A Resolution a Week: The Challenge of Willpower When Your Workout Buddy Has None

It was only the first week of my grand Resolution a Week for 2014, and I've already failed. I even got new running shoes, and yet I only ran twice, rather than the three times I had aimed for.

I blame two things:

• My husband
• TV

I know that I'm just making excuses. It's not really my husband's fault I didn't run three times last week.

A Resolution a Week: Week 1 – Run 3X a Week

After beating my goal time of 30 minutes in a 5K,
thanks to running a regular, better planned
running routine this fall. Time to get back to that!

Last week, I outlined my desire to take a new approach to New Year’s resolutions.

The idea is to introduce a new resolution a week, all of which will contribute to one of the following three broader goals:

• Staying fit.
• Being happy & productive in my work.
• Being more adventurous.

The idea is to tackle a simple and realistic resolution each week, rather than say broadly “get healthy” or “lose weight.” I’ll then build on that week after week and hopefully feel like I’m more fit, happier and more adventurous at the end of the year than I was at the start of it.

I’m going to start my nontraditional approach to New Year’s resolutions with a kind of cliché resolution: exercise.

For my first week, I am going to recommit to running three times a week.

40 by 40: No. 26 – Run a 5K in under 30 minutes

I’ve known I’ve wanted to run a 5K (that's 3.1 miles) in under 30 minutes for a long time now. I’ve been reluctant to add it to the list because I’m not sure I’m motivated enough to do it. Which oddly enough motivates me even more to focus. It makes me mad that in my adult life, I’ve not accomplished this relatively simple goal.