Smoots, Nuggets and the New Year

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The "new year".

A phrase fraught with that hope that shines when slates of lives, days, minds are wiped clean... and that pressure of living up to the change the hope inspires.  A double-edged phrase - one that makes me giddily cringe... if that bodily/emotional movement is at all possible.

I read of someone calling their resolutions "re-inspirations"... I rather like that - resolve is admirable, but maybe easily broken.  Inspiration can ebb and flow... but not break.

On that note, I have been re-inspired by a playful challenge on this website.  The first month's challenge began Monday with a call to break re-inspirations or goals into quantifiable objectives.  Now that's what I'm talking about - this girl loves numbers, especially when it comes to tracking my own progress (and often, sadly, any digression I have as well).  The participants were to write down five of these objectives.  In the interest of sharing and accountability, here are mine:

uno) Zero Starbucks for this month.  Double huzzah for my wallet and waistline!

dos) Eat out only once a week.  Not that I make it a habit of eating these, but still - can I get a woot?

tres) Run four times a week.  Since my knee has been a bum lately and my fancy-dancy watch counts any movement my walks as "runs", this may have to be limited to loooooooong walks, and not the pounding-the-pavement variety I was imagining... Though if I measured in smoots, it would be impressive...

cuatro) Lose seven pounds by month-end.

cinco) Practice yoga from my book every weekday morning.

I am also to keep track of how many pushups (aka bane of my existence) I can do, and hopefully watch that number rocket to the moon.  Right now, I'm at 15.  For all of you getting ready to clap, that's on my knees.  Hard on myself?  You betcha.  Need to work on that?  Yes, please.

My own personal exercise goal began to form in the beginning of December.  Knowing that I work well actually finish things under some amount of pressure of deadlines, I decided I would like to complete one event each month of the year - whether it be running, walking, crawling (mud runs!), biking or snowshoeing - so long as I keep moving and cross that finish line.  I love the life metaphors the courses and challenges push me to, and the camaraderie that blooms in the environment of a shared goal.  Again, in the interest of sharing and accountability (and here's hoping you join me on some of these!), here's my list (some still up in the air):

January - 1/21 - Brave the Blizzard Snowshoe Race - Averill Park, NY

February - 2/4 - Polar Cap 4 Miler - Lake George, NY

               (or 2/4 - Saranac Lake Winter Carnival Fun Run)

March - 3/17 - Runnin' of the Green (Island) Race - Green Island, NY

April - 4/7 - Guilderland High School Rabbit Ramble - Guilderland Center, NY

May - 5/tbd - North Face Marathon Relay - Bear Mountain, NY

         (and, God willing, 5/28 - Bolder Boulder - Boulder, CO)

June - 6/23 - Centurion 25 Mile Ride - Lake George, NY

July - 7/21 - Schenectady YMCA 5k - Schenectady, NY

August - depending on convention dates...

             - 8/18 - Jailhouse Rock 5k - Ballston Spa, NY

             - 8/25 - Altamont 5k Run - Altamont, NY

September - 9/8 - Maple Leaf Half - Manchester, VT

October - 10/13 - ING Hartford Half (or 5k) - Hartford, CT

November - ?

December - ?

I'm up for suggestions too - if it's in the northeast and on a Saturday, I can swap it out for any of these except May's.

I was graciously reminded on the first of the year that I don't live in years, I live in moments that add up to days, that add up to months, then years.  I want to be careful to make healthy choices, in all aspects, in those moments - and to live the moments, live the questions as Rilke says, with an eye on the future rather than living in the future itself.

Best wishes for your new moments (: