My “Ins” and “Outs” for 2025

Hello, friend! How are you? Happy 2025! We’re talking about “ins” and “outs.”

After a long and fun holiday break, today, school resumes for Brady, Dave returns to his office daily, and I’m officially back into my usual routine. While I continued teaching my classes throughout the holiday break (even on some of the holiday days, actually), I still feel like I’ve been a little less “on” the last couple of weeks. And we’re back into the real schedule now, with earlier wake-ups, making lunches, school drop-offs and more rushing around.

While we don’t have any professional sporting events on the calendar for the next couple of months for Dave’s work (the Panthers played their last game this past weekend, and Charlotte FC doesn’t start back up until March), we’ve added two new weekend sports for Brady. For the next couple of months, Brady has basketball on Saturday mornings and futsal (indoor soccer) on Sunday afternoons. He still has tennis once a week on Tuesday nights as well. And if it were up to him, he’d play more sports and have them every single day of the week, but Dave and I think we’re at capacity at the moment.

Speaking of sports, I’ve been playing tennis sparingly the last couple of months but am supposed to be on a spring team that starts in February, so I may get back out there more regularly soon. So as you see, in between work, school and sports, there’s plenty going on around here.

But back to business … 

With the new year here, I wanted to spend some time thinking about what I want this year to look like and set some intentions for it too. And while I won’t be proclaiming any big goals or making any resolutions this year, I do want to establish some things to focus on to guide my year. We’re doing that today with a list of what’s “in” for me and what’s “out” for me. It’s a more casual way to approach the year, without strict guidelines or deadlines, which don’t work well for me anyhow.

The real task for me will be to refer back to this list throughout the year. I’m going to turn this into a note on my phone, which is where I keep important stuff, so I can call upon it anytime I need a refresh. Let’s get to my “ins” and “outs” for 2025 …

Let’s go …

• Focusing on feeling as good as I can every single day through a balanced approach to my fitness, diet and lifestyle, with a mixture of work and play.
• Taking at least one full day a week off exercise to rest, and having at least one day off of teaching group fitness classes each week too.
• Eating about 145 grams of protein a day as best as I can using loose calculations (never actually tracking).
• Drinking about 160 ounces of water each day, sometimes with electrolytes or BCAAs included.
• Doing intentional recovery methods at least once a day, like foam rolling, using a percussive massage gun, putting my legs-up-the-wall or sitting on a massage chair.
• Spending more phone-free time at home with my family, and putting my phone down more while out and about with others.
• Finding a new and additional income stream to grow throughout the year, outside of blogging and teaching classes.

(Here are my jeans, and here are similar boots.)

• Reading a real book before going to sleep most nights of the week, with a mixture of fiction and non-fiction titles.
• Aiming to get in bed by 10 p.m. most nights of the week, and getting a solid seven to eight hours of sleep each night too.
• Spending quality time with quality people, who make me feel good. And making more of an effort for one-on-one time with those important to me.
• Keeping my eyes on my own paper, and focusing more on the good parts of my life.
• Appreciating my little wins and little special moments in the everyday and talking about those little wins and moments too.
• Teaching a lot of group fitness classes that bring me joy and sharing that joy around.
• Soaking up more chill time at home with my little family, because we don’t have nearly enough of it.
• Being happy with who I am and where I am right now.

(Here are my leggings.)

Here’s what’s “OUT” for me in 2025

These are the things I don’t want to include in my life this year …

• Multitasking too often and trying to accomplish more than one thing at one time, which usually means not giving my all to either of my tasks.
• Feeling like I’m behind in life compared to other people, instead of remembering that we’re all on our own journey.
• Picking apart my physical flaws too often and focusing on them instead of appreciating my good qualities.

(Here’s my sweater dress.)

• Scrolling social media mindlessly and without a purpose, which is never enjoyable.
• Worrying about what’s next for me instead of what’s here right now, because I need more time in the present.
• Over-scheduling myself with commitments, which is something I’ve done my whole life.
• Saying yes when I really want to say no.
• Forcing things. Relationships, work, projects, clothing, food … anything that feels forced to me is “out.”

(Here’s my top.)

And those are my “ins” and my “outs” for 2025. They’re probably somewhat similar to what I set out for 2024 too, and that’s because I’m always on a mission to make little improvements and focus on good habits. As always, I’ll keep you updated along the way with where 2025 takes me.

I’m wishing you a great start to the year, friend. I’d highly encourage you to take out your phone, open up the notes app and make a list of your “ins” and “outs” as well, and bonus points for doing it with someone you love to talk and discuss. Have a wonderful day!

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Questions of the day for you

What’s something that’s “in” for you this year?

And what’s something that’s “out” for you this year?