Each year, I share a post of a recap of my year with photos from my camera roll. Here we go.
In December of 2019, I earned my personal training certification, so in January, from the pic above, I focused on launching the personal training aspect of my business. To date, I have created over 1700 custom personal training programs, and have served over 500 people in the Back Strength and Stability Program. I cannot wait to get started on my newest venture, the Intention Factor™ Fitness Program - it starts January 8th, and you can register NOW!
In February, Dan and I decided to make the previous year’s Cayman Island trip an annual thing and we went again during his February break to celebrate my birthday (Feb 15!). Unfortunately, we won’t be traveling there this year, but hopefully next.
We were still going strong with in-person classes at the studio at that time….seems like SO long ago.
In March, things were starting to shut down and tighten up in Conncticut. Classes were restricted, and so I went to the studio daily to offer Zoom classes (they’re all recorded, check out my video library if you want to practice together!) It’s so wild to look back at it. Zoom was something that always intimidated me so I never used it before March. I specifically remembering signing up for the $15/mo option and thinking, “Ok, here goes nothing.”
Dan and I had to get creative with the studio content. We ended up shooting a partner yoga video, which was really fun.
I also had to pivot my business model really quickly. I was teaching daily, something I normally didn’t do, and I had to be mindful about how I promoted them to ensure high visibility. I had to take into consideration so much and I learned a ton along the way. When I get the podcast going again, I’ll talk about all of this! Here’s one of the marketing photos I took for a de-stressing yoga class I hosted.
In April, the condo unit two floors up had a flood which then flooded our unit. This used to be the brand new guest room/closet we had just renovated. We were heartbroken, and so annoyed because it was like the second flood in as many years. We were so over condo living and we decided to start looking for houses.
Somewhat unrelated - one of the best products I bought this past year was the Dyson AirWrap Styler. It completely changed my hair game, and I cannot recommend it enough! It dries and styles your hair so much faster than using a hair dryer followed by styling tool.
I celebrated Father’s Day with my dad at a local Mexican place and I remember this day so well because right after, Dan and I were going to look at two houses with our new realtor (the previous one we had was the worst), and one of those houses we ended up looking at was the one we bought!
We kept Dan’s condo and rented it out, and then we closed on our house at the end of July! It was the best day!
When we moved in, our first goal was to create a great outdoor space on our deck. Dan built (!!!!) this table and bench. I had no ideas he had skills like this.
Buck settled in quickly!
In September, I was lucky enough to work with Marlowe Kimpton Hotel in Cambridge, Ma. They hired me to come shoot some videos that would be streamed in-room, because they’re all about health and wellness (each room comes standard with a brand new yoga mat!). You can practice along to the videos, too - I did a Bodyweight Workout, and an All Level Yoga Flow Practice.
Also in September, I changed my studio name to Intention Factor™ and started the rebranding process. It was an expensive process but also necessary, as I continue to deepen my education on cultural appropriation and systemic racism in this country.
In October, a client of mine asked if we could do a mother/daughter yoga class with the two of them plus another mother/daughter duo in their pod. Since we were finally cleared to have people in-studio again, I agreed, and it was the sweetest thing!
In November, I grew my own microgreens! It was so easy, and I really got into it. I’m hoping to start my own garden this spring.
For Thanksgiving, we stayed home, and had a quiet meal together with Buck. It was bittersweet because while we wished we could’ve been with our families, it was also really nice to have our very first Thanksgiving in our new home hunkered down together.
In December, we got a wild storm! Over a foot of snow. Buck was THRILLED! He just laid outside on the deck letting the snow pile up on him. So happy.
I never had a fireplace before living in our house, so as silly as it sounds, I was kind of intimidated by the idea of decorating the mantle. I bought fresh greenery and used some old spray-painted mason jars I had, along with some extra ornaments and I bought that little tree in the middle you see and the stocking hangers and voila! It wasn’t too bad but I’ve got to get faux stuff for next year because MAN did it make a mess!
The year ended with a really amazing habit tracking course offered by life-hacker and resident self-love guru Mae, with whom I connected this year. If you ever get an opportunity to take a session offered by her or work with her, you must - she has the best energy. Her tracking course was all about creating various ways to track your habits/behaviors/various aspects of your life to continue to stay fully present and honest with yourself as you work towards your goals. It was such a good way to end the year feeling hopeful and inspired.
Wishing you all a wonderful New Year!