Introduction - why I need a kick

I want to make some changes in my life, so that I can be healthier.

While I was always fairly slim in the past, my BMI is now over 25 and I’m officially “overweight”.

My bad habits look like this:

I wake up tired, forget about exercising, and get so rushed in the morning that I skip breakfast. If I get hungry, I grab some junk on the way to work.

I often work through lunch hour, and then get REALLY hungry by around 2 p.m. At this point, I start to feel the urge to rush out and grab fast food.

The fast food provides a temporary comfort and sugar rush – but I then feel sluggish and slightly gross. I don’t get as much accomplished after eating.

Since I’m feeling a bit sluggish and tired, I’m not as productive as I should be while I’m at work. I just want to relax – so I tend to waste time online.

Since I don’t get as much accomplished, I don’t stay on top of my billings and other work tasks, leading to stress.

I’m tired when I get home, so I’m not as efficient as I should be and I tend to fall asleep while putting kids to bed.

When I wake up, I get stressed about work not done, and then stay up late and don’t sleep well.

I finally get to sleep really late, and the pattern begins again.....

As you can see, excess weight is just a symptom of an unhealthy pattern – one that is leaving me tired and stressed.

So, my main areas of focus need to be:

Sleep

Diet (eliminating junk food, eating smaller portions throughout the day)

Exercise

Work

I know what I need to do....now, I actually have to do it!

My hope is that this blog will force me to be accountable, and commit to a long-term change in habits. Every day, I plan to post an update under these four categories, to force myself to stay on track. I’ll also report how I’m feeling, what seems to trigger success or failure, and any significant goals reached.

I'll also track a fifth category - family life. It's the one area that thankfully doesn't need much improvement. However, I'll track it because (a) I don't want to lose focus on the fact that it is the majority priority, (b) the fact that I'm often tired or stressed IS related to the fact that I'm a mother of 3, so if I'm showing lifestyle "debits" I can at least offset them with some family "credits", and (3) I need to feel that I'm doing something right.

Comments are welcome, although I reserve the right to delete spam or anything that's downright offensive.