how to set 2015 goals and follow through

I've been thinking and obsessing A LOT lately about what I want to accomplish in 2015, and I'm just now finally hashing out my goals and intentions even though we're already almost a month into the year. Better late than never! This is the first full calendar year that I'll be self-employed, so I feel a lot of self imposed pressure to have all my goals and dreams beautifully organized with made to match action plans and long term and short term objectives. But it's not that easy!

It's freaking hard to set goals and follow through. This is why only 8% of people actually achieve their New Years Resolutions. It's really scary to trust yourself enough to set a long term goal because who knows what will happen! The great unknown is a big obstacle. Will I actually be able to make this happen? There's only one way to find out. Obviously you have to have faith and give it your best shot, but the fear of failure can be self sabotaging and my own fears have been holding me back.

I'm obsessed with the big picture and long term dreaming and visioning, which is why I went to grad school for geography instead of ecology (if you're an environmental scientist you'll understand), but I also struggle with a lot of self doubt, which prevents me from setting and accepting really big scary goals. When I quit my day job to follow my dreams, I was surprised to discover that my self doubt hit me even harder and stronger than ever before!

For the first time in my life I'm cut free from external expectations of school or a job. I have complete control over how I spend and manage my time and let me tell you, it's not necessarily a blessing! Some days it feels more like a curse. I don't know what to prioritize. I don't know WHAT is the most important thing for me to be focusing on at any given moment, no structure, and that paralyzes me and prevents me from doing ANYTHING.

I'm also obsessed with absorbing books and blogs and podcasts and printable questionnaires that will tell me what I should want out of life, how I should feel, and how I should plan out my strategy, but it's hard for me to know what I'm capable of, or what is possible and realistic, because I'm so new at all of this. Because I don't know what to expect, I don't know what my end goals should be. I don't know how to plot out the details and baby steps because I hate not being able to see exactly where I'm going. I am a chronic overachiever and commitment-phobe, and I'm easily overwhelmed by all the information I'm overloading myself with.

Sooooo yeah. All this is what I've been dealing with this past month, but I'm starting to finally feel like I'm developing a plan. I've discovered several bloggers and coaches who have amazing perspectives on goal setting, and here are some of the resources and posts I've found most useful!

Blog Posts
Know Where You're Headed by Tara Gentile
How to Set Goals Intentionally by Jess Lively
How to Set Goals and Commitments That You'll Actually Keep by Alexandra Franzen
How to Make It Happen Already in 2015 by Lisa Jacobs
Set Blog and Business Goals Without the New Year Hangover by Kyla Roma

Books
Push by Chalene Johnson (great for taking action and making shit happen!)
The Desire Map by Danielle LaPorte (for putting values front and center in your jam packed crazy life)

Worksheets
PowerSheets by Lara Casey
Design Your Creative Year by Kyla Roma (free!)
Unraveling the Year Ahead Workbook by Susannah Conway (free!)


What I've Learned About Goal Setting

-Start with how you want to feel. What makes you excited to think about? What would make you dissappointed if it never happened (no matter how scary it seems now?)

-Instead of setting goals based on what you want to accomplish, think of benchmarks or milestones as intentions that align with your core desired feelings and values.

-Focus on daily actions that you can control. For example, you can't control the number on the scale, so instead of saying "I want to lose 10 pounds," say you're going to eat whole foods 6 days/week and exercise 4 times/week. Allow room for fun!

-It's important to focus and simplify! Set a Chief Initiative for the year ("Push" Goal), and a handful of supporting goals.

-Plan actions and benchmarks seasonally. Every three months ask yourself "what do I want to accomplish?"

-Braindump for each goal! What do you need to learn, do, acquire, and who do you need help from? Break all steps down into tiny daily action items.

-Sort the steps into 3 categories: This month, next month, third month.

-At the end of each season, re-assess!

-Set deadlines. Be aggressive with yourself so you don't procrastinate.

-Journaling every single morning really helps me feel more in control and less overwhelmed.

Now go forth and dream bigger, girl!

Do you set goals or New Years Resolutions? What is one big scary dream you want to accomplish in 2015? Let's make it happen!

Insanity Max 30 meal plan

I’m officially starting week six of Insanity Max 30, and even though I’ve been killing the workouts and seeing some great results so far, I must admit that I haven’t been really focused or disciplined with my nutrition since before the holidays. The meal plan that comes with Insanity Max 30 is amazing and I haven’t been giving it enough credit. It’s very similar to the 21 Day Fix in that it’s focused on portion control instead of calorie counting, and it really takes all the guesswork out of “clean eating.” Based on your weight, you’re assigned a certain number of portions each day of the basic food groups: protein, veggies, fruit, healthy fats, and carbs. You can use the fun color coded containers, but you also get measurements in cups and tablespoons which is really convenient!

Confession. I’ve been loosely following the nutrition plan, but I haven’t really fully committed because I’ve been full of excuses. First the holidays, then the freezing weather, and I’ve been lazy. Since New Year’s I’ve been eating almost 100% whole foods and have eliminated all processed food and added sugar from my diet, but I’ve been drinking way too much wine and I know I’ve been eating too much. Yes, you can definitely over-eat healthy food! What you eat has a much greater impact on your body than working out, and you honestly can’t “out-exercise a bad diet,” so it’s time for me to eliminate my dumb excuses and get serious! Yes I am torching tons of calories every day, but that doesn’t mean I have the green light to eat like Michael Phelps. I know this program has amazing potential to completely transform my body and I want to live up to that potential and not ruin all my hard work with mindless choices. I only have 3 weeks left, so I’m going to be dialing in on my meal planning and nutrition so I can feel energized and amazing. This does not mean deprivation, it just means focus and intention! No more boredom snacking, wine just because the bottle’s open, or extra bites here and there when I’m not truly hungry. I’ve committed to making 2015 the year I stop holding myself back! #noexcuses

I'm using myself as my own motivation!

HOW I MEAL PLAN

Every Saturday or Sunday, I go through my stash of cooking magazines, cookbooks, and Pinterest and plan out what we’re going to eat for the week. I put together a grocery list as I select recipes and we stock up on all our groceries on Sunday. We buy 85% of our food at Aldi (I’m obsessed), and the rest at Jewel or Trader Joe’s. Ben and I both love food, so we do our best to stick to a “budget” but let’s be real, food is where we do our biggest spending because I looooove trying new recipes and new fun impulse buys. Eeek! Aldi saves us, but we still usually end up spending $100-$120/week on groceries for the two of us, and then go out at least once or twice a week for Chipotle and a date night restaurant. I know this isn’t too bad, but I also know we can do better. We do most of our cooking at home and make our own lunches, but living in Chicago around so many amazing restaurants makes it really easy to spend money!

Love Aldi so much!

DINNER
I start by thinking of 3-4 dinner ideas for the week. Between Ben and me, this is usually enough to get us through with leftovers and we go out on Fridays for “date night.” I follow the Tone It Up meal structure, which means I keep my carbs to the first half of the day so dinner is usually lean protein and veggies with a healthy fat. I’ll usually make a side of brown rice, pasta, or add some carbs for Ben and my lunch leftovers. Sometimes I’ll have a starch like beans, sweet potatoes, and the occasional whole grain, but I’ve eliminated processed carbs (bread, pasta) at dinner because I’ve discovered sticking to “lean, clean and green” really does help me wake up in the morning feeling lighter and leaner. I’m not depriving myself because if I really want bread I’ll eat the damn bread and definitely make room for treat meals or drinks at least a couple nights a week, but I eat to feel good and that’s how I make my decisions! I’ve been able to achieve a balance that keeps me sane and feeling great.

BREAKFAST
I’m a creature of habit when it comes to breakfast and lunch, and I’ll go through a phase where I eat the same thing every single day all week. My breakfast rotation is usually either oatmeal, protein pancakes, or occasionally eggs. Usually oatmeal. I prefer sweet over savory in the morning and eat a huge breakfast because it’s my favorite meal of the day and morning is when my metabolism seems to be cranking at the highest levels so I’m starving. There are a lot of people who swear by the Paleo diet and preach the elimination of all whole grains, but I’ve discovered that for me, physically and emotionally I function best with some carbs in the morning and a huge bowl of oatmeal makes me freaking happy. Don’t cut out foods just because people “say so.”

LUNCH
Lunch is usually a giant salad I eat in a serving dish sized bowl, topped with leftover chicken or a can of tuna. I love mixing tuna with mustard or Greek yogurt to make “tuna salad,” and loading up my salad with as many veggies and toppings as I can. I also like to add a couple tablespoons of healthy fats like a sprinkle of cheese (feta or goat cheese), nuts, olives, or chopped avocado. I shake up my own salad dressings from olive oil, vinegar or lemon, a squirt of Dijon, some herbs, and sometimes a sweetener like honey or maple syrup. Chopped apples are good too! I always eat an apple and PB for lunch dessert because I have a huge sweet tooth and this kills my sugar cravings.

SNACKS
On top of my three main meals I always eat a morning and an afternoon snack. In the morning this is usually Shakeology blended with unsweetened almond milk, ice, and occasionally frozen banana, which I have after I workout. My afternoon snack is usually veggies, hummus, and almonds. Again, this fits with the TIU meal structure of keeping fruits and sugars in the morning, and veggies and healthy fats in the afternoon to maintain your blood sugar an energy levels and it works for me! Sometimes I’ll have Shakeology in the afternoon because that’s when my energy dips and Shakeo will rev me back up and keep me full until dinner. The pre-dinner hour around 4-5 pm is when I turn into a bottomless snacky pit if I’m not careful!

THIS WEEK’S MEAL PLAN

Here’s what I’ve got on the line up for this week!

Follow me on Facebook and Instagram for daily updates and recipes.

Breakfast
Eggs + Toast + Fruit
Oatmeal + Fruit
Protein Pancakes


Lunch
Dinner leftovers
Salad with tuna or chicken


Dinner
White bean and sausage cassoulet
Asian turkey wraps
Grilled steak and fajita veggies
Leftovers
Date night


Snacks
Shakeology
Apple + PB
Veggies and hummus


Do you meal plan, or do you take things day by day?

xo Anna

p.s. How to combine the 21 Day Fix with the Tone It Up plan + a recipe for French Toast Oatmeal

the best lentil soup ever

For Thanksgiving at my sister in law's this past year I brought a lentil salad recipe I found in Better Homes and Gardens (or as Ben calls it, Better Homes and Gardens Than Yours) that had a dressing made with red wine vinegar and Dijon mustard and it freaking rocked. Like, it was ALMOST as good as the cornbread stuffing that our friend Meredith brought, and stuffing + cornbread are two of my most favorite foods.

A lot of people tell me I'm an amazing cook (and I will accept all compliments and accolades gladly, hehe), but really my secret is just paying attention to what I eat! If I eat something that makes me think OMG this is the most delicious thing ever, I make a mental note and try to remember the components of what made it so yummy to me.

When I'm making dinner I rarely follow a recipe exactly. I usually take inspiration from my hoard of cookbooks and magazines or the memory of a delicious meal I had at a restaurant and put my own spin on it. Once you start to learn what flavors go well together and some basic cooking skills, you'll become a chef too. (I started with Easy Mac, pasta with frozen garlic bread, Lean Pockets, and Hamburger Helper in college, so if I can learn how to cook you can too. I believe in you!)

Anyway, last week we were down to a few bare scraps in the fridge and I threw together this lentil soup that was inspired by our Thanksgiving side dish. It turned out to be the best lentil soup I've ever had! Healthy, hearty, savory, delicious, and you probably already have most of the ingredients in your pantry. Try it this weekend!

The Best Lentil Soup Ever
serves 4

Ingredients

-1T olive oil
-1 onion, chopped
-4 carrots, chopped
-4 cloves garlic, minced
-1 cup green lentils, rinsed
-salt and pepper to taste
-1 tsp dried thyme
-4 cups broth
-1 cup water
-1 can white beans, drained and rinsed
-2T Dijon mustard
-2T red wine vinegar
-green onions

Directions

In a large pot over medium heat, sauté the onion, carrots, and garlic in olive oil until partially cooked, about 3-4 minutes. Add lentils, herbs and spices, broth, and water and bring to a simmer. Cook for 40 minutes or until lentils are soft (the best way to test doneness is try a bite!). Stir in the beans, mustard, and vinegar and simmer for another 5 minutes. Top with chopped green onions and enjoy!

Toast and peanut butter makes the perfect side to lentil soup.

(21 Day Fix: 1 yellow, 1 green, 1 tsp per serving. Makes 4 servings.)