onward and upward

i have decided that i need to do something different, i dont really know what yet but something.  i would like to do a 30 day challenge of some kind, but i think it will be a challenge that i need to make up myself. or at least edit myself.  i have compiled some ideas through a variety of 30 day chellenges i've read, and i think that following through on these ideas will be good for me; as i've read, our brains love routine.  at Aventa, we taught the women routine and habits in order to guide them in their recovery and sobriety; i am a believer that routine can help certain people maintain stability and mental health, both of which i could improve on.

i read on a website that 30 day challenges can work to either help one achieve something, or help one build a new habit.  according to the website, achieving something would be like aiming to have something completed after 30 days, and forming a new habit or breaking an old one would be the other option.  as for myself, i would like to set a goal to achieve something after 30 days... but i don't really know right now what that could be.  as for forming new habits, or getting myself into a new routine, my list for 30 days will include some aspects of the following:

1. drink at least three glasses of water a day (i know that's not really very much, but i hardly drink water at all unless i'm sick, so three is a great step)
2. make my bed every morning (i already do this, so it's not really a new challenge, but i think it's important that i continue.  we taught our clients at Aventa that the first thing you do in the morning is make your bed, because in recovery we believe that the way you set your bed is the way your day will be)
3. take a picture of something everyday (my instagram is about to get really annoying.  i am a huge fan of taking pictures and i know i have stopped doing it lately - i do not know why.  i dont know exactly what i will take pictures of, but just so long as i have one picture for every day of the 30 days.  i also don't know what this will achieve or how it will make me feel, but again, maybe the routine will be comfort and satisfaction enough in itself)
4. don't swear (really, i doubt i can do this.  but i am going to try)
5. spend at least an hour a day outside (an hour doesn't seem like much, and really i should be spending at least 4 hours outside probably.  i know that being outside is really positive for me mentally, but i get myself in these depressive cycles where i am bored and sad with life so i stay in, and then i keep staying in because i become increasingly bored and sad.  it makes no sense, and it's self-sabotaging, and i know better than that.  therefore, outside it is)
6. write out a thank-you card for one thing each day that i am thankful for (i was writing out a gratitude list every night of 10 things each day i was thankful for.  the catch was that the 10 things could never be the same as something id already written.  i think i needed to write the lists for longer for them to really impact me - i hear sometimes it can take up to 6 months or longer for those rtituals to really sink in.  i am hopeful that listing one aspect of each day will be more direct and perhaps more impactful)
7. give someone a compliment (providing service is what keeps us all going; i know that it makes me feel good if i can help someone else or make another person feel good)
8. stretch every night before bed time (my muscles need as much help as they can get, and i dont know if stretching will really change my life that much - but why not see what happens after 30 days.  here we go, flexibility!)

after 30 days, something i feel i might like to have achieved is having better balance.  my weakness has caused my balance to be nonexistant, and even balancing on a bike has proven difficult.  i am hopeful that maybe after biking every few days, that i will notice a difference in my ability to balance and hold myself - this seems like a long haul with a big question mark at the end.  if it doesnt work, then it doesnt work - i will try something new.