2020 - Getting Started

It’s almost 2020 and I have decided to spend the next year shedding things - debt, excess things, bad habits, and hopefully a few pounds. Why? I am an ageing, moderately active person, and am pretty happy with my life. That said:

  • I have too many hobbies and too much stuff to support them;
  • I would like to be able to retire in the next few years, and to do that I must be debt-free;
  • I have an ageing horse that I hope to keep riding for as long as possible;
  • I love to dance, but my knees are getting quite grumpy about the strain I put on them in class;
  • I have wanted to do a 10 km swim for several years, but I broke my shoulder this summer and need to get back into the water to do some serious training;
  • I am a good cook who loves to make healthy things from scratch, but portion control can be an issue.
Inspired by https://fitisafeministissue.com/ and https://caitflanders.com/ I have decided to blog for at least year about how I do towards some of these goals. It’s not a sudden change in direction for me. Thanks to Cait Flanders, I have been tracking my spending carefully for months. It doesn’t mean I don’t occasionally splurge, but I have made a big dent in the mortgage and I feel only a little guilty about having bought airline tickets just today for a holiday to the Bahamas with my daughter in February. I have been trying to do some purposeful movement every day, and I take riding lessons, swim with a Masters club and take ballet classes almost every week. 

Starting tomorrow, I will aim to do the 220 workouts in 2020 that many over at Fit is a Feminist issue do. For me, that will include my half-hour walks to work (my stretch on this will be to skip taking the bus part of the way to and from work - I must walk the full distance in one direction for it to count). When the weather gets better, I’ll switch to my bicycle, which will give me a half-hour ride round trip. The stretch for me will be to use the bike for more errands - can I ride to church? To the grocery store? To the pool? I’ll aim to get enough distance in the water this year that by Labour Day Weekend I can do a 10 km swim at the lake. Wish me luck!


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