In the past my New Year’s resolutions typically included something vague and boring like “lose weight”. Little did I know that losing weight is simply a consequence of taking good care of yourself. But what does that mean?

In my opinion, we sometimes tend to go through a daily routine on autopilot. Wash face, brush teeth, grab snacks, eat lunch, drive, gym stop, check Facebook. How often do we act with  intention or focus on choosing and doing the right thing for you. This is especially true for parents, who often put their needs on the back burner in favor of kids.

Sadly I am not the most disciplined person when it comes to my own self care. I’ve been known to skip a workout in favor of house chores, or got stuck scrolling through social media in bed when I should have been sleeping.

So my two words for 2019 are going to be “intention” and “discipline“.  Living with intention will help you choose wise goals, be more present in a moment and find you purpose. Discipline will be the glue to hold your intentions together.

I also decided to share my personal goals for 2019 in case you might find an inspiration in it for yourself. Feel free to save and share. I’d be glad if it helps at least one of you, dear readers.

SLEEP

Sleep is one of the most under-rated medicines. Yes, I call it a medicine because during a healthy sleep cycle your body restores and heals itself. You’re literally staying younger, smarter and skinnier by sleeping well.

Sadly, more than a third of Americans don’t get enough sleep at night (source). In fact, a person often gets a praise if they are able to operate on very little sleep for the sake of productivity. I find something very wrong with that.

Personally, I’ve had struggles with sleep (more about it here) but I feel that most of the time it was due to lifestyle choices that can be corrected.

So in 2019 I am going to prioritize sleep. I’ll be sharing more on it later in a separate post, but in a nut shell the plan of action is to:

• cut off food several hours before sleep
• be intentional with my evening time
• commit to going to bed at same time

YOGA

If you’ve never tried yoga, I recommend finding a studio and instructor that speak to you. It’s a life changer, my friends.

When we lived in Tucson, I went to a lovely yoga studio for a weekly heated vinyasa flow. I always felt SO MUCH better afterwards. Yoga sessions calmed my busy mind and made me feel re-balanced, kind and grounded. It was the time when my body, mind and soul united for a complete healing experience.

As a nice side effect I also saw positive physical changes. You’d never think that yoga can be such an effective form of exercise but I could clearly see my muscle tone increase after a few regular sessions. The first big change for me is usually toned abs, then I see shoulder strength (hello chaturanga) and lastly legs.

Well, after 6 long months of living in Las Vegas the search is over. I think I finally found a studio that speaks to me.

The week before our trip, I went for a vinyasa flow, and it was such a beautiful emotionally cleansing experience! The words of the teacher resonated with my practice so much that I couldn’t hold back the tears. Tears of joy and happiness that I was on a yoga mat again doing this beautiful stress releasing thing for my body and soul.

It reminded me of how much I loved doing yoga. So my big goal for 2019 is to make it a regular practice to get on the yoga mat at least once a week. This will be my non-negotiable “mommy-will-be-a-better-person-after” thing. While I am at it, I’d like to increase strength and upgrade to some of the more challenging yoga poses.

NUTRITION

This will be a big one for me, because I feel like I’ve fallen off the wagon of meal control. I’d eat snacks on the go, wait on dinner until kids are in bed (a big no no), and lose track of sweet treats. 2019 is going to be different because I am going to focus on 3 things:

• time restricted feeding. It’s a form of intermittent fasting and studies show that it inevitably leads to weight loss. I’ll be sharing more on this later.
• Monthly Prolon 5 day cleanse. Developed by the world leading expert on longevity, Prolon is the first and only clinically tested program that allows you to reap the benefits of fasting without completely eliminating food (but eating the right foods in the right amounts). I am fascinated by the results and will be sharing my progress.
• Portion control. While I always focus on wholesome ingredients and fresh food, in 2019 I am going to go back to tracking my food. I had a real success with portion control a couple of years ago when I was trying to lose baby weight. Back then I shed over 15 pounds and was in the best shape of my life.

There’s nothing worse than spending time to formulate your goals only to forget about them a few months into a year. Once you’re done planning, I suggest writing down your big goals and placing them in a highly visible place. Mine are going right above my desk. This will serve as a good reminder and will keep me in check with regards to my goals.

Well, this is it. Nothing too crazy but I am definitely excited and looking forward to implementing these new changes in 2019. I’ll be keeping you updated on my progress. In the meantime, I’d love to hear about some of your health + fitness goals and New Year’s resolutions for 2019!

Best of health,

Katrina