Knowing myself as well as I do, I’ve been hesitant to blog about this . . . but I feel the time has officially come. Spurred on by recent success in the weight department, I’m happy to report that . . . I am regularly exercising! Like, every night! Two or three miles! And not in some sissy, Megan-esque way where I pretend like I’m motivated only to spend twenty minutes on the treadmill and forty in a chair, eating Twizzlers and drinking Diet Root Beer.

No, no, no. Those days are gone. This is the new me — the improved me! And not just because I’m losing weight (though that’s a nice bonus, too). I work in an office and spend 9 a.m. to 5:15 p.m. with one leg curled beneath me, firmly planted in my broken rolling desk chair. Save my daily outings to grab lunch at Panera or Einstein’s or the very short jaunt to the water cooler, I don’t move around much. When I had to park miles away from my classes in college, I didn’t have any problems keeping my weight down . . . but those glorious days are done!

In the two years since I graduated, I know I’ve gotten complacent. The weight came on slowly and, busy with all the little insanities of life, I ignored it. But a month ago, it was literally like a switch went off on my brain . . . not to bemoan the classic cliches, but I was tired of being tired. I had little energy and drank two or three sodas a day. I spent all day in a state of basic inertia, my exercise limited to flexing my fingers on the keyboard or stretching my feet out in heels. Cheered on by my awesome coworkers who are also trying to get in shape, we all decided that now was the time. And I wasn’t going to talk about feeling better anymore — I was just going to do it.

And I’m doing it. I’ve (almost) completely given up soda — even diet! — and drinking tons of water a day. I’m not dieting (I wouldn’t even know where to begin!), but I am making healthier food choices and trying to cut out all my extra snacks. I’ve walked on the treadmill off and on since last year, but I wasn’t putting my heart into it long enough to make a real difference. So I’ve abandoned that for now in favor of . . . walking DVDs. Leslie Sansone’s walking DVDs, to be exact! And I absolutely love them. Her routines are so easy, fun and really empowering, and just walking to her pace and following her movements lets you “walk away the pounds.” I’m now in week four of my almost-nightly walking regime, and I already feel so much better. I don’t know how much weight I’ve lost — we don’t keep a scale in the house — but I’m definitely seeing a difference. I have more energy, I’m sleeping better — even my skin seems clearer. Basically, I’m jazzed!

I only hope that I can keep up my routine as the initial excitement of forming this new behavior and watching some of the weight fall off wears away. I’m tired after walking/jogging three miles a night, but I’m not exhausted. Pretty soon I’ll have to start pushing myself to finish four miles, and the DVD I have — Leslie Sansone’s Walk at Home: 5 Mile Fat Burning Walk — guides you through fives miles if you can stand it! I can’t imagine walking five 12-minute miles in a row, but maybe I’ll get there eventually. Feet (and body), don’t fail me now!