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Zzzzzzzz..... ah sleep. It's sad how when we are kids we want nothing to do with naps, but as we get older LOVE them.

8-10 hours. That's what is considered a "healthy" amount of sleep tonight. Ha! 8-10 hours for a 3rd shifter is a luxury set aside for extreme illness or vacations.

I'm not quite sure what everyone else does but a typical "night" sleep for me begins usually around 8 am and on a very good day I get to sleep til 245 pm. On days off, things change, sleep may be a couple hours in the morning so I can sleep in the evening. The switching from day/night sleeping several times a week isn't healthy I know, but its what I have to do in order to have the most time with my family. 

Sometimes when I can, I try and catch an hour nap in the evening after my kids go to bed in order to help me feel more alert at work(something that is extremely important).

So that is something I cannot change, I know that I will not always get the adequate sleep that I should be getting in order to live a healthy lifestyle. However, there are things that I have been doing for years that I can change to maybe help get me closer to my goal.

The first thing I wanted to try to work on that I do have more flexibility in changing are my food choices.

UGH! NO one in their right mind EVER wants to change their eating habits right? Not unless they have a serious screw loose.

So this is what I decided to do. Last week I ate normally, and I kept track of everything that I ate. Then when I was done I looked up the amount of calories I was putting into my body on a typical day.....WTH man, that was an eye opener. I realized that I was eating way more than the 2000 calorie "norm" that is set by the Health Department.

Yes this was an eye opener, but I also know myself. If I go extreme into exercising and dieting I will do good for a week, maybe two then I will get burnt out and quit(yes, its happened). This time around, ofcourse, I am doing things differently. I decided this week I would work more on eating habits only.

No I will not be counting every calorie like a psycho, I am instead going to just be more conscious about when I'm actually hungry and not just wanting to snack. Also along with that, what's going to change is everything in moderation. Yes I can have one snack but I will eat just the serving size and not what I'm use to.

This is different, I haven't checked but I already know I have been taking in less calories per day. After this week of changing my eating habits I will incorporate some sort of exercise into the mix, nothing crazy extreme like 7 days a week but slowly work something in and see how it goes. That way if I can, I will add to what I'm already doing.

So, yes there are things in my life I will not be able to change, obstacles that I have always faced but didn't know how to push through. This time is different, this time I am aware and taking into account that I am not "normal" and never will be, so my healthy changes probably won't be either.