm really excited about it, it always puts me in a good mood and makes me reflect upon what I've been doing in the past year and what I want to accomplish in the next year.  This year I've decided to make better habits instead of saying end goals. Setting goals/habits is so important; and you should consistently be doing that for yourself. Habits are your systems to reinforce your goals so you can be successful with your goal. It comes down to your daily habits for you to become the person you want to be. Focus more on who you want to become, then you will achieve your goals. Habits are a way to break your goals down into smaller steps.

I'm making resolutions that are reasonable to achieve and actually fun to do. Did you know that people who write down their goals are 20% more successful in accomplishing them than those who don't?  I feel that writing them down makes a big difference because it makes it more concrete and it's something I can look back at to hold myself accountable to make sure I'm still on track. Anything not written down, is not likely to happen. Your habits shape your life more than you realize. My plan is to focus on the consistency of the habit, not the goal. Here are the habits I want to shape. 

1. Meal planning

Meal planning really makes life so much easier and I've always been good at cooking and eating at home. I only ordered take out a few times during the pandemic because my company paid for it during long meetings. Still, my biggest issue is I find it exhausting to meal plan for the week.  I get decision fatigue and it's a process I dread. During the pandemic I tried out a few delivery meal kits (Blue Apron , Daily Harvest, and Marley Spoon & Purple Carrot)  but ultimately quit because they were more expensive than going to the grocery store. This year I signed up for a service that emails you weekly recipes for $5 a month. I finally had to admit that me visiting food blogs to find recipes is tiring, I just want my meals assigned to me. lol  The first week so far was great, got my menu for the week and only spend $50 at the grocery store shopping for everything! 

2. Movement 

I'm not going to say weight loss, but rather movement. Ever since I got my peloton in the middle of last year I've ridden it 5x a week during my lunchbreak without missing once. Last fall I got De Quervain Tenosynovitis which is a painful condition affecting the tendons on the thumb side of your wrist. So I couldn't use my right hand for basic functions like brushing my teeth, opening my door with a key, grabbing the brita filter out of the fridge,  adjusting my pillow in bed, and taking my coat off too aggressively would cause pain, but typing on a computer was no problem. This prevented me from lifting weights for a few months which I hated since I was always a heavy weight lifter. After several months of physical therapy, it's about 95% healed so I want to slowly get back into lifting weights again. 

Last December I set a goal of doing 10 minutes of abs after each bike ride (since that typically was part of my weight lifting)  so I want to continue to do that. I had to stop yoga for awhile because I couldn't put weight on my wrist and bend it in downward dog.  I want to commit to doing weekly 20 min yoga  classes as much as my wrist can tolerate. The irony of all this is my physical therapist thinks I got De Quervain syndrome from using my phone too much and then the peloton aggravated it. I have to wear a brace when I ride the peloton so my wrist doesn't bend. 

I also want to commit to doing short peloton pilates and barre workouts each week and try Peloton's bike bootcamp classes. With a 30-week streak on the bike I pedaled for 6K minutes, thus for this year my goal is to pedal 10K minutes. On Jan 1 a group of us did a 60 minute class on the bike, which I haven't done since I used to cycle in studios. I typically only ride for 40-45 minutes a day then do abs. I'd like to take a 60 minute cycling class once a month. 

It's important to show gratitude for your body and remember that our bodies do so much for us so we need to treat them with respect with stretching and yoga.

3. Wake up early

Now that I no longer go the gym before work, I've been going to bed later and waking up later. I want to wake up early and do my strength training in the morning before work and get on a more consistent sleep schedule.

4. Learn something new every day

This year I read 32 books so my goal for next year will be to read 30 books. I also listen to podcasts while I do puzzles or walk anywhere. This is constantly building my knowledge.

5.  Eat more fiber

My doctor told me the reason I'm always hungry is because I don't eat enough vegetables. As a vegetarian my diet is high on carbs and cheese, so I really need to make an effort to add more vegetables and fruit, specially beans, broccoli and berries.

6. Career

I'm studying to get my Project Management Professional (PMP) Certification. I'm also taking power point training courses to learn new techniques and improve my skill set with the latest trends.

7. Travel more

2021 was the first year I haven't traveled abroad since I was a kid and it felt strange.  I hope to pack my suitcase again soon for a big trip. Last November I went to NYC after not going for 2 years (which was rare for me) and I loved every minute of it! I want to go back to NYC for Christmas and Charleston for spring. Maybe I'll be able to go to Italy in the summer, we'll see how the world is going.

8. Declutter

While my home is clean, thanks to all the cleaning tiktok videos I watch, however decluttering is always an area of improvement for me. I want to have a well-organized home that brings peace of mind. I think a tidy space feels so good and refreshes both your space and mind.

9. Video creation