April Goals and March Recap

I’m really loving my monthly goals this year. They haven’t all been a crazy success, but it’s nice to have something new to focus on each month. I also read a great post on Among Other Things today about the power of short-term goals - it’s like Hallie and Kate are speaking to my soul!

So how did I do in March?

Go on a spending fast: no extraneous spending outside essentials, food, and transportation.I would call this a success. Right now my records show that I’ve spent about $600-800 less than I usually do in a month. That is HUGE, and makes me realize how much I splurge without even thinking about it. Even the little splurges add up! It also makes me realize how “impulsive” I am. I say that with quotes because I will often make purchases and justify them by saying I know I need that certain item, and I’ve found that when I sleep on it or walk away from it for a few hours, I realize that while it would be nice to have said item/thing, I would rather not pile too much extraneous stuff up in my home. I’m finding a happy medium now between cutting all non-essential purchases and figuring out how to buy what I truly want and need.Take one non-yoga workout class per week.This was definitely a success as well, though for different reasons. I took a spinning class with a friend earlier this month, and while it was fun I also think it triggered a migraine. I just need to accept that super-high intensity workouts like spinning, HIIT and running can be triggers for me, and be really careful about them. I’ve rediscovered my original love, barre, and that actually led me to a studio that was hiring barre instructors, and long story short, I’ve started a new part of my journey: Barre instructor in training! More to come on this but I’m already loving it. Promote myself and my various creative projects more.This one is SO HARD for me. I’ve gotten better at posting on my @thestruglifestyle Instagram more, and it has been really fun. I’ve actually met a few new people recently and told them about my projects, and found a new friend who is in the same boat. It’s been so rewarding and energizing to spend more time on my creative projects, and in turn it has made me enjoy my full-time job even more. Go figure! 

Overall I think March was a success. Lots of new things to be excited about! Here’s what I’ve got in mind for April.

Move every day.This one is simple, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. April is a WILD month. Case in point: I’m writing this post in my favorite Chicagoland food venue, Standard Market. I could write a whole post about how much I love Standard Market, and maybe I will! I’ve been in the suburbs of Chicago since Monday, and I was supposed to fly back to Nashville this morning but I woke up to an email that my flight was canceled, so I’m hoping to fly out later today if I can. If not, I’m booked on the first flight tomorrow, and then I have a flight back to Chicago tomorrow night, then I’ll head back to Nashville Saturday night. In between I’ve got 3 work events to be at between tomorrow and Monday. Suffice it to say finding time to exercise - and even just get some movement in - will be really important. Yesterday, I walked around a couple of stores just to get some walking in (my fave trick when I have a weird amount of time to kill). Today, I’m going to go on some airport walks while I’m waiting on standby. Finding little ways to move are what help me stay active and sane during this busy month. I also find that I need to find a way to move EVERY DAY. When I say my goal is only 5 days per week, I inevitably just pass up too many days and end up falling off the wagon. So when movement and exercise become a part of my daily routine it is a whole lot easier for me to keep it up. I also have more incentive to get movement in every day now that I’m in training with Neighborhood Barre Nashville, and I’m planning to mix both barre and yoga into my routine when I can. Limit candy consumption to one serving per day.This one is also so hard. I love candy. So much. It’s just so good. But I need to chill out on the candy, because I eat it to keep me going when I travel. It’s fine to have a little bit, but I really need to work on not eating nine different kinds in one day just because. Step one is to not buy myself candy - if I don’t have it around I can’t eat it!! Setting too many rules about food makes me crazy, but I think it’s perfectly reasonable to keep my candy consumption more moderate.

So that’s it. I’ll check in on my goals at the end of April. What goals do you have this month?