While I’m very happy with who I am, I’ve decided that it is time to GROW UP! The older I get the more I realize that I need to take care of myself. So how will I better myself? Through the power of the internet, that’s how! I love the idea of personal accountability, so I am asking my friends (both virtual and in the flesh) to help me better myself. The steps needed for me to be happy with myself are:

1. Stop Smoking and Drinking Soda. I have been an on again, off again smoker for the past two years. I desperately need to stop smoking. . . . permanantly. While I don’t personally judge anyone who smokes, I am personally making the decision to stop for my health. While I don’t drink a bunch of soda, I drink more than I should. Why should I stop drinking soda? Diabetes and tooth decay are the primary drivers, but I also believe I need to drink way more water than I do and stopping the liquid sugar train can only help me drink more H2O.
2. Control Eating Portions and Food Quality. In the past year I’ve made large strides in the quality of food I eat, but the one thing I still have a hard time controlling is my eating portions. The drinking of more water should help this as well, but primarily I need to eat slower and dish/order smaller portions so that I can recognize I’m full before I eat more than I should. I also plan to snack more regularly (healthy snacks like nuts, fruits, and vegetables) which should help spur my metabolism and help me not be in “OMG I’M STARVING” mode when I go to eat a meal.
3. Exercise Regularly. Whether it is actually going to the gym or hiking/walking I need to be physically active at least once a day. This isn’t as much of a problem in the summer being I can hike, but I also need to make sure I go to the gym or do physical activity in between summer activities.
4. Get more sleep. I’ve lived off about 5-6 hours of sleep since High School and while I can function fine on that much sleep I think that getting more (and getting into a regular sleeping regiment) will give me more energy throughout the day. I tend to try and get less sleep because I want to do things, but I also think that getting more sleep will help me be more productive during the hours I am awake, so hopefully my net productivity will increase.

So I am asking for YOU both my friends in the flesh and friends via the internet to help me be more healthy! How can you do this? By encouraging me as much as possible and reminding me of my commitments when you see me slipping. I’ve been very encouraged by LeVar Burton‘s progress with quitting smoking using the internet so I need your help! I am a firm believer in personal accountability and transparency so I’m hoping you folks will hold me accountable for my actions and maybe even find strength to make better health commitments yourself. So ask me how I am doing via Twitter or write on my Facebook wall to yell at me for eating unhealthy.

Thanks for your help and interest! I hope to post status updates here on my blog and on my various social networks so stay tuned!