Day 145

The year is coming to an end but we're only on day 145! How are you doing on your goals? Are you seeing progress? Are your friends seeing progress?

I'm excited!!

I haven't personally seen any progress, but my husband can't stop talking about how well I'm doing! He keeps mentioning how great I look and how much thinner my arms and thighs are getting. It's an amazing feeling. I'm also just about to start on the second swing of the 90-day BodyKey challenge,  which is improved and contains new products and I'm super excited!

I hope you've been enjoying your holiday seasoning, and that you're springing into 2014 with renewed momentum and a decision to stay steadfast on your path to your goals.

Day 90

Can you believe it's been three months already? I hardly can! It's certainly been a whirlwind here at the McQuade home. We've been busy, busy, busy; always on the go, go, go! I'm glad that I've got the Mr. to help me stay focused on my goals while we're out and about, because it gets mighty easy to swing through McDonald's when the hungries hit me on the road.

I must admit to you lovelies that I haven't been sticking to the "carb reducing" portion of my plan as well as I'd like to be, but Mr. has been doing an excellent job of helping me to see thing in the long-term ("Okay, but that burger is going to cost you an hour and a half on the elliptical. Or you could have a salad.") instead of just the right-now. Because of his help I'm still working on slowly getting rid of the pounds and inches, instead of lamenting more gain!

We're headed into the holidays now, with Thanksgiving just a few weeks away and then the Christmas rush starts! Holiday parties are full of calorie-traps and they're a breeding ground for later guilt. Remember your goals as you mingle this year. You'll feel so much better for it! I attended an early holiday kick-off party recently and felt incredibly proud of myself when I later realized that I'd only eaten a few cookies (three), instead of hovering over the snack table like a vulture as I used to. It's a small victory, but it's victory and it feels great!

Keep at it, I know you can come out of this holiday season a few pounds lighter and regret-free!

Day 77

Hello my lovelies!

How are you doing on your goals? Keeping at it? I'm so proud of you! Even if you don't seem to be reaching the results you want as fast as you want, keep doing the right stuff. You'll get there!

Myself, I've been doing great! My scale is broken so I don't know how much I weigh right now but I'm feeling really great about myself. I've been keeping up a solid elliptical habit, a morning protein shake habit, and I'm noticing that overall I'm not as hungry anymore. I even ordered a salad at a restaurant the other day - because I wanted it!

I'm noticing things becoming easier and easier. Stairs, for example. And although I'm still a size 18/20 (I went shopping today) my pants are having trouble staying up instead of having trouble stretching and it won't be much longer before I'm down to 14/16. With my goal being 10/12, I'm super excited about that! My husband's also been commenting on the differences (Bonus points!!)

I hope you're feeling as beautiful and healthy as you deserve to be!

Day 54

After a month and a half I'm starting to see the numbers actually go down! It's slow progress, for sure, I've had to do a lot of muscle building (and I'm not nearly done) to get here. But, the number progress is happening just in time!

You see, my husband is a total cheater pants. By which I mean he has perfect genes when it comes to fitness. He can eat just about whatever he wants, not exercise, and not gain weight. And when we start exercising together, he usually shoots right past me in terms of visible progress. It's like the weight just falls off of him!

Now, I've never been a terribly competitive person. If I'm not pretty darn sure I'll win anyway, I tend to just not participate. I'm not the kid who can be goaded into climbing the rope in gym class because some other kid said I couldn't. It's just not in my nature to compete with people, and especially not physically. When I have been involved in competitions, it was more for the fun of the activity than the competition itself. I didn't exactly care if I won (although I didn't much like losing either).

All of that changes with my husband. He knows that as soon as he says "Bet you can't do it" I'm going to get it done. I don't know why, but with him my whole perspective just changes. I even have to keep my eyes closed when we're on the ellipticals at the gym together, because it takes a higher level of work to get his heart rate up into the cardio range and all my brain sees is "HE'S DOING MORE RPMs THAN ME!"

Now, if I can mange this new-found competitive nature properly, it becomes a great tool for me. In a competition against my husband I'll work harder to win than I would in a competition against anyone else. Knowing this, I've been trying to get him to start a year-long get-back-in-shape thing with me for the past few months.

Well, now we have an elliptical at home and he's started using it - which is as good as an agreement to compete in my mind! So now I'm officially in competition with him.

And I will win.

Here's the terms.

We both eat the same thing every day anyway, so we're not going to be focusing on that.  But I have a designated notebook for each of us. And each day I'm going to write down weight for the day and what exercise happened when. Winning will be losing the most weight the fastest and making the most progress in capability the fastest. So, for example, if he's lost more than I have at the end of the year but I've gone from two miles in 30 minutes to 5 miles in 45 minutes, we tie. The goal is progress! We won't track RPMs or things like that just because our bodies are so different, and two winning qualifications is probably enough.

Really, it's all in good fun and it's just an excuse for me to try to beat him at something. Whether he keeps competing with me or not, I'll keep at it because my goal is bigger than the competition. But trying to win against him is fun in the meantime!

Day 45

I've been focusing a lot on weight loss and fitness with this blog so far. But if you'll remember, there are other goals I'm working on. I'm working on becoming a better leader and growing my business team, and on becoming more organized. I've decided to drop the goal of finishing three blankets by the end of the year. I've needed to prioritize some things and hobbies always fall into the least important categories for me.

Weight loss is easy to talk about. There's a lot of change, and a lot of emotion, that goes into weight loss. But today I want to talk about the other goals.

First, my goal to become a better leader. I learned, in my studies, that this would require first getting myself into a state of fully self-disciplined. In order to be the best leader I can be, I need to be a good example and I need to be consistent. I've been working on those two things a lot, and boy is it taking a lot of work! Overall my progress has been slow but satisfying. I've worked my daily success habits into my life on a truly daily basis, which is allowing me to learn more than I ever thought I would once I finished high school!

I'm spending time learning about the leaders I admire so that I can better model myself after them.

An important distinction: when working on yourself be careful that you aren't trying to *be* the other person. There's one of them for a reason, just like there's one of you for a reason. You can emulate someone without imitating them, and you'll find yourself better off for it.

In the process of my growth as a leader, I'm doing a lot of reflecting. I've had to spend a lot of time deciding who I want to be, what type of person I want to be, and discovering the steps to get there. It's not easy! But it's so worth it. Already I'm noticing marked improvement, as I compare myself this year to myself exactly a year ago. I will often encounter and overcome a difficult situation and find myself looking at it in retrospect and thinking "I didn't handle that as well as I want to, but I did handle it a lot better than I would have a year ago."

This isn't an excuse for me to stop growing. I don't think "Well, I'm better than last year and that's good enough!" But I do remind myself that progress forward is progress forward and not to be undermined. If I'm not where I used to be and where I am today is better than where I used to be then I am on the right track and can continue on with only minor adjustments, assured that I will soon get to the place that I'm trying to end up at.

Developing my business team has gone a bit slower. I've had to take some time and re-evaluate what the qualities I'm looking for in my teammates really are. In the past I've been flexible in this, having more of a come-as-you-are mentality that allowed anyone onto my team and into my inner circle.

I've since learned that I can't continue this way. Many people aren't headed the same direction that I'm headed. They don't want the same things out of life, don't hold similar values to mine, and aren't willing to work as hard as I am.

 That's ok. That doesn't mean there's something wrong with them or that I don't still love them as they are and where they are. But it does mean that their place in life is not to be on my team. Teammates need to have the same objective, and be in agreement about how to reach that objective, otherwise the team goes nowhere. It also means that they most certainly shouldn't be in my inner circle - in that group of people that is so close to my heart that they can actually affect my attitudes and perceptions. Allowing people with conflicting goals and values into that inner circle will only bring strife and frustration to all of us.

Thinking this way is something of a contradiction to the way I was raised. Even as I type this I can hear my mother in the back of my mind, encouraging me to love and accept everyone, to let everyone onto the team and make everyone feel included and equal. I've learned from my mentors that while I can accept and love everyone, I cannot afford to let everyone on the team. And not everyone is equal at every part of the game. Sometimes, one person's skills will be more valuable to the team - more needed in that moment - than the skills another person has. That's the point of the team.

And so, with my team developing slowly but surely and solidly, I am satisfied that I'm making good progress toward this goal.

The second important goal is really a part of the first, and that is to become more organized. I can't be an effective leader if I don't know what my next move is, when or where I'm meeting the next person, or whether I have the tools I need. I've made significant progress here!

I've gotten my filing down to a habit - regulating any overflow to a task on the first day of each month. My toolbox (filled with catalogs, demo product, and info kits) is fully stocked and organized so I can just put it in my trunk and take it with me anywhere. I've begun stocking extras of product that I know my customers and I will need on a regular basis, and this is on a shelving unit in the corner of my husband's office. Although not perfect, I've gotten most of the household chores down to a routine and I'm usually prepared at any time to have company within 5 minutes.

My former roommate can attest to the significant progress that one indicates!

Overall, I'm pretty satisfied with what progress I've made. Being used to instant gratification, this progress is much slower than I originally anticipated. But it's progress all the same, and in the right direction. I'm confident that before long I'll be truly prepared to be an excellent leader to the teammates God brings me.

How about you? How are you doing on your goals?

Day 41:

Consistency is the buzzword in my life right now.

My mentors have always told me that consistency is key. Consistency in business, in personal relationships, in anything you want to do. Without consistency, you're just messing around.

I've been "messing around" with fitness since I was 13 and the racehorse metabolism of my childhood was shot by my sugar addiction. We all know people who are like I have been: on again, off again. Slim fast diet, apples diet, cabbage diet, "I'm so tired of dieting!" diet...we've run the gambit. Yet somehow, with all of that dieting, I still ended up carrying around an extra person in fat. Why? Because I wasn't consistent.

Have you ever put different types of gas in your car from one fill-up to the other? Maybe the pump for the one you normally get was broken so you got a different grade, or maybe you were low on gas and couldn't find your usual gas station in time.

My husband hasn't. Since the day he bought his car almost ten years ago, he's put in the exact same grade of gas from the exact same brand - every single time. He chose that grade and brand because he did his research and found out what was going to help that car function at optimal levels. That car runs like a dream! It's had only minimal repairs needed, like replacing the brakes and the o2 censor. I've never had a problem with the transmission, never heard it make weird noises, never had any of the "normal" car problems that you could expect from just about any other car. And that's given me an incredible sense of peace as I drive.

At least, until earlier this year.

You see, we had a roommate for a little while and she was borrowing our car while she lived here. Naturally, she didn't have the same commitment to brand and grade that my husband and I have. After all, we tend to forget the finer care details of the things we borrow from people. She put a different brand of gas, and probably a different grade, into the tank occasionally. When I started driving the car again after she moved out, it was strange. There was an odd sound in the engine, and the gas pedal wasn't nearly as responsive as it had been. The car wasn't driving like a dream anymore, it was driving like a 10-year-old car.

Our bodies are like cars in a few ways.

Just like my husband's Kia Spectra was designed to use regular grade gas and functions best when that gas comes from a certain brand, our bodies were designed to use specific types of fuel. We need that fuel consistently, and if we want optimal performance from our bodies we need to make sure we're not mucking up the fuel supply with things that just aren't good for us.

Just like a car, our bodies need to be put to work. What happens if you let a car sit for too long? It develops problems. The gas separates, the tires and brakes corrode, parts of the engine might even stop functioning. Let a car sit for too long and it's going to take a lot of money and a lot of time to fix the problems it will develop.

Let your body sit for too long and you'll find the same kinds of problems. Your heart weakens, your immune system weakens, your muscles atrophy. It's going to take some serious changes and maybe even some medical intervention to fix those things if you let your body sit around for too long.

Just like a car, there are things our bodies require on a regular basis to help keep us functioning optimally. At certain intervals, my car needs the oil changed, the various fluids replenished, and the tires replaced. My body needs me to make sure my workouts are always a challenge, to supplement my diet with vitamins and minerals that I wouldn't be able to get otherwise, and to make sure that I'm leaving enough time in my day to get the sleep it uses to recharge, repair, and reset for the next day.

It's all about consistency.

I had my husband drive the car to figure out if it needed to be brought to the shop, or if it just needed some personal TLC. He said that as long as we kept up with our habit of using the same gas from the same place, the car should fix itself in a month or so - once all of the old gas was out of the system and it had gotten used to the right gas again. He was right! Just three months after I heard that first disturbing noise, that car is already back to driving like a dream. You wouldn't even believe it was a decade old!

Once I applied consistency to my fitness habits, things started getting a lot better. My body is used to actually having all of the nutrition, sleep, and exercise it needs now, and it's starting to get back to working the way it's supposed to. I'm still not optimal - I've still got that extra person to get rid of - but my system is functioning better than it has in a long time. I'm feeling amazing, physically and emotionally.

And I know that as long as I stay consistent - keep working out every day, keep putting positive into my brain and good fuel into my body - I'm only going to get better and better. My body is already showing the signs of improvement - I can't seem to keep my yoga pants up on my waist, for example!

Where will consistency help in your life? I can guarantee it, if you add consistency to anything great that you're trying to do, you'll be amazed by the results. It may not be easy, but it's definitely worth it!

Day 25

How are you doing with your health and fitness goals? Are you noticing change? Are you developing habits? I hope you are!


I've been learning a lot over the past 25 days!

One of the biggest things I've been learning is that it's all about habits. Right habits are what bring the results - and what help you have confidence even if the results aren't coming at the pace or in the measurement you wanted them.

I haven't lost weight in about a week. I seem to be stuck at this number right now that's so much higher than where I want to be. But I've been keeping up my habits! I workout for 20 minutes or more every morning. I'm keeping up the habit that I know is right, even though I don't see the results I wanted right away, and I'm able to feel pretty great about myself because I know that I'm doing the right thing.

25 days ago I started this with the idea that I was going to find a magic routine that got the magic results I've been looking for since I was 13. I figured I just wasn't committed enough, wasn't "hardcore" enough, and to some extent I was right! But I also had a lot of misconceptions.

For example, I was focused on numbers. Remember when I said I was going to lose 2 to 5 pounds a week? I was incredibly focused on that. To the point that for the past few days I've been really freaked out and depressed because I haven't lost any weight this week.

Fortunately I have some awesome people in my life.

Like my mentors, S and T. They've been teaching me to take time to reflect. Reflection is important, because if you don't take some time to look up at the scoreboard and interpret what it says, you don't know what you need to change to win the game.

And my amazing husband, who is always so very supportive of me. He likes to see the best in me, and he's been working to help me see the best in myself.

So today I took some time to reflect, and a lot of that reflection happened in front of the mirror. I took a long, hard look at myself. I really, brutally assessed myself physically, mentally, emotionally, and you know what I came up with?

I really like how I'm doing!

Sure the scale doesn't say anything has changed. In fact, I've actually had dreams where that dang thing laughs at me! But I've got other things to measure by, and I shouldn't let myself forget that.

And neither should you.

You see, progress is more than the number. And sometimes the number is going to stay right where it is for a while but we're still making progress.

My reflection showed me a couple of things today.

First, I *am* actually losing size! I noticed that my arms are toning up, and my waist and stomach are starting to look thinner. The dresses I've bought recently look better than they did a few weeks ago, and my legs are showing more muscle.

Second, I'm getting stronger. I noticed as I was working out this week that there are some movements that are getting easier. I can drop deeper on my squats and lunges, move faster for longer in my cardio work, and I'm going to need to buy some heavier weights!


Third, I'm feeling so much better about myself. I spent so long thinking "I'll feel good about myself when I'm size 12" or something similar. I thought that my feeling better was dependent on my *looking* better.

Thanks to my mentors, I've been spending a lot of time reading some amazing, powerful, truth-filled books. And one of the things those books have been teaching me is that just about everything that goes on in your head or your heart is your choice. So I've been taking charge recently, and focusing on the good things. I've been deciding to be happy, deciding to enjoy life, deciding to not get offended so often - even in cases where I know the person was probably trying to offend me. It's given me such a new sense of joy and peace in life. Have bad things stopped happening in life? Well, no. Stuff still happens. People still get mad at you, random health issues crop up and cause problems, life is life.

But in the middle of life being life, I'm ok. That's new, and wonderful.

I'm "making right decisions," as S would say. And that's enabled me to start feeling really great about myself. No matter what anyone else says, no matter what things try to block my path, I know that I'm doing the right things and that those things are going to bring me the results I want...even if it's not on the timeline I originally wanted.

My reflection told me some pretty satisfying things today. As another mentor of mine, Papa Sev, would say:

I'm not where I want to be, I'm not where I could be, I'm not where I'm going to be...But thank God I'm not where I used to be either!

I'm making great progress, and it *can* be measured. I bet you are too! And I'm so looking forward to having a beautiful beach body and shamelessly spending time in the sun with you!

We can do it. Just keep those habits up!

Day 18

It's day 18...how are you doing with your goals? Have you been developing the habits that will help you live the life you want later?


I'm finding that feeling better about myself - as I am right now - is going a long way for me. I've gotten some new dresses recently that really flatter my shape and look pretty great! Since food (and especially junk food) is my comfort-seeking reaction, not feeling horrible about myself and needing comfort all the time is really helping me!

I haven't gotten awesome at controlling my normal eating habits. My husband and I are a pair of absolute codependent enablers! Whenever he has a craving for nachos, I say "YES! That sounds amazing!" When I'm craving pizza he says "Sounds good!"

My weight is fluctuating the way you can normally expect during the summer, 3 pounds up or down here and there. That means that I'm doing well enough to maintain - which is good! I have been on a steadily gaining pattern for a while, and so maintaining any weight means I've changed something for the better. 

I've been exercising more, but not doing what I should with my carb intake. The good news is that I know exactly what to change to do even better! The bad news is that for me, carbs are love. Although my parents may not have realized the programming our habits were creating, empty carbs are how I was raised to know that times were good and life was going to be okay for a while. It can be really hard to get away from that, but I have an amazingly supportive husband and mother in law who are helping me to teach my subconscious that there are other signs to look for. We're training my body and mind to appreciate certain experiences - like having more time and money to hang out with the people I love. I'm learning, slowly, that food isn't the only way I can say "everything is going to be alright."

This week I'm adding extra workout time in, and pulling simple carbs (like white bread, doughnuts, and most pastas) out of my diet as much as possible. I'm hoping that this is the key that's going to help me start losing weight again. 

My goal right now is to figure out just what level of change I need to make. I'm not into crash diets, however much they may work for a while. I want to know what kind of lifestyle I can expect to have and maintain - through busy-ness, life, trips and vacations, special events and tiring times. I need to know what kinds of choices I need to make sure I'm making and how much of my food-loving lifestyle I can keep if I'm careful - for my sake and especially for my children's sake. 

One of the things that has been motivating me the most lately has been my kids. We're planning on starting our family sometime next year, and I've been thinking a lot about what kind of mom I want to be. What kind of habits do I want to pass on to my children? 

I watch my mentors very closely - especially with their children. I watch T as she teaches them healthy eating habits, emotional self control, and discipline in their daily lives. I watch as S teaches them how to be leaders. I watch as together the two of them teach their kids how to interact with others, how to be kind and generous but still strong in their morals, and how to make decisions that will carry them through life. 

That's the kind of thing I want to teach my kids. From a very young age I want to teach them to exercise in the morning to keep their bodies limber and strong and their metabolisms fast. I want to teach them about proper nutrition and healthy eating habits - and also how to really enjoy their food! I want to teach my kids that healthy doesn't have to mean lettuce for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. I want to teach them what healthy eating does mean, including principles like everything in moderation. 

I want to pass on a healthy legacy to my kids. I want to be the 120-year-old grandma (and maybe great grandma) in excellent shape, still able to run around the playground with the babies of my family. No brittle bones, no failing heart, no extra pounds that make breathing that much harder. I'm only in my 20s, and I know that dream is attainable. I also know that if I develop the habits for myself, and really make them a part of my life, my kids will naturally follow in my footsteps. Then they will also get to be very old, very active, very happy grandparents one day. 

So here, on day 18, I'm keeping my kids in mind. When I don't want to get up in the morning to exercise, I think "Do it for the babies." When I'm deciding what to choose off the menu at a restaurant I think "what will I want to teach my little ones?"

So far, it's been very helpful. I'm not perfect by any means. But I'm doing better and better every day. It's good to have something outside of myself to motivate me in this, because the scale isn't impressing me right now and since I live in my body it's hard to notice the small changes that happen slowly. But as an added bonus, my husband is noticing that my body is starting to shape up and slim down a little! And since he's the kind of guy who doesn't even know what kind of clothes I own - even though I wear the same outfits every week and spend all day with him - for him to notice means there must be a big improvement! 

Day One

So yesterday was my birthday, and I LOVE to celebrate my birthday. My favorite way to celebrate is food and - since I grew up in a big family - there's always leftovers. This year I made lasagne!

Lasagne may not be known for being the healthiest food. Admittedly, it's probably up there on the not so healthy list. But there are things you can do to help yourself out! For example, I made my own sauce so there wouldn't be as many calories or as much non-food junk in there. Just tomatoes, a little bit of olive oil, and salt and pepper. I also made sure to choose 95% lean ground beef, and part-skim cheese. Finally, I used a small dish and only two layers, to keep the leftovers to a minimum.

All in all, this helps an awesome food become healthy enough for you to feel great about eating. Just remember your portion control!

We also had ice cream cake, and there's not really a way to make that healthier. But this is another area where portion control really helps.

Today I've been all over the place with my husband for our work (and I got a sunburn...ouch!) but I still managed to get some of my leadership habits done! Right now, I'm working on studying John Maxwell's 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. Today I went through laws 5 and 6.
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Law 5 is the Law of Addition, which says that leaders add value by serving others.

Key questions:

• Are you making things better for the people who follow you?
• Do you have a servant's heart in your leadership?
• What do the people closest to you value? Do you know?

Key concept: Always add value to those around you. 

The question I found myself asking while I was studying this was "What can I do?" Adding value is all about giving to other people, and you can't give what you don't have already. Any skills, experience-based wisdom, or opportunities you have can be a way to add value to people. Finding my skills has always been a challenge for me, so I guess that's another thing I'll need to work on this year! I'm excited to discover what I have that I can use to add value to other people!

Great quotes:

"When you try to be top dog, you don't create loyalty." (Jim Sinegal, co-founder of Costco)

"90% of those who add value to others do so intentionally. That's what it takes to be a leader that others want to follow" (John Maxwell)

"Seek always to do some good, somewhere." (Albert Schweitzer, 1952 Nobel Prize winner)

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Law 6 is the Law of Solid Ground, which says that trust is the foundation of leadership. 

Key question: 

• Do your followers trust you?

Key concept: You won't have followers for very long if they can't trust you.

The big question for me in this chapter is "How do I build trust?" John Maxwell says that everything rises and falls on leadership, and leadership depends on how much your people trust you. John says in this book that the way to build trust is by constantly exemplifying confidence, connection, and character - the most important of which is character. I've got that down- now it's just the confidence and connection parts! 

This year I'm also focusing on applying what I learned from the last book I studied: Everyone Communicates, Few Connect. And next on my list are How to Win Friends and Influence People (by Dale Carnegie), and How to Have Confidence and Power in Dealing with People (by Les Giblin). I study these at least once a year and I learn something new every time, so I'm excited! It's looking like I'll have the full trust formula down in no time!

Great quote:

"People will tolerate honest mistakes, but if you violate their trust you will find it very difficult to ever regain their confidence." (Craig Weatherup, retired CEO of Pepsi Bottling Group)

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Now I'm going to take the rest of my night to relax - I'm going to listen to a talk CD by a leader I admire (while I work on my blanket), give my mentor a call, and then go to a movie with my awesome husband. After that it's bedtime for me because tomorrow I'm going to Moses Lake!

Goals

• My first goal is to lose weight at a rate of between 2 and 5 pounds per week. At the end of the year, I'll be between 104 and 260 pounds lighter! This is going to require a lifestyle change, and not just a temporary fix. My plan is to work between 30 minutes and two hours of exercise into my schedule 5 times or more each week. Since I have a rather unpredictable schedule, I'm not sure how this will work out just yet, but I'm excited to find out!
• My second goal is to become a better leader. To do this I'm going to stay in contact with my leadership mentor every day, listen to one CD of a leader I admire speaking about leadership and business every day, and read at least one chapter from a leadership or character development book each day. As John Maxwell says, the secret of your success lies in your daily habits.
• My third goal is to become more organized in my life. This is going to be a pretty long process and I'm not sure what all it will involve, but getting our office space organized is definitely step one! 
• My fourth goal is to grow my business team. This means I'll need to make three business contacts every day - which will help me learn to be less introverted!
• My fifth goal for the year is to finish the blanket I'm working on, and two others, and sell them. 

I'll be updating this blog daily - or at least, as daily as I can remember to! - to keep you abreast of my progress, my techniques, and the new things that I'm learning. I hope you'll learn along with me, and I'm looking forward to hearing from all of you about everything you're working toward! 

Introduction

Hi there!

Today is my 22nd birthday. This blog is a journey to reach the goals that I've set for the next year. At the end of this year I'll be happier, healthier, and farther along in life - and it's my hope that you will be too!