The One Where I Lose Track Of Time

What the heck guys; how is it already June 4th? I feel like time keeps getting away from me. I meant to write this post almost a week ago, but I kept putting it off and putting it off. Typical.

So I sort of failed my challenge for the month of May. April's challenge went so well but I just knew when I missed May 1st that the following 30 days would be a struggle. If you didn't read my post about last month's challenge, my goal for May was to follow along with a yoga video once every day. The only thing that I can be proud of is that I never fully gave up. No matter how many days I missed my yoga practice, I always started the next day with the intention to follow through. Unfortunately intention and action are two different things. Kind of like me intending to write this post for a week and then never actually doing it until today.

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My main problem was being unprepared on busy days. Besides my regular job at the library, I also worked with my dad a few times last month. On days when I'd spend a couple hours cleaning up tiles or carrying big rolls of carpet around, I was too exhausted and sore to even think about yoga. In reality doing some relaxing/stretching yoga routines could have really helped, but I didn't think about that at the time. This is what I mean by being unprepared. If I had finished my practice earlier in the day, I wouldn't have had time to come up with so many excuses. Instead I'd wait until the last minute and go searching around for a video at 10 pm, or blow it off completely. The better plan would have been to choose the practice the night before, but everything is clearer in hindsight.

It was also really ambitious of me to expect a daily practice after such a long break from regular exercise. When my muscles were sore I used that as an excuse to take a few days off rather than find practices that were gentler or focused on different parts of my body. As I'm writing, I just keep thinking of all the things I'd do differently next time.

I'm not setting a specific goal for the month of June, but giving myself the month off. Maybe I'll spend June focusing on those practices I already tried to establish; checking back in with my bed making habits and continuing with yoga. I want to make sure I'm not jumping into another challenge without being prepared or dedicated. My goal for these monthly challenges was to increase habits I found useful, not to waste time half-assing those daily rituals. Hopefully taking the month of June to regroup will allow me to find a goal that I feel dedicated enough towards to actually stick with.

Are any of you doing monthly challenges? How are they going? What habits would you want to increase?

-S

The One Where I Do It For Another Month

Hey Guys!

So last month I wrote a post telling you guys I was going to make my bed every day for the month of April. I'm happy to report that the aforementioned challenge was successfully completely. I even made my bed this morning out of habit, so I think the behavior has stuck.

I need some decorative pillows or something. Those are things I had as a child and completely rejected because I thought they were a hassle. Now I guess I see the point.

At first the practice of making the bed seemed like such a chore, but by the end of the month it became a normal part of my day. The only time I didn't officially make my "bed" was when I slept on the couch while we painted my bedroom. I did however make sure to clean up all the sheets and blankets I was using as a way to continue the exercise.

I like keeping myself on my toes, so for the month of May I've chosen to follow along with a yoga video every day. There's lots of options for yoga practices on Youtube and I'm not planning on following any particular person, but if I find someone I really love I might stick to them. I do already follow Yoga with Adriene and Fightmaster Yoga on Youtube so I'll most likely start there. I also found this list to help widen my search.

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I have been really lagging in the fitness department lately. No running, no yoga, some sporadic at home crunches and jumping jacks but nothing long enough to really get my heart rate up or build muscle tone. I went for a bike ride with my dad two weeks ago and haven't ridden since (although this weekend is really nice and I'm hoping to get out). Hopefully this will help kick start a fitness routine again (along with the use of my new planner).

Since April went by so quickly I had to choose a habit for this month pretty last minute... as in yesterday. I did pick one off of the list I mentioned in the original post, but I think I'd like to be a little bit more prepared next time. I'm not gonna lie, I didn't do yoga yesterday so this month isn't off to a great start, but I'm hoping I can get back on track.

-S

The One Where I Do It For A Month

The other day I was thinking about how I never make my bed anymore. My mom always asked my brother and I to make our beds as kids but as we got older she never really enforced those rules. Since I spend the majority of my free time on my bed, properly making it every morning seems useless. It's been years since I've made my bed on a day when I didn't change the sheets.

I read, watch movies, and play on my computer more often than I sleep in my bed. In an attempt to distance other activities from where I sleep and force myself to spend more time outside of my bedroom, I'm going to try to make my bed more often. I do think that making your bed can be a productive way to start the day. Having tidy sheets always made me feel like my room, and my life, was that much cleaner and more organized.

Starting tomorrow morning April 1st, I will be making my bed every day for a month. Ultimately I'm hoping this behavior will spill over and continue happening after April turns into May. We'll see what happens.

Some people say it takes just 21 days to form a habit. That myth has been disproven, but one month seems like the perfect amount of time to try something new. I love challenging myself; so when I decided to try making my bed every day for a month, I immediately started making a list of other behaviors I could try for 30 days.

Those ideas include:

• Get up at 6:00 am
• Follow along with an at home yoga video
• Wear lipstick
• Not buy any coffee drinks
• Meditate
• Eat a homemade dinner (this one seems like it would take the most planning)
• Post a blog entry
• Vlog
• Doodle
• Take a selfie

That's it for now, but I will try to keep thinking of ideas. These are all habits I'd love to increase in frequency, but I know it's unrealistic to start doing them all at once. Hopefully this monthly challenge idea will help me stagger my habit building. And if I don't complete the challenge, or I give up after the month is over at least I can say I tried.

-S

What's something you would do for a month? What habits are you looking to improve on in your life?