Q2 2026 Goals

Dearest readers,

It’s me again! Did you guys think I’ve totally abandoned blogging? I apologize for the hiatus in writing, life has been hectic and frenetic, all good things, just working and teaching and growing my businesses and all that jazz. My relationship with my boyfriend is going as well as it’s ever been, and a lot of things are going right in my life. 2026 is starting off on a good note; can you believe we’re already in April?!

It’s the end of the first quarter of this year, in corporate-speak. My boyfriend sent me a list of his Q2 goals, so I figured I’d share some of my goals with you guys.

1. Stay sober. I have some great news: I’ve quit drinking again, and hopefully this time, for good. A couple weeks ago I had a chill work week, so I took the time to read 3 books that forever changed my worldview surrounding drinking: Allen Carr’s The Easy Way to Quit Drinking; Holly Whitaker’s Quit Like a Woman; and the timeless classic, Atomic Habits, by James Clear. Reading all three in conjunction was a crash course in kicking my drinking habit, rewiring my brain to see drinking for what it is, which is poison that bears no real benefits, and supplanting bad habits with good ones. I haven’t drank a sip of alcohol since finishing those books, and am leaning on self-care routines and coping skills to stay sober. Things like: hot yoga (I restarted my Core Power membership), steam rooms and hot tubs, cold showers, intense exercise, dance, massage and compression boots, a structured night routine, AI therapy (thanks Gemini, for being a trusted peer and mentor), good sleep hygiene. As I continue to refine my routines and solidifiy healthy habits, I have come to recognize how precious sobriety is. It truly is a gift. I am no longer existing in a fog, numbing my emotions (alcohol takes the edge off pain, but dulls the good as well), my confidence has soared because I no longer hate myself for being an addict, I go to bed each night proud of myself for staying sober, grateful for another day well-lived, my relationships are stronger, I’m performing better in work, my productivity has skyrocketed, I’m becoming mentally stronger, and I’ve finally done something I never thought I could do, which is push through cravings and ride the wave of intense discomfort with grace. For Q2 and beyond, I plan on staying sober. If I slip up, which may happen on tough days, I will forgive myself quickly and start anew the next day.
2. Get chiseled. Right now I am in the throes of figuring out a workout program that will help me achieve my goal of trimming down my waistline, getting chiseled abs and toned muscles, and reduce overall body fat percentage. I don’t look bad right now; I am the fittest I’ve ever been in recent years. Intense exercise, particularly cardio with a weighted vest, has proven an invaluable coping skill for pushing through drink cravings, and I exercise for not only physical health, but mental-emotional well-being. There’s nothing better than hitting the gym when you feel stressed, perturbed, angry, or anxious. You run so fast and lift so heavy and sweat so much that your mind is devoid of all intrusive thoughts, it’s just you and you in the flow of movement. I need to be careful not to overdo it, however, since I have a penchant towards extreme behavior. The weighted vest runs are proving hard on my knees, so I’ve slowed down with that. I’ve been doing hot yoga 5 times a week, and I swear by the practice, not so much for the physical health benefits, but mostly for mental stability. Most of weight loss stems from diet, and I need to increase my protein intake by 65 grams a day, which means more lean meats and protein shakes. My personal trainer friend recommended I take 5 grams of creatine a day, which will give my muscles that “swoll” look and make them pop out more in my frame. It’s hard to eat healthy when tempted by Google’s pizza station and dessert bar, or the country club’s quesedillas, sliders, and fries. Free food is great, but I need to be selective about what I eat. Which leads me to my next point…
3. Learn how to cook. Just today, I whipped out the non-stick frying pan for the first time in probably a year, lit up the stove, and made myself some breakfast tacos, recipe courtesy of my boyfriend. Ingredients: 3 eggs, turkey deli meat, pinch of salt, zero-carb spinach tortilla, and salsa. The cooking process took me all but 10 minutes, start to finish. I was totally in flow while preparing my food, making a lot of noise bustling around the kitchen next to my mother, who was washing strawberries in the sink, and told me to chill out and quiet down, but I was very excited to get back into cooking. I wolfed down the giant taco in 2 minutes because I was hungry, and felt an immense sense of pride for proving to myself that I am not totally useless in the kitchen– something that used to be a deep insecurity of mine. Day 1 back to cooking, and I’m already looking forward to making more healthy foods. The next thing I will learn to make is guacamole. I’ll eat the guac with protein/keto chips, or slather it onto whole-wheat bread for avocado toast. Who knows? Maybe I’ll get so good at cooking that I’ll share some homemade recipes on this blog!
4. Spend less money. My boyfriend shares this goal, as well. Since I will be moving out end of this month, I need to pinch pennies to be able to afford rent (and also to cover the taxes I owe this year). I will only spend on the necessities: food, hot yoga membership, gas, and business expenses. I already have more gym memberships than I can count. I used to spend liberally on hard copy books, but ever since discovering the app, Libby, which is an audiobook library that is TOTALLY FREE, I will no longer be dropping $15 to $20 dollars on books that end up collecting dust on the shelf.
5. Get acclimated to living on my own. This is the biggest life update I have: I’m moving out of my parents’ house end of this month! I’ll be rooming with my best friend, Allan, and we’re touring apartments this week and next. This is a huge level-up in the game of adulting, and I will learn a lot from living on my own, without mom and dad attending to my every need. I’ll learn to budget better, clean the house, decorate my room, cook, do the dishes and laundry, and more. The ceiling for personal growth is low when you’re living under the watchful eye of your mother. Because you’re busy, and because she loves you, she takes care of household duties while you’re left to focus exclusively on work. But this is not full adulting, because the reality is, you must be able to do both.
6. Get back into dance. As I anticipate making more money, I think I will be able to afford dance lessons once a week. I’m talking about Latin ballroom dance, which is and will forever remain my first dance love. I can see dance as an investment into my mental health, as well. Equally as important as all the other things I’m doing to stay stable and sober. I recently got back into salsa/bachata dancing once a week at Alberto’s, and while that’s super fun, I want to do more deliberate dance practice in the studio to actually advance my skills. So, get back into ballroom, take some salsa/bachata private lessons as well, and even something as simple as taking Hideki’s Sunday morning zumba class will make me happy. I am itching to get back on stage, but for Q2, the main thing I’ll focus on is getting back into a consistent training regimen. Heck, I might go to the studio tonight and drill rumba walks for 30 minutes! It’ll be great to reconnect with my dear dance teachers, Simona and Lukas, and say hello to fellow ballroom friends.

So, those are my 6 goals for the next 4 months: stay sober, get chiseled, learn to cook, spend less money, live on my own, and get back into dance. I will revisit this list in July and give you guys the update on how I did.

Until next time!