Things I plan to do this year

#1: Read a book a month
For some people, this isn't a difficult task.  However, my home is likely the most connected and electronically adapted home on our street.  Two PS3s (which are networked), a PS3 Move package, two large TVs, an entertainment system, a laptop, a netbook, a tablet, an iPad, a PSP, a Nintendo DS, a PC, old-school Nintendo and N64, and of course two cell phones that each have their own mini-speakers to play streamed radio.  I should be ashamed.  In all of this, I've lost my love of reading, and how it helps me sleep.  For Christmas, I asked for a book to get me started and I was provided with Women in Love, by D. H. Lawrence.  It's good so far!

#2:  Save cash
My long-term goal is to be wealthy.  Ya, I said it.  Stinkin' rich.  No one ever admits it though because it's rude, apparently.  However, it doesn't happen overnight, and one step-at-a-time.  The obvious benefit to saving cash is to pay off wedding debt or pay into my existing mortgages before making money can make, well, more money..  As I see it, though, is that I benefit to an even greater degree by helping me continue to be primal.  If I'm bored, I can find a plethora of ways to keep me entertained instead of spending money.  Like workout in my gym, go hiking with my hubby, run around outside with my very playful dogs, make a recipe book of my favourite primal meals or just find new ones to try.  As opposed to eating at expensive restaurants (a bad habit of mine...), I can make my own fancy feast at home and invite some good friends.  Crafty projects are becoming cheaper since I have now accummulated copious amounts of materials and tools.  Oh ya, blogging comes on the cheap, too!

#3: Keep as much to my primal ways as possible
This means drinking booze in moderation, bringing a veggie and cheese platter to a dinner (more snacking options for me), having a box of green tea, bags of almonds, and 85% chocolate at my desk for quick snacking.  This also means moving regularly, and lifting heavy things, keeping my cupboards primal-friendly, sleeping more, and playing more.  Reading MDA daily, too.

#4: Do some do-goody things
I'm not a do-gooder.  I'm not a do-badder, but I don't go out of my way to make the world a better place.  If you give me the option to fundraise or to donate, I'll donate everytime.  So, one idea that I've had is to make a list of all my friends and relatives (including my new ones) and their birthdays so that I can send them a birthday card.  Generation X totally sucks the big one at doing this kind of thing.  It's a small gesture, but definitely a nice one to the ones who matter to me most.

#5: Stay on top of things
I got hit last night with a $110 ticket for driving with expired plates.  Why?  Because I procrastinated on getting them renewed.  My birthday is in June, by the way.  Staying on top of things will help me clear my head, and avoid clearing-out my wallet.  (Minor vent: why was there a ride program at my exit on a Monday evening...? Apparently if you live in hickville, they expect you to be bombed on a random back-to-work day after the holidays.  WTF?).

#6: Do nice things for my hubby
I've reeled him in for life.  Might as well enjoy it.  Plus, a happy hubby is a happy wife.

#7: Do things that I want to do
For example, I like spending time alone.  I love making things pretty (like my house and my cottage).  I love random trips to the dollar store (ya, I'm snob but not snobby enough to overlook scoff at dollar stores).  I should call my girlfriends more.  Is this really a goal?  I think I just want to re-assure myself that I want to make my time, my own, and say to myself, "Hey.  I've got my own time to do whatever I wanna do.  Take advantage."

Ya, ya. I'm still here.

Sura Nualpradid

As you can see, I'm a very inconsistent poster. I, like my future husband, have a very short attention span, so we're flakey. Well, I'm definitely flakey.

Not much is new, other than Grok has initiated a new challenge. We've continued with our primal ways, but our adherence has serously been wavering (we'd only buy primal foods, but booze and trips to the cottage has us binging on candy and bread).  So, motivated with the wedding in four months, Grok created a spreadsheet and allocated a point value to each activity to be followed daily:

• Track weight (1pt)
• Eat clean (primal) (4pts)
• Track food (2pts)
• Sprint (2pts)
• Play sports (2pts)
• Slow and steady activity (2pts)
• Lift weights (2pts)

And then there's this:

• Drink alcohol (-2pts per drink)
• Eat sugar/starchy carbs(-2pts)
• Grains (-2pts)
• Dairy (-2pts)
• No exercise at all (-2pts)

By the end, whoever has the highest score wins something.  Not quite sure what the wager is yet… I think a new wardrobe is warranted!

Ya, we'll see how this goes.

To tell you the truth...

If you take a peek at my blog posts, you'll notice a rather large gap between November and March.  Similar to some of my earlier posts about lack of consistency with my primal efforts, this gap of time was not my shiniest moment. 

The Christmas holidays were really great, but full of everything bad for me.  Up until that time I was doing really well with eating better and moving my body enough, and I had shed some fat.  However, I made the trek up north for Grok's family festivities and I ate and drank everything in sight.  And then I had my family Christmas.  And then I went and had another one.  Grok and I were served a total of 59lbs of turkey... and all the fixins.  I figured that my body could handle it, and I could afford to some time off from Primal.

Sharron Goodyear



By the time I was back into my routine in early January, all my work clothes had become tight again.  What an awful feeling.  But that's what the holidays do for many of us -- I know I'm not alone.  My mood, my cravings, my lethargic-ness was rampant. 

Since then, Grok and I decided that we would get married (we've been engaged for over a year) in our current city as opposed to the whimsickle beach wedding that we were hoping for.  Logistically, it didn't make sense for us to go south, so here we are, amidst lots of planning for our big day in November.

So there's our motivation.  For Grok, he's almost at his goal weight but would like to gain some muscle to look more cut.  For me, I have my eyes set on looking like every bride-to-be wishes to look on her wedding day in a gorgeous gown, amongst those who will be part of the biggest day in her life. 

So there.  I've admitted where my recent motivation has come from.  I guess a wedding is just what I needed.

A Tidbit on Sticking to It

I came upon this article during my Google adventure for goal- and committment-related reads:

Motivation to Goal Adherence

It's a short article that suggests that one's focus is a key factor in achieving goals.  Specifically, the article illustrates focusing on previous achievements is more motivating than focusing on future ones.   I guess it makes sense to qualify or quantify successes to make your future goals more realistic and achievable. 

Just and interesting tidbit that I wanted to share.