Thinking about 2020

Well well well, the day of food and feast has come to a close and we are all still here to blog and read about it! 
First off, can I just say it felt so fabulous to sleep in!  I woke feeling remarkably good considering the hip thing, and as a matter of fact, I had a lot less pain overall yesterday and I wasn't exactly restful. 
Since my dog has been taking more than a half hour of walking to get him to do his business, I have been setting my Fitbit to 'treadmill workout' before I head out the door with doggo, and I'm not even surprised that it almost equals the workout (calories burnt) of dancing.  The fact that it has been some 40 or 50 minute sessions has been a little less frustrating since it counts toward my goal.  Before this, he would usually take 15 minutes or so, and I wouldn't have counted that as a cardio workout, but now I get an added bonus.  It makes me a lot less frustrated if he doesn't go potty because I still benefit. 
Because of that, I have been getting 10,000 steps on my Fitbit nearly every single day since the challenge started.  That's something that had been few and far between in recent months, so it feels like I am really accomplishing something great. 
I will admit that I have been slacking on journaling, despite having many things I am grateful for every day. I do think I can remember some of those things and write them down after the fact.  I have 2 days to catch up on. 
Thanksgiving dinner wasn't so crazy for me.  All-in-all, I probably ate less yesterday because I only had breakfast in the morning, ate 3 pieces of summer sausage around lunch time to tide me over, then dinner was turkey, stuffing, corn, a small roll, some mashed potatoes and some cole slaw made with vinegar and poppy seeds instead of mayo.  Then I had a piece of pumpkin pie for dessert about an hour later.  I was so disappointed in the pie.  My mother-in-law is such a fantastic cook, but decided to use 5-spice in the pie instead of cinnamon and nutmeg.  Pumpkin pie is my favorite dessert and I was so full already but because it was pumpkin pie I simply had to have some.  It wasn't until I was nearly finished with my pie that my mother-in-law came to tell me that she prefers her pumpkin pie more savory.  So I might have to work in some pumpkin pie flavored yogurt for breakfast next week to soothe my pouting brain! 
I was so full for so long.  Dinner got done around 2pm and I didn't eat again until 9:30, had a bit of cheese and some grapes as assurance that I would sleep well. Now that I list it all, it does sound like a lot of food and makes sense why I wasn't hungry for so long after.  That's what Thanksgiving is all about, right?  Well, I don't know what it will be like after this year, but up to this point it is.  Knowing what I know now, the pie will be much easier to turn down next year, so that is actually a blessing!  Chalk up one thing I can write down to be thankful for yesterday.
Everyone was in great spirits, and the kids were a little less screechy and loud, so it made for a really nice day. 
When we got home, my husband hit the shower and the dog was all up in my face wanting to go out so I decided to set my Fitbit and go.  We were out for about 45 minutes and it took a block and a half for him to go but he finally did.  Workout accomplished!  The fresh air and exercise definitely made me stomach feel better after all that food!
So I have now worked out 6 days in a row, not necessarily intentionally, but I am also grateful that my hip isn't hurting so bad that it inhibits my activity.  Yes, I still feel where it happened and it feels deeply bruised, but I can move around just fine so I am so fortunate!  I spent some of my day Wednesday looking up things I can do to strengthen my hips and glutes, and even found some for how to rehab a sprained ankle.  Another thing I am grateful for, people who know what they are doing sharing the information for free to help people like who don't know why my body is failing me. 
Thinking ahead to the new year...I do know that I am going to go back on South Beach Diet and by January 1 I will be doing it, but part of me is tempted to start earlier.  I am conflicted about that since there are all the holiday indulgences, multiple dinners with families and coworkers, vendors bringing treats at work, secret Santa stuff...It would make more sense to start after Christmas when there is a good stack of months where we don't have a food-related holiday (we don't celebrate Valentine's Day in my house).  Starting in Jan would give me almost 4 solid months to try and make a difference in my health before seeing my doctor for my physical.
One other thing I am considering starting is supplementing with St. John's wart for mood.  I do notice how my mood seems to shift so much during the month and especially in winter, my mood tends to take a nosedive.  So I am going to ask my doctor if that would be OK to start doing and I'll be interested to see if it does any good. 
Aside from getting my health on track in the new year, I am also aiming to be more organized.  Now I have separate journals and notebooks for different things so I hope that helps me to be a little more organized.  I am making an effort to put appointments into my phone right away instead of relying on a little card or trying to remember to write it on the wall calendar and then I drive myself nuts when I don't know when an appointment for myself or my sons is coming. 
Anyway, I think 2020 will be more about me and less about distractions.  That's my goal at least!  I hope to re-read some of my favorite Geneen Roth books and put all the self-love and self-focus to use.  I'm hoping 2020 is the year I build a habit of looking after my mental and physical health in such a fiercely loving way that it becomes a part of my DNA.  Now that would be something to be truly grateful for!