One month in

Today marks the beginning of the second month of the calendar year, and having just observed Chinese New Year I thought it would be good time to reflect on the goals I set at the start of this year.

The first goal was to increase my physical activity. I'm doing okay on that one. Some days it's really hard to get those 10,000 steps in, having reached that goal only 12 of the last 30 days, however I have managed it on eight of the last ten days, so that's progress. 20 flights of stairs a day isn't all that difficult with my classroom on the 4th floor and no lift (elevator). My record is 52 flights in one day, but getting even 10 flights on the weekend is a challenge if I don't go to school. Netball resumed, and I played last week, but this week was holidays. Hopefully next week I'll be able to play again. My biggest strategy for getting my 10,000 steps in is to finish school early enough that I can walk home the long way (about 3500 steps) and get home before dark.

The second goal I set myself was reading the Bible in one year using a structured plan. I'm really happy to report that doing these readings is becoming a habit. I've managed not to get more than 1 day behind at any time, and I've got myself back on track each time. So far I've completed Genesis and am part way through Exodus, and am nearing the end of Matthew, as well as small daily passages from Psalms and Proverbs.

Alas, I have been distinctly undisciplined in achieving the third goal, and this is something to keep working on. I really do need to limit my social media and computer games time. Definitely something to keep working on, so that I reclaim time for piano practice, school preparation, and other forms of communication.

For Chinese New Year I'm adding one more goal, which is a medium term goal. That is to lose the last 5kg to get my weight back to a level that puts me in the "Healthy BMI" range. My goal is 5kg by Khmer New Year (about 3 months). so that's less than 0.5kg per week, which is a safe and sustainable way to do it. I was encouraged today by a mum who noticed that I'd lost weight since last school year, which was really nice to hear.

Now, it's time for bed! A good night's sleep definitely makes for a happier teacher.

Happy Chinese New Year.