New Month, New Goals: January!

Well, it’s time to get this new year started right…time for new goals!

Last month, I had just one goal: to roast a whole chicken. Did it!

For my January goals, I had to take into consideration the fact that the first 12 days or so are going to be shot, and most of these goals won’t really begin until after the marathon. But this is what I came up with!

Well, I have one HUGE goal for January…the number one thing on my plate for the three weeks following the marathon is to finish The Spartanette Project! I mentioned this back in October, but The Spartanette was my blog when I was at Michigan State, and while I had always entertained fantasies of getting it turned into a book, I’ve now realized that I have the power to make that a reality. It’s awesome that most of the work is already done, but I have to finish editing the last section (the easiest) and then I have to determine how to organize it.(I’m working with 400 pages of material, so it’s been a little overwhelming). Then I need to get an agent and hopefully find a publisher. I didn’t work on TSP at all during Monster Month, because that would have just made my head explode, so that’s what I plan to do with the extra time I won’t be running/thinking about running. I’m planning to devote five hours a day to it, five days a week, and I am pretty sure I can finish it in that 75 hours. It’s really been hanging over my head and keeping me from taking on too many new writing projects, so I really want it done by Feb! I know the whole thing is pretty ambitious, but books like Flirtexting and LA Candy make me realize that I CAN do this.

Take the Core Fusion Challenge, being led by Dori from Dori’s Shiny Blog. (If you’re interested in joining, check out her post about it!) I have two Core Fusion DVDs I got last Christmas and while I really like them, I have never committed to them enough to see major differences. However, this fits really well with my post-marathon workout plans (which I’ll post about later). Because I really can’t start this week, my goal is to do a full DVD (50 minutes) four times a week for four weeks. I’m going to make Feb 14 my end date. Why? Because I Heart how awesome my body is going to look and feel! Biggest barriers: laziness. I have a big problem doing cardio at the gym and strength training at home. I hate splitting it up. Reward: I know how much of a challenge this is for me, so the biggest reward will definitely just be the satisfaction that I committed to it and did it! And the changes in my body will be awesome and will definitely keep me motivated. However, because this one is such a challenge for me, I am also going to go with a material reward: a new piece of fitness gear! I usually just wear cheap stuff but I want something nicer, and I’ve been working out in track jackets a lot lately so I might save up for a Lululemon one! Just like Dori said, I’m excited but nervous…this will be hard, but so worth it.

Take better care of my hands and feet. For as much as I love beauty products, I don’t know why I let my hands and feet take such a beating! Actually, I do know: I hate having greasy hands because my hands are almost always on some kind of technology. But it’s 10 degrees in MI right now, so I need to be more diligent. I’m so self-conscious about how dry they look! The plan: moisturizing every morning and night (I put a new bottle of lotion on my nightstand for this), using hand lotion after each time I wash them, and lubing up whenever else I think about it. Oh, and always wearing gloves outside. Biggest barrier: hatred of greasy hands and feet. Reward: hand-model hands and pretty feet!

The next few goals are keeping with my New Year’s Resolutions…

Cooking Res: Get through the section of The Joy of Cooking about eggs and learn to poach eggs! I eat eggs every day but I’d like to get more creative and make them some different ways. Motivation: I am going to splurge on free-range, organic, OMG-3, etc. eggs for my poaching project. Actually, for once I’ve perfected poaching. After all, I wouldn’t want to waste them if I mess up the first few times! Also for the resolution, I am going to take a cake decorating class at Jo-Ann’s.

Culture Res: Take belly dancing lessons! Dance lessons of any kind were in the top ten of potential resolutions, and I’ve always wanted to do some sort of dancing that makes me feel sexier and more body-conscious. The entire time I was in NYC I wanted to take the pole dancing class at Crunch, but I was always too self-conscious. I am pretty sure my lack of dance skills comes from just being too self-conscious to really let go, but I think I’m at a point where I can get over it. It’s an eight week class in Grand Blanc and I am so excited. Oh and I also want to do a little research about the history of belly dancing so I can get the full cultural experience.

Lay vs Lie Res. Read the Grammar Girl post on this topic once a week. (Every Sunday, after Post Secret and the NY Times weddings.) Thanks to commenter Karoline for sharing this tip!! I read over it yesterday and I already feel much better about the whole thing.

So that’s that! What are your goals for the first month of the decade?

Tagged as: 2010 is going to be epic, goals, Motivation Conversations, resolutions, The Spartanette