Traditional new year’s resolutions typically revolve around health, fitness and weight loss. I’m not one to shirk the going trend, so I’ll add my health and fitness goals for 2015 to the list.
I would like to think that I’m pretty healthy and fit for the most part. I’m not perfect, I enjoy my fried food (mmmm… chicken wings…) and a good night out at the pub with friends, but it’s all about balance, right? So without further ado, here are my health and fitness goals for 2015:
1. Lose 15lbs before my wedding in August.
The biggest new years resolution is always to lose weight. In the past year and a bit, I have managed to lose over 30lbs. I am pretty proud of myself for that, but want to keep going. And preferably reach my goal before our wedding in August. Before the holidays, I had thought my goal would be an additional 10lbs, but the scale is telling me that I have gained 5lbs over the holidays (not totally surprised there with all the junk I’ve been eating and drinking), so I’m going to put my goal at 15lbs from my current weight. Sorry, I’m not going to post that on here. That will get me to a happy weight that I feel can be fit and healthy without requiring me to sacrifice too many of the things that I enjoy.
2. Run 10k in under 60 minutes.
3. Run 1/2 marathon in 2 hours.
4. Run or do other fitness at least 3 times per week.
I play a decent amount of team sports when I’m not out of town for work, and I have a friend that I run with in the mornings a few times a week (again, when I’m not out of town for work), but I’d like to make a conscious effort to keep up with what I’ve been doing thus far, and to improve where I can.
Running: I’ve quite enjoyed running in the mornings before work with my friend, and we’ve done a few races over the past few years, so I want to push myself (and by pushing myself I will be forcing my friend to push herself as well) to do better. I’ve done a few 10k races, and a few half-marathon races, but haven’t ever really done any training regimes for them. So this year, I would like to actually buckle down with a training schedule and do a couple races. I want to get my 10k time under 60 minutes (I’ve done it before when I was younger, but in recent years I haven’t been able to break the 1 hour mark). If I can do that, and maintain a training schedule for the half marathon, I should be able to try for 2 hours on a half marathon (I’d go for 2:05 or 2:10 too, but 2 hours is a nice round number).
Other fitness: When I’m out of town for work, it is often to places that are remote and do not lend themselves well to going for a run outside, like I do when I’m at home. My 2015 goal is to stick to a three times a week schedule, even when I am out of town for work. To do this when I’m home will be easy enough, but out of town is it difficult. I will have to get an actual work out plan sorted out for when I’m out of town so that I don’t lose all my fitness that I’ve been working so hard to gain. Hotel room fitness plans can be a bit weak for cardio, but if I have a plan and stick to it, that is better than nothing.
5. Create a weekly meal plan.
A few years ago I went to a naturopath to get some help with my angry belly and she’s put me on a gluten and dairy free diet, with a few other additional random items that I should avoid. I generally follow the rules, though after few drinks I am more liable to give in to the temptation of the “forbidden” foods. It has been really great for me though. I think it has contributed somewhat to my weight loss, it has increased my energy level, and generally I just feel better (less grumbly tummy). For 2015, I want to continue on this good healthy eating path, but want to explore more recipes and start doing some meal planning (this is good for both our health and budget). When we get busy, we tend to just order in or eat out, which is more expensive and means that the groceries that we have in the fridge tend to go bad (waste of food and money). If I can get a functional meal plan going I think we will be able to plan things around our schedules and it’ll help everything.
6. Limit myself to 7 drinks / week.
I like to drink. Anyone that knows me, knows that I enjoy having a good time and a few drinks with my friends. Especially at a pub watching hockey (heck, that’s how my fiance and I met!). I know that saying I’m not going to drink ever would just not work. That being said, I know that if I want to get that last bit of weight off for my wedding, reducing the calories that I take in is key and alcohol contains a lot of calories. I don’t think I’ve counted the number of drinks that I’ve had in a week before, so I may have to revisit this after the first month, but I’m going to try and limit the number of drinks I have per week. I’m going to start with 7 drinks / week. My reasoning is that I know that I won’t have a drink every day when I get back to my regular schedule in January (holidays don’t count, right?), but let’s say I have a glass of wine on a Wednesday with dinner, then go to the pub on Friday to watch hockey and have a pint per period (3), then go to a show on a Saturday and have a couple, and then have a cocktail and a glass of wine with dinner on Sunday, that adds up to 7. That could be a pretty normal week. But if I decide to have a crazy party night on a Tuesday (don’t ask why I would… ) but if I were to say have 4 drinks then, I’d only have 3 left for the weekend… and I would have to decide how to split them up.
And there you have it folks, my health and fitness goals for 2015. Do you have any similar goals for the new year?
All-Round Better Me 