Since it’s November, I’m going to start by giving thanks. Today, I am thankful for my health. I’m lucky that I suffer from no physical or mental ailments (other than being a wee bit neurotic at times), and I am very capable of moving around and enjoying the fresh air (particularly on a beautiful, sunny day like this one). I, like most people, am prone to take my health for granted, and today’s entry highlights one way in which I hope to preserve and increase my health. I hope to begin all of my November posts with a different aspect of my life for which I’m grateful.

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I’m not a big fan of “new year’s resolutions.” More often than not, people make them with misleadingly high hopes, and by February or March, those goals are nothing but a memory. Why wait until a certain date to make positive changes in your life? For me personally, putting things off in the distance makes it that much easier to say, “not today,” or “I’ll do it next time.” Just like my father, I have mastered the art of procrastination.

With that said, my goal for November/December is to have a fitness regimen in place that I will continue into the new year: at least 2 days of cardio and 2 days of strength/conditioning, additional to my gymnastics class.

I’m starting small. One cardio workout MUST be a 30 minute jog/walk around the neighborhood or through the park. The second workout can be another jog, a Zumba class (which I’ve been saying I’ll check out for the past 3 months), a bike ride, or time on the neglected elliptical.

Strength training will include v-ups, pushups, lunges, and arm workouts—and some good stretching. (My flexibility is nonexistent, which is kind of embarrassing when warming up at gymnastics.)

Back in grammar school, I won nearly every category in the fitness program (I never won the mile run—distance running has never been my forte). In 5^th grade, my P.E. teacher even had a special trophy made for me because I was the only one to quality for the Presidential Physical Fitness award (my school was very tiny).

I want to be that girl again. I am not aiming to be superwoman; I just want to get into a genuine routine so I can build upon it. I am happy with my body (most days, at least), but I want to feel fit and fabulous! Every year I say that I will start exercising routinely, but this time I will commit. I hope this blog will hold me accountable, one day at a time…