We’ve come to the end of the third quarter of 2024. I’ve been doing these recaps for several years by giving you a glimpse into my planner. That’s the place where I keep track of everything. But this year, I had to get a new planner. After six years of using Kitlife Planners, I learned that they were no longer publishing print planners. I had to search for a new one. I loved the way my old planner was laid out, so I searched for one that was as close to my Kitlife as possible. I eventually landed on an Ashley Shelly Planner. It doesn’t have quite everything I had been accustomed to, but midway into 2024, I feel as if I’m adjusting.

My new planner has a To Do List, Schedule, and Notes area. It also has 3 boxes that I can use as I please. What I loved about my Kitlife is that it had a place for my workout, gratitude list, and meals, so that’s how I label the 3 boxes each month. Therefore, I can continue to track the important things to work on each day: my workouts, my gratitude list, and meal plans. I no longer track self-care on a daily basis because there is a small section at the beginning of each month for me to log what I’ll do for self-care. 

This post may contain affiliate links. It doesn’t change anything for you. I only share things I love!

So, let’s get on with a summary of July, August, September.

The Highlights

Two free 7-day challenges: Drink More (Water!) and Eat More (Slowly!) – My free challenges are designed to give you a chance to learn more about and apply the pillars of my Faith and Fitness Framework. 

Annual doctor visit. – I went in July. Everything checked out fine. I’m essentially in maintenance mode with all my numbers. 

Working on my next book – I’m continuing work on a book that will focus on the lessons I’ve learned by finding money on my run. I also came up with a new book idea, so I’m working on that alongside this one. I don’t expect to publish anything this year, but two new books might be in the stars for me for 2025. We’ll see!  

I turned 52 in September.  – I’m continuing to embrace my age and stage of life and helping other women do the same! To celebrate my birthday, I did a social media series sharing aging well tips that I originally shared during 50 Days to 50 in 2022

Found on my gratitude list

• Good sleep
• Biking
• Fun fingernails
• Pedicure
• After dinner walks
• Ankle feeling better and back to running
• Massage
• Family time
• Farmers market season
• Walk in Meltzer’s woods
• Sound of rain
• Afternoon timeout
• Coffee with my mom 
• Sitting by the pool with a friend
• Air conditioning
• Grocery delivery
• Football

Workouts

Yoga every day. Ten to thirty-minute yoga flows help me wake up my body. They often include stretching and flexibility as well as strength and balance moves.

Cardio. I got back to running after some tendonitis only for it to get interrupted again when I rolled my ankle. Thankfully, it’s also been biking season, so I did a lot of biking to keep my cardio strong. After three weeks off after a 5K in Brookville (where I won my age group!) I ran the Colts 5K (one of my favorite races of the year!). I did well and have been back to running since then. 

Weights. Friends, we must lift heavy things. We can’t underestimate the benefits of strength training. Anything you can do that has you bearing weight on your body will help your bones and muscles and lead to longevity. Not only do I lift two to four times a week, I wear a weighted vest a few times throughout the week on a walk or while I’m doing household chores. 

Walk. I take short walks daily. I try to get outside for a walk around the block in the middle of the day, and my guys and I take a short walk after dinner. These walks are helpful for digestion as well as clearing my mind and spending time with the special people in my life.

Meals

As I’ve noted before, I don’t advocate for strict meal planning, but I do think it’s helpful to have a plan. This helps you avoid last minute decisions, grazing, or getting carryout every night. I use the box in my planner to plan dinners for the week so that I have ingredients prepared and thawed. I also use it to jot down what I eat most days. It helps me stay mindful.

Faith

Part of my Faith and Fitness Support and Accountability Community is studying the Bible together. Each month, we have a memory verse, and we do YouVersion Bible plans together that go along with the theme for the month. This has been a great way to study the Bible and be in community with one another. We’ve done plans about morning routines, setting boundaries, and growing in the fruit of the Spirit, just to name a few.

What’s next?

• Love God Greatly Bible Study – Living Faithful in a Faithless Land. This will be a study of the book of Daniel.
• CEUs – I’m working on completing my yearly requirements for continuing education to keep my Mental Health Counselor License current.
• Virtual 5K + Santa Hustle 5K – In October, I will participate in a virtual 5K for Mental Health Awareness Day. In December, I will do the annual Santa Hustle 5K in Indy. 
• Planksgiving – This annual free challenge will happen in November. Stay tuned! 

Cheers to quarter four of 2024!