2011 is MY year!

I'm back in France and ready for action. Or at least I will be once this bout of jetlag goes away. For some reason, I'm so much more tired today than all the other flights I've done here—I actually caved and took a 2.5 hour nap today, which doesn't bode well for getting used to France time! Case in point: I'm now wide awake at 4:30am!

December was a rough month, though it's getting a LOT better and I'm really looking forward to all the exciting things that 2011 has to offer. Here are a few goals and things to look forward to in the coming months!

Goal 1: Read at least 20 books for pleasure. That doesn't sound like a lot of books, but I'm really bad at getting off the computer and reading. I need to work on that.



Goal 2: Keep tracking and lose 10lbs. ProPoints is going to be my ticket to a successful year. Goal weight would obviously be ideal, but given the fact that I only had a 4-pound loss in 2011 (though I did lose 2 pant sizes), I don't want to set unattainable goals. I'm very okay with this being a journey and not a fast sprint!


Goal 3: Run my first half marathon. I ran my first 4 races in 2010, so an additional subgoal here would be to try and run at least 5 in 2011.

Here are at least 2:

The course for April 17th Marseille half
I'd also like to run in Cincy's Turkey Trot when I'm home--I've never done it before
Goal 4: Cross train using P90X and my new resistance bands. I'm going to try and run 3x a week to start and want to incorporate at least 2 days of strength each week on top of that.


Goal 5: Ask a guy out on a date. Or at least make the first move. I'm usually more of the wait to be asked out variety (which does happen, I promise!). I'm actually relatively shy when it comes to that sort of thing, so I think this would be a good goal to push myself out of my comfort zone this year.

Beer seemed like an appropriate photo for this since we'll probably drink one together if things go well AND I'll probably need one to quell up the courage!

Goal 6: Get into grad school, find an apartment and move to one of these beautiful cities:

Atlanta
Nashville
Madison
Columbus

Goal 7: The most important and all-encompassing goal: Be Positive.

Is it just me or do plus signs look kind of odd out of context?
Heather @ Leading the Weigh just wrote a post about one-word resolutions. If I had to pick a word for my 2011, it would be "Positive." Dictionary.com shows why in it's first four definitions of the word:

World English Dictionary
positive (ˈpɒzɪtɪv)

— adj
1. characterized by or expressing certainty or affirmation: a positive answer
2. composed of or possessing actual or specific qualities; real: a positive benefit
3. tending to emphasize what is good or laudable; constructive: he takes a very positive attitude when correcting pupils' mistakes
4. tending towards progress or improvement; moving in a beneficial direction

I'm going to focus on the good things (everything happens for a reason) and using this year to keep moving in the right direction in all of the spheres of my life (love, friends and family, health, weight-loss, career). I'm going to take advantage of the new opportunities that are presenting themself to me and make this year the best I possibly can. No regrets!

What are your goals for 2011?

Bye Bye 2010!

So, here it is, the end of 2010. It's been a really interesting and important year. Instead of going into detail, here's a list of 20 note-worthy things that happened:

1. Had what I suppose should count as my first really serious relationship


2. Started and completed Couch to 5k and thus began running


3. Ran my first real 5k


4. Finished and turned in my undergrad thesis that was years in the making


5. Graduated from college


6. Spent a month in Paris


7. Went to an Auburn football game (and realized I like football!)


8. Learned how to shoot a gun (and realized I like that too!)


9. Lost... 4 pounds? and feel really good


10. Ran my first trail run and regular 10k


11. Learned how to build a fence and other house-related things thanks to Jon


12. Applied to graduate school


13. Moved to France


14. Started teaching elementary school in a foreign country


15. Ended aforementioned relationship
16. Cooked my first Thanksgiving Turkey


17. Started the new WW plan (even though I haven't been good about it yet)


18. Bought size 8 jeans. I've had a pair of ON's Sweetheart jeans at every size I've been along this journey.


19. Went on a date and had fun :)


20. Stayed positive and made it through December with fabulous friends, a stateside Christmas visit, and delicious red wine


I know I had my ups and downs, especially this past month, but looking at this list, I really think that 2010 did hold more good than bad. My family is all in good health, my friends are all doing fabulous things and the future is bright. This year also means that in 12 months I didn't GAIN any of the weight back (don't they say that the longer you keep it off, the more likely you are to do so long term?).

All things considered, I think I got a lot out of 2010 and am really looking forward to 2011, a lot of exciting things are in the works and it should be a great year! More on that tomorrow though! For now, I'm off to order a bridemaid dress (for 2011) and then up to Columbus to ring in the New Year the right way: with good friends and good wine. :)

See you next year!