After indulging in really lazy and unhealthy habits for most of my life, I sometimes wax nostalgic for those few years when I was actually in really good shape. Not the kind of great shape that a magazine would be interested in, but really quite good. Then I fell into old patterns, which became deepened and more refined until basic sensible food like apples and carrots started to look like medicine.
In making my way back to good health, I feel as though I've got a wide turning radius to contend with. A total change overnight could result in relapse or failure within a matter of days. Simpler, smaller things seem to be the way to go. I'm moving in the kind of direction I want. For example (and this is contentious as a health choice), I've stopped eating meat. I haven't missed it at all, as if part of me has a ratcheting mechanism that won't allow my appetite to move back. If there is no other dietary choice, or if someone makes me a gift of some meat, I'll eat it. My wife spent a lot of money on some beef the other night and didn't make anything else, so I ate it. Other than that, I've been totally off the stuff without any cravings.
The big habit that i want to get into is waking up early and exercising in the mornings. The major problem here is that I want to take 40 minutes to an hour to work out when I'd normally be sleeping... and for a teacher that last hour of sleep is more valuable than gold. However, that's the only time I can reliably do it. I recently had to wake up early to talk on Skype, and it felt nice to wake up earlier and my performance was just fine during the work day. A morning workout would feel tremendously difficult, but I think the benefits will become clear soon enough. Now, if I can only drag myself out of bed...
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