New Year's Resolutions and overly ambitious goals

I hardly need New Year's resolutions when this is the year I finish the 101 list. THE LIST is a strange mix of overly ambitious and overly simple items that are meant to push me along through grad school while maintaining a sense of everything else. The most ambitious item is "Work your way down to 20% body fat and maintain it long enough to see if you like it."

Look at the following data from the American Council on Exercise

Percent Body Fat Norms for Men and Women

Description	Women	Men
Essential Fat	10-13%	2-5%
Athletes	14-20%	6-13%
Fitness	21-24%	14-17%
Acceptable	25-31%	18-24%
Obesity	>32%	>25%

*Source: ACE Lifestyle & Weight Management Coach Manual

It is a ridiculous goal. To be fair, when I set that goal, my body fat percentage was 22-23% with an occasional dip to 21%. Then, I started running, stopped tracking calories, and the percentage shot up to 25-27%. I was upset at first, but hey, it meant I could still eat cookies and fit into my pants, so I ignored the problem. After a while, my pants stopped fitting so well and I was about 5 pounds heavier than I had been.

I admit, even this small amount of extra weight makes me feel pudgy. Over the holidays I took some real time for myself: I worked out at least an hour a day, bought some soy protein powder, tracked calories, and spent a week eating vegan. It felt amazing! So with that, I make some health related goals that seem laughingly simple:

1) I resolve NOT to touch the candy in the office candy jar or go to the vending machine (if I really want candy, I can walk to the student store and buy my own).
2) I resolve to save my morning snack for after I've finished my first mug of tea and 9:30AM has rolled around. I get bonus points if I can wait until ten.
3) I resolve to either (1) take a walk around the building or (2) practice office yoga when I get restless instead of reading food blogs.