I’m not making New Year’s resolutions… 1st January 2013 was a normal day, no different to 2nd or 3rd. I’m not going to make ‘resolutions’ as such, but there are some things I will be working on and towards this year. By writing them here I hope it will keep me on track but also that you will keep me on track too 🙂 Please share with me what your plans are for 2013 so I can encourage you too.
Weight
Not surprisingly this is going to be my number one priority, I managed to get to 1 stone lost just before Christmas but gave myself a few weeks off. Unfortunately the battery in my scales died on Christmas Eve (ironic?!) and I haven’t been to a supermarket to buy one since. This has obviously meant I have ignored the diet completely and just eaten what I want. I am dreading being faced with having to buy that battery tomorrow and jumping on the scales after such over indulgence but you know what? I am ready to tackle it head on and have booked onto both yoga and bokwa at the gym next week. 2 new classes I haven’t tried before and I will tell you all about them when I am done.
I am planning on going away in March, I am not going to kid myself and expect to be at my goal weight by then but instead of using this as a negative, I am going to embrace it as a mini challenge to try and at least FIT in my bikini.
Food
Another one that shouldn’t come as a surprise. It fits in with weight and I love it, why else?! I got 7, yes 7, cookbooks for Christmas. Not one of them is particularly healthy orientated but I am looking forward to trying the recipes and making them as healthy as possible. I’ll post about them and update the Pro Points as usual.
Just because I am following a healthy living plan (I refuse to call it a diet, I’m changing my ways for life and this is sustainable. A diet isn’t, rant over) doesn’t mean that I won’t be eating out like I normally do. I love good food and there are some amazing restaurants that I simply have to try in 2013. Top of the list are Aumbry, The WineGlass at Etrop Grange, Almost Famous and Italia. Feel free to either invite me 😉 or recommend other places I simply must visit.
None Blog related
University – I started the third and last year of my BA Honours degree back in September and I am halfway through my Empirical Study. Once that is submitted and revised I have my Reflective Study to write before graduating. I am a ‘last minute’ sort of person, really badly. I start off with the right intentions but always think, ‘oh it doesn’t need to be submitted yet I have loads of time’… I really hope I can combat this behaviour and do the last assignments justice. I’m thinking of applying to do my Masters too but I’ll see what happens later in the year for that 😉 I do feel that if I don’t do it straight after the BA course I’ll get out of the habit of studying and just completely forget about anything further. We’ll see…
Health and Beauty – I’ve become very lazy with looking after myself, seriously, I do the least I possibly need to when it comes to looking after myself and that is going to change. I got some fabulous new facecare products this Christmas including Dermalogica Pre Cleanse, Liz Earle Cleanse and Polish, Liz Earle Skin Tonic, Estee Lauder Advanced Night Repair and Liz Earle Skin Repair Moisturiser. A pretty hefty routine but I plan on looking after my skin better in 2013. On a daily basis I scrape by with minimal or no makeup. I never used to leave the house without at least foundation, mascara, lip gloss and eyeshadow. Whilst I realise I don’t need all this every day I think I need to make more of an effort with at least tinted moisturiser, mascara and a splash of bronzer to give me some colour. As with everything else on this blog, let me know if there is anything else you think I should try. I don’t plan on blogging about this stuff but it is part of me and why I have included it here.
Charity – Many of you who ‘know’ me will know that I raised £2000 in 2011 for Retrak Charity and travelled to Ethiopia to help renovate the safe houses of the street children they are trying to give a better life. It was an amazing experience that I will never forget and the work they do to get the kids back to either their own families or a foster home is invaluable. We are hammered with charity adverts at this time of year and it can be so easy to be blase and assume someone else will help, it isn’t my responsibility and doesn’t affect me. Truth is, it probably will never affect you, but it affected me. I got to spend time with these amazing kids and saw the horrors they have had to experience in their short lives. No they don’t live in the UK and we have our own problems that need actioning by charities, that’s a definite. One thing you won’t see here is children as young as 5 years old being forced to live on the streets of a City Centre. This isn’t a lecture to get you to donate, this is my explanation for why I did what I did. The 12 of us who travelled to Ethiopia faced an astonishing amount of criticism along these lines and this is why I tell you this story.
I did very little for charity in 2012 (2011 was a heavy year on this front!) but I plan on doing more in 2013. I’m not sure what yet but, yes you guessed it, let me know if there is anything I need to try! It doesn’t have to be for Retrak. As much as I will always support them I also support other charities that are close to my heart.
Hope you are still reading by the end of 2013… it’s going to be a fun packed, eventful one. I can tell!
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