It's already 3 days into the new year and I am still not "with it." In my defense I have battling a cold so my brain is a little foggy.


I used to make new year resolutions but is it just me or do we all seem to make the same ones each year? I always say that I am going to eat better, exercise more, yadda yadda yadda. I hear myself and sound like a broken record.


So this year is about goals. in 2006 my goal was to get on an insulin pump and quit smoking. I accomplished both of those. Last year my big goal was to lose weight and I finally joined Weight Watchers in August of 2007. So far I have lost 36 pounds but still have a way to go. On my personal blog I post my progress every week for all to see which helps a lot. (READ MORE)

I think (man I hope I'm not jinxing this!) that I have nailed my walking routine. Not like I have figured out my route or when to go or anything like that. What I mean is that I think it's close to being a habit.

For example, several days last week my alarm was not set right--I'm pretty sure it was human error (*blush*)--but my internal clock (or my angels) still woke me up at 5:30 a.m. and I was able to go for a walk. Although I was running a few minutes later than usual, I didn't take the bait to just say "screw it" and roll over for an extra 20 minutes of precious sleep.

Yesterday, I could have very easily avoided the walk and was actually quite close to do so, but having skipped Friday (I went to all school mass with No. 1) and Saturday (No. 2's birthday party) it was actually pretty easy to convince myself to get out the door and go. (READ MORE)

So, here it is almost a full week into September and I haven't set any goals for myself yet. Haven't put a pretty, lined sticky note on my computer monitor to remind me what I'm working toward for the next four weeks. Maybe it's because I started ignoring my August goals so early in the game.

It wasn't long before I was looking at that blue sticky and thinking to myself that I should just take the darn thing down already. I mean, the only thing I was really sticking to-save a bad cold-was walking at least five times a week.

While I didn't meet my goals of testing after every meal and limiting myself to just one soda per day, I will say that having those goals staring at me did some good. I tested more often, although not often enough; and I did limit my soda intake, although not one per day; and I did dramatically increase my water intake. So there was quite a bit of good that came from setting those goals. (READ MORE)

I guess it's time to admit that I didn't do too well with my August goals. While I continued walking most days and drank so much water that I got up in the middle of the night to pee more than in the third trimester of any of my three pregnancies, my goal to lose 8 lb. to 10 lb. and limit myself to just one soda per day were quickly dashed.

I'm not exactly sure why, though, which kind of bothers me. I will say, though, that I was losing weight,except that the same 4 lb. I was losing I kept gaining right back. I think I tried to rationalize my junk food eating with the walking. Seems that my thought process was that as long as I was walking I could still eat the junk because walking every day was better than not walking every day and still eating the junk. (READ MORE)

Often the best way to figure out if something is going to work is just to do it. I'm a firm believer in learning from mistakes and working out kinks while actually doing what you said you were going to do.

That said, I've realized fairly quickly that I need to revise my list of goals for this month. Only slightly, but particularly my goal to only drink one soda or less per day. While it has been pretty easy to cut out my mindless first-thing-to-the-office soda and replace it with a ginormous cup of water, there are other times of the day when I really crave a soda. And, actually, there are times when a fountain soda can pretty quickly curb my desire for something sweet from the vending machine. (READ MORE)