January was pretty great this year.
Yep, even with flu-rona sneaking in there I feel like 2023 has just been generally positive so far.
That said, all of my good habit streaks came to an abrupt end when I a) flew to NC and b) started call (today is day 3/7). And, even though there have been many fun + positive things, certain aspects of life have felt a bit more hectic than I prefer them to be, so I will work on manifesting my 2023 word of the year CLEAR more in February.
Celebrating Success
✅ I meditated 15/30 days. I gave the Waking Up app a solid try but I think I am either going to migrate to Insight Timer or just return to Headspace.
✅ I read 5 books including some longer/denser ones: My Brilliant Friend by Elena Ferrante and Mrs. Everything by Jennifer Weiner (this one was not dense, but it was pretty long!). I stuck to my ‘reading plan’ for the most part, except for the last week.
✅ I enjoyed 2.5 movies (!): Glass Onion, A Man Called Otto, and . . . Stick It (the last one with Annabel). I guess I also watched Luck with her too (on the plane) . I suppose 1:1 adult:kid movies isn’t a terrible ratio. AND I devoured S2 of Sex Lives of College Girls while sick.
✅ I kept my screen time REALLY low for most of the month (until trip / this week – exception though most of that was google maps + the EPIC Haiku app for work). I honestly had ZERO social media scroll time!
✅ I ran 25 times (144.8 miles) with average pace 10:01 and did 8 strength workouts with average length 25 minutes. December’s ave pace was 10:19, Nov was 10:25 — so progress!
✅ I got to see my sister + niece (and parents!), watch Annabel in a big performance, see C in an All Star game, and had a successful and fun kickoff to BLPA.
I would rate the month highly!
What Didn’t I Do?
Two main things:
I did not delve into home organizing projects the way I wanted to! I am still really excited about home organization this year (using Org365 as a framework) but just . . haven’t really gotten started yet. FEB!
I did not pay as much attention to optimizing my weekends as I wanted to. I think I could have benefitted from more Friday planning and thinking through getting a good balance of fun / social time / kid time / rest. That said – there were 2 Josh-CALL weekends in there and 1 weekend away, so . . . maybe I should cut myself slack there. February contains exactly 0 Josh-CALL weekends which is exciting (though one for me!).
Off to complete the first run of Feb!
10 Comments
That sounds like a great start to the year!
Teaching started last week, and seems fine thus far (although we’ll be on strike a decent chunk of the term). I felt like I did a good decluttering job the first week, and have been experiencing the benefits – the sitting room and dining room are staying super tidy because everything has a spot, etc.
This month –
Teaching. And two big writing projects that urgently need submitting.
My parents are here next week to help us with childcare over February halfterm, and I think we will tackle the utility room which is our one big pain point. We could use the space better and put lesser used kitchen stuff in there.
A theatre/dinner date
Some meet-ups with friends
Hey, sounds like a great month. I’ve really found some planner peace after a lot of prep at the end of last year (largely thanks to yourself, I discovered in summer 2022 and been devouring the back catalogue! so thank you). I may send a planner peace in in the coming months (once I’m certain it’s not just January momentum carrying it through!)
In the meantime, I just have a quick question related to your reading tracking. What’s the little number in the pink square in the bottom right of your monthly spread please?
I have recorded my books consumed (read/listened) for the last few years and am loving it, I just note title, author, a 1-2 line review and 5 star rating so it’s super light touch. On a side note, I did this after consuming ‘The Swedish Art of Death Cleaning’ by Margareta Magnusson which I highly recommend, so am basically doing it for future grandkids. I typically consume 2-3 books at a time, with different books for diffrent moods/ ways of consuming and do most of it either while doing chores around the house/ dog walking and before sleep at night. To this, and influenced by you and a friend, I’ve added 10 minutes of reading non-fiction to my morning which has been great. And I’m also doing a readalong starting today of The Luminaries by Eleanor Catton with people online so I will be reading to a specified pace (roughly 40 pages every 2 days) so I do think I’d like to keep a bit more data than I have previously so am interested what you’re recording.
Thanks so much, love hearing about your life/ goals/ how you get s**t done etc. and really feel like I’ve learnt a huge amount from you.
Shion xx
Aww thank you so much! The tiny numbers are minutes of screen time according to my phone 🙂
I think you had a really excellent month of January! How nice to see that you are getting faster! Your hard work is paying off. I had a great month, too. I spent at least 23 minutes outside 30/31 days (I’m giving myself a pass on subzero days), I worked out 19 times which is very good for me, and I logged 10k steps 25/31 days. That is the strongest month I’ve had in a long time, but I was also healthy! I hope I can continue this healthy stretch.
I’d give yourself a pass on maintaining your usual habits until you are done with call. I relax my standards when I am sick because I know I can not keep up with everything or I will run myself into the ground!
Great month recap! But you forgot the whole WON MY AGE GROUP IN A 5K achievement under running, which is front of mind for me after listening to yesterday’s episode. I am still cheering for you!
I’ve really enjoyed the Ten Percent Happier app for meditation. I like Dan Harris, he focuses a lot on anxiety, and there’s no religious component, just secular.
Ten Percent Happier is my go to mediation app as well. I also really enjoy his podcast of the same name.
Small thing, but I appreciate the way that you include books and other media as part of your recap. I record what books I read but not movies/TV and probably should, as they are a significant part of my night routine (and chosen, rather than passively consumed). Right now I’m doing a rewatch of 90s sitcom “Mad About You”…I love the ~22 minutes length before bed.
that’s a lot of miles!!! and isn’t it great to see progress? how do you feel less strength and more running? since you’ve done so much more strength before.
I’m into a solid stretch with Tara mediation sessions of 20 min or so. my morning highlight in the darkness.
Outsider looking in: Is following the Org365 method and decluttering that important to you? Or is your house functioning fine? Are you feeling self-influcted pressure because you bought the product or that she’s sponsored in the past? I ask because it’s been a goal for a while and every month it doesn’t happen. Maybe it’s time to let this go? Or maybe just hit your hotspots and don’t overwhelm yourself by telling yourself its the whole house? Rooting for you (and loving how you are using your monthly spread!)