Marking milestones and setting new challenges to boost your health

HOW would you describe a year?

Is it merely 365.25 days? Twelve months or the time it takes for the earth to orbit the sun? Is it the memory that spans the time from one celebration of life to the next?

Maybe you describe a year in terms of achievements, weight lost or kilometres run.

Whatever your thoughts are on this, as short as a year may seem in the context of a life lived, much can happen in the weeks that pass from January 1 to December 31.

Regular readers of this column may have noticed that I’m all about marking milestones, so I couldn’t let the fact that it’s the first anniversary of this column, go by without a mention.

When my Edited Eating column was launched in the Sunday edition of Weekend Argus on February 25 last year, I used the opportunity to introduce myself and my journey – and the Paleo lifestyle to readers.

Since then, little has changed, but also, so much has changed.

Looking back, I’m reminded that, at the start of any journey, one never knows where the road will lead or how many steps forward – or backward – one will take. The important thing is to keep moving and to remember that even small steps, or what may seem like minor changes at the time, take you closer to reaching your goal.

A major learning curve came for me in April last year when I decided to attend Paleo f(x) in Austin, Texas, where I interacted with thoughtleaders of the Paleo and broader nutrition communities. I’ll be attending again this year and plan to return with lots more interesting topics to explore in this space.

Another significant achievement was learning to run – and completing my first 10km at the Gugulethu AC Run for Unity. As running had always been something that scared me, crossing the finish line on that hot December morning was a very special moment for me.

Which brings me to the latest challenge I’m taking on: my first half marathon!

It was the Sports Science Institute of South Africa’s OptiFit programme that prepared me for the 10km race, and SSISA will once again be holding my hand as I train for the Old Mutual Two Oceans Marathon (OMTOM).

It’s a special year for OMTOM as it will be the 50th running (quite literally) of the ultra marathon (56km), and I’m looking forward to joining the tens of thousands of runners who will line up for the start of the 21.1km race on Saturday, April 20.

As one of a team of four media representatives taking on this challenge, I’ll be documenting my nine-week journey to the Two Oceans half marathon on my blog, and preparing a special Edited Eating column on nutrition for runners a bit closer to race day.

How about making some changes?

A phone alert I must have set up around this time last year, recently reminded me that February is Healthy Lifestyle Awareness Month. I bet whoever came up with this idea, scheduled it for February because this is about the time that many of us have forgotten about our New Year’s resolutions and need a bit of a nudge. In my very first column, I challenged readers to keep a detailed food journal that they should review after a week to see if they noticed any patterns emerging around what they ate and how they felt afterwards.

This time I’d like to challenge you to commit to three changes you think could benefit your health. As an added challenge, why not match one change to each of the following: nutrition, exercise and emotional well-being.

I look forward to hearing all about the changes you implement!

For more, follow @editedeating on social media.