I Don't Make Resolutions

Happy New Year! 2015 brought a lot of changes for me, unfortunately those changes took a lot of mental energy! The beginning of a new year is a great time to review the previous year, identify things you want to change, and take steps to improve for the next year. Most people make resolutions, but I'm going to tell you why I don't make them!

Resolutions, to me, are wishes. They're "want tos" and "it would be nice ifs" and "it's okay with me if it doesn't happens". Resolutions make me feel bad about my progress before I even start! Think about the common ones people usually make -  they're vague, or set an unreasonable expectation. Please understand,  I'm all about dreaming big! But at the end of the holiday season and the beginning of the new year, I'd rather set goals - specific, measurable, completable!

The key to great goals (and this is the downfall in my mind of resolutions) is to give them a deadline. For me, you'll see that I'm spreading my goals out over the whole year.  I'm not going to attempt to do everything perfectly starting today. That's just not feasible. And because I know myself, I know that if I can't do something perfectly I won't even attempt it!

Let's reframe some common resolutions into goals (by the way, these are all goals of mine for 2016!)

RESOLUTION: "I want to lose weight" or "I want to get in better shape"

Most common resolution of all time (I think). It sends people to sign up for gyms and classes and buy workout gear. It causes a lot of feelings of guilt when the numbers on the scale just don't seem to move,  and the clothing size is the same in July as it was in January. What if,  instead of focusing on the number on the scale or the label,  we made some specific goals about strength and fitness?

GOAL 1: Complete 1 round of PiYo by February 29

GOAL 2: Compile and complete 3 month 21 Day Fix/PiYo fusion by May 31

GOAL 3: Participate in 2 5Ks by September 30

The result of achieving these goals will definitely be improved strength and flexibility, and will likely be a smaller waistline. But even if more pounds don't come off, I can still be proud of achieving the goals!

RESOLUTION: "I want to eat better" or "I want to drink more water"

Both very vague resolutions! What does that even mean? Salad everyday? Cutting out sugars? Only eating food you grow for yourself? Walking around with a cup with a straw every where you go? These resolutions are so frustrating because you have to eat every day. And many times we sign up for a plan, or buy a book or a membership so someone can teach us how to eat. And we commit to it. And the first time we are tempted by treats in the office, we feel guilty and it can derail us. "Diet" is hard to measure because there isn't an endpoint - you can't set a deadline and at the end say, "wow I met my goal, guess I'm done eating!" Instead, food and other behavior goals fall under the "every [frequency of opportunity] is a new chance to make the right choice" category! This is where a food plan like the 21 Day Fix is so helpful - every day you have a goal of getting all your containers in,  and you know that if you do that,  you're making healthy choices that fuel your body!

GOAL 1: Drink Shakeology daily

GOAL 2: Track containers in January - hit 100% containers 3 times per week. 

BONUS GOAL: If I achieve the 3 times per week in January,  increase goal to 4 times per week in February. If not,  February stays at 3.

It's okay to give yourself a break! You're living,  you have a life! The goals are to measure progress, not to make you feel guilty!

RESOLUTION: "I want to make more money" or "I want to get promoted"

This is a great resolution.  You may even be able to map out goals to achieve it.  The difficulty is that often the decision on the raise or promotion is up to someone else! You don't control it! But you do control your performance,  which contributes to your value as an employee.

GOAL 1:  Complete training certification by May 31.

GOAL 2:  Be independent of trainer by August 31.

RESOLUTION: "Personal growth"

Haven't you stated it just like this? I know I have! You know you want something inside yourself to change, or to express yourself in a new way. But it's scary to set a goal about something personal! Because if you don't achieve it,  then what? But this is where those big dreams come in. What do you want for yourself? Break that down into action steps for yourself. I like to think in seasons or quarters - 3 months is a good amount of time to make progress on something that could be a lifelong dream! Mine happens to be writing a book about my own recent "personal growth" - here's what the goals look like for this dream:

GOAL 1: By March 31 - create chapter outline

GOAL 2: By June 30 -  begin writing (remember, I'm doing a certification course in here, so I'm giving myself a little bit of a break)

GOAL 3: By September 30 -  finish first draft

GOAL 4: By December 31 -  revise first draft and share with trusted person for review

I have stitching and knitting goals as well, but I'll share those in another post. Here's to a fantastic 2016!

Recipe Reboot - Ham and Bean Soup

Recipe Disclaimer: I'm not a chef or a nutritionist/dietitian.  I'm just a mom who loves the 21 Day Fix program, and I figure out container counts for some of my favorite foods and share them with all of you!

One of my favorite comfort foods is ham and bean soup.  I love ham in general, it's a great way to feed your family for several meals when you're on a budget.  If you get a ham on the bone, one of your options for using up the leftovers is soup!  This soup is not traditional "diet" food (but what does that even mean on the 21 Day Fix??) - it's usually high in fat and sodium.  Canned soup uses a lot of starch, very little ham, and a lot of salt to make it taste ham-y.  All of that changes with what is about to follow!  It even passes the kid-test in my house - kids that usually don't like soup at all.

So you start with a bone-in ham.  When I made this soup and took pictures, it was a few days after Easter.  I had a large spiral-cut ham (the kind that comes with a packet of brown sugar glaze, a packet that promptly went in the garbage).  We had a delicious dinner on Easter, breakfast for dinner the night after, sandwiches... and soup!

The soup starts with soaking the beans overnight.  Or, if you're like me and forget to put beans in water overnight, it starts by covering beans with water, placing on the stove and bring them to a boil.  Let them boil for about 5 minutes, then turn the temp off, cover and let sit for an hour.  Drain, and set the beans aside.  Have your yellow container handy for later.

Now we get to the delicious smelling part  In the same pot, brown the ham-hock on all sides.  Butter is not allowed on the 21 Day Fix, but you do need a fat to brown the meat.  You want to avoid coconut oil for this, as the smoke point is too high.  You can use a small amount of olive oil (a tablespoon or less - when you divide into servings, the amount will be negligible).

While the meat is browning, chop your veggies.  I start with the Holy Trinity of soups - onion, celery and carrot (one green box of each).  When the meat is fully browned, drop the chopped veggies in and allow them to soften.  If you're using frozen spinach, add it now.  Hold fresh greens until the end.  For the record, I love frozen chopped spinach for soups, and I always keep a box in my freezer in case I get the urge to soup something.

When the carrots and celery are soft, add the water, seasoning, bay leaf and beans - measure them with your yellow box into the pot.  Cover and bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for an hour.

When the timer goes off, carefully remove the ham-hock from the pot and set it on a cutting board - let it cool before handling.  Check the beans to see if they are tender.  If they aren't, give them another 30 minutes of simmer time.  Mash them gently with a ricer.  When the ham is cool enough, chop it up (removing fatty parts) and measure it with your red container into the pot.

Stir in the meat, increase the heat slightly (add any fresh greens now if you want) and cook together for 15-20 more minutes.

To serve: ladle soup into your green box (per Autumn's instructions in the book).  When I measured my soup, I got 12 green boxes.  So all my calculations are done by dividing the total ingredients by 12.  I think that 2 green boxes makes a hearty soup for a main dish (see the top picture - 2 green boxes-worth in that bowl); if you're having it alongside a sandwich or salad, stick with one box. If you have 2, remember to double your container counts!

Annie was really mad that she didn't get any of this soup.  She thinks it's really unfair to have to smell ham cooking so many days and not get any.  Meanest dog-mom EVER.  Also, mean to call her over for a picture and not have a piece of ham ready.

This soup just gets better when it sits in the fridge (although if it will be more than 4 or 5 days, stick it into the freezer).  It also thickens as it stands, so add water if necessary to bring it to your preference.

Select and print this part:

Shopping:

Green
Celery, chopped - 1 box
Onion, chopped - 1 box
Carrot, chopped - 1 box
Spinach (frozen chopped, or fresh) - 2 boxes worth

Yellow
2 Cups white, navy or Great Northern beans - 8-9 boxes after soaking

Red
Leftover ham-hock, browned and chopped - 12 boxes

Free
4 cups water
1-2 tsp 21DF Multipurpose Seasoning
1 bay leaf

Cooking:
Prep: Overnight or 1 hour; Cook: About 2 hours

Soak beans overnight, or place beans in pot and bring to a boil; boil for 5 minutes, then turn the heat off.  Cover and let sit on burner for 1 hour.  Drain and set aside.

Brown ham-hock in 1 Tbsp olive oil.  When meat is browned on all sides, add chopped celery, onion and carrot and frozen spinach (if using fresh, hold until later).  When the veggies are soft, add water, seasoning and bay leaf.  Measure beans into pot.  Bring to a boil, then reduce heat and simmer for 1 hour.

Remove ham-hocks and cool before handling.  If beans are not yet tender, allow to simmer for another 30 minutes.  When beans are tender, mash them slightly.  When ham is cool, chop the meat, remove fatty portions, and measure into pot.  Stir, increase heat slightly (add fresh greens if desired) and cook an additional 15-20 minutes.

Ladle soup into green box - each green box measurement gives you:
.5 green, .75 yellow, 1 red