2012

The onset of December and the holiday season brings with it the inevitable contemplation of  a "New Year's Resolution."

For 2010, my resolution was to go to the gym a set number of times. I made it, but only by going about 10 times in the last month that still qualified.

For 2011, I wrote about The Year of Undoubt. The goal was to trust my instincts more and to quit over analyzing every decision I make. Looking back over the past 11 months, I think I had mixed success. I still second-guess myself...a lot...but once I have made up my mind, I am far less likely to be swayed by outside influences. When I evaluate the mistakes I've made this past year, I am not ashamed of them - each one I made after weighing the pros and cons of a situation and making the best decision for me, based on the information before me.

That brings us to 2012. I intend to build on the past two years. Even if I am not going to the gym, I am going to continue working out at home and making more healthy decisions. (22 lbs down, 15 more to go!) I am going to keep trusting my own judgment and not feel that I have to justify and decision that has no effect on anyone but myself. That whole thing about the older one gets, the less one cares about what other people think? I am WAY on board with that.

But resolutions aren't about maintaining a status quo. They are about moving forward, bettering yourself. I've made plans for 2012 that, by most societal standards, would be taking a step backward. In the short-term, this may be true. But in the meantime, life will get a little easier. And if I make it through to the long-term, I hope the sacrifices are worth the gains.

They say it is easier to keep a resolution if you have something concrete to work toward. Instead of "I am going to lose weight," you should pledge to go to get one more hour of exercise a day, a week, a month...or whatever. I have been more successful when I have that kind of resolution. Thankfully, I have another month to come up with a good plan.