January 01, 2016

Goals for 2016

Happy New Year! I'm am welcoming 2016 with open arms and an open mind. The past couple of years have been tough for me in so many aspects of my life--a few things that I've shared on my blog, and a few things that I have not. While there were a lot of great things that happened in 2015, I am glad that the year is over, and I really look forward to what 2016 has in store.

I know that New Year's resolutions are cliche, and the chance of actually sticking to them is slim; but as a goal-setter, there is something so fun about starting the new year with a clean slate. I love to write goals for the new year!

Last year, I had the following goals:

-Run the Detroit Free Press Marathon
-Run a half-marathon each month
-Cut out most processed foods
-No ice cream at home

Since 2015 ended up being "the year of the never-ending stress fracture injury", I wasn't able to complete my running goals. In fact, I actually had to drop out of several races that I'd registered for because of my stress fracture.

I started the year very well with cutting out processed foods. However, I gained several pounds while I was eating "clean", and I had really hoped that I'd have been able to lose weight. I've experimented several times over the years with clean eating, and it just doesn't work well for me--physically, I have a hard time with weight loss; and mentally, I'm just not happy. So, when I started counting calories in August, I didn't make any foods off limits, and I ate whatever I wanted while counting the calories. I am much happier, and I was able to get back down to my goal weight rather quickly that way. So, while I failed at my goal of cutting out processed foods, I am happy with the way it worked out.

I did stick with the "No ice cream at home" goal, though (at least from what I remember). If I did have ice cream here, it was from a single serving container, so there wasn't any sitting in the freezer. Most of the time, though, if I wanted to eat ice cream, I would go out and eat it.

I guess one out of four goals is pretty good! The running goals were out of my hands, because of the injury. If I hadn't gotten injured, I probably would have met those.

Now, on to 2016...

I've been thinking hard about this, and here is what I came up with:

-Cook one new recipe each week. I've already created a Pinterest board with 52 recipes, so I will choose one each week to try. They aren't all "healthy" recipes--just foods that sounded good and I wanted to try.

-Get in 7,000+ steps per day, for at least six days per week. I'm using an app called Momentum on my phone to track this. On the days that I run, it should be fairly easy; but on my rest days, getting in 7,000 steps is tough!

-Continue my binge-free streak. Currently, I am 150 days binge-free!


-Do my best to PR my 10K. If not in the spring, then I'll try again in the fall. It's going to be the most challenging goal I've ever set for myself, but I'm willing to work hard to do it. I won't be upset if I don't actually set a new PR as long as I try my best. I don't want to look back thinking that I could have done it if I had given a little more effort during training.

-Finally, I want to maintain a weight of 135 pounds or less. I've been doing well with maintenance for the past month, staying between 130-133, so I'm happy with that. If I could do it through the holidays, I can certainly continue to do it. Summer is the most challenging time of year for me, so again, I will do my best.

So, there they are, in black and white--my goals for 2016. I don't have anything standing in my way right now (injuries, excess weight, etc), so I am looking forward to working on my goals! Anyone else have goals for the new year?

12 comments:

  1. I've already lost 87 lbs. My plan is to lose the remaining 50 or so! I ran 2 formal 5k races this fall/winter. I'm gonna go for 3 or more this year! Why are they so pricey?! Happy New Year, Katie!

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  2. Great goals for 2016. I'm going to try more new recipes as well, although I'm not setting it as a formal goal. I'm off to check out your pinterest board now....

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  3. I'm a believer in clean eating myself, but as a fellow BED, I have to tell you...do whatever keeps you from binging, and if that means not going totally "clean" with your eating, then so be it. Binging is much harder on the body than allowing in some processed foods. Those of us with eating issues have to find what works for us - it sounds like you've done that, so do it while it works! Great job. :-)

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  4. I read your blog religiously and have been thinking about starting my own blog. Today's post has finally made me bite the bullet. It's all about hitting my goals both weight wise and other. I have one post down and one in my drafts. Hopefully this will help me hold myself more accountable!

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  5. Great goals! I set similar goals as well...including the one new recipe a week! The great thing about your goals for this year is that they are in your control! Cheers to 2016!

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  6. Yay! Happy New Year. Wishing you, Jerry and the boys the best year yet! :)

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  7. I can't do clean eating.....I know there are benefits but I can't take something TOTALLY off the table, if I do...I crave it like the dickens! I'm trying to just be more cognizant of my eating...eating when I am hungry and not when the clock strikes noon. Well....and track track track!

    Happy New Years!

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  8. Hey Katie! I've read your blog for a few years now and I can't remember if you've ever mentioned Gretchen Rubin's books? The first one is called The Happiness Project and I think you would love it. She talks so much about habits, goals, little changes, etc that make her happy and it focuses on day-to-day living. She has a new book out called Better Than Before and it's all about goal setting and creating habits, how we create habits, how to keep habits, etc. It's based on the theory that we all react to expectations in one of four ways. Anyway, I think you would really love her books! They are so interesting and as a goal setter myself, I responded very well to them!

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    Replies
    1. I loved the Happiness Project!! I just started Better Than Before, and I'm loving it, too !!

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  9. I love this !! I did binge eating through the holidays and I gained weight so I think I am going to start this and see where it goes. thanks your are an inspiration.

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  10. I can't even imagine starting off the new year without any goals, so reading this post made me smile...I love reading about other people's goals...they inspire me! I'm with you all the way...ice cream is dangerous! (I try to have it as a treat once a month...the good stuff...Ben and Jerry's!) Hope you have a great year!

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  11. My goal is to have more fun in 2016! And run sub 2:00 at the Disney Star Wars half in April.

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