Exercise-wise, at least.  I did do my bodyrock workout in the morning, and then I did have my smoothie.  Then my friend called and we were wandering the streets of my town on foot for at least two hours.  Then we rode bikes for another hour.  So I’ve been on my feet most of the day, which is good.  I’ve logged everything into MyFitnessPal, and I’m at a calorie deficit for the day, but I think I’ll let it go— I did have half a cupcake and a whole bag of chips today, because my friend and I were on the run all over the place, and that was the only food available in her house… bah.  I’ll be better tomorrow.   I’ll see if I can squeeze in another bodyrock workout if I’m not too sore, and I’ll try to go on a long walk tomorrow.  

    I’ve spent the most ridiculous amount of time finding excuses.  But now, no more of that.  I’ve spent an insane amount of time researching… and never putting my findings to use. Finding the right fitness apps to download.  Figuring out which diet is best to follow.  Making myself aware of all of the risks and the benefits.  Dwelling far too long on the comments from disgruntled people for whom a certain regimen did not entirely work out… and taking those comments as an excuse to keep searching— to delay my official commencement of my journey toward better health.

    I think I’m done with that, though.  I’ve actually inadvertently eaten clean for two whole days now…. granted, I wasn’t stuffing my face with crap before that—I’ve been using MyFitnessPal to track my calories, macronutrients and micronutrients for about two months now—but, I’ve always used crap to fulfill my calorie goals when I hadn’t met them.  As if the junk food was a reward for spending the majority of the day eating healthy and within my limits. 

     But I’m tired of looking for reasons not to just start this already.  I’m tired of having bursts of motivation to eat cleanly or to exercise vigorously one day, only to be left barren of it for weeks, months, years… I think I’ve gotten so tired of this that it serves as the motivation to make a sustained effort for my health.  Starting now.

     Perhaps I will log my diet and my workouts here.  I hope I can keep up with the habit if I do start.  Maybe I’ll even post some stats.  I’m excited as to where this journey will take me.  I only hope that I can muster up the same excitement when I choose to forgo crappy food for healthy food, and when I am in the midst of my workouts…

     I have a game-plan for tomorrow, and I will try my hardest to hold myself to it.  I will wake up reasonably early (quite the lofty goal…), and will begin doing Bodyrock workouts, starting with the first one posted.  I’ll see if I can get through two videos, and then I will restart Couch-to-5k for the third time.  If I can’t make it through either of these workouts on an empty stomach, then I’ll have my strawberry-blueberry-banana smoothie, and continue on.  Maybe it won’t be so pretty, but hey, at least I’ll learn what I can and can’t do. Then I guess I’ll just go about my day and try to eat clean for the third day in a row (!!!).  I thinks it’s becoming easier to do with each passing day.  If I still manage to find myself bursting with energy later in the day, I’ll go on a walk and maybe do another Bodyrock workout.  Maybe I’ll even start my summer assignments.  Could tomorrow really be my first productive day of the summer? 

    Well, I’m excited.  Hopefully I don’t flake.

     First post! Hello, my name is Ashley. I am 16 years old and I’ve come to realize that I need a change in my life. Not just fitness and health-wise, but really, a thorough change.
    I’m not going to harp on about some defining moment that made me come to realize all of this, because there isn’t one. Perhaps it is a culmination of many little “defining moments” that has prompted my sudden motivation to do something. For too long I have sat around and complained about how little I do, hpw out-of-shape I am getting, both physically and mentally. Again, now is the time for me to do something about it.
    Let me tell you a little bit about me and my past habits. I am an A+ student loaded up with tons of AP courses and I am also a black belt in kempo-jiujitsu cross training… not to toot my own horn, or anything. Why is change needed? It’s not because I’ve accomplished nothing, because trust me, whatever needs to get done will get done. However… that doesn’t mean that things will get done promptly… it means that they will get done eventually. Yes, I am an avid procrastinator. I think that is the root of all of my bad habits. I make excuses not to do things and assure myself that they will get done… and lo and behold, I reinforce my bad behavior when I do actually accomplish what needed to be done. The sense of satisfaction when I get something done in the nick of time… oh, you will be missed. But it’s high time for you to go, because you’ve screwed me over with my nutrition, fitness, and sleep patterns, among other things…
     Procrastination has caused my grades to decline just a bit… nothing major, but when you’re at the top of your class, that 1 point really matters! Also, I haven’t been attending karate much at all… I slack with my school work, and it cuts into my karate time so much that I miss it all together. Also, my procrastination cuts into time that I should be focusing on my eating… that is, I have begun to engage in mindless eating, which we all know is a huge no-no. So, lack of proper nutrition, lack of exercise, lack of sleep, and sudden influxes of stress = unhealthiness, which generally manifests itself in weight gain, and for me, negative self image. Not good. Thus, I embark on my journey… now.
   I have plans, and I’ve already begun to make little changes. For instance, I’ve nixed coffee from my diet I little over a week ago, and I made myself a little fruit smoothie for breakfast tomorrow. I’ve also been trying to committ myself to improving my tennis skills, so I can maybe join my school’s tennis team next year. Tomorrow, I will eat healthier and exercise more, and will promise to myself to maintain a healthy lifestyle from now on. I will make a conscious effort to stop procrastinating.. right now! Time to start my homework! See ya!

tl;dr Procrastination = unhealthiness = weight gain. Me no likey. Make change.