Tennis

As an avid follower of tennis, I was up at 7:00 am to watch the woman's final at Roland Garros. This was an unprecedented final, which Francesca Schiavone of Italy won in her first ever final appearance. Formally ranked 17th in the world, she will now, I believe, move to 6th, while her opponent, Sam Stosur of Australia, will remain at 7th. Whatever their rankings will be, these two went out there with a lot to prove, and I see the final appearance as a victory for both.

I bring this up not only because I love tennis, but because Sam Stosur has the most excellent physique. She is strong and lean, and all this after a battle with Lyme Disease.

Sam Stosur is my inspiration. While I will probably never achieve the physique of an incredibly fit professional tennis player, I want her strength and perseverance to be my guide. With this in mind, I have spent the morning registering for a tennis clinic here in Boulder. For the next four weeks, every Tuesday and Thursday evening will be devoted to improving my tennis skills. While this is not a full on fitness program by any means, it is a start, and it is a reason to maintain my fitness.

The First Step

The only way this is ever going to happen is to make a list, set down a list of rules, and follow them.

Hello, I am a 23 year old woman, and I am somewhere around 23 pounds overweight. This is not abnormal. Unfortunately, more and more women, particularly in my age group, suffer from problems with food. Whether we eat too much or not at all, so many of us are struggling, and it's time for us to put an end to it, as individuals. There is no wonder drug, no surgery that will have the lasting, life-changing results I require. I need to work hard, be smart, and be safe.

Like so many woman, I have tried a series of diets. My problem is that I love food. I love preparing it, I love ordering it, I love eating it. I regularly yo-yo between eating only vegetables and pints of ice cream. I eat as though every meal is my last, and I can't seem to help myself. From this, you would think that I would be more than 20 pounds overweight. But then there is that other side of the coin: exercise.

I love getting exercise, but I can't seem to make myself workout on a regular basis. I have many excuses for this, but it boils down to laziness and fear. I fear discomfort, and I fear judgement. I spent years drinking regular soda and ordering fatty food because I didn't want to be one of those girls who cared. I never thought it was cool to care about your weight, I thought it should happen effortlessly, and I thought it truly did because I played sports for two hours every day through high school. Unfortunately, in college I learned that it isn't effortless, and I was never able to get my pre-college weight back.

So here I am, ready to make a change. I've been trying for so long without success. But that ends now, as I commence the trip back.