Taking Stock of 2012

At the end of the year, and the entire world if the idiots are right about the Mayans, it seems a good time to look over the last year. I have been thinking about my goals, challenges and resolutions for 2013, but want to see how I did in 2012 first. Not that an unachieved 2012 goal will keep me from setting my sights higher in 2013, though.

I had a goal to lose weight. I believe I weigh exactly the same as I did last year. I didn't gain weight, but I didn't hit my stated goal. I also challenged myself to participate in 2 hours of cardio every week. I am pretty sure that I did that. There were weeks that were much more than that and others that were less, but I will bet I averaged out to 2 hours weekly over the year. Just walking to my work shuttle every day is about 20 minutes, so that's getting me close without any set-aside workout time.

My biggest challenge for 2012 was to run the Bank of America Chicago Marathon. I did finish the marathon in 4:58.21. I wish I had finished in less time, but just happy that I finished my first marathon. I also finished my first half marathon, too. 2:15.10 for the half. Honestly, the half marathon was harder than the full.

Those were the only goals that I declared publicly in 2012. Two out of three goals isn't bad. I will take that and use that for 2013. I won't worry about the one goal that was not accomplished, since it was not nearly as big of a goal as finishing the marathon. I'm ok not being at a smaller weight if I can point to my medal and say that I ran 26.2 miles.

Goals

If you're struggling to keep up with your New Year's Resolutions, perhaps the issue isn't with you, but with the resolutions themselves. Did you set SMARTER goals, or just pick things you want to improve? If they were just pie in the sky promises, you may want to revamp them to make them better. You always want goals you set to be smarter.

S	Specific
M	Measurable
A	Attainable
R	Relevant
T	Timely
E	Evaluate
R	Reevaluate

If you just said, "I want to be healthier," that doesn't fit this goal setting blueprint. Think about what you actually mean when you say "healthier" and make some specific, measurable goals from that definition.

Following this standard will help you stay on top of your resolutions and feel good about the progress you're making.

2012 Resolutions/Challenges- update

My challenge was to get 2 hours of exercise a week. Because I have many hours of free time, I am far exceeding the 2 hours a week and getting close to that on some days. Monday and Tuesday this week each saw 1 3/4 hours or fitness. Here's a graph of my weekly time spent being active this year, and the last week of 2011:























How are you doing on your resolutions? I hope you're sticking with them. If so, congratulations!!! If not, you can always start again. There is nothing that says you have to be perfect from 1/1 going forward or you have to give up for the rest of the year. Every day is a new day to start working on being a better and healthier you.

Resolutions

I just found out that today is "Ditch New Year's Resolutions Day" I had no idea there was an actual date for this. I think this is a bad, bad idea, but you should still look at this site. Mainly because cats are cute.

I hope that you are all still going strong on your resolutions. In fact, I hope you're doing so well that you decided to double-down on your resolution. Were you hoping to lose a pound a week? If you've been hitting that, why not try to go for two pounds a week? I was trying to get in two hours of cardio/fitness a week, but did over five hours last week. I am not going to aim for ten hours, but am going to try for three hours every week instead of two.



If you're not going strong on your resolutions, you get a fresh start on the 23rd with Chinese New Year. You can ignore the last three weeks that didn't live up to your hopes from 2011 and get a fresh start on your resolutions. It is a new year, even if it's a different calendar.

Resolutions

Have you made any New Year's Resolutions this year? What are they?

Every year, people make resolutions at the New Year. It seems like a good time because of the 01/01, blank slate aspect of a new year. Most years, the resolutions are the same. Of the top 10 most popular resolutions: get fit, lose weight, learn something new, and volunteer/help others are all things that can be done by taking on my challenge to run this year.

Some of the other resolutions: spend more time with friends, enjoy life more and stop smoking, can be done or at least aided by taking on the challenge. It is much easier to stop smoking when you have another activity that can fight stress and raise endorphins. You can spend time with friends or family while running, rather than watching TV with them. Exercise or any increase in activity will make you feel better, which will make all of your life more enjoyable.

The success rate for resolutions is low, about 12%, and it's theorized the cause of that is lack of clarity and planning. People say, "I want to lose weight" with no goal of how much to lose, how they'll lose it, or how long it will take. There was a study that showed ways to improve the rate of success. Men need concrete goal setting and women need to share their goal. If you have a goal, please do both to increase your odds of success. It will also give me some challenges to tackle.