Emma and Amy's final week round-up

Hi all New Year, New Goals challengers! Here's a little update on how Amy and I got on in the final week of the challenge with our chosen tasks.

Emma

This week I tasked myself with the following!

• Food – give a new recipe a try.
• Exercise – do 10 minutes of yoga stretching every morning.
• Habit – put my phone alarm on the other side of the room to get me out of bed.
• App feature – use the Reports feature.

Well – what a challenge! It's gone so fast, but it also felt like a real challenge staying focused for 4 weeks. I had good and challenging ones, as we all do, but all in all I've really enjoyed the challenge. It has certainly kept me motivated to embrace new healthy habits and keep on track with my diary.

Highlights

My final week has been a success in the main. I tried 4 new Gousto recipes – it's actually great value at the moment compared to supermarket shopping, and is a convenient option for us some weeks. The recipes always give me new inspiration when planning our own meals, so I like to do the meal kit boxes now and again (and no, I'm not on commission!).

My morning yoga stretches were delightful – my 2 year old daughter even joined in on a few of the days. It was a lovely way to wake my body up, but also to help me feel where I was holding extra tension, so that I could focus more on those areas with exercise recovery.

Putting my phone across the room with an alarm set worked incredibly well to get me out of bed earlier when I needed to. No snoozing whatsoever, which is very unlike me. So it meant I had more time in the mornings when I needed it to get in a workout, or get myself ready before my daughter woke up.

Checking out my Reports and seeing where much of the sugar and saturated fat in my diet is coming from was an eye-opener! Even nutritionists eat cake, would you believe? I love a sweet treat – this report definitely focusses the mind on keeping in check the number of occasions to have this kind of food!

Going forward

I've really enjoyed the habits I've tried to include throughout the challenge, which were to move regularly throughout the day, prep meals the night before, no screen time in the hour before bed and leaving my phone across the room to encourage me out of bed when the alarm sounds. I'll be aiming to keep these up as often as possible – especially the no screen time, as this did wonders for my sleep!

Amy

This week I tasked myself with the following!

• Food – try a new recipe.
• Exercise – explore a new running route.
• Habit – plan my meals for the week and take a list to the supermarket.
• App feature – explore the brand new Meal Occasions feature.

And that's that! What a fantastic start to 2023! I'm so pleased I joined you all on this challenge – I feel in such a great headspace to continue the rest of the year in a positive way. Of course, there were days where motivation was a little more lacking than others, but the feeling of completing this 4-week challenge has made the effort so worth it!

Highlights

I decided to try a new recipe this week, but kept things quite vague until I'd done a recce of our fridge and cupboards. I made some pistachio and vanilla protein balls to keep in the fridge as a quick snack or a post-workout refuel. They turned out great, if I do say so myself!

As I've recently moved to a new area, there are lots of unexplored trails nearby that I've been keen to try, especially as I'm so used to road running. I laced up my trainers and headed down to a river nearby, which was perfect to run along. We know spending more time in nature can be great for mental health, so I'm really going to make an effort to spend less time on the pavement and more time off the beaten path when I can.

I never normally take a list to the shops, as my partner prefers to get inspired 'in the moment'. I know – classic impulse buyer! Taking the time to work out what we already had in the house before planning our meals for the week seemed like a bit of a hassle at the time, but turned out to be so worth it! We ended up spending half the time we usually do in the supermarket, and were both surprised at how low the bill came to at the end. Plus, we managed to use up leftovers that would otherwise see the wrong end of their shelf life, so wins all around!

The new Meal Occasions feature is one of my favourite things in the app right now – I just love that extra layer of customisation. I went in and changed my meal icons around, and also added two additional sections – one for my drinks, and one specifically for caffeinated beverages, as I've been cutting back recently and I'm interested in keeping a log to see the effect it has on my energy levels/sleep.

Going forward

There are lots of learnings I'll be taking on from this challenge. I've found a new way of exercising that works for me, I've discovered new foods and recipes that will fast become regular features in my shopping trolley, and I've managed to form some healthy habits that I hope stick with me for the year to come, including a morning stretch and having downtime away from my phone in the evenings. Although some habits didn't quite stick (those squats while brushing my teeth were killer!), that's exactly what this challenge has been for. In life, we can't expect to love every new thing we try – but it's the trying that matters!