Happy New Year!! Welcome to 2019! I am so grateful to have made it through another year and hope that many fun adventures lie ahead! As always, I enjoy setting goals at the start of the year after reflecting on the previous year.
Keep reading to see what my resolutions are for 2019!
I’m linking up with Marcia, Patty, and Erika for Tuesdays on the Run, Debbie, Lora, and Rachel for the Running Coaches Corner andAnnmarie and Nicole for Wild Workout Wednesday!
Looking Back at 2018
2018 was a big year for me. It was the year of training for my second marathon and really challenging myself under the excellent coaching by Laura. I was also really excited because I was getting married to Bret, who you’ve all gotten to know over the years through the blog. In addition, it was a year great sadness due to my mother suddenly passing away. It’s still hard to believe that she’s been gone nearly a full year, but I focus on the positive memories that we shared over 30+ years. I’m thankful we had a strong relationship.
So here’s a quick recap of the goals I set for 2018 and whether I passed or failed:
Successes
- PR the marathon. This was the huge accomplishment of the year! I am SO grateful that my hard work and training over the winter paid off. The New Jersey Marathon was an amazing experience and I felt like a
rockstar , despite those tough last miles! - Meal plan with Hello Fresh. I may not have fully nailed my meal planning, but I finally signed up for Hello Fresh and it has been a huge help! It’s always in my back pocket and it’s really made me enjoy cooking again.
Geting married. We had an amazing wedding and all of the hard work of being my own planner paid off. It feels great to be on the other side and go back to just being a wedding guest!- Reading 8 books in 2018. I had no idea that I would get bitten by the reading bug, but I actually ended up reading 14 books this past year, most of them in the last half of the year!
Failures
- Staying injury-free. Obviously, my biggest disappointment was getting plantar fasciitis. The signs showed pretty early and maybe if I had taken precautions in February, I wouldn’t have had to deal with such a long recovery. Thankfully, I’m on the mend!
- Making self-care a priority. I am terrible about this…still. I keep saying I’ll book more massages and the like, but it doesn’t happen. I found myself very stressed out this past year and I really needed to dedicate more time to take care of myself.
- Nailing down my blogging workflow. I had hoped to blog more in 2018 but it seemed that I wrote even less frequently. I wanted to get my “system” in place but it still needs work.
My Goals for 2019
I’ve been trying to figure out my 2019 gals for quite some time, but I think I finally came up with the list and hopefully won’t do too much more tweaking! I purchased the Living Well Planner for the first time and I really look forward to using it as a tool to knock out these goals.
Running/Fitness
- Prevent another running injury. Since I’m recovering from plantar fasciitis, I want to get to the bottom of my issues. I have so many imbalances and it’s time to get serious. I still have a lot of knee pain from running and I’m worried it’s going to get
wo rse. If I can make prehab a habit, it’ll be huge for me! - Rebuild my running fitness the right way! I am eager to pick up running again but I know that I have to be patient and take things slowly. I will be smart when it comes to deciding when to start race training again.
- Participate in some local group runs. I’ve been thinking about this a lot. There are so many running clubs around me that I just need to take the plunge. Now that I’m not training, I have no excuse to pop in and meet new people.
Nutrition
- Simplify and demystify meal planning once and for all! I’m getting so much closer to this goal and I know that it’s finally going to come together this year. I have a new cookbook with freezer meals (thanks, Kathryn!) and I’m looking forward to the challenge!
- Eat and prepare more home-cooked meals. I realized how much money we spend each month going to restaurants….it’s a LOT. Since I’ve gained weight this past year, I know I need to control my portions and make better choices.
Career
- Expand my network within the company. I’ve been working at my company for over 10.5 years and while I have worked with a lot of people, there are so many that I’d like to get to know better, as well as some of the other departments. I don’t want to be stuck in a bubble, so I’ll be more proactive in this area.
- Keep striving to amplify my voice and speak out. My word for 2019 is FEARLESS. I hold back so much at work, and I need to stop! I have to trust that I bring value and that I know my stuff. I think people will be very surprised once I unleash the beast, lol!
Personal Life
- Get organized with the Living Well Planner! I always have a planner but this year I wanted to try something new and I’m excited to get rolling with it! They also have a Facebook group that has been so helpful and inspiring, especially with the start of a new year. If you’re interested in getting the planner, I have an affiliate link!
- Work on building a strong marriage. I’m married now! And I know that marriage is also a lot of work. So that’s what I plan to do in 2019 because I want us to continue to grow and bond. I’m always happy to receive some free marital advice!
- Reconnect with old friends. Since my wedding, I’ve realized that I have some great friends that I don’t see nearly enough. I want to be surrounded by quality, not quantity. So I need to put in some work and get reconnected – even plan a weekend visit!
Run With No Regrets
- Focus on building community. I know that I haven’t blogged as much this year, and I HATE it. But after 5 years of blogging, I’m still here and I have dreams and goals for this space. I want you to get to know me better as I get to know you better! Stay tuned!
- Develop blogging “office hours” and relocate workspace. The productivity thing is still a challenge with blogging so I’m hoping that moving my office will help me get more focused. And again, the planner will help me determine the best blogging work schedule.
- Earn more passive income from the blog. So I looked at how much it costs to keep my blog running each year and between the hosting, paid plugins, and social media scheduling, let me just say Damn! While I did get rid of some affiliate groups, I want to focus on the ones that actually work for me and be more strategic. I’m not blogging for profit, just to break even!
What are your biggest goals for 2018? Let’s support each other and help keep each other accountable this year!
I think rebuilding your running fitness and preventing injury will go well together. All of these sound like great, attainable goals. Unlike some of the others in the Weekly Wrap, you’re one I followed throughout the year so it’s nice to go “ooh I remember that” to som of your photos. So glad to have “met” you.
Thanks so much Cari! It’s been great getting to know you too! Happy New Year!
I love that you categorized your goals for 2019. I love that your word for this year is fearless. I have a smilier goal for 2019 to push myself out of my comfort zone in all areas of my life. I also need to apply this to work and speak up more.
Here’s to a great 2019!
I’ve been doing the categories like that for a few years and it really is helpful! Good luck with achieving your goals too! Happy New Year!
I am so terrible at meal planning! I live alone and am single, so tend to rely on a lot of easy to prepare stuff, although it’s not always the most nutritious route. I am hoping to improve this in 2019 – got home from the grocery store a little bit ago!
Meal planning is such a struggle! Best wishes in making improvements in this area – we can do it! 🙂
You had quite a year. You have some great goals for 2019!
Thanks a lot, Coco!
Preventing injury is always on my list as well! So glad that you have started to enjoy cooking again. I really find it relaxing. Happy New Year!
This is a great, comprehensive list of goals! It sounds like you’re going about planning them the right way. I think prehab is vital. All runners should take care of their bodies before they are injured!
Great job with your 2018 goals! Fearless is a great word for 2019 🙂 It can apply to pretty much every area of life.
Thanks, Chaitali!
You definitely went from the low (your mom passing) to the high (getting married). I think 2019 will be the year you WILL get more organized (even though you seem darn organized to me!) simply because the wedding is in the rear view mirror.
Good luck with all your goals!
I’d love to hear how you go about blogging to get back to “even”. What strategies do you use? What actionable things do you do that helps you bring in income. I ask because that’s probably my biggest goal in 2019 and I’d love input from someone who’s also doing it.
FEARLESS, love it!!I highly recommend finding a local running community for long runs – build your tribe. And for injury free, it’s my January mini goal is to do prehab resistance band exercises for 10 min each night. We can be accountabilibuddies for it!
Thanks Becca! The thing is we have almost too many running clubs to choose from in Philly…it’s overwhelming! But I’m up to the challenge 🙂
You have a lot of great goals, specific goals at that! I don’t have much for “2019 goals,” but I do have some January goals in mind….daily exercises to lead me through a successful off-season. Now that my run streak is done, the running is gonna get scaled back (somewhat), and I’m gonna focus a little more on other things this month. Happy 2019!