Habits, not resolutions

I have always like to say I am not a Resolutions Person but yeah no actually I am. I just like to hide goals inside habits.

In 2023 I resolved to catch and maintain the Local Legend badge on six segments on my favorite hill. 2023 was not coincidentally my best year ever for total elevation gain (155,100m or 508,858ft).

In 2021 I resolved to ride at least 10,000km or 6,250mi … which I did, barely, and again not coincidentally posting my best year ever for total bike mileage.

Those are the ones I remember, or blogged about, anyway.

So for 2026:

1. Bring my average daily “active energy” budget above 1000 (k)cal. I have been stuck at about 900 average daily active energy calories since 2021 or so. The shortcut here is “close the 1100 calorie ring every day,” knowing that there will be occasional days where I don’t, and then occasional days where I burn 3,500.
2. Read from a paper book every day. Any paper book, any number of pages. I used to be a pretty good reader of books! I liked to keep at least 3 going at once: one (or more) each in nonfiction, “literary” fiction or a classic, and something “fun.” I didn’t read them all at the same rate — I might finish 2 or 3 nonfiction for each fun thing, and 2 or 3 fun things for each classic. But they were all cooking simultaneously. Social media has utterly wrecked my longform reading.
3. (Related) No phone after bedtime, no phone on the bedside. This one will be the hardest. My usual insomnia habit is to read, and it’s easy to read on a phone without waking up my wife. Whatever, she’s a heavy sleeper.
4. Do a real thing, in the real world, with real friends, at least twice a week. Group bike rides, beer with friends, coffee with neighbors. Something in meatspace with meatpeople whom I like. TBH I am pretty close to this already, but I’m not keeping track, and it’s not a conscious decision on my part.
5. Top Council Crest at least twice a week. My actual average since March 21, 2012 has been a little more than 2⅓ summits/week, and I still average 2+ summits/week, but since 2024 this is heavily lopsided to good weather, and I have several weeks where I don’t make my ritual oblation on this hill at all. I blame Zwift.
6. Refresh my personal websites and freelance business website. These have been pretty stale since (approximately) 2020! I used to tinker around on these, especially during bouts of insomnia.