Its been over a month now since I blogged...I'm already a blog slacker, but I have been focused on working the 30 before 30 not writing about it...and training for a triathlon and half marathon (soon to be marked off this list!) Well except for this one, because "writing about it" was goal number 15.
On July 1st, I bought a blank journal. It's been a fun process so far. It's really more about tracking my day, my feelings, crazy things that happen. It's a way to document things that happen. The past two years have been amazing. Now is the best time for me to start this process because so many changes are happening that I want to remember and cherish forever...More about that later.
My mother-in-law is way better at this than I am (although I've never seen her journals just the discussions about them make me know she is WAY better) She keeps quite a few different journals. I assume she has journals for herself. She has journals for her children, and she begins a new journal for each grandchild. What a gift to them later - to have her words and feelings wrapped up in a sweet book for them to cherish.
So... with this same inspiration, I began a journal. During this month, I've written about runs, my husband, my relationship with God (more on this one in another post), the events of the day, crazy happenings (I wrote 3 pages about an incident at TIC - yet another story to share). It was really great to write while I took a hiatus from facebook. Some of us may be under the impression facebook is our personal journal... I encourage you to keep those separate :)
I also started another type of journal. I started tracking calories... I know everyone has their own opinions about weight, portions, tracking calories, diets, etc. I wanted to track calories to drop a few extra pounds I had put on since the wedding. Being honest, I had put the extra pounds on because of sweets and a lack of dedication to running (or any exercise for that matter)... which inevitably means my calorie intake was way more than it should have been... Long story - short, I have been tracking for 2 months now and have lost 6 pounds. I'm below where I was for the wedding now, look and feel better, recommitted to exercise programs, and gained some muscles. The daily commitment to track is great. I strongly recommend it if you are looking to lose a few pounds and learn what you are actually putting into your body. I am more aware of portion control, calories in foods, and the amount of work it takes to lose those extra pounds. With all those great things said, I feel I have learned enough to stop the daily tracking and end my journey with myfitnesspal.com, but feel free to contact me if you have questions about it. It is a great tool, but the person making the choices and doing the work make the change happen!
Honestly, I could never really cross off this goal, but I have to give it a completed status at some point. I'll keep up the journal and hope to follow my sweet mother-in-law's inspiration to begin new journals for new additions in the future. Give it a try. You may just learn a little something about yourself or at minimum document some really cool moments in your life.
