Memoirs of a Fat Girl

Don't start your new life with diet. Start it with exercise.

I know that the word "diet" is practically a nazi term and should never, ever be used. Diets are failure, change of life is success. But let's be honest: to lose weight, we must change our eating ways. And changing our eating ways can be some pretty tough business.

It's so, so hard to be a good, healthy person when we are tempted all the time, every day. We have apples, oranges, vegetables and nuts, but we also have cake, cheetos, and hot fudge sundaes. Fruit salad is always nice, but nothing, nothing says hot summer days like ice cream.

Willpower is a hard thing to have, especially when you're starving after a long day and want something quick, or you're with friends and they're all digging into a pizza. Your new lifestyle gets put off one day, then two days, then a handful of years have gone by. If you'd only been good.

Yesterday always seems easier to correct than today, no?

Here's what I've discovered: I have absolutely crappy willpower when it comes to great food. However, once I've exercised, I don't want to eat.

Why is this? Because I don't want to undo the good I've just done.

I noticed this after a good rollerblade around the block. I've always loved inline skating, and it has become part of my slimmer me program. My snacking is the worst in the evenings, I can go without almost all day, but then fill up at night. The worst thing to do.

A few nights back I went for a half-hour skate around the neighbourhood, and came back complete with sweat stains on my shirt. It was a very, very good workout. My adrenaline levels were up, and the energy was coursing through my body. I felt very, very good.

I wanted to keep feeling that way. I didn't touch another morsel that night.

Point being, that when you can really feel the difference working in you, you really try your best to keep that difference going.

Exercise I must. While exercise itself is not hard for the most part, making it a habit is.