5 on Friday: 5 Ways I’m Going to Focus on My Health

This is what I’ve looked like the last several months. I have no idea the original source of this image.

At the beginning of the year I started writing a series of posts about how I needed to focus on my health. But work got busy. I had to retire from roller derby. I had a foot injury. And I lost all motivation. It’s the middle of the year now and it’s time to reevaluate my goals. I’ve lost about fifteen pounds, and kept it off, but I’ve not been taking care of myself.  It’s time to focus on my health again, and not on the scale. Here are five ways I plan on doing just that.

1) Yoga – Claire is loving her daily yoga practice. I haven’t really enjoyed yoga since college. I tired a few classes, but they were all either too expensive or not the style of practice I enjoy. Sara from Solid Gold Eats has been doing yoga for about three months now, and she has Tamre from Tiny Table going with her. I’m going to join them. If I make plans to go to yoga I’ll find an excuse to bail, but if I make plans to go someplace with friends I won’t. I’ve booked my first class with them next week!

2) Save Abel Township – Claire really liked Zombies, Run! I’m not in the shape to try the full version, but there is a couch-to-5k version that I’ve started using. I still have some arch pain when I run, so I’m just going to aim for once a week for now. But I enjoy running outside, even in this heat, way more than going to the gym. I’m hoping maybe the pain will ease as I run more and become used to the impact and motion.

3) Be Active When Not Working Out – I’m going to stop plopping myself on the couch when I get home. My sedentary has got to go. I can’t do much for the workday, I’m in software development afterall, but I can do something about my after work life. Whether its walking the dogs or hanging out with Claire at the pool, it’s time to make active part of my lifestyle.

4) Eat Some Veggies – I need to eat more veggies. My diet right now is carb-overload, which would be fine if they weren’t all ultra-refined carbs. I need to get more whole foods, and salads. I’m lazy, so I’ll either go to the salad bar near work or buy the premade salads from the grocery, but it’s a start.

5) Ditch Soda (Mostly) – Diet Coke and Diet Mountain Dew are staples of my diet. And they really shouldn’t be. I’m not cutting them out completely, but going to drink them less. I’m going to drink tea (I do unsweetened) and carbonated water more. Less caffeine, and better hydration. Win-win in the hot summer months.

Are you in need to reevaluate your health? What are your mid-year health goals?