Three ways I’m kicking off the new year...

Here we go! The holidays are over and a new year full of possibilities has begun. How great is that?! There are things I will accomplish this year. For now I’m going to concentrate on the next 30 days. Putting a shorter timeframe on our achievements makes things much more manageable; it even helps just to get started with implementing a 30-day structure vs. a year, two years, etc. which can seem daunting and overwhelming. Let’s take a look at my next 30 days:

Training for fitness of body - Every year I run a 12K (7.45 miles) that has some deceiving uphill climbs and one very, very obvious uphill climb. About two-thirds of the way into the race is what’s known as Doomsday Hill. All said and done, the actual ‘hill’ is 1.1 miles with 157 feet in elevation gain which would be like climbing 16 flights of stairs. To prepare for this race I’m doing sprint intervals on the treadmill two times per week. After a warm-up and 5 minutes of jogging, I increase speed to sprint for 30 seconds, rest 30 seconds and repeat five times with a cool-down of 5 minutes of jogging. Over the course of preparing, interval speeds, duration, and inclines will fluctuate. Also to prepare for those hills, I run one time per week at an incline for 5 minutes. Gradually the incline and pace will increase. All of this 12K training will be done without have exceeded 5 miles in a single training session. The philosophy is to train more minimally with less wear and tear on the body while obtaining conditioning levels that will sustain over the course of the race. Does this work? I’ve decreased my time each year as well as decreasing recovery time.

Reading for fitness of mind - Each morning I read a page from The Daily Stoic which offers a daily devotional of Stoic insights and exercises. A great way to start the day with a mental dose of goodness. Also each morning I read one Gathered 365 Truths. This is a gift I received and it’s awesome. It is comprised of a box with 365 cards (on cool paper) that have quote or a morsel of wisdom. Here is the first card’s wisdom, “Do not spoil what you have by desiring what you have not; remember that what you now have was once among the things you only hoped for." ~ Epicurus

Intermittent fasting for fitness of spirit - For some, at first glance this may seem curious to have fasting in a category of spirit. Let’s delve in. Firstly, intermittent fasting is not eating for a length of time. Each day I go 12 hours straight without consuming food. So from dinner to the next morning, I wait a full 12 hours before eating breakfast. Once per week I’m extending that fasting time to 18 hours. You can read about intermittent fasting benefits here. This detoxing can help the mind and heart focus. I’ve read it explained this way, "While fasting, we shed extra weight from the body and gain strength and clarity of mind.” Why 18 hours? I’ve experimented with 24 hour fasting and as I mentioned, I already fast for 12 hours, the 18 is the right number between both. After or during the fast I will also do breathing exercises and journal.

So, that’s what my next 30 days look like. What do you have planned for the next month? 60 days? 90 days? Start small and keep going. You will be surprised at what you can accomplish by setting a smaller timeframe. A new year is here. Time to get going. To your journey, Lisa Schaffer GreenNote Fitness P.S. Check out my Facebook page for inspiration. P.P.S. Discover GreenNote Fitness recommendations for recovery, supplements, protein bars & powders, nutrition, equipment, books and more at the GreenNoteFitness eStore **Do you have a friend that would benefit from this information? Please forward it to them!**