EVERY DAY GOALS

DRINK LESS COFFEE

On average I drink probably 4-8 cups of coffee a day. The other day I drank three cups of very, strong coffee from my new French Press and felt so jittery I had to go run on the treadmill for 30 minutes to get out some pent-up energy.

I don’t plan on giving up coffee all together but I definitely want to drink less of it. I’m thinking 1-3 cups a day max.

BE ON TIME

I am one of those people that will procrastinate on leaving the house until the last minute and then get stuck in traffic or something and I will be late. I really want to work on being 10 minutes early for commitments this year.

READ MORE BOOKS

On nights where I read for 20-30 minutes before going to bed rather than being on my computer until the very last minute I sleep much, much better. This year I want to focus on shutting down my computer at least 30 minutes to an hour before bedtime and spend that time reading. Now that I’m not in school anymore I have been reading more than ever and I want to keep that momentum up. I’ve also joined Goodreads (Friend me!) so I can keep track of how many books I read in 2011.

GO ON MORE DATES

There are too many nights where Eric plays his x-box and I am on my computer. We are in the same room but we barely notice each other other than to say a few words to each other here and there.

One of my favourite nights together happened in late November/early December. We walked 3/4 mile to a sushi restaurant and had a yummy sushi dinner while chatting about our day and then walked home. It was wonderful to spend some quality time together.

I love spending time with Eric so I want to make it a focus to do more things together rather than being in the same room but basically ignoring each other all the time.

REFLECTION

In my everlasting goal to stay in the present and enjoy my life here and now I want to practice taking some reflection time each and every day. Whether that’s through meditation at yoga or journaling or something else, I really want to focus on spending a few minutes of each day relaxing, reflecting and being present.

IMPROVE MY PHOTOGRAPHY

I’ve been progressively improving my photoshop and photo-taking skills over the last few months (have you noticed?! ) but I would like to continue working on these skills and improving them. I love taking photos of food and inanimate objects (because they hold still) but I’d really like to improve at taking photos of people and candid shots as well.

FOOD & FITNESS GOALS

RUN, RACE, HAVE FUN

I have some great racing plans for 2011 and will be sharing those next week. They involve five half-marathons (tentatively) and one full marathon (tentatively but I’m 90% sure I’ll do it). Stay tuned for those plans next week!

YOGA YOGA YOGA

I have really fallen in love with yoga in the last few months and I want to keep that going strong in 2011. I think doing yoga has been amazing for my body, my running and my mind. I always feel so relaxed and zen after class and things like yoga breathing (in and out through your nose) have been carrying through in my day-to-day life as well!

I am doing a 30 hot yoga classes in 30 days challenge starting January 10. Stay tuned for more info

STRENGTH TRAIN

I want to get better with strength training. I don’t have a gym membership anymore but I want to do my own strength training workout, P90X or the 30-day shred at least once a week. I also want to do a core workout every second day. I plan on putting these things into my schedule every week so I don’t miss them and to help keep me accountable.

TRIATHLON

At some point in 2011 I will do a triathlon. Most likely a sprint one. I’m not entirely sure which one yet, but I have my eye on a few different ones. I will keep you posted!

CONTINUE EXPERIMENTING IN THE KITCHEN

I have spent more time in the kitchen cooking and baking in 2010 than any other year of my life. I want to keep this trend up in 2011. I really enjoy cooking and baking and how much it helps me unwind after a long day. I would like to try making at least 3-4 new recipes every month in 2011!

And that’s about it. I wouldn’t call these my “New Years Resolutions” because in my mind they aren’t resolutions as much as goals. These are things I want to do, want to continue doing and want to get better at.

What kinds of goals do you have in mind for 2011?

I started reading this book last night around 6:00 PM and I just finished a few minutes ago. I basically devoured it in the last two days, I cannot believe how good it was!

I can’t wait to get my hands on the second one in this series!

This is the third book that I’ve read this year that totally overtook my life. Earlier in the year I also read ‘American Wife’ and ‘Girl with the Dragon Tattoo’ – both amazing books that when I wasn’t reading them, I wanted to be!

I’m currently about 1/4 way into The Girl Who Kicked The Hornets Nest but I’m having trouble getting into it.

I have always loved reading, but in the last few years I’ve started to get away from it. Only reading 5-10 books a year. Nothing to me is more satisfying than completely losing myself in a book like I did with ‘The Hunger Games’ this weekend.

That’s why one of my goals for 2011 is to read more – but maybe instead of my goal being just to “read more” it should be to “lose myself in books more”?

What’s the best book you’ve read so far this year?

All images via Amazon

I’m currently sipping on Starbucks breakfast-blend coffee with half-and-half cream, eating a freshly baked pumpkin scone that I whipped up this morning (recipe courtesy of Mama Pea) and about to dive headfirst into the thriller ‘The Girl Who Kicked the Hornets Nest’. I can’t wait to see how this fantastic series wraps up.

Can I get a big collective Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh for it being Saturday?

What are you up to on this beautiful weekend morning (or afternoon – depending on your time zone)?