10 Ways to Make October Outstanding
Good morning! Hope you had a wonderful weekend and that your Monday is off to a great start <3
and now we’re onto October.
I LOVE October.
It’s when the weather finds the perfect balance between smoldering hot and freezing cold, jeans and hot cocoa reappear after a long hiatus, and there are quite a few fun Tucson events [Dia de los Muertos parade? Yes please].
Here are some ways to make October even more amazing:
1) Support a cause with a 5k or any race of your choice. I feel like we should raise awareness for causes that we believe in all year, but October is a great reminder for me to get out there and run [well, walk/jog for now] for an excellent cause. We have a Race for the Cure in Phoenix next weekend, so I’m going to see if we can make a little road trip. 🙂
Many brands are supporting breast cancer awareness by donating a percentage of their proceeds from specific items this month. Here are a few that I love:
2) Host a pumpkin carving party!
I’m excited for this one. Inviting everyone over to bring to BYOP [bring your own pumpkin] and we’ll have a little carving party. We’ll toast the seeds and drink apple cider- it should be lovely.
3) Master a NEW yoga pose.
You know, the one in class that makes you doubt yourself, or one you’ve never seen before. Check out YogaJournal.com for how-to posts on every pose under the sun.
4) Try a new updo.
My friend Katy has been posting a TON of amazing hairstyles, so I’m excited to try a new one out. It’s so easy to get stuck in a hairstyle rut and fall is the perfect time to switch it up a little.
Not about to do anything crazy or different with your hair? Try a sparkly headband or messy side braid.
5) Focus on one workout change this month. This could be adding in Tabata intervals, practicing yoga more often, trying out the Schweaty October Workout (will be posted with a playlist this week), or training for a new event. I’m finally being forced to practice more yoga this month and next, since I have a Groupon that expires in early December. That may be the extra push I needed to get my modified “Om” on.
6) Eat some candy corn. Don’t question what’s in it 😉
7) Create a spooky Halloween recipe.
For this one, I’m thinking of a version or brown rice crispy treats….
8) Pick up your denim soul mate and donate/consign the ones that look a little rough from last year. Every fall and winter, I have 3-4 pairs of jeans that I wear the heck out of. The next year, they usually need to be replaced- the bottoms are frayed, they’re faded, and had a nice long life. It’s about that time, but I think I’ll be investing in one designer maternity pair and hit up the super sale racks for the rest. Tip: you can often find designer denim at stores like Ross, Marshalls and TJ Maxx. My favorite place to shop for jeans is Off 5th 🙂
[Such a random pic, but one of the only ones I could find where I was actually wearing jeans]
9) Download podcasts or books on iTunes or CD to get you through your long drives and morning commutes.
I get so sick of listening to the radio while I drive, so podcasts and books on CD have been major sanity savers. Some of my fave podcasts: Stuff You Should Know, The Daily Boost, Jillian Michaels (not the biggest Jillian fan but really enjoy her podcast), and Pregtastic. For books on CD, I’ll usually listen to something motivation (anything Brian Tracy is guaranteed to be amazing) or something girly and fluffy.
10) Plan a picnic.
The Pilot and I haven’t gone on a picnic for over two years, and last time we did, it was the best thing ever. We just had the dogs, a basket with different cheeses, some crackers, grapes and wine, and just sat and talked, relaxed and enjoyed each other’s company. I’m hoping to make it up to Mt. Lemmon this month and take Bell with us for a little picnic.
How are you going to make October Outstanding?
You might also like:
92 Comments
Leave a Comment
This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.
I started off October by racing in the Race for the Cure. 🙂 Since my mom is a breast cancer survivor, it meant a lot to me to be able to participate, even if I did walk the majority of the time. 😉
This month I plan on carving pumpkins for the very first time in my life and reading Washington Irving’s “Legend of Sleepy Hollow” and “Rip Van Winkle.” To me, Washington Irving and October are synonymous.
Love the idea to host a pumpkin carving party! That has definitely made its way onto my to-do list now. 😀
This month I also want to:
1. Cook something for my family’s Thanksgiving dinner
2. Go on a hike
3. Bake something with pumpkin
Great post! I have been thinking about downloading podcasts to learn Spanish on my commute and I think you just pushed the thought over the edge into an action! Thanks!
I also can’t wait to bake a vegan pumpkin cheesecake. I love fall and all things pumpkin!
Gina! As always, love stalking your posts 🙂 I’m running/jogging the Race for the Cure this weekend here in Phoenix. I’ll keep an eye out for you! Hope your month is fabulous!!
I adore the picnic and book on tape ideas. Gotta get on those!
I adore this post! October is one of my FAVORITE holidays as well and I’m so glad you posted these festive ideas for me to steal 😉 I wrote down and posted 13 September “goals” after being inspired by your Stellar September post, and I can’t wait to keep it up- such an approachable and achievable way to try new things and keep up with monthly resolutions! Love it, Gina!!
Love these ideas! Especially the candy corn! I think that is my one candy weakness 🙂
love that side braid with headband! i saw this (metal) headband at target last nite with metal owl (soo cool!). may have to go back after seeing that hairdo! 🙂 i love baking apples too! just bought a 5 lb bag of apples the other day! you should do a post on fall/healthy apple recipes. 🙂 i’m going to NY later this month for a job interview! yayy!! and want to continue losing weight…lost 7 lbs thus far! yayy! not much but better than nothing! goal is 20 lbs!
Number 5 and 3 are already sorted. I started a 30 day yoga challenge at my studio so Ill also get to try out new styles as well. I did my first flow class yesterday 🙂
Other goals
1) Get a career related job (Im a bum right now)
2) Make an inspiration board or something similar
3) Have borderline too much fun
Did you know that Susan G. Komen foundation uses people’s donations for legal battles against small charities that use the phrasing “For the Cure”? http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/12/07/komen-foundation-charities-cure_n_793176.html .
It also bothers me that these races depend on people pressuring their friends to give them money as they do some activity that they enjoy. Don’t get me wrong, I give quite a bit of money to causes near and dear to me, and I give my life to working on the actual disease-related scientific research. But I’ve probably had ten friends over the summer ask for money to support their race/cycle-thon/charity softball/walkathon etc, which starts to bothers me – it’s like “If you value our friendship then you’ll give me money”. The worst (I thought) was Team in Training, where if you raise 4x the amount of your trip then they pay for it or something… so in essence my friends were coming to me asking for money to pay for their Alaskan vacation. I’m not a grinch, I promise, my life is devoted to disease-related scientific research… but the way charities go about this really bothers me.
I agree wholeheartedly with this comment…
Thanks, Alejandra, I’m glad I’m not the only one who feels this way. 🙂 (ie, I’m always afraid people think I’m crazy when I say I don’t like charity runs… especially when I obviously support disease-related research and live it every day. 🙂
oh yay! I already accomplished number one on the list. I raised money and did a walk for JDRF on Oct 1st! I LOVE the idea of a pumpkin carving party. So cute!!
I’m hosting a drunken pumpkin carving party ~ should be fun! 🙂
I think you forgot a big one… go to the apple orchard! And eat lots of apples right off the trees, eat caramel apples and drink your weight in hot apple cider! You’ll for sure get your fruit servings in that day 🙂
I am super stoked for this month, Thanks giving here in Canada and Halloween! I think it is going to be awesome. I am going to master Handstand this month, if it kills me. And I think that My Love would whole heartedly agree with you on the candy corn sentiment.
Great post, I love the goals! My goal this month is to focus more on myself (health and fitness-wise). I work full time, am married and have a 5 year old son. While I completely love my crazy life, I seem to get pushed to the back burner. This month is going to be about kicking my health in to gear though! Thanks for the great suggestions!
And now I really, really want a piece of that cheesecake!
What a great list! I love October! I was wondering if you have any recommendations for good podcasts concerning nutrition/fitness/overall health? I love Two Fit Chicks and a Microphone and the Nutrition Diva but am stuck on which others to try. Have a great week!
Jess