One Word for 2019 -Health - Adventures in Familyhood

What is your one word for 2019? My goal is to focus on health this year. Here’s how I plan to achieve health in all parts of my life.

As a new year comes around, I often think about what I want to accomplish in the next year. Instead of making resolutions, which are broken not too soon after the new year, I choose one word to carry me through the year. Choosing one word helps me focus one ideal that I want to implement into various parts of my life. Throughout the course of the year I ask myself how the decisions I’m making are helping me achieve my one word goal. Over the years I’ve selected words such as brave, fearless, and fun. My word for 2018 was exposure. In life, I rarely put myself out there for fear of failure. I also tend not to toot my own horn when successes happen. The word exposure helped me open myself up to new experiences. It opened my eyes to the moments where I could step out into the light and gave me the courage to do it.

One Word for 2019

My word for 2019 is health. While this sounds like “oh she’s going to go on a diet”, this word means so much more than that. As a full time working mom in her 40s, health is something I’ve neglected. Not just physical health, but emotional, spiritual and financial health as well. In 2019, I want to lead a healthier lifestyle all around. I want to leave this year feeling more balanced, less stressed and happier. And if I happen to lose a few pounds in the process, all the better.

How to achieve health in 2019

Saying I want to lead a healthier life in 2019 is one thing, doing it is a whole different story. I’ve learned that when it comes to making goals and lifestyle changes, they need to be SMART; specific, measurable, attainable, relevant and time-based. I can’t just say I want to be healthy and have it magically happen overnight. When thinking about the aspect of my health I want to change, I thought about some specific things I could do to achieve those goals. While I am no expert, here are the ways I plan to achieve health in 2019.

Physical Health

First and foremost I want to go to the doctor. I am almost embarrassed to say that I have not had a physical in a VERY long time. Without getting too personal, there’s a few medical concerns I want to get under control. I also need to move more. My new Apple Watch is going to help with that for sure. The challenge to close my rings everyday is just the motivation I need to get started. My end goal is to run the 10K at this year’s runDisney Wine and Dine weekend. Lastly, I want to eat better. I’ve already started tracking my calories with the My Fitness Pal app. I was really successful with that back in 2012 and am hoping it will work this time around too.

Mental Health

I am the first to admit that I do not handle stress well. So much so that it has started to effect my physical health. In 2014 I had my first panic attack. Since then, I’ve been trying to find ways to reduce stress, but most have been short term. This year I need to get serious. Two years ago I was turned on to mindfulness. I plan to implement more mindfulness practices into my life such as meditation and yoga. Another benefit of having an Apple Watch is the Breathing App. This app helps you take time through out the day to focus only on your breathing. I’ve also installed the Headspace App which is a popular app for meditation and mindfulness.

Financial Health

Since we’re talking about stress, one major stress is money. This year I want to spend wiser and save more. In 2018, we were hit with a financial blow that we were not prepared for. Our finances, especially our savings, were hit hard. It took several months to recover somewhat, but unfortunately we’re not out of the woods yet. To get us back on track, we started using Qapital, a finance app. The app is designed to motivate users to save money automatically without thinking about it. We simply round-up our purchases and the extra goes into our account. We’re hoping we’ll be able to actually save the money this year to rebuild our savings.

Use this link to try Qapital and you’ll get $5 to help kick-start your savings. You can also read about other ways to save here.

What will your one word be for 2019? Join in on the conversation on our Facebook page or leave a comment below.