Before we close the book on 2025, it’s time for a final goals update. Along with my regular monthly goals update for December, today’s blog post has a full 2025 goals recap and a look ahead to my 2026 goals.

December goals update

To free up time to enjoy the season, my December list of goals was a little lighter than usual. Let’s look at how things went.

Fitness goals

• For workouts, I kept my November goal of 250 minutes of physical activity a week, including 2 strength training and 3 balance/flexibility sessions. I’m happy to say I met that goal with an average of 252 minutes a week, 2 strength training, and 3 balance/flexibility sessions.
• I also planned to continue to get outside for a short walk every day, ideally before 9 a.m. This is where my best laid plans fell apart, thanks to frigid temperatures and double the usual December snowfall for our area. I managed only 11 outdoor walks for the month, and I noticed a drop in my energy level as a result.

Reading

My reading goal for December was to 4 books, including a Christmas novel or two. I exceeded that goal with a total of 5 books read.

Here’s what I read in December:

• The Dinner Party by Viola van de Sandt
• State of Terror by Hillary Rodham Clinton and Louise Penny
• Christmas by the Book by Anne Marie Ryan
• Royal Holiday by Jasmine Guillory
• Little Women by Louisa May Alcott

Writing

My writing goal for December was to complete a first draft of my chapter for the Retirement Coaches Association book. I wrapped this one up before Christmas.

Let’s keep in touch! Join my mailing list and I’ll email you when I add a new post.

2025 goals recap

For the third year in a row, I continued my approach of setting smaller monthly goals instead of large annual goals. Looking back at my monthly goals updates, I’m satisfied with how the year went.

My overarching fitness goal was to work towards 400 minutes of physical activity a week, including 2 strength training sessions, and 3 balance and flexibility sessions. I was on track until I hurt my leg in September, but I still managed an average of 325 minutes for the year. And I did meet my goals for strength training, balance and flexibility.

My reading goal for the year was 50 books, including 12 non-fiction titles. I exceeded this with a total of 65 books, including 17 non-fiction books and 3 biographies.

My other monthly goals focused on music, writing, intentional living, and my retirement coaching work. In total, I set 38 other goals. I achieved 27 of them, got very close on 1, and fell short on 10 of my other goals.

My January goals

Setting smaller monthly goals works well for me. This approach helps me maintain motivation and momentum throughout the year. With that in mind, I’ll continue with this approach for 2026, aligning my goals to my 2026 theme of health.

Here are my plans for January:

• Fitness:
  • For fitness, I’ve increased my goal to 300 minutes of physical activity a week, including walks. And I’m keeping my goal of 2 strength training and 3 balance/flexibility sessions each week.
  • I really need to get back into the walking habit. To allow some flexibility for January weather, my goal is to get outside for 20 walks in January.
• Health: Eat 6 servings of fruits and vegetables every day.
• Reading: My goal for January is to read 5 books, including a non-fiction title.
• Writing: Finish my chapter for the Retirement Coaches Association book.
• Intentional living: Do a weekly 15-minute decluttering blitz.

Thanks for dropping by to check out my 2025 goals recap. What are your goals for the month? Drop me a comment below to let me know.