Friday, January 09, 2009

Fitness Update #1

I posted last week my need to get fit, particularly in 2 areas - physically and financially. The problem of course with this whole thing is that anything I put up here is public record and there's just some things that should be private - or at least semi-private. So I've needed to come up with a little plan about how I'm going to share updates on these two areas. My plan is still in its infancy, but here's what I'm thinking.

A) Physical - this is the easiest and should be the easiest thing to check up on. I'm going to post 2 things on a weekly basis. 1) My weight. 2) What steps I've taken during the week to lower that # and to make my gen fitness increase. Right now, it's baby steps:
1) As of yesterday, 212lbs. Ultimately, I'd like go hit 180, but I'm willing to get to 195 and feel successful.
2) I've cut out snacks after 9pm & purchased some "running" shoes. Baby steps.

B) Financial - this is the harder thing to check. I'm not about to post my budget, not that my salary isn't already public knowledge, as a pastor. Tell me one other place where people see your compensation on a yearly basis on paper and vote to decide whether it's appropriate? But I'm not complaining, just saying it adds another dimension to things. And it's also misunderstood. So, I'm going to base my updates on Dave Ramsey's Total Money Makeover book, which we've begun to read. 1) What we've read in the book, by chapter. 2) What we've implemented in the plan.
1) Introduction & First story. Chapter 1 we already read online, prior to getting the book. Hoping to get through Chapter 2 or beyond this weekend.
2) We've gone pretty much cash only, which I know is something he'll say but we haven't technically "read" it yet.

What I realized about these two areas of my fitness is simply this: I used to be physically fit (I was a college athlete, running track) & I used to be financially fit (didn't have/use credit card or paid it off monthly, strict budget, knew where I was in planning for the future) and now I, and we, are way off from that. I'm acutely aware of my unfitness because I was so fit before. Now, it's time to get back there...

6 comments:

jlee said...

Don, you are firing me up to keep track of my baby steps in the same areas - physical and financial...

Time to set up my system.

Kitty Bucholtz said...

Awesome way to start the new year, Don! We're working on both, too. My friend loaned us Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace University package and we're going to get started reading it by February 1, I hope. I can't wait to see how sowing the right things this year sees us reaping more good things later! :)

Adam said...

nice man --- i'm also starting to work out as well. made a goal (for january - really really baby steps) to run 3 miles OR ride my bike for 6 miles each day of the week (weekends off). that and then spend some time on the Wii Fit (which is fun, and keeps track of weight/BMI).

We're also doing Dave Ramsey - going through his 13 week Financial Peace University....

Trying to do more cash stuff - but I don't get it - he recommends cash for gas? That seems like SUCH a pain to me....haven't heard an explanation as to why that's a good thing.

Unknown said...

Jeff - get fired up baby!

Kitty - very cool. And way cool that you get to go back to Australia. So wish we could work our way over there - but something tells me the Mission committee wouldn't believe I'm on a "mission trip" in Sydney.

Adam - your baby steps scare me. 3 miles is pretty serious (or at least it sounds so for me right now - which may be more of an indication of how out of shape I am than anything). As for the cash for gas... my only guess is that it's a system thing and has more to do with spending what you have than anything else. Credit at the pump is WAY more convenient, absolutely. And we HAD a system for that back in the day - not so much anymore. But looking back, that may have been a "back door" for us to end up here - slippery slope - our "starter" drug? Bad argument but it's all I got. I think using credit, paying it off monthly ONLY for gas is actually a good idea, but you've got to be disciplined. I'm no longer disciplined - which is why I'm reading Ramsey.

David Hallgren said...

Don,
I like your post. It is great to bring some socially taboo things into a forum to help people feel more comfortable and safe to discuss and address their own things. Great job.
I am also turning over a new leaf - current weight 233 pounds - goal 200.

Unknown said...

Wow. You go!

Dave Ramsey has some really good tips and techniques for managing finances. I think the real key is to figure out what applies to your life. For instance, the using cash thing DOES NOT work for me. If I have cash, I spend it. Yet I hate putting anything on the debit card. My wife is the opposite. If she's using a card, she spends willy nilly without thinking about it. So a cash system works incredibly well for her.

Right now I'm in the middle of paying off bad debt (we don't have too much, really) and then I'm onto the "building our savings." Woo hoo!

Good luck and keep up the good work!