New goals, new life...

This goal setting business is good, I'm liking it, although these are the things I'm discovering along the way...

Not having goals... HARD

Realise I need my own goals... ENLIGHTENING

Choose first sets of goals...EASY

Sticking to goals...SO FAR SO GOOD, BUT CHALLENGING

Sticking to goals for next 20 days left of 28...SCARY

Hopefully though I'm beginning to establish the routine that will force these new goals into new habits and habits that will make life easier or better in some way.

My one photo per day is going well and encouraging me to look at things a bit differently so I can make something out of nothing. It's all still a novelty though and I'm aware that I have to keep it fresh and enjoyable or I will find it like a millstone round my neck and that's definitely not the idea. I've uploaded my week in pictures onto this Flickr site and will post the link on here every week so you can see what has caught my eye (or my life.) Hope you like them. I can't wait to be able to look back on my 35th birthday in 2010 and hopefully see my 34th year in 365 pictures :)

Face picking is still at zero :) :) which to be honest isn't a miracle yet as I have managed to do a week or two before but then slipped. It would be amazing if after 28 days I could say I had done it!

Stretching daily is also happening and I'm sure will make a huge difference long term. Tom and I have established a great routine which doesn't take too long and targets the areas which cause us both trouble.

At first I just thought I was adding yet more tasks to what can sometimes be a hectic day. If I'm training and working I still have to make time to stretch and to take a photo, but so far it's working and I'm enjoying it. Mostly because they're not bad things to have in your life are they? Who wouldn't want to stay injury free by stretching? And I'm loving picking up my camera to take a photo of something I want to take a photo of, not just what a client wants.

Training is going well. Swim sessions are good with some great technique sessions helping my stroke come on. I'm not over the moon with how I'm running at the minute but I'm maintaining my general run fitness. The snow is playing havoc with the bike though, oh and last Thursday's long run which Tom and our mate Dave did on a treadmill :(

22.5km on a treadmill took my mental sanity to places far and beyond human. The voices in my mind were trying to tell me to just get off, mainly because I knew it was going to be tedious and definitely more of a mental challenge than a physical one and that never helps. The thing is I had no physical reason to actually get off which was a bit of a bugger really. With no excuse the only thing you can do is carry on and if it wasn't for the fact that Dave and Tom were right next to me plugging away at their own 22.5km I would have probably ditched the session. I'm glad I didn't but it wasn't an enjoyable experience, still that's a big fat point to me and zero points to the treadmill :) If I can conquer the mental demons the rest is easy surely?!

And bless the bike...all of it done staring at the back of the garage door in minus ridiculous temperatures! I've clocked up 10.5 hrs in the garage this week and done some quality sessions but I can't wait to be able to get outside without the fear of sliding under a bus on the ice!

I'm feeling good I have to say. Things are just ticking along really nicely. I'm back in order I think :)

So, hope you enjoy my week in pictures. See you next week.

H. x