A Healthy Start

So, you know when the beginning of the new year rolls around and you recommit yourself to begin a healthier lifestyle and then you kind of crash and burn somewhere around the end of the month? Yeah...I've been there. Like every year of my my twenties. For some reason, the closer I get to turning 32 - yikes! when did that happen??? - the more I think about where I want my life to go, what I want to do, who I want to be...you get the point. Almost a week ago, I started exercising every day with just one rest day a week. Today - Saturday - is my rest day. It also is my sugar day. Anyhow, last Sunday I was sitting in my room perusing Pinterest. I was coming off a graveyard shift sleep the daylight hours away stint and I was bored. I said to myself, "You should do something healthy today. You've slept all day and have energy to burn." Somehow I ended up on this wall exercise chart thing on a friend's board and I thought, I can do this. It's quiet. I won't wake up my roommates and it looks like a good jumping off point. So I went to do some laundry and while my clothes were in the dryer, I came back to my apartment to start on this wall exercise thing. I could immediately feel it in my bum, the medial section of my quads and in my abs. I've done 3 of the exercises it shows on the chart this first week and my stomach is getting flatter, my bum feels firmer and my legs are getting stronger and leaner. I worked through the soreness in my legs and just kept at it. Now, these exercises are something that I need/want to do! Amazing, right?? And just in a week of doing them, I've already seen those small results! I'm going to add the last two exercises to my routine and 45 minutes of walking or elliptical four days of the week starting tomorrow. Well, I'll do the wall exercises tomorrow and then when the clubhouse workout room is open again on Monday, I'll start on the treadmill or elliptical in addition to the wall exercises. The only downside to this is that I'm very results driven. I want results, like, right now. But I know that they aren't going to come if I don't keep working at it and improving and adding new exercises to my routine. I'll be buying the TRX suspension cords when my federal tax refund comes in this week. Eek! I'm so excited! So on top of the tush, leg and ab burning wall exercises, the walking and the elliptical four times a week AND the TRX suspension cords, results will come a little faster. At least that's my hope

Yesterday was the beginning of a sugar weekend and I was surprised that I wasn't craving it as much. I bought a package of cookies with what little money I had leftover after paying my rent and utilities. I may or may not have gone a little overboard. Big fail. But after a week of making a conscious effort to not have any sweets I was still proud of myself. Sometimes being poor has it's advantages. Today, since I'm working a graveyard shift, ce la vie, I bought a liter of Cherry Coke. My absolute favorite soda. After drinking it all, my whole mouth feels weird. I thought I would need the caffeine to stay awake, but I don't think I'll ever need it after today. Come Monday, when I work again, I'm going to test out my theory. I'm betting that I won't need the caffeine or the fizzy-ness of the carbonation to stay awake. The mere fact that if I can drink at least 2 liters of water throughout my shift, I won't need it. At all. The need to empty my bladder will keep me awake enough to stay awake during my shift. I bought two boxes of Mike and Ike's and I can't bring myself to finish even 1 box. Going without sugar during the week is going wonderfully. I've detoxed, pretty much. I'm going to start doing Monday through Friday without sugar. So yeah, come Monday, I'll be sugar free and soda free. I know I can do this. But really...wish me luck.

Also, this past week, I'm pretty much addicted to drinking lots of water. I often drink 3 liters of water in a single day. I'll even drink a gallon of water, which, I realize is probably overdoing it just a bit. On days that I drink that much water, I up my salt intake just a little bit. Eating a bowl of Ramen usually does it for me. Which reminds me, I need to find a better way to up my salt intake on days like those...Ramen is pretty vial and should only be consumed when you're in dire need of some sort of caloric intake. I'm actually going to start juicing. I watched Fat, Sick and Nearly Dead on Netflix about two weeks ago and I was sold. I was already thinking about doing a juice fast cleanse thing, but after watching the documentary, I'm definitely going to do it. I'll do a 30 day cleanse and see how I feel. I might extend it to 60 days. We'll see. Thankfully, my federal tax refund is going to make an appearance in a couple days to make this possible. I've looked up a bunch of recipes online and on Pinterest. I'm excited for some whole nutrients! After my juice fast is done, I'll hopefully be sticking to a healthy lifestyle. Whole grains, lots of veggies, fruits, lots of water and lots of exercise. I'm hoping that I'll reprogram myself not to reward myself with food. I need to start a rewards program so I can feel even better about my progress. You know, like buying the newest color of nail polish or getting a pedicure. I don't know...something along the lines of beautification or entertainment.

Anyway...

I'm finding that with the introduction of exercise into my daily life, I'm happier. As little exercise as it has been, I feel happier. I feel more optimistic about where my life is going and what I want to do. I've been day dreaming about moving to Washington, D.C. or back to California. Of course, I'll be sticking around Utah for a couple more years. I am applying to the medical assistant program and when I'm done with the program and have worked at least a year in that career, I'll be going back to school to get my surgical tech license. After that, it's only up from there. So yeah, that puts me in Utah for a least another 3 or 4 years. I finally have a 3 year plan for myself. Weird. When did I get so grown up?? Sheesh...

I've also been working on some spiritual things. I haven't been to church in a while; mostly because I work every Saturday and it's hard to wake up after working all night. I know, lame excuse. But when my Bishop came around two weeks ago for a surprise visit...it just gave me an opening to get back into shape spiritually. I failed that first Sunday, but went to FHE the next day. Tomorrow is Stake Conference and I'm gearing up to go to the 10 am session. Hopefully my roommate is going to that session. I don't think I'll be able to make myself wake up for the afternoon session. I still need to make an appointment with the Bishop to get things going. Actually, I might be in ward limbo at this point. I guess I'll have to go to church to find out if my records were transferred to the Singles Ward.

So yeah, when that new year rolls around and you find that you're lacking in the exercise department or just being healthier - emotionally, physically, mentally and spiritually - sometimes you just have to give into a bit of self-introspection for a month and just do what you need to do to dig yourself out that pit of self-despair. It doesn't take a new year to do that. It just takes a better attitude or just kicking yourself in the butt AND just being sick of where you are. Plus, life is so much better when you have something to look forward to and have optimism on your side.