Starting a blog; the most cliché thing I could possibly choose to do right before my 26th birthday. Other than starting a podcast, perhaps. This format of a soapbox requires less equipment, so here I type.

I assume everyone reading this is my mom and my aunt, so hi guys! If you’re not related to me and you’ve stumbled upon this, hello! I’m not sure why you’re here, but I am glad you are.

I am guilty of being a little too inclined to write things down and wax poetic on experiences that aren’t all that unique or interesting. My grandma was a writer, my mom (hi, Mom!) is a writer, my brother is a writer, and I am apparently a blogger, now. The worst kind of writer, maybe only second to BuzzFeed “journalist.”

The story I am compelled to share is, like every egomaniac turned writer’s story, my own. I lost 60lbs, gained a lot of strength, and learned so much about how to be healthy in a world that is anything but.

Here is where I will share pieces of that journey, one that is forever in progress. I mess up, still. I eat crappy food. Then I eat more crappy food. I will have days where coffee is my main source of hydration and I still put off folding laundry far too long. But the last decade has been one of immense growth, no small part in thanks to the online communities and voices who help me gain perspective and re-learn how embrace health in a whole, sustainable, way. I want to contribute to the voices of sanity in a sea of quick-fixes with impossible promises and unsustainable ideas.

Welcome, welcome, welcome (mom).