Most human beings don’t like to admit that they need to make changes.  Sure, most of us can privately beat ourselves up about our flaws and shortcomings pretty well.  But publicly, many of us (most of us? all of us?) put on a brave front that says we have it all together and know just what to do with it.  And just to show that we are still slightly humble, we’ll mention some minor habit – biting our nails, chewing on pencils, etc. – that we know we should change.

But if there are BIG changes that need to happen, the very first thing we have to do is admit the truth to ourselves.

So I started with the truth – my weight was beginning to affect my health.  While I think that the current BMI standards are ridiculous (and should NEVER be shared with teenagers as many schools currently do!), carrying around an extra 100 pounds (more, at my heaviest) and being really inactive just wasn’t healthy.  For my health and energy level, I needed to radically change some habits – I needed to eat differently and get moving more.

I used every excuse in the book – can’t find a work out that I can do at my weight, can’t afford a personal trainer, too much conflicting nutritional information out there . . . I was REALLY good at giving you “reasons” for why I wasn’t doing anything different.   But they were not legitimate reasons.  They were excuses.  And I had to stop using them and get brutally honest with myself – I needed to start moving more and eating healthier.

I kept looking for a work out that would push me but that I could still complete.  And I found it!  If you’ve seen the infomercials for Cize, let me tell you this: those workouts are every bit as fun as they look and every bit as tough as you need!  I’m into week three of six and I’m still a little in shock that I can actually do these workouts.  Don’t get me wrong – I’m a sweaty, out of breath mess at the end.  But I do it!  I love the increased energy, the ability to walk up a flight of stairs without gasping for breath, the muscles that are getting stronger . . . I’m already thinking about what workout I’m going to do next (I have the rest of this week then three more before I’m done with Cize).  I actually LOOK FORWARD to working out each day and that is SOOOOOO not like me.

And the nutrition piece?  I finally took the jump and dumped caffeinated soda for starters.  I also purchased a package of clean eating cookbooks and began choosing recipes that have allowed me to try new foods or old favorites prepared in healthier ways (ask me sometime about the ranch dressing substitute that uses pureed cashews as the base of the dressing!).  My eating habits still aren’t perfect but I’ve cut out virtually all junk food and have increased my intake of fruits and veggies for my snacks.

I don’t say this to brag.  I still eat more starches than I probably should and could stand to eat even more veggies but I’ve started making healthier choices and I’m liking the payoff.

But I would not have made ANY changes if I didn’t start by telling myself the truth.  It wasn’t pleasant to admit and it’s a truth that is still hard to say, but I can’t fix a problem if I won’t admit it exists.