Looking Toward 2017

A new year means new calendars!

 

I am a digital gal ... I do use Google calendars for planning and scheduling, but I still love physical calendars all around the house. As the year winds down, I start keeping my eyes open for inexpensive options (score at the dollar store!) and I stock up. Then the trick is remembering where I put them when the new year starts (one year I had to buy again because I couldn't recall where I'd put them!)

We have an annual tradition on my side of the family going back 20 years now. Started by one of the daughter's in-law, then passed around throughout the years (my hubs did it for a few, then a different SIL, I did it last year). Moving to digital creation (then sending in for printing) several years ago made it a snap to simply order additional calendars so that each family could have one in their home.

So that's one new calendar!

I keep one in the den, one in my gym, one in the bedroom, on by my desk. I like pictures of flowers, or pretty landscapes, or inspirational quotes. I grab one for each of the boy's rooms (classic cars, NBA teams. The little boys have actually liked one with cats). 

The family photo calendar in the kitchen gets a lot written on it. As the year ends ... not only is the calendar a keepsake for the photos, but for the schedules input upon the days. I LOVE looking back at old calendars. Seeing all the basketball games, the derbies, the doctor visits, the vacations. Just a quick glance can bring back memories galore.

At one point, I really tried to keep an "exercise" calendar ... noting my elliptical, Zumba, etc ... but while I keep all the info in an excel file, I haven't been able to keep it updated in calendar format.

However, I do use a little desk calendar to help me keep track of my workouts. In the picture above, you can see the yellow shell of my 2016 page-a-day calendar. It's been stripped bare! I kept it on my treadmill downstairs and each day, as I'd do a workout (or two or three or more) I'd write the stats down on the back and use the paper to transfer the info upstairs at the end of the day.  With 2016 ending, I needed a new calendar. My last year's "Happy Notes" was fine, but had been a little disappointing. Some days featured great inspirational quotes but others were just silly stuff ... "draw a picture of something that makes you happy" or "smile, it's a frown turned upside down"... I don't know, I guess even with needing content for 365 days I thought the makers could have featured more quality stuff.  

This year ... I'm going in knowing it's silly. I bought an "It's Different Every Day" page-a day calendar and I'm excited for the new, fun daily giggle. Here's a peek at day one (which incidentally, has two 20min elliptical sessions and two 10min ones ... yes, I started 2017 with an hour of elliptical, even on a Sunday!)

  

I'm prepared with my calendars! 

I switched them all out. 2017 here we come ...

Revising My Records

Before (left) and After (right)

There has been a lot about CHANGE on my blog recently ... Resolutions, Change, Trying New Things. Perhaps it's a "January" thing, a fresh new year makes people want a fresh new approach.  As I was shuffling through all the papers on my desk ... I decided I needed a bit of a new approach to my record keeping. A while back, I did a post (Numbers) showcasing the little slips of paper I write down the stats from each workout on before I transfer the data to my computer. I've been doing this for years. It works, but it's a bit messy, lots of little papers pile up. To my frustration, they would go missing here and there.

So, a MONUMENTAL change (ok, it's minor) ... I decided to switch from my mini 3" x 5" spiral notepad to a larger 6" x 9" spiral notepad.  I've been doing it for a little over a week now (I wish I had thought to start it Jan1 or Jan 6, just the OCD in me) and I'm liking it. Being bigger, I've got a little more room - previously, I was quite cramped trying to write everything down on uber-exercise days. I used to throw away my little pieces of paper (eventually, after a pile had stacked up *Ü*) but I actually LIKE keeping everything, as long as it's organized and together. 

One disadvantage to the new system is I have to cart the notebook up and down the stairs. The workouts take place downstairs in J&G's Gym, where as the data entry portion (my excel file, my Day to Day Doings entries) take place upstairs at my desk. I used to just tear off the top sheet, but now I bring up the entire notebook at the end of the day. I then have to remember to take it back downstairs in the morning. I often forget. Sometimes I want to work on my computer and need my numbers during the day, so I have to run down and grab the notebook ... 

My Fitbit tracks stairs ... I've noticed I've had a noted increase in my stairs this past week.

That's not a bad thing *Ü*

Well, off to add a little to my notebook ...

Linking up with 

Running With Spoons

What are YOU thinking about this fine Thursday?

Calendars & Keeping Track

 As 2013 was winding down, I started keeping my eye out for some calendars for the new year. I knew I'd have one for the kitchen (an annual family photo calendar is created each Christmas) but I want one by my desk, and one in my gym ... I always forget the date when I'm writing up my daily workout notes.

I've always loved calendars. I'm picky with my pictures, but I'm always able to find something I find beautiful or inspiring. Through the years, I've used calendars and day planners to write down my days. I think I like calendars more for looking back on, then for planning. I have a big box with all my old calendars. I can pull one out, glance over it and remember what life was like at a glance.

Because I have these calendars hanging on a wall, sometimes writing on them is a little tricky. So for several years now, I've printed out a simple calendar and I use that to record our "life". This isn't really for planning, but to provide a visual of the month. I keep it color coordinated for the different activities. These are small, clean and easily scannable to keep a back up on the computer as well. (BBP/BBG are basketball practice/games, just in case you were wondering *Ü*) 

I keep track of my workouts in an excel file. I also have my "streaks" calendars, but this year I thought I'd also try keeping track of my activity on a simple calendar, where I could see everything at a glance.

Here's the year so far ...

Does a calendar/keeping track help motivate you?

Numbers

I have a little notepad sitting on the treadmill downstairs in my gym (J&G'sGym).  At the top, I always put the day of the week, and the date. Then, as I complete a workout, I write down my stats. Time spent, distance, calories burned (I do write down the machine "calorie burned" readout even though I think the machine readouts are too high, see my Exercise Estimates post).  You can see so far today, I've done 20 minutes (2miles) on the elliptical ... 

At the end of the day I make one final trek downstairs to grab the top sheet. I then sit down at my desk and pull off my Omron pedometer and write down my total steps, aerobic steps and aerobic minutes. I write down my sleep stats (time I went to sleep, time I woke up, and number of hours asleep ... according to Fitbit) and my daily weigh-in. 

The next morning I grab my calories in and calories out (Fitbit adjustment) from MFP and write those down, along with my Fitbit numbers (total steps, total burn, very active minutes).  These are changing up until midnight, so that's why I wait on them until the morning. 

Sometimes I forget to throw away my old "numbers" in a timely manner. 

I get a BIT of a pile up on my desk. 

I keep everything in an excel file (although I've actually switched to Google Docs after a recent computer update invalidated my excel license). I also write down all this info here in my Day to Day Doings. I copy that info to Walker Tracker and update my Daily Miles. 

Redundant? Obsessive? Crazy?
A Little OCD?

I admit it. It's true.

Linking up with

• Workout Wednesday (instead of tracking food numbers, some try a photo journal of food). I'd like to try this ... well in addition to tracking my food numbers on MFP. 
• Weigh In Wednesday  (my weight today is higher than last Friday, but down from the last couple of days ... I have a few more days before my "official" weigh-in to try and at least get back to where I was last week).

...well enough time on the computer this morning. Time to get back down to the gym and add more entries on my little numbers sheet ... I plan to get in five 20min sessions on the elliptical, some Jillian (Ripped in 30 Level 1) and ... maybe some bike or treadmill. It's early out for the elementary today. A basketball game in the evening (a late one ... doesn't start until 9:00).

What numbers do you track? 

How do you organize your numbers?