Before I go any further, I need to share with you the book of which I speak...Margin by Richard Swenson, MD. I'm waiting for a couple other books on the topic by him as well...check out Amazon.com for his other titles if you are interested.

This week, I decide the thing I could most easily control and that would probably make the largest impact would be to focus on the physical energy. The extra sleep and rest last weekend made such a difference to me. I knew I was working at a deficit but I didn't know how much of one!

The focus on the book on physical energy isn't rocket science. But the author urges you to take personal responsibility for your health and to start making real changes in your habits. This is an area in which I have always struggled...partially do to my physical limitations and partially, really, due to laziness, I suppose. But it's also the area I felt most ready to take responsibility for and to take action towards changing.

So, this week, I worked on:

Changing my diet. Eating smaller meals throughout the day. More healthy meals, infused with fruit and vegetables (gasp!). Cutting down on sugars and drinking more water.

Exercising. Although I didn't have time for much this week, I did go for a walk one night and took a Tai Chi class. Both were really hard for me physically but I know that if I keep trying, things will get easier.

Sleep. I'm trying to get into a better routine of going to bed at a reasonable time (which, in reality, I've been working on for a few months, not just this week) but also getting up earlier so that I am not feeling stressed and rushed immediately after getting out of bed.

Not every day was a good day. I didn't achieve my new goals all week. I ate well all day one day but felt overwhelmed by stress at work and went out for a milkshake. But, shockingly, the world didn't end. And I just tried again.

I think that's a big part of it. It's so easy to catastrophize things and feel like you can't succeed just because you aren't perfect. Well, no one can be perfect - that's for sure! And I think sometimes you just have to keep on keeping on. I'm really beginning to believe that that is how real change happens - not the idea of willpower but instead as an exercise of faith & diligence.

More to come...