I have been getting myself out and about lately! I must say… I always forget how good it feels to exercise until I actually start doing it again. For some reason, when I get out of the habit of something good — like exercise — it seems almost insurmountable to get back into it. I kind of feel like it’s this thing that requires me to upend my whole life just to incorporate it again.

The reality comes in baby steps. Taking a half hour walk, playing kick ball in the yard with the kids, or just cleaning the house like a mad woman all counts as exercise. Getting up and moving more– counts.

When I do things… I tend to do them in a big way. My motto is usually “go big or go home”. When I commit to something I feel like I must be completely 100% committed to doing things by the book. If I am not sweating it out for an hour then my half hour of heart-pumping madness seems piddly and pales in comparison. But it’s not true.

I *still* have to get it through my brain that everything doesn’t have to be by the book or 100% the way it was before. Since I have lost a great deal of weight before, I feel like I need to follow *that* plan. Because that plan worked. Know what I mean? And what I know now is that particular plan worked back then but things are different now.

So… i’m taking baby steps and getting back into the swing of things. I am trying to leave my schedule flexible but I am *planning* and do have my meals planned for the week. The little plan seems to go a long way and my eating has been spot on!

Are you getting healthy — by the book? Or do you improvise?