Two weeks in a row

That I made it to the gym three times to lift heavy things. One wouldn't think that it would be hard to make this bare minimum commitment to getting to the gym, but it obviously is for me. Anyway, this is my goal for the next year, three times per week of heavy lifting. That's it.

Hello there.

I haven't had time to write (obvs, as my last post is from March) and I don't have time to be doing it now. But anyway, let me begin by summing up what's been going on from March to now.

• Work has been insanely busy. In great ways and in not-so-great ways. This isn't a work blog, so that's that.
• Visited Dad and Jeanne in Reno.
• Had a birthday, pretty much.
• Went to Minnesota for work, but got some much-needed alone time and shopping done too.
• Did not have time to take the bicycle repair class I paid money to take.
• Did take a concealed carry class with my mother-in-law.
• Saw Rock of Ages with Karen.
• Golf league started.
• Casey was super busy studying for (and passing) the series 24 exam.
• Caelen went to Disney with Grandma and Grandpa. Which meant Casey stayed there to watch their dogs, and I left work to let them out at lunch.

Maybe some other stuff happened too, but this is all I can remember.

Friday update

It's Saturday. I'm aware. I'm also painfully aware that I am an idiot. I didn't post an update last week, but I was up a pound. I lost a pound this week. So, basically, that's a maintain for 2 weeks after a one pound gain a week before that. Again, idiot. Because even though I've written it multiple times I haven't learned that I simply CANNOT EAT THE APs I EARN AND EXPECT TO LOSE WEIGHT.

That's all for now.

Goals: 2013 edition

I realize the year is nearly a quarter over but better late than never. My goals for the year are:

As a physically healthy person (this role used to be called "athlete" but c'mon who am I kidding?) I will:

• do EP Lifefit workouts 3X/week,
• do some other workout (golf/yoga/swim) 2X/week
• get all of my big lifts over 100#s (the only one outstanding is shoulder press)
• walk dogs 30 min/day
• drop some pounds on Weight Watchers (15 would be fine, 35 would be better)
• do 4 Whole 30 challenges
• get massages twice a month
• take up a martial art, maybe Hapkido
• and this last bullet is for my extra-super-stretch items: ripped by 40, prepped for a Tough Mudder, pull ups, general badassery.

As a homeowner I (we - as most of these require Casey's blood, sweat and tears) will:

• finish the storage room
• have a kickass garden
• refinance mortgage (done)
• remodel the master bathroom
• refinish the hardwood floor on the main level

As an explorer/learner I will:

• knit and crochet more
• take more pictures
• finish a scrapbook
• buy a sewing machine and learn to use it
• garden and can
• learn a martial art (as mentioned above)
• get my concealed carry permit
• finish my current piano book
• travel to Reno, Texas, Virginia, Florida, and somewhere for Casey's 35th.

As I wife I will:

• show affection every day
• cook with Casey
• go to the farmers market and other stuff we love to do together.

As a stepmom I will:

• teach Caelen how to do more things around the house and more things independently
• host at least 1 sleepover
• have a couple of dates just the two of us.

As a member of my family I will:

• get together monthly with Karen and Dani (at least)
• walk with Sarah when we can
• be on time with birthday cards
• visit my sister and grandma in Cedar Falls twice
• call my parents once in awhile (this sounds bad, but they don't call me either)
• the VA, NV, TX, FL visits are about family too.

As a professional I will:

• attend an agile conference
• read the stack of business books on my desk
• do a little programming, if only for fun
• kick some ass (accidentally typed "kiss" instead of "kick" on my first try, but that'll work too).

As a patriot I will:

• blog about issues that matter to me (so my mom will know at least)
• attend an LPIA event, maybe even help out with it
• be followed by Jonathan Hoenig from Cashin' In on Twitter (DONE!)
• try not to get so frustrated by the state of our world that I shoot myself in the face.

Friday Update (belated) (again)

A maintain this week. Really. I didn't go over my points, but I didn't work out even once. So, it wasn't unexpected.

I walked with Sarah yesterday and hit the gym today, so hopefully I'll have a loss this week. I seriously need to get my shit together. My 39th is only a month away, and my goal was to "get ripped" by 40. I guess I should clarify that I meant getting in shape, not the alcohol one. And then, you know, commit doing that.

Friday Update

Up 1.0. Seriously?! I was over my points by 17. Yes, I AM an idiot.

Now that we've covered the bad, let's cover the good.

• I lifted three times this week. And walked the dogs twice. Improvement!
• I'm down to 1 and a half cups of coffee and 1 cup of tea per day! I haven't had diet soda in over a week. I don't necessarily think diet soda will kill me but I do think I have an unhealthy level of attachment to it. Tea is such a lovely afternoon replacement - so warm and soothing. I also don't think caffeine is a bad thing either. I just think that I rely on it too much and I do have some concern about my cortisol levels, so drinking an entire pot isn't a good idea. Mostly, my tummy just feels better.

So, it's a new week. I'm taking Casey out for BBQ to celebrate passing his FINRA series 7 test tonight, so there is a mess of ribs in my future. Sunday is Dani's birthday brunch, but I'm sure there will be some healthy paleo options. I only have something going on two weeknights next week, so I should be able to have another good week in the gym. Here's hoping I can make a better number happen next week.

How'd I do in 2012

I'm finally taking the time to review progress (or lack of progress) on my 2012 goals. Let's take a look.


1. I will improve my health and fitness.

I've been listing this one last for some time and decided it’s time to put it first. Maybe there I will do something about it. I’m going to continue down the paleo path. I’ve been exercising 4-5 times per week and paleo doesn’t ask for more than that. I’ll focus on strength, yoga and core work, and maybe some running. Maybe not. I’m totally counting it as a workout when I play Just Dance for an hour. I’m not signing up for any athletic events months in advance, then panicking and cram-training and hurting myself. I already started going to bed earlier (and getting up earlier) thanks to necessary morning phone calls with coworkers in India. I’m going to get blackout curtains for my room and average seven hours of sleep each night. I’m going to put less crap on my body. What’s the point of clean eating when I smother my skin with 75 ingredients I can’t pronounce?

Hmm....I give myself a C here. I ate paleo for the most part and started doing EP Life Fit, albeit somewhat inconsistently. I impressed myself with some of my heavy lifts too. Hooray for not signing up for events and not doing them! I certainly haven't nailed the sleep thing, and I'm not sure I ever will. I will say that blackout curtains are the bee's knees. I hippied out somewhat and stopped putting a million unpronounceable products on my skin and hair. I told my esthetician yesterday that I'm trying to balance all natural with nuking the shit out of any signs of aging. It isn't easy.

2. I will make my mental health a priority.

I'm not insane or depressed on anything; I'm just focusing on stuff that makes me extra happy. All that stuff above should help with this. I’m going to get massages regularly; I already had two in January. I’m going to have dates with my girlfriends, a trip to Vegas to see Candace, walks with Sarah, and Dani’s birthday celebration in Chicago. I’m going to visit my Dad and stepmom in Reno. Casey and I will go somewhere for our 5th anniversary. I’m going to move the vegetable garden and learn how to remodel a bathroom. I’m going to probably continue sucking at golf. I’m going to make some digital scrapbooks, and some knitted gifts this year. I’m going to sew some pillows for the new couch. I’m going to get 75% of the way through the piano book on which I’m currently working. I’m going to do some volunteer work, possibly doggie rescue this year. Oh, and this picture/blogging thing.

B. I'm starting to get more balanced. I think. I don't get as OCD about having a clean house anymore. (Mostly because with 2 boys, 2 dogs and 1 cat, this is impossible.) I got lots of massages and some girl time. I went to Chicago with Dani for her 40th and to Las Vegas to see Candace. Due to unforeseen circumstances, Casey and I only went to KC for our 5th anniversary, but it was still fun. We had our best gardening year yet, in spite of the drought. We didn't remodel anything. I sucked less at golf. I didn't craft nearly as much as I would've liked. I practiced piano more days than not. I only volunteered one day, oops and I hardly blogged at all.

3. I will continue to have a fantastic marriage.

Casey and I will celebrate our 5th anniversary. I will continue to do big, sexy hair for date nights. We’ve already enacted a plan to have more quality time together. And come to think of it, eating paleo together has been good for us. He does all the research so I don’t have to and he totally cooks more, because I have a somewhat irrational fear of setting my face on fire when I use a grill.

A. Seriously, it just keeps getting better and better. It's hard to find time for all the things we want to do together, but we still love just hanging out, and making our way together. Cheesy, I know.

4. Caelen and I will have more fun together.

I’m pretty good at planned grand gestures of fun. I’m less good about the spontaneous kinds of fun. And when I am in a spontaneously fun mood, it expresses itself in a good natured ribbing and silly sarcasm, which is fun for me, but less so for others. I need to find a way to have fun on a smaller scale and more often. I started picking Caelen up from school a couple days a week so we have some alone time together before Casey gets home and I’ve been surprising him with treats in his lunchbox some days, but I’m sure there’s more I could do. I will figure it out.

B-. I try, but I struggle. I started doing Talking Canvas at school last fall, and that's been fun to talk to Caelen's class about art. But, most days it's making him do chores and redo homework and telling him to sit up straight. Still, we sit down to dinner at the table every night and talk about that day, and that's supposed to good for kids, right?

5. I will demonstrate that my extended family and my friends are important to me.

Some of the mental health stuff gets repeated here. I’m going to have dates with my girlfriends, a trip to Vegas to see Candace, walks with Sarah, and Dani’s birthday celebration in Chicago. I’m going to visit my Dad and stepmom in Reno. I’m going to do a big awesome Christmas at my place and my mom is going to be there and we’ll even go to church on Christmas Eve.

C. I didn't see my dad and stepmom but I visited my mom and stepdad in Florida. I saw my sisters, but really, I still kind of suck as an extended family member.

6. I will be awesome at my job.

I thought about putting this higher up, but if I learned anything from Fight Club, it's that I am not my job. However, I 110% love my new job. It's pretty much a perfect fit at a fantastic company. It makes me want to be awesome at it. Previously, I often managed to be good at a job without really trying. I'm totally going to try now. For those of you who know me, I'm in the office by 7am, so clearly I must love it!

B. The learning curve was maybe bigger than I'd hoped for this year, but I'm still excited about my job.

7. I am a patriot.

I already volunteered at the caucus and I’m going to be a county delegate for the GOP. I may catch some of the Libertarian National Convention, if I can get into events without changing my party registration.

B. I volunteered at the Ames straw poll and donated some money this year, but the biggest thing I did was change my voter registration and join the Libertarian party. Fed up best describes my feelings about politics this year and after much reflection, the only party that makes sense is the Libertarian party. (Don't tell my die-hard Republican dad.)
Overall, progress was made, but I hope to do better in 2013.