Starting 2012 Off Right

First of all, Happy New Year to all. I spent last night working at the Brewhouse until 7:30pm. I got my last "bad" meal from work, my favorite Santa Fe Spring Rolls, deep fried with a yummy (and I'm sure fattening) dipping sauce. I came home, didn't drink, and just relaxed at home. I set my alarm for 11:55, in case I fell asleep (which I did), so I could take this picture to remind me that now is a new year.

For the past two weeks I have being trying to think about my new year resolutions and how I want to achieve them. My friend Dianna posted this link to a women's fitness group I started on facebook, and it really got me thinking.
http://www.11points.com/Personal/11_Findings_From_My_Resolution_To_Work_Out_Every_Single_Day_In_2011?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+11points+%2811Points.com+RSS+Feed%29
The point of the link is that this person made a resolution last year to work out at least 20 minutes a day EVERYDAY of the year. They thought about what working out meant to them, was it running for 20 min a day, going to the gym, etc. I have decided to do something like that myself. Also, while at home a family friend Julia read a status from one of her facebook friends "Somewhere, someone busier than you is out running". And it got me thinking, my life is really not busy at all, and even if it was, can I not manage 20 minutes of exercise a day? Yes, I can. Even if it is just running down my street in one direction for 10 minutes, and then turn around and run back. Not hard.

After much thought, my new year resolutions are as follows:
- Drink (at least) 64 oz of water a day
- Use reusable grocery bags at all costs
- Do at least 20 minutes of intense exercise a day, every day ("intense exercise" is a fluid concept, but does not count walking around the mall, walking the block, etc. It needs to make me sweat and breath hard)
- No soda (I don't drink that much anyways, so it shouldn't be hard to cut out)
- No fast food (I did way better with this in 2011 than any other year, but I really want to make an effort to just say no to fast food)
- Blog regularly, it really does help me stay on track 
- Get back to running some 5Ks to work up to a 10K or half marathon

I woke up this morning and hopped right on the scale to see what damage I had done over the holidays. To my surprise I had only gained 2 lbs. I put on my Brewhouse slacks last night and they felt tighter than usual, so I was afraid it would be more like +5 or 7 pounds. I got dressed had a bowl of weight control oatmeal. And then headed to Safeway to buy some groceries to restock my fridge and pantry. I was very careful to think out meals and think about what I really needed to eat to get back on track. I also found a magazine to help inspire me to get back on track, the People "Half their Size" issue. I also got home to find a Fitness Magazine that got delivered when I was at home. I made a few open faced turkey, laughing cow cheese, and lettuce sandwiches with a fruit leather and BBQ flavored wheat thins.

I am going to make a gym schedule (or at least write down class times so I know when some of my favorites will be offered) and take a look at my magazines. I also have a yummy fish dinner planned for tonight to keep the good eating going. I am looking forward to what 2012 has in store for me. 2011 beat me up a bit, but losing 40 pounds last year made me feel great and proved to myself that I can make it work, I just need to put in the work! :) So far 2012 is looking better, I am back on a healthy eating track, have my job at the Brewhouse and a long term subbing position on the horizon, and a promising first date scheduled for tomorrow night. I need to keep organized and focused on me and my goals and I'm looking forward to kicking healthy habits into high gear in January to keep them going strong all through 2012!