February Changes

Hey all! I’m Melissa from Press Play, just checking in real quick on this little blogger project of ours.

I can’t believe we’re already well into February and well into our second change of the year! January went really well for me; I had set out to begin a healthier eating lifestyle for myself & accomplished just that by cutting junk food out of my life for most of the month, as well as going vegetarian for the last two weeks.

As of right now, I’m still semi-vegetarian (by choice!) and only indulge in junk food once in a while. Cutting things out of my diet drastically doesn’t always work for me- I tried coffee once, did NOT like that experience- but every once in a while it turns into a great experience. Cutting meat out of my diet for the most part has done amazing things for me and for right now I don’t plan on looking back to what I used to eat.

In February, I really wanted to continue on this healthy eating track and add in a fitness routine. I’ve never been the kind of person who LOOKS FORWARD to exercise, but after trying out fitness classes last summer I’ve been wanting to get into that kind of exercise more regularly. I was doing so well in January that I ended up activating my new gym membership a week early.

I was feeling great about it until February hit- I haven’t been to the gym yet and we’re already one week into the month! I was putting it off for the first few days, but now I’m just focusing on getting better from a little cold. I was told that exercising while sick isn’t the best idea, so I’m postponing my challenge for a few more days while still focusing on eating extremely well and getting healthy again.

I’m kind of sad to not be able to jump right into Change Number Two after such a successful January, but that’s just part of life, right? Things aren’t always smooth sailing and you just have to go with the flow. I’ll have a little bit less time to get my butt into gear & get into a good fitness routine- I’m not too worried though. I’m so excited to get into shape, I think I’ll find ways to make it work.

As of right now, I’m most excited to get back into a Jillian-Michaels-kicking-my-arse-routine every day as well as fitness classes 2-3 times per week. I’m hoping that by mid-February I’ll be getting my fitness routine worked out and once March comes around I’ll be ready to add my Third Change into the mix. As of next month I’m moving away from health and incorporating other aspects of my life into my changes, so I really need to make this month count if I want my Jan/Feb changes to be long term! 

How have you been doing so far with your February? Have you hit any road bumps along the way in the past month and a half?

 

My Twelve Changes

Hi everyone! My name is Melissa, and I’m one of the bloggers taking part in the 12 Changes project that was created by Stephany and Katherine. I remember seeing the beginning of this conversation on Twitter, and getting REALLY excited. I knew that if any bloggers could take care of this project the right way, it would be these two lovely ladies. And look at all the wonderful things they’ve done already! Not only are there SIXTY bloggers taking part in this amazing endeavor, but there is a Twitter account and, of course, this blog. It’s only fitting that we blog about our progress because we are all bloggers after all. It’s what brought us together and it’s the reason this project exists!

Today I wanted to talk about my own personal 12 Changes. 12 Changes reminds me A LOT of The Happiness Project [by Gretchen Rubin]. I wrote about it a little while ago when I read the book, and I had completely forgotten about it until 12 Changes came up. When I had originally read it I had REALLY wanted to do something similar for myself (because I love goals and it just sounds like a lot of fun) so I decided to plan 2012 around a Happiness Project of sorts. Mine isn’t necessarily about HAPPINESS the way that Gretchen Rubin’s was, though. My project is about setting attainable goals for myself throughout the year based around a new theme each month. Then, as each month comes to an end, I’m going to start my new month of goals while trying to incorporate the previous month’s achievements into the next. Of course I want to be *happy* doing it, but I think that will come naturally as I continue crossing off my goals!

This is what my themes are for each month of the year.

January: health
February: fitness
March: budgeting
April: procrastination
May: goals
June: friendships
July: personal living
August: mindfulness (or being open-minded)
September: school
October: organization
November: family
December: round-up (putting it all into practice)

I’m so excited and hopeful about this project, I really am. I haven’t chosen what each of my goals are going to be for each month of the year, but I am making sure to stay organized to be ready when I need to be.

Right now I’m working on the idea of health. I haven’t really *done* anything yet, but I have set up what I’d like to be achieve before February. Now that the holidays are really and truly over I’m going to put my mind to it and really get a few goals crossed off to start this project off right.

In January, I have four goals set up for myself. 

1. Go one month without junk food

2. Start taking multi-vitamins every day

3. Try vegetarianism for one week

4. Keep a food diary

I also want to keep in mind 3 rules as I incorporate healthier eating habits into my life. 

1. Keep the kitchen stocked with the right food

2. Boredom does not equal hunger. Remember the 10 minute rule.

3. When really hungry, always go for the healthy option FIRST. You’ll never regret a healthy snack!

By the end of January, I don’t expect to cut junk food out of my life permanently or become a vegetarian; the idea is just to try these different lifestyles to see what changes I see in myself. Ideally I’d love to simply use these extreme measures as a way to decrease the bad food I eat and increase the good.

By the end of 2012, I just want to see significant changes in myself; exactly what the project is ABOUT. I want to continue to feel inspired by The Happiness Project all year, and hopefully be successful with most of the goals I set up for myself!

Are you taking part in 12 Changes? If not, what do your goals look like for the year, or for January?