Making Changes

I debated whether I wanted to post this for the whole world (or whoever actually stumbles upon my little blog) to read or whether I wanted to keep it to myself, but decided there's no reason to keep it a secret.



Over the last few months, my healthy habits have been steadily declining. I started my last semester of college in the same month that we found out we were moving to Japan...in 3 months. I finished a crazy condensed semester while preparing to move overseas. We moved out of our house and into hotel living for a month while my husband did training in San Diego, and lived on fast food. We drove the many miles home to Illinois to spend some time with family, and spent a good chunk of that family time eating out. We indulged in every Chicago food craving we had and then some. We flew to Seattle and were delayed days for our flight to Japan, then spent another week in a hotel waiting for our apartment, all while eating garbage the majority of the time. And exercise?? Forget about it. I went from being buried in books and boxes to being surrounded by family. I didn't have a moment to spare in California and I didn't want to lose a moment in Illinois when I knew we were moving so far away. Then we moved here. I was jetlagged and overwhelmed and holed up in the hotel until we moved in. Then I holed up some more, because it was still overwhelming to adjust to a new base in a foreign country where I had to figure out how to drive on the wrong side of the road and use currency and language I didn't understand. I'm still adjusting to that side of things.

The long story short -- my body was showing the months of neglect.

I've never done extreme diets, but I have yo-yo'd with eating healthy and exercise just like every other person. I've gone months with relatively healthy eating and regular exercise, and I've gone months without. I'll spend a week working hard and burning calories, then have a rough day and give up. Just like so many other people. Every time I would have to start over, I would feel all this pressure at doing it all over again.

I decided this time, I didn't want to do it alone. I wanted something that will last more than a few weeks or months. I wanted something I would feel committed to, not just throw away when things get tough. So I decided to join Weight Watchers.



I don't have dozens of pounds to lose, but I do have a lot of unhealthy habits to break and healthy habits to nurture. I've been at it a few weeks, and while things haven't been as productive as I imagined in the midst of earthquakes and illness, I'm making small changes and working towards bigger ones. I've lost a couple pounds, and I've gotten better at cooking homemade meals. I'm taking the stairs more often, even though those 8 flights up to our apartment are killer. I still need to work on my exercise habits, since being sick interrupted that. And I really need to work to give up soda, but I love it so much!

For now, I'm still learning and adjusting. I'm planning to update occasionally about my progress and struggles, and to share recipes I try and workouts I enjoy. It's a little intimidating to put it all out there and admit that I need some extra help getting and staying healthy, but I'd rather face that hurdle now, in my 20's, in good health, and only slightly over a healthy weight, before it gets out of control and serious health problems start popping up. All I need to adjust for right now is long-standing foot injuries, and I'd like to keep it that way.

So that's my story. I know it will be a challenging journey to commit to a new lifestyle and stick with it. But I think with the help and support of Weight Watchers, I'll be able to deal with whatever life throws at me. Although it still breaks my heart to think about giving up soda...