2019 in Review

Every year I send a holiday card. This year was hard, and my annual card reflected that. 

I closed 2019, the same way I closed 2017 and 2018, at a silent candle lit Tula Hot Yoga Class that ended at mid-night, with a post-class ceremony to send our wishes into the universe. I don’t have a lot of ritual in my life, but I love this one. The studio owner who has hosted this previously was unsure if she was going to host it this year, but she finally added it about 10 days out. I was so excited I crushed her in a big hug.

My wishes for 2020 are much more specific than they have been in prior years. I hope I can make them real.

Fitness

Each year, I set health and fitness goals. The injuries from last year never fully healed. If I over do it, I get pain and spasms in my (left) lower back, which I’m sure is tied to my hips or knees or both. I still see my massage therapist regularly (in Denver I recommend Juan Canas), and isolation tank float occasionally Easy Float. Both help.

My training schedule is still pretty consistent but with much less running this year:

• Weight training (AM) – Monday, Wednesday, Friday – 155 weight lifting sessions in 2019
• Evening Hot Yoga (PM)- Tuesday, (Wednesday) Thursday, Saturday, Sunday – I closed 2019 with 239 classes attended! That’s a lot of hot yoga.
• Run/Walk (AM) – Tuesday, Thursday, Saturday or Sunday – 2160 miles mostly walked in 2019
• Races – ZERO
• Hikes – I did end up hiking a few times this year: Green Mountain, Kenosha Pass, Mt. Audubon, Mt. Flora, and Mt. Parnassus.

I anticipate similar fitness programming for 2020. My primary fitness goals for 2020 are to mix it up more (bike, swim, hike) and to run without pain again. Of course, I still want to get stronger, leaner, faster, and demonstrate effortlessness and flexibility in my yoga! I joined the Denver Rec Center (all park pass) to add some biking and swimming, but the core training schedule (lift, yoga, walk/run) will likely stay the same. 

Continuing Education

Continuing Education, like exercise, is a constant in my life. I like learning new things, and several of my professional certifications require continuing education.

• Project Management Professional (PMP): Another 20+ hours of continuing education. My certification should be good for another 3 years!
• Certified Salesforce Administrator. Every new release there is an exam. This year I completed: 
  • Salesforce Certified Administrator – Spring ‘19 Release Exam
  • Salesforce Certified Administrator – Summer ‘19 Release Exam
  • Salesforce Certified Administrator – Winter ‘20 Release Exam

Icarus-Rising Nutrition Coaching

I have two active clients for my nutrition coaching services. Amazingly they found me, and signed up after a free month. Are you ready? Let me know if you are interested. First 30 days are free. Cancel at any time. While historically this is a 50 week program, sometime soon they are supposed to allow us to select/refine which habits to include in which order to build personalized programs for shorter periods – e.g. 12-16 weeks. This will be fantastic.

Books

Once upon a time I had thousands of physical books, and would read about a book per day, often rereading my favorites ones (mostly fiction – sci-fi or fantasy). Now, almost all of my books live on the Kindle. I have mixed feeling about the Kindle. Here are a few I read this year that are worth reading. I don’t read as much fiction these days, but these are nice and chewy.

• Everything is F*cked: A Book About Hope – I love Mark Manson’s Writing.
• The 5 Love Languages: The Secret to Love that Lasts – by Gary Chapman. Multiple people kept recommending this book to me. I finally read it. Mine are quality time, touch, and acts of service, in that order. I think I have some range on giving words of affirmation, but I fail utterly on physical gifts – giving or getting!
• Pop Pop Rules: A how-to manual for the little girl who saved me simply by showing up – by Adam Kenny. This book is short and touching. I went to grade school and part of high school with Adam. His dad was my 7th grade Latin teacher and gave me my very first “F” on a quiz which was a great life lesson that some disciplines required memorization. Adam also blogs. Though he sometimes deletes his old blogs, the link is to the most current one.
• Borderline, Narcissistic, and Schizoid Adaptations: The Pursuit of Love, Admiration, and Safety Elinor Greenberg PhD. I hired Elinor at the start of the year after reading her book, and following her on Quora for most of 2018. I worked with her remotely (she’s based in NYC). She’s magnificent – smart, dynamic, full of colorful stories, committed to her discipline, tough but kind, funny, and has done extensive post-doctoral training. She could easily have retired a decade ago, but loves her work and is amazing at it. I will hire her again in the future if I need her help again. She made me feel safe, but was also very committed to helping me make progress on things that mattered to me in short windows of time. Most people will never need her book or her specific kind of help! You are blessed!
• The End of Alzheimer’s: The First Program to Prevent and Reverse Cognitive Decline Dale Bredesen. I still need to finish this one but it’s worth the investment.

Travel

I didn’t travel as much for fun this year as I would have liked. But sometimes it is more about quality than quantity! This year I went to:

• New Jersey, twice – May and June – To visit my mom on Mother’s Day, and again for her memorial service in June. I did take the time to drive to the ocean to see the sun rise and walk along the beach after my mom’s memorial.

• Sydney Australia – November – it had been on my list for years and I finally made it. My trip definitely matched my expectations.

• Maui –December – to visit my brother & sister in law. Wonderful weekend.