Yeah, yeah…I’m fully aware I’m about 37 days late with this post…But I just couldn’t leave everyone hanging, could I?
Before we jump into the recap, I should remind you that I differentiate between “Goals” and “Resolutions” because I think the two are…well…different:
So keep reading to see if I actually accomplished what I said I was going to!
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GOAL: Run my first “solo” half marathon. Meaning train on my own and run the whole time on race day.
OUTCOME: Nice Try. I almost made it. I did train on my own (for two actually – Iron Girl and Windermere) but didn’t master the “running the whole time” part of the equation. Yes, I took significantly fewer walk breaks during Windermere. But since I walked I’m not giving myself a “Way to go!” for this one.
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RESOLUTION: Hit the snooze button less. No explanation needed.
OUTCOME: Total Failure. No explanation needed. I’ll clearly be working on this again during 2012.
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GOAL: Complete an Olympic distance Triathlon.
OUTCOME: Yay me! I crossed this one off of my list on October 16th at Longleaf.
Sure, I blew up got stung, but I pushed through and finished – with a smile on my face nonetheless!
Sure, I wish I had a better experience for my first Olympic. But this just gives me LOTS of room for improvement down the road!
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RESOLUTION: Eat at the table more often.
OUTCOME: Fell Off the Wagon. We did a pretty good job during the first half of the year, but then things started getting busy and we started slacking. We usually get about 1 or 2 meals a week in at the dining room table, the rest are at the coffee table while we catch up on DVR’d shows.
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GOAL: Go on a “Trans-Florida” bike tour with Ryan.
OUTCOME: Um…Total Failure. This is a really tough one. We both really wanted to do this…and we talked about “when” we’re going to do it all the time. But we never actually set any plans. The closest we got was while training for and completing the 100MON event.
Sure, we’d log 50-70 miles in and around Bradenton…but we just never got across the state.
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RESOLUTION: Change our sheets more.
OUTCOME: Yay Me! There’s not much to explain with this one, we simply change our sheets more than we used to.
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GOAL: Complete an organized Century Ride (100 miles).
OUTCOME: Yay Me! It might not have been an organized GROUP century ride, but the 100 Miles of Nowhere was an organized century nonetheless seeing as hundreds of people participated at the same time all across the country world.
Come hell or high water I’ll be riding the 100MON again during 2012…but it may or may not end up being only 50 miles…and may or may not be on single track & a mountain bike…stay tuned…
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RESOLUTION: Water, Water Everywhere.
OUTCOME: Yay Me! I’ve rocked this one all year long! Between the giant cup I keep on my desk at work, the aluminum bottle I keep in the car with me and the multitude of Tervis Tumblers at home I’m definitely super hydrated.
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GOAL: Become a one car family
OUTCOME: Yay Me and Ryan! On January 13, 2011 we became a one car family! Best decision we ever made!
Our original goal was to make it ONE YEAR. We’ve only had few “oh shit, we only have one car” moments, but nothing a quick phone call – or schedule shuffling – couldn’t handle.
Now we’re planning to STICK WITH IT. Not sure how long yet, but we’re both leaning towards “as long as possible” with just one vehicle.
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RESOLUTION: Pay Off Debt & Save Money.
STATUS: Met in the Middle. I think everyone knows that paying off debt and saving money takes a long time. We’ve definitely made some awesome headway with paying off debt – largely due only having one car payment. Saving is a bit more of a challenge (I see $$ and I want to SPEND IT!!)) but we We’re making progress. What keeps us going is knowing that every little bit helps!
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GOAL: Take a Yoga class at an actual studio.
OUTCOME: Total Failure. I may have taken Monday Night Yoga regularly at the YMCA…but I never once set foot in a “real” yoga studio. And honestly, at this point I don’t even know if I still have the urge to take that extra step. I like my workout schedule how it is right now & the Monday class at the YMCA fits perfectly. So I’m perfectly OK with this big old “F” on my report card.
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RESOLUTION: Take Miss Dottie Pottie for walks more often.
STATUS: Um…I’m still ashamed to admit it, but we’re still really lazy about taking Dottie for walks. We did really well at the beginning of the year. But as time slipped by we went back to our old habits and DP still gets most of her exercise playing in the back yard every day and daily “fetch” sessions in the living room with us. But that’s still no excuse – she needs to get out and exercise just like we do.
Dottie may not get walked all the time, but she is most certainly loved and spoiled though. However, I will be re-upping my efforts on this during 2012. And she’ll be an even happier camper!
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And there you have it! I’m only a total failure at a couple items, so I’m counting 2011 as a success overall.
Although I should tell you the other “important” thing I accomplished during 2011.
I was supremely successful in gaining 10 pounds!
No, that’s not a good thing. Not good at all. It’s only “important” because I’m pissed about it!
This gain makes me 40lbs away from my goal now instead of 30. Sure, I did “keep off” another 20 pounds…but I’d be happier if I had actually maintained the full 30lbs I lost during 2010.
Time to refocus and recommit – that’s what I will be focusing on during 2012!
sweet dottie! Basil sends his love *wag wag wag*
we are always saying we need to go on more walks too, for us AND for Basil… right now it is bitter cold and very windy – but it is DRY, so we need to just bundle up and go!
And our love to Basil!! Stay warm up there!
Sounds like a great year.
My $.02:
Walking a bit for a half marathon totally counts. You did the distance and that’s all that matters. Congrats on that!
I recommend paying off debt and then saving. Your debt probably has more interest, so by paying down, you are actually saving. We had our debt fight about 3 years ago and then went into full-on save mode and it has worked well for us. Got a nice bike out of it.
I am still very impressed with your 100 MON. That seems like more of a challenge because the scenery doesn’t change enough. Not sure I could do that one.
I totally after with you about focusing more on debt payoff first! It really seems to make more sense AND I feel like we see more progress that way. We were doing good with savings…then I wanted a mountain bike! But better to spend our saved pennies on it than go further into debt, right?
And yes, that 100 miles was SO boring with no change in scenery!
Definitely. I bought my bike with saved money. You have to live a little. Sounds like you have your priorities straight. Living with a single car is real smart. I wish we had the ability to do it, but we work on opposite ends of town.
We are definitely lucky with our office locations. I am about 5 miles south of Ryan but off of the same main road. There’s no way it would have worked for us otherwise.
Gosh, we need to walk our dogs more, too. I’m adding this to our 2012 resolutions!
We were a one car family for three years and it was AWESOME. People think it’s going to be so hard, but for us, it was totally do-able. The only reason we had to get a second card was when my husband started taking classes an hour a way four days a week. There was just no getting around needing one then, but going three years without any car payment (the car we did have was paid off) did amazing things for our financial situation.
I think you had an awesome year.
We are definitely lucky that having one car works for us! I’m sure the situation will change eventually (like when we have kids) but for now we’re milking it for all it’s worth. The financial freedoms and debt payoff we’ve experienced just this year is enough to make us want to STAY a one car family for as long as possible!
What a great year you had! My goals were much less admirable – I mainly just wanted to be able to keep running and stay injury free – I was successful, but it was harder than I thought. Anyway, good luck in 2012 – you’ve got a good head start already!