Weekly Wrap-Up: Starting a new year

There’s something hopeful about the start of a new year – blank pages, a chance to think about goals and intentions and lots of chances to laugh at myself as I get the date wrong inevitably. I got a laugh this morning as I learned that it is incredibly difficult to explain the concept of the new year to a 4 year old. Oliver was excited because it was a holiday but as he doesn’t really grasp the concept of a “year,” it’s hard to grasp the idea of a new one. Conversations like this are the type I just want to record and keep forever to capture this odd little window of childhood.

This week was very light on the workouts, so we won’t go through them day by day. However, I did intentionally move EVERY day, even on the days I was in the hospital waiting for my new niece (who arrived safely & looks exactly like my brother right now). I made it a point to at least get a little walk in, if nothing else. I also ran my traditional New Year’s Day 5K to start things off on the right foot and got a little more serious about stretching and foam rolling to loosen up my sore left leg from those falls on Christmas Eve. After all, it’s the new year and I’ve got running goals for 2016!

New shoes to start 2016 off right!

Speaking of that new niece, an impromptu road trip thrown into the middle of my week  could definitely have derailed my plans to get back on track with better food choices and the new WW system. I’m happy to say that I did really well through the trip! I loaded up on healthy snack options in the car (fruit, boiled eggs, string cheese, sugar snap peas) and when I ended up eating out for EVERY meal while I was in Oklahoma, I tracked it all and made good choices. I also stayed within my points even though most take out things “cost” more in the new system. It felt to good to end 2015 on a strong note. My good deed this week was bringing bagels to my sister in law’s nurses in labor and delivery as a thanks for all of their hard work bringing my niece to the world safely. I’m grateful that mom & baby are doing well and that I managed the long, boring road trip safely.

My NSV for this week came this weekend, when I was tired from a bad night of sleep (sick Darrell & Oliver – bad Chinese we think) and a day of solo parenting (O bounced back quickly – Darrell was down all day!). Turns out, that scenario is definitely a trigger for bad food choices for me. I’m proud of myself for taking a bite of a macaroon when I was out to lunch with O but then giving it to him to finish when I thought it was only so-so. I’m also proud of myself for packing away the leftover pizza after O’s dinner rather than taking a piece because no one was watching. Is a piece of pizza that bad? No, but that “no one would know” thought is a very dangerous one for me to give in to with my history of binge eating so I’m proud of myself for packing that pizza away! After a night of better sleep, I’m feeling back on even keel today. Darrell is feeling better, but still wiped out so I’ve got him at home with Gatorade and bland foods for another day.

It was harder to wrap up and put away this mediocre pizza than it should have been.

 This week, I’m going to start a warm up running schedule to get me in shape to start training for my spring half marathon in a couple of weeks. I’m going to do the same Hanson-esque training I did in the fall because I really liked how I felt on that frequent running plan (for the most part anyway) and I know that I need to get warmed up back up before I start that level of running. I’ve only run once or twice a week for the last month or more! Time to move again – even if it is freezing! I got brand new shoes for Christmas and spent the gift card I got from co-workers on three new pairs of running socks yesterday, so I’m ready to go!

I’ve done some thinking and realized I always lose track of big monthly goals, so instead I’m just going to set a couple of little goals each week in service of my grander intentions this year. Up first: Strength training twice this week (on the calendar Tuesday & Thursday) and drinking a glass of water anytime I drink something that ISN’T water. I find that if I set a goal of drink “x” amount of water a day, I tend to drink it first thing in the morning and then in a mad rush at bedtime to catch up. Instead, this week I’ll just make myself get a glass of water any time I get a cup of coffee or soda or whatever. I started this little experiment on New Years and I have to say that it has actually DECREASED my soda intake because I’ve found myself thinking “well, if I have to drink water TOO I might as well just drink water alone.”

Imagine all the extra steps I’m going to get for trips to the bathroom.

Our lovely Weekly Wrap Up hosts, Holly and Tricia, are both off to run the Walt Disney World marathon this week. I can’t wait to see pictures! Let’s be sure to cheer them on!

Anything exciting coming up in your week?

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