Back in January I explained that I was setting myself healthy goals for the year instead of resolutions and it turned out lots of you were thinking along the same lines. Reader Claire suggested we check in to see how we’re all doing and this being the last day of winter seemed like the perfect day (yep, spring officially starts tomorrow – hurrah!). Here’s how I’ve got on so far…

My first goal was to cook at least one new (to me) dish per week. January went well, February and March not so much. Often taking the opportunity to do a spontaneous food shop on the way home from work I’ve fallen back on dishes I’ve cooked before because I know the ingredients I need and, I have to admit, sometimes whole weeks have gone by when I haven’t cooked anything from scratch at all.

Mixing up my workouts was next on the list and, again, I started well, variously trying cardio yoga, circuits and spinning on top of my regular yoga classes. Come February it was as much as I could do to fit three yoga sessions into my week (the absolute minimum I really need to do to get good value out of my monthly pass). As the weather’s improved so have my efforts and the last two weekends have seen me out and about on my bike cycling all over east London. My sister has just signed up for Class Pass. Have you heard about it? You pay a monthly fee and then you can do classes at lots of different places although not more than three at any one place each month. Sounds like a good way to mix things up without paying expensive drop-in prices.

Despite having always said that not drinking in January is a terrible idea, that I need a glass of wine, or several, to get me through it, one of my goals was to quit booze for the first month of the year. I found the first couple of weeks easy, even on pub quiz Wednesdays (mostly due to the fact that most of the rest of the team had quit drinking too). I cracked twice. Once when I was out for dinner at a restaurant I’d been excited about trying for months and then again when my dad visited London towards the end of the month. Overall I felt better for not drinking. My sleeping improved, at least at first and I definitely felt like I had more energy. I’m seriously considering doing another month at some point in spring between weddings and birthday gatherings.

Reading an inspiring book a month was next on my list and I’m happy to report that things are going well here. In January I read Grace: A Memoir New York Vogue’s Grace Coddington’s memoir of a life working in fashion, first modelling in and then creating stunning, stop-you-in-your-tracks fashion stories. In February I picked up where I left off before Christmas with fashion designer Diane Von Furstenberg’s memoir The Woman I Wanted to be which covers, among other things, how she built a hugely successful business and then rebuilt it after it all went wrong. I’m currently halfway through The Year of Living Danishly: Uncovering the Secrets of the World’s Happiest Country journalist Helen Russell’s account of moving to Denmark and her subsequent investigation of why it’s the world’s happiest country. All inspiring, interesting reads that variously made me want to find a way to become friends with Grace Coddington, start my own fashion business and move to Denmark immediately.

My final healthy goal was to wear more colourful kit to workout in, as opposed to my usual black and grey. Simultaneously trying to cut back on unnecessary spending I hadn’t bought any kit at all until last week when I treated myself to an ombre yoga top from Sweaty Betty. It’s purple at the top then fades to pink and orange like a perfect Instagrammable sunset (see here). It’s a great shape and cheers up all the black and grey kit I already own. Score!

Overall I don’t think I’ve done badly although there’s definite room for improvement and so I’m not going to add to my goals, just keep going with the ones I’ve already set myself with a renewed focus for spring. I’d love to know how you’re all doing. Are you sticking with the goals you set yourself in the new year too, or adding some new ones for the new season? As ever, do share below!

The images above are all from Aussie brand We Are Handsome, which I’m kind of obsessed with. Have you seen their swimsuits? Seriously lust-worthy!