Combating Calories

    As I near my 21st birthday* (because everyone counts 4 months in advance as "nearing") I've made myself a to do list: 21 under 21.  The idea was given to me by a friend and I've begun putting together a list, some of which I'm sure will be shared publicly with my (very few) readers and some of them, I'm sure, will definitely not.  One of them is something not so uncommon to girls nearing their 21st birthday; losing weight.  I've never been skinny but I've never been obese.  I've spent the better years of my life walking the thin line (pun completely intended) of having a proportionate body but still slightly round on the tummy, loving to dance but never have been trained properly, wearing clothes that look good but are not quite trendy because I'm afraid those jeans won't fit me in three weeks, wanting to exercise but not ready to cut out my guilty-pleasure-blueberry-muffins and more dichotomies that permeate my life (let's not get started on religion....)
I've been blessed to have incredible family and friends that do not care where exactly on that line I landed.  But as my mother likes to remind me (and rightfully so) I shouldn't let my sociability keep me from treating my body well.  The issue has become, as this weight loss thing is something on my 21 by 21 list (so you know it's important), how will I accomplish this goal?

I simply love food too much to do anything drastic.  So I joined a gym and started a journal (and now a blog).  Accountability, motivation, consistency, challenge, and happiness.  Those are my mantras as of now, they are likely to change in the next three days, and I'm okay with that.

Calories are all around us- don't eat too many but the ones that you eat better be the right kinds!  Need to know how many calories are in your favorite fruit?  Just look it up online!  Bad at math?  Use a calorie counter by entering the food items!  What do they forget to tell you about calories?  That they are energy.  That you need them to function.  That without a healthy level of calorie intake you won't even make it to the gym to get rid of those calories- you'll faint on the way.  I cannot sit down and count every calorie I eat, I will go crazy.  I'm living in NYC, taking two classes, catching up on TV, and maybe leaving some room for hanging out with friends while I'm at it.  What I have done is created a schedule for myself for my new gym (which I'm obsessed with, talk about friendly environments!) I have vowed to do zumba every single day not because I have to work out but because I love dancing and I thoroughly enjoy doing zumba.  I have done lots of research on healthy ways to eat and live and decided to create a 5-meal-a-day system for myself, including only so many carbs (which don't get me wrong I wholeheartedly believe are necessary to get through the day) and lots of water.

I don't expect results in the next week, and I don't expect much of my relationships to change because of it.  But I do expect a happier me (if that's possible), a more-confident me, and a me who will buy those pairs of jeans and expect to wear them three weeks later.


*September 13, save the date!