December 2016 Goals and Some Thoughts for 2017

Pure Barre Goal: 1 time for a total of 53 tucks in 2016.

CrossFit Goal: 160/200 WODs. I went to class 14 times, one of which was a drop-in at CrossFit Downtown Atlanta.

I PR'd my Kelly time at 26:44 Rx while injured on 12/28/16. Kelly is 5RFT 400 m run, 30 box jumps (24/20), and 30 wallballs (20/14). My old time from 1/31/15 is 31:29 Rx and I didn't have a shooting pain up my back. My back is getting better and I have been scaling most of the workouts. I did step ups instead of rebounding on the box jumps. I have been going really light on the weights each day.

We got some brand new Lynx barbells and they are gorgeous.

Mileage Goal: I ran 10.8 miles this month for a total of 154 miles for the year. I chuckle because I used to run this in a month. The other day someone decided to lie to me about our evening plans and so I left my car at his place. When we ended up at the bar DIRECTLY DOWN THE STREET from my apartment, I was pissed. One and a half miles of this total mileage is me running back down the Beltline to pick up my car the next morning. I think this was just his way of making sure I came back.

November 2016 Goals

Pure Barre Goal: I went once. Woohoo! That 52 classes for the year. I'm getting close to being part of the 100 Club.

CrossFit Goal: 146/200 WODs. I went to class 15 times and I did a CrossFit competition that had 3 WODs throughout the morning. I'll post about the competition as soon as the event photos are posted online.

October 2016 Goals

Pure Barre Goal: Zero, but I went to something called [solidcore]. It is really hard but a lot of fun.

CrossFit Goal: 128/200 WODs. I went to CrossFit Identity for 13 WODs this month. I didn't drop in during my travels to save some money and to make myself go running instead.

Mileage: I ran 38 miles, including the Marine Corps Marathon. MCM 41 is my fastest marathon to date. I swore I would never run another one as I crossed the finish line, but then I found myself googling best Boston Qualifier courses in Georgia a few hours later.

September 2016 Goals

Pure Barre Goal: Zero, but my colleague from our New Orleans campus is a certified barre3 instruction and she taught a class at our retreat last week. She is a GREAT instructor. I can't say if I like the method because it wasn't a traditional class in a studio. We took over the basketball court and borrowed equipment from the hotel gym. I'm going to make her take me to class with her when I go visit her campus this year.

CrossFit Goal: 115/200 WODs. I dropped in at Reebok CrossFit 5th Ave and PR'd my Fran time! I also did a two-a-day with my best betch Kayte. I am so proud of her and her dedication to CrossFit. She hits the gym twice a day regularly. She let me row with her and then we did clean and jerks and GHD sit-ups and some handstand work. If I could get my life in order and get on top of all of my work, I would definitely train with her more often.

Mileage: I ran 7.6 miles while traveling for work. I did a 5.37 mile run in Alexandria and found a nifty trail. I then did a short 2.26 jog around the golf course with some coworkers while we attended our retreat at the Minerals Springs Spa and Resort in New Jersey.

Life and Wellness Goals: September was freaking stressful. I felt like I was in a bad mood the entire month. But a lot of good things happened in September. We passed our site monitoring visit for our New York State grant, and I was really concerned about that. I got to see some great friends while I was in New York. I had a great conversation with our CEO and finally feel like maybe I'm doing a good job at work. I got to spend two days with my colleagues at the retreat and actually make a few work friends. Working from home is the shit, but you don't get to make friends in the mailroom because you don't have one.

I've been sleeping pretty well, eating pretty okay for the amount of travel I've done recently, and binge drinking a moderate amount. Things could definitely be worse.

Lately, I've been catching myself trying to cut calories or skip meals. While this can deliver results in the short-term, it can really fuck up your metabolism. I've been playing around with my macros to see what I respond to best. I am currently aiming for 135g of protein, 150g of carbohydrates, and 55g of fat a day. This is less fat and more carbs than I'm used to and it's been working pretty well. I feel rich in carbs and that makes me feel good about what I'm eating. If I do a long run on Saturday (which I've done exactly once), I up my carbs to 300g and my fat to 80g. I'm not a doctor and this is not advice. The macros I use won't work for you because they're not based on your size, goals, or activity level. If you want your numbers calculated, I highly recommend Jenna Carelli.

August 2016 Goals

Pure Barre Goal: I went to Pure Barre twice this month, which makes 51 classes this year.

CrossFit Goal: 97/200 WODs. I dropped in at CrossFit Hamilton and CrossFit Central LI.

Mileage: I ran 23.5 miles this month. It included a brutal 6.4 miles on the Beltline, the Area 13.1 Half Marathon, and a nice 4 miler through Oyster Bay.

July 2016 Goals

Life and Wellness Goals: July felt like the longest month. I traveled to Memphis, Chicago, Houston, and Newark within a three week period. My inbox still has 400 emails in it. I feel like I wasted my weekends with too much drinking at the pool and I didn't accomplish as much as I would have liked. Despite some serious work stress and anxiety, I'm feeling pretty good about life.

I listened to both seasons of Serial during my travels. When is Sarah Koenig going to come out with Season 3? For real though, I miss her soothing voice.

Speaking of soothing voices, the highlight of the month was meeting Doug Larson at my box!

My GMAT prep course started again and I'm trying to keep myself organized and on top of the work. I need to do well in the course so that I feel confident taking the exam in October. I wonder if there are podcasts I can listen to for GMAT prep? If you know of any, send them my way por favor.

Pure Barre Goal: I went to Pure Barre twice this month, which makes 49 classes this year.

CrossFit Goal: 79/200 WODs. I dropped in at CrossFit Tupelo on my drive back from Memphis. They just moved into their new space and it's beautiful and air-conditioned. Looking at this, I don't think I am going to hit my goal of 200 WODs.

Mileage: 0. I should probably find some time to run before my half marathon on August 13.

June 2016 Goals

Hi y'all! So June was a pretty good month. I traveled to both Nashville and New York. I got to spend quality time with my parents, see old friends, drink too much wine on the Long Island Railroad, and tour a firehouse. Living the dream.

Because it's entirely normal to get a 20 oz soda cup filled with pinot grigio.
No, like really. It's an actual thing you can order at Penn Station.

May 2016 Goals

Life and Wellness goals: Life is pretty awesome, but I haven't managed my anxiety very well. It sucks when I know that I'm wasting precious time when I become paralyzed with anxiety, but then I just sit there freaking out and then I have more anxiety the next day because I wasn't productive the day before. Vicious cycle. I'm trying to be more mindful and let myself feel my feelings without going into full-blown panic mode. And I'm trying to curb my online shopping problem. There's just so many workout clothes I want! And then I start thinking about how that is not helping me reach my financial goals. I'd like to have actual savings and use them to purchase a house one day. Instead I have 5 pairs of Nanos...

May was really fantastic for friendships. I got to spend some much-appreciated quality time with my CrossFit community at Regionals where we cheered on our badass coach, Breona Evans. (Look her up. Pat Sherwood has recognized her greatness so you know it's true.) I felt very much included and had a great time going to festivals with box friends and apartment complex friends. I've also got myself a group of 5 PMers that I want to see every day. I jump around classes a lot, which allows me to meet a lot of people, but I really benefit from having a group that is going to motivate me and consistently show up at the same time.

I'm happy with my nutrition progress. I've been a lot more loose with my macros but I did weigh in at 140.2 lbs on May 25. I read Natalie Noe's ebook and I follow her on social media, and she talks about how she eats for performance. She doesn't care if she can see her abs one day and not the next because she has a goal - to be sick at CrossFit. I've gotten pretty lean but I'd like more definition, but I don't want to lift any less or not be able to keep up. Sometimes I see myself working out in photos and I'm disappointed that I don't look leaner. Or I'll be running around the gym in a sports bra and shorts and wonder if I have a muffin top. These things aren't important. I'm not going to ruin my performance by trying to suck in my gut so I look better in my shorts. Our coach requested that we send before, progress, and after photos his way for a motivation board at the gym. I looked at my photos from November 2015 (right after I started working with Jenna) and now, and it was a really good smack in the face. I'm proud of my progress.

Pure Barre Goal: I went to Pure Barre 4 times this month. I took some time off from CrossFit in preparation for Murph and did Pure Barre instead. I've attended class 39 times this year. I'm getting close to the 100 Club.

CrossFit Goal: 58/200 WODs. I went to CrossFit 13 times this month. I'm seeing a lot of improvement and I've been Rxing more of the workouts. I'm finally feeling like I'm getting back to where I was before I got mugged last May.

Mileage: I ran 18 miles. This included my first long run in a very long time. I need to be better about prioritizing running because I need to build a base for marathon training. The good news is that 10 miles felt comfortable. I've got another 5K with the boyfriend this weekend that I'm pretty excited about.

April 2016 Goals

Life and Wellness goals: I slept more in April than I think I have in the rest of 2016. It was glorious. I've even managed to go to sleep without taking anything more than a few times. I've spent time with friends and enjoyed some time at the pool, because this is Georgia and yes, it is already pool season. The boyfriend and I have made our relationship even better, which is fantastic. Life is good and I am happy.

Pure Barre Goal: I took class 4 times in April, including the Row. Tone. Om. class in Piedmont Park. That's 35 classes in 2016. I bought myself a class pack and I'll probably use the 20 classes by the end of August.

CrossFit Goal: 45/200 WODs. I went to CrossFit 11 times this month. It is so awesome to be back in the box on a regular basis. I PR'd my hang power clean at 135# (10# PR) and got my very first strict pull-up. I've gotten 2 more since then. I'm also loving the opportunity to see my CrossFit friends on a regular basis and being included in fun things outside of the gym. Being away all of the time sucked because I felt like I wasn't a part of the community anymore.

Mileage: I ran 20 miles this month, including a 5K. I love my Garmin 360 and my Brooks Ghost 8s. You can also follow me on Strava, although I'm not exactly sure what that means.

March 2016 Goals

This month was humbling. I wanted to be someone who could accomplish a ton of things and be a ladyboss, but it became apparent that I had too many things on my plate. The quality of my work at my real job suffered. I was constantly tired. I even got so stressed out, I yelled at my dogs. I don't want to be a person who yells at her dogs. Even when one of them refuses to potty outside and the other refuses to stay outside long enough for the first one to consider going potty. I accidentally tazed myself this morning. I was so tired and it was 4 AM and instead of pressing the button that locks Frank's retracting leash, I pressed the button on my taser and I tazed the shit out of my hand. I was so tired that it took me a few moments to even realize where the pain was coming from. It was in that exact moment that I knew I had made the right decision. My first priority is sleeping enough to succeed at my job and to be a good dog momma.

I withdrew from my GMAT class because it became painfully obvious that I am significantly behind in the math content. Once I have become proficient enough in the work that pays my salary, I am going to get myself a math tutor. Veritas Prep told me I can re-enroll without penalty whenever I'm ready. I have also put in my notice at Pure Barre and will only work a few shifts this April. The 4 AM wake up on Wednesday and Thursday was killing me, especially since I produce my best work between 6 and 10 AM. By the time I got home, I couldn't concentrate and frequently needed a nap. I was also late for my shrink every Thursday. I am disappointed that I didn't get to enjoy a free membership. It seemed like I was asked to cover a shift every time I signed up for class - like legit, Hey we see you're signed up to take the 4:45 PM. Can you show up at 4 and leave at 8? I'm a hard worker and I understand that helping to pick up weights is a small sacrifice to make for free class, but I didn't want to get pulled in to cover the desk every time I went near the studio. I have a relatively flexible work schedule that allows me to exercise during a typical work day but that's only because I make up that hour before 9 AM or after 6 PM. It doesn't mean that I'm free to work 4 hours in the middle of the day or that I can drop everything to handle an apparel shipment at 11 AM. If it sounds like I'm pissed, it's because I am. I'm a big fan of the studio and the owners and everyone who works there, but working there isn't the right thing for me anymore. I'm going to buy myself a class pack and go back to being a client.

Life and Wellness goals: FAILED. I didn't sleep enough and I certainly didn't live in the moment because I was miserable and panicking on a regular basis. I got so stressed out that I tried to find things to give up that weren't GMAT or Pure Barre so I told Jenna I needed a break from nutrition coaching. Even thinking about my macros changing made me freak out. The good news is that I'm back on track and have a carb cycling and workout plan set for the month of April.

I'm looking pretty lean but I'm still working on losing more body fat.

February 2016 Goals

I didn't realize how accomplished my friend Trevor was until I attended his funeral. I knew he was brilliant because it was nearly impossible to speak with him and not notice his intelligence, wit, and kindness. I knew he had a job he was passionate about and that he was also attending school. I knew he was a good student because I had friends attend high school with him. I knew he was a great friend because he put up with my shenanigans and checked in on me regularly. I had no idea what he was really up to. He excelled at his job and changed people's lives as a mental health professional. He was a straight A student (honestly not surprised but very proud.) He made the internet laugh and mentored a bunch of people and made time for the literally hundreds of people who considered him a best friend. He also had an awesome girlfriend who lives in LA, which meant time zones and travel. As I sat at the service and I listened to family and friends describe Trevor, I was struck by the impact he had on so many people in such a short time. I would do anything to have more time with him, but he lived his life in a way that somehow quadrupled time. His "free time" activities included beautiful art and creating hysterical videos. My free time activities include panicking on the couch about something I have to do in 3 weeks. Trevor is my motivation for 2016 and all of my goals. I want to make him proud. His life was cut tragically short and I feel compelled to step up my own to honor him. So here's my February check in.

Life and Wellness goals: I had my first Veritas Prep GMAT class last night. Oh my goodness am I behind in math. Like sooooo far behind in math. I have a lot of studying to do and I am going to take it seriously. I have three hours of arithmetic review tonight. If you are any good at algebra, please send words of encouragement!

I've been trying to sleep more but I am experiencing something that feels a lot like exhaustion. The past month has been really rough. It's no secret that I have problems with insomnia. Lately I've been falling asleep immediately and pretty much anywhere. I've passed out on my boyfriend within the first 5 minutes of about 8 movies. I find myself falling asleep on phone calls. I'm going to start taking a multi-vitamin more regularly and avoiding early AM workouts whenever possible. I'll go to a doctor if I don't see an improvement soon.

Last week I skipped Pure Barre to have brunch with my new friend Myra. Most people shouldn't skip workouts. I was proud of myself for putting life into perspective and spending some quality time with someone I really like. I consider this living in the moment.

Pure Barre goal: I took class 5 times in February. I decided to adjust my goal from 10 classes a month to 120 classes in 2016 because some months are challenge months. I'm at 21/120. March's challenge is 20 classes in 31 days. I think I'm going to aim for this challenge because I already ripped my hands in the Open and need to heal this mits up. More Pure Barre means less stress on the hands for the foreseeable future.

CrossFit goal: 22/200 WODs. I went to CrossFit 14 times in February. I dropped in at CrossFit and Fearless in Austin, Texas and loved it. Talk about a welcoming community!

Mileage: The Garmin's official count is 4.9 miles. The boyfriend and I decided to run to brunch on Saturday and I lost satellite reception. The round trip was about 2 miles but we walked some of it, so I'm okay with the official total.

January 2016 Goals

Good morning! It's February 1, so 36% of Americans have already thrown in the towel on their New Years Resolutions. I am one of the 64% who still have their butts in gear.

Pure Barre goal: 16 classes in January. My monthly goal is 10 classes, but our studio had a 16 classes in 31 days challenge and I like to win challenges.

CrossFit goal: 8/200 WODS. I went to CrossFit 8 times in January, making a slight dent in my goal of 200 WODs in 2016. I had two drop-ins - CrossFit Willy B and Beltway CrossFit.

Wellness goals: I have been tracking my water intake on most days and getting close to 100 ounces of water or more a day. I have been sleeping a little better. I also have an Ambien prescription but I try to not take it.

I've been working with my nutrition coach Jenna from Crazy Healthy Fit since November and I've been making some real progress. Today I weighed in at 143.8 lbs., down from 150 lbs. I have this Omron body fat tester but for the life of me, I cannot get a consistent reading. I am going to get my body fat tested again this month to see how much I have improved since October 31.

My new Target bathing suit. How many more days until pool season?

My friend Drew inspired me to commit to losing some body fat. Drew was one of my first friends in Atlanta and she welcomed me to CrossFit Identity right away. Then she decided to leave me for Dallas! Drew is a badass, a lawyer, a CrossFit coach, a wife, and a wonderful mama to some beautiful furbabies. She's basically my hero. So when Drew made a goal to lose some body fat last summer and then knocked her goal OUT OF THE PARK, even after attending the Texas State Fair, I was like girl, you need to make a commitment to yourself too. Today is Drew's first day at her new job, which is sadly still in Texas, and I hope she has an awesome day!

Drew came to visit us in October and it was magical.

New Year, New Goals

source

So I had all of these plans for a bajillion blog posts for the new year and now it's January 13 and I am posting for the first time in 2016. To be honest, I've been really stressed out this year. Two new jobs, a new travel schedule, trying to figure out what 3.5 jobs in two different states in one year means for my taxes... I've worked myself up into a real tizzy. And that's my number one goal for 2016 -

Focusing on living my life one moment at a time. I get awful anxiety and I let it gnaw at me until I get angry and I can't relax or sleep. I paralyze myself with anxiety and then I feel a lot of guilt about wasting time. I recently read this click bait about turning anxiety into excitement. Today I pulled myself out of bed, dropped Frank at daycare, went to Pure Barre even though I wasn't working the front desk, came home to shower, and even put on REAL CLOTHES before sitting down to work. (Speaking of real clothes, these pants I am wearing are a pair of size 2 J.Crew trousers. Guess who is down to 145.2 lbs?) Instead of freaking out about all of the things I have to do today and cancelling Pure Barre and rushing to my home desk in my pajamas, I took it one step at a time. I got more done. Mind blown.

I also have some performance goals for 2016.

WOD 200 times in 2016. I saw that a CrossFitter from CrossFit Jersey City had this goal for 2015 and he reached it by the beginning of December. 200 divided by 12 is 16.67, so it looks like I need to WOD at least 17 times a month to meet this goal. With my travel schedule and Pure Barre, I know that there are some months where I'll need to step it up more than others. I'm excited to renew my unlimited membership at CrossFit Identity in February.

Tuck 10 times a month. The biggest perk of my new Pure Barre front desk associate position is a free unlimited membership. My goal is to make it to class 10 times every month. I started Pure Barre to supplement my CrossFit, not replace it.

Train for a 1/2 marathon. I am registered for the HOTLANTA Half Marathon on Sunday, June 12. I haven't trained for anything in a long time. I'm using this race to get ready for another 2016 goal.

Complete the Marine Corps Marathon in under 4 hours. I deferred my entry last year because tour was effing crazy. I knew in my heart that it would have been a wasted experience to shove another weekend of travel into my schedule. This year I'm going to look forward to the race and I am going to honey badger it.

I have some other general life and wellness goals.

Sleep 8 hours a night. Y'all know I suck at sleeping. This year I am focusing on getting some solid shuteye. I'm no longer impressed by my ability to function on little to no sleep. I also don't do it as well as I used to.

Drink 3 liters of water daily. Sometimes I am fantastic at meeting this goal, and other days I realize I've had maybe 8 oz. I choose liters as my measurement because I use a 1.5 liter water bottle and then I commit to drinking two of them. It's 101.4 oz, so 100 ounces a day is also a good goal.

Rock the GMAT. I've been talking about business school since I was 21 years old. (I am now 29 for those of you not keeping count.) There's always been some reason why I haven't taken the GMAT, but then something happens professionally, and it would be the perfect time to go to business school and I have no test scores. I have a new job that I really enjoy at a company that seems to be a very strong fit. I don't have any plans to leave, BUT that means this is a great time to take the GMAT. I start a Veritas Prep course in February and take the test in April. The scores are good for 5 years, which gives me a lot of time to decide if I want to go full-time, part-time, executive, or never.

Comment on other blogs. I read other blogs but I subscribe to the posts and receive them in my inbox. I rarely take the time to post a comment or engage with the blogger, which is kind of silly since I read what they write every time they post. This goal is less about meeting a comment quota and more about taking some time to engage with others who like to do similar things as me - exercise and write about it.

And so folks - two weeks into 2016, I have set some pretty big goals for the year. Stop being a crazy person, exercise like a crazy person, make friends with other crazy people. Wish me luck.