On route to being smaller

How I will become physical smaller... (A rough draft)

1. I want to eat more vegetarian food - aiming to have four main meals a week vegetarian to start
2. I will only have one bought coffee a week
3. I want to cut down to one or less sugars in my coffees
4. I want to walk more
5. I want to cycle more - made easier now that Monkey has a pedal bike
6. I will cut out sweet treats during the week
7. I will reward myself with time, rather than food
8. I want to try out zumba or something similar - just in case I like it
9. I will drink water instead of fizz
10. I will start rewiring my internal monologue - less negativity will help me achieve my goals.

There you go. Ten things I thought of and it's going to be my master list. I will tweak it and work on it for the month of January and then sit down and rethink it. It will change as it is a work in progress and I haven't quite finished my research. 

Any other advice? Please comment positively, all my research points to using positives rather than negatives to bring about a mind change...

SMALLER 2011 - My Happiness Project

Photo by D Sharon Pruitt

It is 20h03 on the 30 December and I am wracking my brain for some inspiration to help me put into words, my plans for 

Smaller 2011 - My Happiness Project

as mentioned here.

Ok, so putting it in pretty colours and pictures isn't helping. 

This year I need to focus on Smaller.

Here's an elaborated list of what I am hoping going to work on this year.

Me 

I am on the plus side of the 100kg mark and apparently my ideal weight is 55kg. So I need to loose the equivalent of a supermodel in weight to be healthy. Which is a truly negative thought and makes me feel sick just reading it. So I will aim for 80kgs and a size 14 (NZ size) over the next year. I'm not sure how yet... But I do know that I will need your help and support.

Be thankful for the small things 

Instead of focusing on the bad or the bigger things I didn't/can't do. By focusing on the positive things, I hope the whole situation will become more positive. By not missing the magic in each day, I will hopefully have the energy and positivity to see the big picture more clearly and get there more easily.

At the moment I am trying very hard to focus on the fact that I phoned my Grandpa every birthday and Christmas and always looked for special presents for him to send home rather than the fact that I am not there for the funeral.

Not sweat the small stuff 

It doesn't matter if Monkey doesn't get five serves of fruit and veges today, tomorrow I'll make him a smoothie and he'll be fine and won't get scurvy. I don't need to be prepared for every eventuality. 

Do the small jobs first - before they become huge

Gretchen Rubin suggests that you always do any job that will only take a minute. So I will pick up the socks, toys, sweep the floor etc. I will follow the Fly-Lady's advice on always cleaning your sink so that you feel like the kitchen is clean when you walk into it in the morning. Hopefully that will be enough to get me started.

Photo by D Sharon Pruitt

Do small acts of kindness often

I want to be more mindful of others and to be more willing to do the little things that help make their day. I have started small - greeting more people, complimenting strangers on their clothing, kids, dogs etc. I am very aware that I need to be genuine and sincere otherwise I am teaching Monkey to be fake. 

Take small blocks of time for myself

I have started this by starting this blog. I want to extend it to being more willing to give myself time to go for a walk, bike ride or a swimming group. I would also like to have time to focus on learning some new skills and improving ones that I am not very good at e.g. sewing and cleaning.