Accounting for January

I started out the new year with a main goal of Nourishing Me.

To break that down, I committed to nourishing my spiritual self by writing in my journal daily, which I did (I missed one day), and reading from my scriptures daily. (I missed that same one day--popped a movie in with Adam and forgot all about it!) I also pledged to do better about spending quality time in prayer. I am really proud of myself for doing so well.

To nourish my physical self (which is directly connected to my emotional, mental, and spiritual self for sure), I vowed to eat more vegetables (I did that, thanks largely to my Dr. Oz soup), go for a walk each day (well, I made it on 18 days), have at least 10,000 steps a day (I succeeded more than I failed) and get back on my vitamin regimen (check). I signed up on RealAge.com and took the test and set some goals for waist and weight and walking.

I also wanted to lose 3 pounds in January.

Instead, I gained one.

That was a bit disappointing to me, but I did not let it devastate me. Instead, I counted up all of my successes--including some other goals like starting my garden plans, having a personal interview with each of my children, celebrate more birthdays, and go to the temple (twice!), and figured I'm not going to let one--or even four, really--pounds get me down. I have made strides towards better health, and I have felt better, stronger. I still have a ways to go, but I'm sure some of those four pounds were gained muscle, and not just stubborn fat. And it's all a process.

I did decide to make one small change. Initially, my goal was to only step on the scale once a month, but I can see that that is not enough accountability for me. It's easy for me to procrastinate my goals for the sake of a (pan of) brownies if I know I don't have to weigh for two more weeks. If I had to weigh at the end of the week, I'd be more diligent. I don't want my weight loss to be a last-minute slam dunk, I want it to be slow and steady and because of small life changes. I will still be baking and eating treats, I just need to learn some self-love when I indulge.

So January, I would conclude, was a success. A step in the right direction. Actually, it was 292,386 steps in the right direction. But I'm probably the only one counting.