Gob-smacked

Little by little, physical ailments are creeping up on me and not going away.  The occasional swollen ankles and feet from too much sitting, too little sleep, alcohol, flying, whatever have now become more often than not.  The occasional twinges in my shoulders have become frequent and painful.  The slight stiffness in my Achilles heels and knees after sitting or sleeping has turned into hobbling and acute pain.  My strength is waning.  Whatever weight I gain is all fat.  My belly gets bigger.  And I'm always tired.

I doubt this all happened overnight.  I just have been really good at ignoring it.

I can't ignore it any more.  It has hit me like a two by four that, should I continue doing nothing, I'll barely be mobile by the time I'm 60 - maybe even sooner.  I don't want to live like that.  I want to be active and energetic for as long as I possibly can.  And while I realize there are lots of things out of my control that could impact this, I have a whole bunch of control that I'm not exercising.

It's scary confronting this.  I've done untold damage to my body over the years.  I have no idea what I'll be able to do or not do or undo at this point.  But I've always been a fighter and I've survived and thrived all sorts of things.  I'm not afraid of hard work and I've worked through a lot of scary emotional stuff.  So even though thinking about taking on this challenge pushes all sorts of buttons for me and feels completing overwhelming, I'll just take it one step at a time.

I've already started.

Here's a list of the baby steps I'm already taking...

• water.  lots and lots of water.  between 3 and 6 liters a day.  every day.
• a protein shake every morning that has vegan protein, super fruits and veggies, adaptogens, and pre and probiotics
• a daily vitamin with digestive enzymes and probiotics every night
• no fast food
• limiting soda, processed food, sugar, fried foods, gluten
• visiting the chiropractor regularly and getting massages at least twice a month
• reading Tom Venuto's "The Body Fat Solution" (BFS) and laying out my plan of attack
• ordered a scale and a tape measure

My immediate next steps...

• keep a food diary
• schedule an appointment with my counselor/trainer for the following:
• measuring and weighing
• review of plan
• talk about the buttons being pushed
• acupuncture to deal short-term with the pain
• start working the BFS 5 principles
• 1 cardio (minimum 15 minutes) and 1 yoga class per week
• continue the steps above that I've already incorporated into my life

I'll be using this blog to lay out my plan, track my progress, talk about the roadblocks and bumps, and document my successes.  

Wish me luck...this is going to be quite the journey.