Bienvenidos to my wellness journey 04.2022, friends. Today’s post is the third installment of my monthly journey toward achieving improved health and wellness for the year, and for life. It’s been over 3 years since I began journaling about my wellness goals here. And doing so has helped keep me more accountable.
I started out in a big way at the beginning of 2021 but 6 months later, I had stopped updating my progress. I struggled to find the will to exercise and eat well. Lost interest in doing some of my favorite things. Have hoped that this year would see me back on the bandwagon with renewed enthusiasm for life.
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MY WELLNESS JOURNEY 2022
Again this year, I am dividing my wellness activities and aspirations into a handful of categories. Hoping to make the whole mind, body and spirit healthier. By sharing my journey here with you, I might even – hopefully – inspire you to begin or continue your own journey! My friend Juhli at A Boomer Girl’s Guide talks about finding the right exercise program or combination of programs to suit her needs. I think PC have figured out a pretty good mix, too. Now to just do it!!
Here are my goals.
WELLNESS GOALS 2022
The goals I set for myself the last 3+ years have been pretty well all encompassing; goals for exercising, diet, staying well in addition to mental, spiritual, relationship and financial wellness. This plan has served me well in the past. So, at the risk of being redundant, here are my wellness goals for this year. And as in years past, I will be rating my progress on a scale of 1-5. Going to say I was at a 5 to begin in February. Which isn’t true at all but going to score myself as if this is a rubric where I start at a perfect 100 and work to try to maintain it.
Can I just say I need a do-over for March? Just bein’ real. Expecting all my scores to go down.
“Health is like money, we never have a true idea of its value until we lose it.” ~ unknown
PHYSICAL HEALTH (down to 2.5)
- Lose Covid weight: about 5 pounds would be perfect. Confession: I ate out every day I was in Kentucky. And, earlier in the month, probably every day of Brennyn’s visit to El Paso. And I look like it.
- Workout 4 times a week: have sadly gotten away from any regular exercise other than walking since autumn. What was good news in February was stale news in March. Couldn’t find time to work out for all the eating I was doing.
- Walk every day: walks in nature whenever possible. Participate in StepBet challenges. Hikes. I have walked. Into restaurants, out of restaurants, all around restaurants. And I have completed 5 out of 6 weeks of my current StepBet challenge. Averaging between 26-29 miles a week. That’s something, right?
So, if I started at a 5, then gave myself a 3.5 in this category for February, I am going to have to take away a point for March. That gives me a disappointing 2.5.
NUTRITIONAL HEALTH (down to 2.5)
- Track weight Watchers points: track my points at least Monday-Friday. Was hit or miss with this in February. Was nothing but miss at tracking in March. I did track today, though. Just in case you were wondering.
- Eat more fruits and vegetables: incorporate new recipes for vegetable side dishes to our menus. Reach for fruit rather than carbs. Does lettuce on my tacos count? Truly, I have been eating home prepared salads at lunch WHEN I have been home. And in April, I should be home. Lord willing and the creek don’t rise.
- Alcohol and sweets on weekends: return to making Saturdays my indulgence days. Washed down all of that restaurant food last month with too many adult beverages. And my sister and I enjoyed some wine on the evenings after spending the day with Mom. No correlation there. Mom was really good. But it is still stressful caring for her when we visit.
If I started with a perfect 5 in this category, bumped myself down to a 3 in February. Afraid this month I am going to have to go with a 2.5 here, too.
SPIRITUAL HEALTH (holding steady at 3.5)
- Quiet time: at least M-W-F, getting up early to do it first thing. Continue with my gratitude journal at night. Trying to do this when I can but I know I can do better. Took my journal to Kentucky and barely opened it.
- Get back to church: I want to get back to going at least twice a month. Yes, now that we are home, I have been twice.
- Add verses (and quotes) to blog posts: find Bible verses (and quotes) to support the themes of my blog posts whenever possible and share them on my blog. Have been doing this just haven’t been blogging much. But there is a quote in this post…did you see it?
Room for improvement here but maybe a little better than the earlier categories. In February, I gave myself a 3.5 out of 5. Going to give myself some grace for this one, it is spiritual wellness we are talking about here. Might have gone to church had I been home to go. Let’s keep this one at 3.5.
MENTAL HEALTH (down to 3.5)
- Wednesdays We Write: making this the year I write. Participate in #write28days challenge. Write on Wednesdays. Use Adventures in Writing: The Complete Collection, HopeWriters and prompts from Maria at the Krafty Planner. Did well with #write28days until the last week. Then Mom had some problems and then Ukraine was attacked, and I was glued to the TV. I know, I know…there’s no point in worrying, there’s nothing I can do, I need to turn off the TV. Haven’t written much at all in March. Hoping to get back at it this month.
- Weekly artistic activity: Bible journaling, collage crafting with Jennifer Chamberlin, scrapbooking with my sister, 365 Days of Creativity, photography with Photzy. Finished 2 scrapbook pages with my sister in Kentucky, while eating junk food and drinking wine. About to start a new collage project. Hope to get back to 365 Days of Creativity this week.
- Goodreads goal: meet my Goodreads reading goal for 2022. Always seem to be reading and trying to follow about a half dozen books. This month I am ahead by 1 book on meeting my goal for the year. Finally something to cheer about. My online book club voted to read The Diamond Eye by Kate Quinn. Here are the other books I am reading right now. Some faster than others.
The books below are titles I am reading slowly as part of my quiet time.
In February, I felt like I was blowin’ this category out of the water. But slipped a little in March. Had given myself a 4 out of 5 last month. Going to just deduct a half point for March, giving me a 3.5.
RELATIONSHIP HEALTH (down to 3.0)
- Plan a vacation or at the very least weekend getaway with PC: we are long overdue a special time together. I was in Kentucky for a week with Mom and the day after I returned home, Paul left for Ohio to be with his son who has had a mental health crisis. Will share a little more about that soon. Prayers appreciated. But neither of our trips were vacations. And boy, do we need one. Together.
- Planned local activities with PC: plan purposeful activities and not let weekends come and go without having fun. Continue creating bucket lists. Like every other category, we have to be home, and together to fulfill this category. We are finishing up a very nice weekend as I type this. Thankful for that. Haven’t even given a spring bucket list a thought. Maybe I can put one together this week.
- Strengthen relationships with Mom, my daughters and grandbabies: especially need to show love and spend time with Cady and Declan on Facetime or phone calls. Have dates with Lucia and Cami. Set aside special time for calls with Brennyn and Lauren. Call Mom every day on Viewclix. I have really focused on this. Brennyn, Declan, Cady and I Facetime almost every day. And they came to visit for a few days in March. Most mornings, I call Mom on the Viewclix so she can see me and put a face with who she’s talking to. Then I call her on the phone for the remainder of our visit. Hardly a day goes by that I don’t talk to my El Paso girls and see them at least once a week.
As I said in February, have done pretty well with the third part of this category but need to make that getaway happen. And need to do some out of the ordinary dates with PC. Last month I rated this a 3.5 out of 5. Have to deduct a half point for March, so a 3.0.
PREVENTATIVE HEALTH MAINTENANCE (holding at 4.0)
- Monday manis: give myself a manicure every Monday. This may not be happening every Monday but I am doing this much more frequently. And my cuticles and nails thank me.
- Skin care: sunscreen, bedtime complexion routine, occasional facials. Sure as I buy products for a complexion regimen, I decide ‘what’s the point?’ and almost defiantly decide not to use them. What’s wrong with me?? Didn’t pack my nighttime skin care products for my trip. But back to using them again now. Want to see if I notice a difference in my complexion. Would love to have a facial.
- Routine health care: make appointments for routine checks – dental and vision checks, mammogram, cardiologist follow-up. Mammogram was normal. Holter monitor results came back normal, too. Praise God. Dental cleaning in May (thought it was April). Need to make an ophthalmologist appointment.
Not bad in this department. Let’s keep this at 4 out of 5.
FINANCIAL HEALTH (holding at 4.0)
- Continue saving each month: saving a little each month. Yes. Yay!!
- Save for Christmas and birthdays: invest in Christmas Club and save for birthdays. Have been making deposits in my Christmas club account with each paycheck. Once I get my Amazon card paid off, want to save my Rover.com (pet walking/sitting) money for Christmas. Have a new Rover client, continuing to visit my first clients, Lucas and Wizard. Subbing 1 day a week over the next 2 months.
- Watch spending: don’t pull the trigger on impulsive purchases. Keep Amazon spending to a minimum. Purge clothes to post on Poshmark. Been behaving myself as far as Amazon goes. Sold a camo romper on Poshmark last week. Yay!!
Going to give myself a 4 out of 5 for this one, which is where I was in February. Now to get that Amazon card completely paid off.
April 10 on the 10th Prompt
Real quick before I go, here are the graphics for this month’s 10 on the 10th post, The Diamond Edition. Girls, this is going to be fun. Check out Marsha’s (from Marsha in the Middle) fun questions below.
- Diamonds are April’s birthstone. What is your birthstone? What do you like or dislike about it?
- Diamonds are the hardest naturally occurring substance found on Earth. What is something hard you’ve dealt with in the past year or so?
- Diamonds are also known as a girl’s best friend. Tell us a bit about your bestie!
- Marilyn Monroe is synonymous with that saying. Do you have a favorite Marilyn Monroe saying, movie, or picture? Please do tell!
- The Queen’s Diamond Jubilee was in 2012. What were you doing in 2012 and would actually confess to?
- Name a song with diamond in the title and then tell us why you picked that one.
- Would you splurge on a large diamond, a grand experience, or a new car? Why?
- Do you have a sentimental diamond gift or bequest? What makes it sentimental to you?
- Why do you think diamonds have become such a desired gemstone? Do you like diamonds?
- Are you a traditionalist when it comes to diamonds, or do you like the colored stones? Why?
Make plans to join us!!
YOUR TURN
How are you coming on your wellness goals or resolutions for the year? Maybe we can inspire one another toward a healthier 2022. Heaven knows I need some encouragement to do better. Hope you will please stop by to check out the progress of my friend Juhli at A Boomer Girl’s Guide on her goals. She and I will be cheering each other on in our journey toward improved health.
Stay well, my friends. Thanks for coming by to visit.
Hugs and kisses,
Juhli
I think that you have had a challenging month with travel and family time (which is both wonderful and stressful in my experience). Kudos for continuing to focus on your goals when you can.
Donna Connolly
Hi, Leslie – I agree with Juhli. Kudos on your insights, honesty and recognition of the bigger picture. I also love your sense of humour (e.g. walking in and out of restaurants). 😀
Joanne
OH I hear you; I am right there struggling along with you. We didn’t eat out at all in March and I still somehow managed to put on weight despite tracking all my foods too! I don’t know what is going on but I am frustrated enough that I decided to start blogging my weigh-in Wednesday posts again; hoping the accountability will help!! I really need to get motivated to work out more and not just hiking/ walking like I’ve mostly been doing. I too have made it a goal to reach for more veggies and less carbs. I kind of HATE that my whole grain pasta and potatoes are now zero and am looking to re-take my personal points survey… thinking of changing my most eaten foods to ones I don’t even like! LOL.
Kellyann Rohr
I do hope you and Paul get some time away, you have both dealt with a lot lately. I always enjoy reading these posts of yours, your honesty and insight is refreshing. I always start out with the best intentions when it comes to eating but lots of times I get derailed by eating out or family gatherings. One of these days I will give myself grace and just go with it but I usually end up with buyers remorse the next day – why did I do that? Why did I drink that? I feel horrible, etc.. I’m with you!
xo,
Kellyann
Dara
It sounds like March was a hard month but you are still doing great. Your dog client Lucas is so cute!
Bojana Krienke
I feel like you are HARD on yourself lady. You’ve had a challenging time with your mom so your relationship with her is the one I see you are needing to invest in at the moment and that’s okay, everyone else will support and understand that, including your diet. That being said, I know that to feel good we have to care for ourselves in all these categories. It’s making me rethink actually how I goal set and how maybe I need to choose a goal in each domain (spiritual, physical, social emotional and intellectual) to ensure that I am not neglecting an area. I’ve loved other Kate Quinn books so I have to look into the one you mentioned. Hugs.
Bo
bosbodaciousblog.com
Michelle
If I may say so, Leslie, you are being too hard on yourself. While I get that these are important goals, so is living in the moment. And things like visiting your mom and hanging with your sister over a glass of wine are important moments. Spending great dinners with your daughter should take priority, I think. There are only so many hours in a day and imo, you have your priorities straight making these wonderful memories.
I hope I haven’t overstepped. But you are an awesome, caring person and deserve credit for that.
Michelle
https://mybijoulifeonline.com
Christie Hawkes
Hello dear friend. It sounds like March was a challenging month in so many ways. I hope you are being gentle with yourself. I did have to laugh at your comment “I have walked. Into restaurants, out of restaurants, all around restaurants.” I feel a little that way too. It’s our big birthday month with my family, and they aren’t over yet. More celebrating (aka eating out) to come!
Erin @ Cracker Crumb Life
I love love love the Monday Manis idea. And I think I am going to do that too!
Laura Bambrick
I think it’s hard to be so good all of the time. I definitely go through cycles with my workouts and eating habits. I find myself to be a stress eater. You are being really hard on yourself. Sometimes we need to commit to making a few changes, but other times we need to accept that this is what life is handing us now and it will be better in the future. We can only do what we can do (if that makes sense)!