New Years. UGH. This time of year makes me cringe. New Year's Resolutions are at the root of it.  In college it was mostly just annoying that all the “Resolutioners” came out to the gym in hordes trying to make good on their New Year’s Resolutions and taking up my treadmill time. [How shallow and narrow my view was then!].  Now with a more mature, and open eye to the undercurrents of societal pressures, I am acutely aware that the reasons I hate New Years Resolutions is related to the pressures placed on women to “fix” themselves, make their bodies smaller (and thus take up less space) and aspire to fit the very narrow - white-  beauty standards imposed on us by mainstream media.  There is no emphasis on personal growth in important areas {becoming a more well rounded and balanced human, exploration of creativity or mindfulness, development and cultivation of love and friendship} New Year’s Resolutions have become about weight loss, dieting, meal prep. New Year’s Resolutions have been commandeered by diet culture. Booooo! [[thumbs down]]. Let us work together to change that this year.  Melissa Fabello wrote an a great article that you can find HERE about body acceptance New Year’s Resolutions that don’t involve dieting. Take a peek.

That being said, I am drawn to new beginnings and absolutely love change so I do enjoy using the New Year to outline goals, dream big and plan for the year. BUT I believe goal setting should not be limited to this time alone. We are all guilty of that trap - “ I’ll start tomorrow” or “I’ll start on Monday”. It’s time to break that habit.  If you think of a goal, or come across something that intrigues you, don’t wait! Don’t wait for Monday. Don’t wait for the first of the Month. Don’t wait for the New Year. Take control of your hesitation and fear of the unknown and make shit happen!  

2017 was a mixed bag of highs and lows for me. I think in the end, I can call it a draw. I dealt with loss but more recently have been fortunate to find love again. I moved across the country, alone, away from family and best friends where I discovered new, awe-inspiring friends and amazing outdoor adventure. The year was eye-opening politically and I was forced to think about what is truly important to me and what I am passionate about (and what I can do about it!). I’ve embraced fear and have jumped into many new and scary things - including this blog! I honestly feel like i’ve gained confidence, discovered more about myself and have grown more as a human in the last year than I have in the previous five.

So here are the areas of my life I’d like to focus on, develop and explore in 2018, as well as, some personal goals that largely are related to fitness!

• Seek out and cultivate joy. Acknowledge and discover what makes me feel joyful and increase the amount and the frequency of those things in my daily life.

• Lean into my feelings. I have a bad habit of avoiding feeling the hard feelings - in work, my personal life, even in avoiding watching tv/documentaries/reading books that I know with trigger strong emotional responses. I’ve avoided being in my own head and working through my emotions. My avoidance usually manifests through vegging out on bad tv and mindless social media scrolling. So my goal is to decrease activities that are mindless time sucks and increase more productive uses of time - journal, free writing, purposeful media consumption, etc.

• Explore creativity. Blog more. Read more blogs. Free write. Journal. Sketch. Photography. Etc.

• Finish the Lutsen 99er - 99 mile mountain bike race in Northern Minnesota - in June. This includes all the base building, strength training, development of bike handling skills and yoga that is involved in training for an biking endurance event. I have not signed up for any sort of race in 2 years so I will also have to re-discover my competitive nature! 

• Be involved. Participate in and fund raise for Bike MS. Volunteer for spay/neuter clinics. Volunteer for trail maintenance days. Support groups doing good work - The access fund, Carolina Climbers Coalition, Real Talk Radio, Women Who Hike, Women's Climbing Festival, etc.  

• Social awareness. Expand what I think I know about body acceptance, diet culture, feminism and the experiences of marginalized groups. Acknowledge my privilege. If you are interested in doing this too, one way to start is by diversifying your social media accounts. Jes Baker,  'The Militant Baker' has put out a post 135 Ways to Diversify Your Instagram Feed. Its a place to start. 

• Bike-packing. Complete 2-3 solo, multi-day, bike-packing adventures (and many group Sub24 overnights!!) Overall training for the Arizona Trail Race in April 2019. 

• Hike. Lead 4 Women Who Hike Group Hikes as an official ambassador. 

• Read as much as possible. This includes the start of a new book club with some of my close friends. Our book club has very definitive feminist themes! I'll share our book picks on Instagram if you wish to follow along. 

Hey gang. Lets go fuck some shit up this year. Lets make change happen. Lets work hard and achieve our goals. Lets embrace fear and dream big. But let us also forgive ourselves more and be kind to ourselves. Listen to your bodies and your minds. Ask for help. Find things that bring you joy. Take the rest days.