You all are into the Chobani! Keep those entries coming. And HELLO to any new friends who came across the site. I hope you stick around for awhile. We have a good time here. 🙂

In my last “Body After Baby” post, I shared my overall goal of reaching my body’s “happy place”. Feeling physically fit and strong. Feeling healthy because of proper nutrition. Feeling confident because I know I am caring for myself in all ways.

When setting goals, often times we hear the recommendation to use the “SMART” approach: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, & Timely.

While my overall goal is very vague and measured just from my personal thoughts, I still agree with the SMART approach. Goals should be those things, especially realistic. Today, I want to share other goals I have outside of what I will strive for overall next year.

10 Extra Goals on the Path to the One Overall Goal

Complete unassisted pull-ups again. These epitomize strength in my mind.

Squat 135# (the man bar + one big plate on each side). I love, love, love squats. I could easily do this at my happy place for 3 sets of 10. It was fun getting looks from the men in the weight room!

Bench press 100#. Yet another I could easily do at one point. I would also do pushups with a 25 pound plate on my back. What can I say? I adore strength training!

Run a 5K Race. This one really excites me. I was starting to truly enjoy running before I got pregnant. It’s a fitness challenge that has always intrigued me, but I have never embraced out of fear I would stink at it. Who cares if I stink? I want to give it a shot and experience my first race!

New workouts. I would love to try out some new things. Like my first yoga class in a studio, Insanity & TurboFire DVDs, and anything else I may come across.

Stretch, yoga, foam roll OFTEN. It is so easy for me to let flexibility slide. I want to focus on it fully to help with my other fitness related goals.

Cook more and try new recipes. I would love to aim for one new recipe a week. I need to branch out and grow my cooking skills.

Less processed foods & way more veggies. I want to get back to the style of eating I know I feel best with. That includes focusing on those two factors.

More balance with food. Continuing with that idea, I don’t want to become restrictive in any sense. However, I also know I could use more of a balance with carbs, protein, and healthy fats. Also between natural foods and my “treats”. Once these pregnancy sugar cravings lose their hold on me.

Daily prayer & positive affirmation. I want to focus on loving myself. I still pray regularly for God to help me see myself through His eyes. It’s a very powerful thing to remind yourself of and I want to keep that going.

As you can see, I have things related to fitness, healthy eating, and overall emotional well-being. All three are important to me. These are not the definitive list, but just an idea of things I plan on working towards in a more specific nature. I fully believe all of these things will help bring me to the overall place I hope to achieve…and keep me feeling wonderful throughout the process.

Question of the day – What are some goals you hope to work towards?

Time for another post in my “Body After Baby” series. I recently discussed my thoughts on whether or not to share progress photos as I carry out my post-baby fitness journey. I wanted to let you all know that,after some consideration, I have decided that I will plan to post progress photos here on the blog at regular intervals. I really hope to show the reality of the process and that restrictive plans are not the only way to get to a healthy physical place. Thank you so much for all of your wonderful feedback and honest insights.

Now that I have established progress pictures will appear on the blog, I feel it is time to declare what progress I specifically hope to make. The simple answer: I hope to arrive at my body’s “happy place”. The difficult answer: I don’t know where that is.

Sure, I know where I found my happy place post-Makenzie. I truly felt fabulous there.

Like I mentioned in my Q+A post on all things weight related, I believe that was my happy place because I physically felt amazing and didn’t have to obsess over food or workouts to get there or maintain. My body happily found that set point with consistent healthy choices.

However, I don’t know if after two children my body will go the same route. Instead of stressing myself and focusing on the past, I plan to venture into this upcoming “body after baby” time with simply a goal to care for myself and once again allow my body to take me to its happy place. It could be the same or it may be different. No matter what, I will focus on appreciating my body.

I admit that ideally I will achieve something similar as I did after Makenzie. I will do all I can within reason to make it there. I will NOT, however, resort back to over-exercising, food rules, or other unhealthy habits to get there.

My goal, therefore, is to spend 2011 working to regain momentum with my passion for healthy living and fitness. I believe that a year (more or less) with focus on treating my body well will naturally bring me to the best place for my body. I will have to see exactly where that path takes me. No matter what, though, I am determined. I am determined to grasp onto my love of exercise and accomplish new things or reach old achievements anew. I am determined to fuel my body the way I know suits it best and learn more in the process. I am determined to make myself a priority…and see the changes I know that care of self will bring. I am determined. And I WILL reach my goal…even if I’m not quite sure what it will look like in the mirror. The mirror isn't what matters anyways. It's the feeling I'm shooting for.

Question of the Day – How do you determine the best place for you physically?