Taking inventory

Two years ago my friend joined a group created by The Purpose Driven Life’s Rick Warren, called Celebrate Recovery. She has grown immeasurably since joining. One thing she told me about doing the other day was taking inventory of her life, especially of how she has grown from last year to this.

Unlike resolutions, an inventory is simply a way of making sure you are on track to reach your goals you have already set and evaluating where you are on your journey, whether spiritually, physically, in relationships, career, or any other goal a person might have made.

Since Fit to Excel is focused on adopting a healthier lifestyle in all aspects of life, I will concentrate on that for this post.

I began my weight loss and fitness journey in January 2008. Naturally I saw more physical progress that year than I did in ’09. During ’09 I was in maintenance mode. My fitness goals were to continue to build strength and endurance, tone my body, and maintain my weight.

Let’s see how I did.

With no fancy gadgets to gauge my strength and endurance during and after a workout other than how I feel, I believe made a lot of progress in the last year. I continue to increase intensity during workouts. I can work out for longer periods than in the past. Endurance during everyday activities has also increased.

The same can be said for toning. While there is plenty of room for improvement and my measurements still aren’t what I would like, I definitely see increased tone, especially in my arms, shoulders, and calves. I also see change in my abs, which is super cool considering I’ll be 46 this summer.

Reaching my goal weight and staying there is the one thing I didn’t do in 2009. The same 5 pounds I wanted to lose last year are still hanging around for this one.

That brings me to what I need to do this year to achieve my goal of reaching and maintaining my goal weight. It’s pretty simple really. Eat better. Cut down on the junk. Eat more green stuff. Keep my fingers out of the potato chip bag. Don’t walk inside restaurants so often. Make better, healthier, greener choices every time I sit down to eat. Eat mindfully. Think about what I put into my mouth.

Blah. Blah. Blah.

This isn’t exactly a revelation. I’ve known this for as long as I’ve known how to write longhand. It’s just putting it into practice that counts.

What about you? Are you on the right path to end up where you want to go? What resistance do you face most often? What can you do today that will put you on the fast track to your goals?

Here’s to a blessed, beautiful and healthy 2010.