do something January mid-month update

Pushing towards the end of the month and I thought I would share my progress on my January goal and thoughts on February.

(how perfect is this print from Brad Woodward?)

My January do something is to feel better about my health. Obviously a perennial goal. Every year for the past few years I've had a patch where I was awesome at moving every day. And every year, despite sticking with it for an extended period of time, I inevitably hit a patch that prevents me from from following through for a few days and I'm done. Just like that. The endorphin rush, the adrenaline, that "runner's high" - none of those things are strong enough for me to stick with it. I'm an exercise quitter. Big time.

But every few months, I'm at it again, hoping this is the time it will click. We'll see.

For this month though, I wanted to up the ante by including all of those other little health related things I try to do but consistently forget. Drinking enough water, snacking smartly, vitamins and my daily chia and apple cider vinegar...Obviously, this month's do something is something I'd like to maintain indefinitely!

To do this with intention, I found an app that tracks my progress. You can set reminders throughout the day to update what you've done and see what's left for the day. I don't know about you but I get itchy when I see a bunch of those little red number indicators on my home screen so I'm happy to tick them off throughout the day and watch that number dwindle and eventually disappear.

(don't judge that big empty spot...that was my flu/recovery time!) A couple of tricks that have helped me this month? Trying to knock the treadmill out first thing...because making good choices and following through with the rest of the check marks is a lot easier when I've already put forth the effort in that area. Drinking my water from a big nalgene bottle that's next to me all the time - so much easier to do than filling a glass 8 times (seems silly but it works for me.)

The past few days, I've been jotting down ideas for the upcoming months...abstract ideas as well as more concrete.

• this month I’m going to do something awesome
• this month I’m going to do something for me
• this month I’m going to learn something new
• this month I’m going to make people happy
• this month I’m going to do something scary
• this month I’m going to do something brilliant
• this month I’m going to do something hard
• this month I’m going to make a plan
• this month I’m going to be alone
• this month I’m going to streamline happiness
• this month I’m going to make my kids feel like stars
• this month I’m going to write with curiosity and confidence
• this month I’m going to document change
• this month I’m going to create an inviting spot
• this month I’m going to take a photo of myself that I love

These first couple of months, I'm sticking with the basics. Because I feel like having a solid base will make tackling the other areas a little easier. Sound body, sound mind. February will be about purging so that the house feels lighter. So I'm not frustrated with my surroundings. I'm aiming for a 30 in 30 type of thing a la Becky and Nicole but this will also be about fixing things that cause me unnecessary frustration (like the pull out water sprayer on the sing that always hangs up on the pip in the cabinet.) I'm making a list...can't wait to get started!