2016 - A Retrospective!

This year has gone by in the blink of eye! I don't think I'm the only one, but I feel like the older I get the faster the years go by. This year has been a bit of a manic year for me, in both a positive and negative way. I finally got the promotion in work I had been hoping for, and for the first time in years I absolutely love the work I do. It has added a huge amount of stress and tough deadlines, but it is nice doing something I actually enjoy and I can see a real career path for me going forward. I  also spent the year doing everything I can to save for a house and I am hoping that 2017 is the year I become a home owner. 

I started out this year counting down the days until my friends wedding and with a new motivation to get myself back to goal after spending most of 2015 around 7-10 lbs above it. It was a year of ups and downs and I have learned a lot about my body. The below graph is what my weight looked like over the year. I did make it back to goal in time for my friends wedding and spent a lot of the year within 3lbs of my goal weight but towards the end of the year things took a bit of a turn. 

A few things I realised this year.

1. I need the support of weight watcher classes to keep me accountable. It is a lot easier to fool yourself when you are in charge of the scales. I won't be making the mistake of skipping classes ever again. 
2. I need to look at my weight loss on a monthly basis. I tend to have 2 weeks each month where I will either gain or STS no matter what, so I can't let myself get down about that and take the months loss as a whole. 
3. Fluctuation is normal. Staying the same weight every week is impossible and while maintaining you need to allow yourself a little fluctuation. 
4. My goal is a realistic weight for me. I know a lot of people hit their goal weight and keep going for another half a stone or more, but it takes a lot of me to maintain at my goal weight, particularly the older I get. I feel like I can't get away with nearly as much as I used to. So sticking between 1lb below and 3lbs above goal is a good range for me to be in. 

I had a good year running, particularly in the 2nd half of the year. In 2015, the Clontarf half marathon knocked my running confidence and it took me a long time to get it back but right now I am feeling stronger and fitter than ever - improving with every race I did over the year. 

1. Womens Mini Marathon - 10km; 57:05
2. Rock'n'Roll Half Marathon - 21.1k; 2:10:08
3. MoRun - 10km; 55:29
4. Run In The Dark - 10km; 55:03
5. Fat Turkey Run - 10km; 57:38

Next year I want to really step things up a notch and do a few more races. I want to try and get at least one race every 2 months down, and if possible one race per month. I will be putting together a list in the next week or so and ticking them off as the year goes by. 

Another thing I want to do next year is post more recipes and I need your help for this. I would love some suggestions of recipes you'd like to see lightened up or some different types of food you would like to see me experiment with. Are there any foods you love to eat but just are looking for new ways too cook them? Any suggestions will really help. 

Also if there are any topics in general you would like to see me write about, do let me know. I'd love to get a bit more feedback and interaction with my readers so feel free to get in touch either by leaving a comment here, checking out my facebook, instagram or twitter or dropping me an email.

I'm going to finish off with my resolutions for the year ahead. Despite having lots of goal, my main aim is to put less pressure on myself. If I know I have tried my best, then that's enough for me!