Goodbye March Goals/Hello April Goals!

My March goals were pretty hit or miss (mostly miss). The only ones I succeeded at (and even came close to, for that matter) were completing the Whale Challenge, taking a running rest week, and swimming at my university's pool. I'm not even upset that I didn't hit all of them, because that last one was pretty big! I hadn't swam since I quit the YMCA in September and with tri season coming up, I really needed to start up again. Now I've gotten over the anxiety I had about going to a new pool and have gotten into a swimming routine, woohoo! And I was able to accomplish some big things that weren't on my list, like staying under budget for our Boston/NYC trip and acing all my midterms!

1. Go on one of our spring dates. It's starting to warm up and I am so excited to check at least one date off the list. I'm thinking this month will be best-suited for the farmer's market or walking tour. 

2. Plan my outfits for each week on Sundays. I just bought a ton of new, bright, fun, colorful spring clothes (yay!) but I'll be honest...the person I am when buying clothes is infinitely more fashionable than the person I am when I get dressed in the mornings. That person would rather wear a paper bag than spend 5 minutes trying to put together a decent outfit. Sometimes I get the urge to plan my outfit the night before, but this month I want to try spending 15 minutes or so every Sunday picking out outfits for the whole week. Maybe I'll get REALLY crazy and post some pictures of them...

3. Succeed at April Wallet Watch. I love a good spending challenge, and I love one where I can create my own rules even more! We have a specific amount that we try to save every month - some months are better than others, you know how it goes. I recently realized that if we can stay on track with the way we've been saving (or do even better), by the time I graduate in 2 years we will have paid for my college all out of pocket, have a 6-month "rainy day fund", and have ~6 months worth of rent saved for wherever we end up moving. Since I figured that out I'm extra motivated to make sure that happens!

My rules for April Wallet Watch:

1. Challenge lasts from April 1 - April 30.

2. Eating out and coffee not to exceed $150.

3. NO new clothes, shoes, or accessories. I can exchange some of the stuff I ordered that I need a different size in, but that's it. 

4. Running/triathlon expenses not to exceed $610 (I know that's a crazy amount of money, but shoes and signing up for 4-5 races adds up!)

5. No beauty product splurges. I can only buy what I need, and only if I absolutely need it. Total beauty products not to exceed $50.

6. Put at least $1000 into savings at the end of the month. 

4. Get fitted for new running shoes. I have been wearing the same style of shoe since I got fitted 2 years ago. With the hip issues I've been having and the embarrassing number of blisters on my toes, I am starting to wonder if it's time for a switch. This is an already-budgeted-for running expense (and I hope to find a pair cheaper than my max budget), so no problems there :)

5. Don't let my successes or failures be defined by anyone else's. This could really be applied to anything, but it's mainly about my fitness progress and goals. My tri buddies just signed up for a full Ironman in October, my dad ran 5 easy miles a week and a half after our marathon, other friends are hitting 10+ miles on their long runs...meanwhile my legs are still recovering and I'm struggling through 2-3 milers.  I don't know why it doesn't matter that I JUST ran TWO FULL MARATHONS but all I can think about is, "They can do more, why can't I?" It's really messed up, I know. And don't get me wrong, I am happy for them, but I want to join in their success and not feel like I'm cheering from the sidelines. This month I want to focus on doing me, whatever that means. It might even vary on a day-to-day basis, who knows. But the point is that I will not be defined by what I can or can't do, only by the effort I put in.

I don't have any specific fitness or home goals this month, and that's intentional. Sure, I have a spring cleaning checklist on my fridge, a training plan printed out, and races I want to run. But what's most important to me this month is not letting myself feel like a failure if I just don't get to them. If by the end of the month my house is still a wreck because I've been too busy studying, or if I haven't hit all my mileage because my body has other plans, then so be it. I like having goals so I have things to work toward - it makes me feel productive and helps me focus - but they're not the end all be all in life. There's too much to celebrate, no sense in sweating the small stuff.

Cheers to a new month!