Read a Book! Goals for 2013

I love to read!

Coolest staircase ever! I will do this one day! I found this on Pinterest.

I joined goodreads.com last March, right around the time I began blogging. If you love to read and you are not a member, I highly recommend checking it out! It is a whole online community for book lovers! What could be better? Plus, there are several authors on the site so you can follow them and see what they read. I have found some good books by following the readings and recommendations of a favorite author of mine, Tamora Pierce.

In March of last year, I set a goal to read 20 books by the end of the year. If you come to my blog and look around, you probably noticed my little widget on the right noting my progress. If you click there you can get to my goodreads profile and the books that I have read towards that goal.

Last year in about 10 months I exceeded my goal by 13 books. I do tend to read a lot of young adult books, however (and 3 were audio books which I have mixed feelings about posting... but I did not post the other 4 audio books I got through last year so I guess I'm even?). These are far below my reading level, but they are what I enjoy the most. Life is too short to read crappy books. This does tend to raise my book count. Keeping that in mind, I set my new goal for 45 books to read by December 31, 2013. Think I can do it? I hope so.

Feel free to keep up with my progress and my books. Make goals for yourself. I always encourage reading and there are oh so many good books out there. If you add me as a friend, I can see what you have read and liked. Lots of my friends' books that rate high end up on my "to read" shelf.

Plus as you read and rate books, goodreads will make recommendations. Awesome.

My recommendation from 2012 for people who enjoy young adult books: read Rick Riordan! I have been raving about the Percy Jackson books. I am accepting converts *wink*. Love 'em.

Another cool resource for book lovers: What Should I Read Next? It is a database of sorts. You type in book titles or author names and it will give you a list of similar books you might like. Love it! (I found this site via Pinterest as well. I am on there all the time these days.)

What are your reading goals for this year?

Insanity: Week One

That's right folks, my friends and I made it (mostly alive) through week one of Insanity! Yay!

The first few days my legs were so sore I could barely walk. Going down stairs was agony. Even the little fit test on the first day made me hurt.

I am proud to say that only one week later I have already noticed improvements! I think we all have. For one, we can move after the workouts and the next day. Second, we can get through more of the warm up than we could at first (I know it's just the warm up but if you haven't seen in, its a whole workout in itself...).

We have a few motivational things to get us through.
1) Probably the most important thing: we have each other to keep us going and we are establishing a routine. Moral support is wonderful!
2) Afterwards we share a nice, healthy snack: bananas, apples with peanut butter, pita and hummus, chocolate milk, protein shakes, cottage cheese, etc.
3) Most days we visit the hot tub in the apartment complex. Very nice.
4) At the week's end once we finish at the hot tub we make and share a healthy dinner. This week Kat made a veggie casserole.
5) At the end of the 60 days we promised ourselves a treat. Maybe a spa day or something similar.
6) And last but not least, getting to cross off the workouts on the calendar with a very decisive black X.

Photo taken by my workout buddy, Jhenn :)

YAY! We feel great about what we are doing and we can't wait to be in amazing shape!

Our tips if you are going to do Insanity:
1) See the list above for additional motivation and tips.
2) Do extra stretches of your own (we think his are bunk, honestly, they don't do nearly enough and no arm or ab stretches. His stretches also require you to support your body weight while you do them and usually our legs are too shaky to get a good stretch. So we do his and then we do more on the ground...).
3) I got this from a co-worker who is super-fit: after you work out and stretch, lay on your back and put your legs up against a wall. This helps get rid of lactic acid (so I am told). It seemed to help some and I guess it can't hurt!

To 2013!

A new year once again. The time when we have to cross out the year every time we write the date because only after 2012 is on the page do we remember that it is 2013.

So, New Years' resolutions. People are funny about these, I think.

The idea is great. It's a new year! Turn over a new leaf! Gym memberships skyrocket! Dieting is the rage!

And then it's back to normal come March.

I think having a New Years resolution is great, but two things: be reasonable and stick with it.

I am making a promise to myself this year: be better with my money and get in better shape. If you are like me, relative goals work. I am not going to set specific goals right now, I just want to see how far I can get.

Last year I did not have a resolution but both years before that it was to improve my diet (both years in a row because there is always room for improvement and because I always had such bad eating habits. It took a while for me to get to a good spot.) Both years I did improve and looking back, I am proud and satisfied. And maybe a bit healthier. The way I ate was horrifying. I think I made entire meals out of junk food. Those days are, thankfully, over. So now I need to focus elsewhere.

I have been trying to get my finances under control for a long time now. I'm not great with money and I had and still have a decent amount of credit card debt. On top of that I really don't make a whole lot. Being a home-owner and possibly in need of a new car soonish means serious budgeting with my small earnings.

I have cut back my spending a lot within the past several months, which is great, but it never seems to be quite enough.

Most of my spending is when I go out with friends. So I need to place limits. More staying in, less going out. With friends or without. Another goal is that I do not go out more than once per week (unless there is a special occasion, friends visiting or some such). For my friends who are reading this, I hope you understand that I am not intending to blow you off, just to curb my spending. This is gonna be huge. And difficult.

As for working out--I am the lucky kind of person who hides weight well. I don't tend to gain a whole lot nor show what I do. Overall I am pretty slim. I am not doing this to lose weight. I need to be in shape. I have no stamina whatsoever and no strength. I used to, but it is all long gone.

Today a friend of mine and I started Insanity. Yep, that is happening. I also purchased an app called "Couch to 5k." I used it briefly (the free version) last year and liked it so I made an investment. I can't afford gym memberships so I am going to stick with Insanity for now and then do other workouts until it is warm enough to run outside (I will post what little workouts I find; I already have some lined up). That's the plan. I think I can handle it. If I get in better shape and save money, maybe I can start ballroom dancing or vaulting again. That's the idea. I hope you all will hold me to it.

What are your resolutions? And what are you going to do to stick with it?