Speaker A. Right now I’m trying to find a way to regain a healthy lifestyle despite being busy. I’ve completely lost the athleticism that was a large part of my identity and I can’t stand it any more. Now I’m trying to regain general fitness. So I’ve been biking to work (about 20 minutes) for two months now, trying to get more veggies and whole grain in my life, drinking lots of water, and I’m hoping to start walking more although right now I have to work a lot and usually feel too exhausted after work to do anything else.

Speaker В. My name is Katie, I’m 25 years old, and I started making a conscious effort to develop healthy habits about a year ago. The first thing I did was give up smoking. My goals are mainly to exercise regularly, drink enough water, and eat fruits and veggies daily. I do keep track of what I eat with journaling although I’m not a calorie counter, and I don’t own scales or restrict myself in any way. I just want to be stronger and feel better through trying to meet those goals every day. Now I feel I can do it.

Speaker С. A year or so ago, I was in pretty good shape and paying a lot of attention to my health. I slipped back into inactivity and unhealthy eating for various reasons. I miss what I had, but I’ve had a hard time finding the motivation to return to my usual healthy lifestyle. Spring is just arriving  — sunny sky, warmer weather, longer days, green leaves peeking up from last season’s dead grass. The improvement in the weather is lifting my spirits, so I’ve decided to take advantage of the extra energy and design for myself a spring fitness challenge.

Speaker D. I have just realised that at least six days out of seven, I do the amount of exercise that is recommended for those whose goal is a healthy lifestyle, just by walking during my daily routine. About three times a week, I do more, sometimes considerably more.

Despite that, I often do myself down by telling people I don’t exercise at all. I think some part of my brain still believes that because I’m doing it as part of my routine rather than going to any special effort, it can’t be taken into account.

Speaker E. Hi! I’m Alex. I’ve had terribly unhealthy eating habits for the last few years. I never took much time to eat and ended up eating very few meals. I’m trying to develop healthier eating habits, and I wonder what would constitute a balanced meal. For breakfast I eat a bowl of cereal and yogurt. Then grab five pieces of fruit I divide between lunch and dinner. It’s more than I usually eat, but I know there’s still a lot of room for improvement. At the same time I’m worried about going overboard, which can happen very easily for me.

Speaker F. I am 27 years old, and I come from a family of rather overweight people. I’ve been working to live a more healthy and fit lifestyle since last December. Over the past three years, I’ve watched older relatives dealing with serious health problems, and it’s been a wake up call for me to start taking care of myself while I’m young and my state of health hasn’t become worse. I’d like to start a family in the next couple of years, and it would be great to be able to keep up with my children as the years go by.