Ok everyone, today's the day!  Hope you've enjoyed the last few days of "the old you," because it's time for a change.  If you haven't already started, now's the time to begin your 30-Day Challenge.

I've decided that the next step for me is to start incorporating the principles of Thrive into my diet to improve my running and take my energy to the next level.  In order to make it specific, I've decided that on three nights each week, I'll make my dinner entirely vegan and mostly raw, from one of the recipes in the book.  Of course, this means the next day's lunch (usually leftovers) will be the same thing, but in order to have something I can specifically do every day of the week, I'm going to do foam rolling and stretching on the remaining four days of each week.  Foam rolling is the best way I know to avoid injury during marathon training, and I feel fantastic when I'm in a routine of doing it, yet for some reason it's so hard to get myself to take the time do it without a commitment.  And commitment, my friends, is what the 30-Day Challenge is all about.

Without further ado, I give you the list of those who have taken initiative to change some part of their lives they aren't satisfied with, for 30 days.  You can always go back after that.  I know that for some of you, it takes courage to make a commitment like this, so congratulations on taking that biggest first step.  I think you'll find that committing is often the hardest part; once the change is made in your mind, the rest is easy!

• Alex (Happy Go Lucky) is going to walk to work at least three times per week, walk home at least three times per week, and run at least four days a week.
• Amber (Almost Vegan) will not open a jar of peanut butter for the next 30 days.
• Amy (Amy's Training Blog) is going to do core work and/or weights three times per week, and daily foam rolling and stretching.  (Yeah foam rolling!)
• Austin is going to run a mile each day.
• Britt is eating only whole grains instead of white flour and is going to run a two hour half marathon on Labor Day weekend!
• Carol, a salt lover, is not going to add any salt to her food, and exercise for one hour each day!
• Catherine is giving up white flour and putting her running shoes on at least five days a week.
• Chrissy is going to minimize her consumption of pasta and cheese, run more regularly, and do pilates.
• Christine (Bellylaugh Bakery) is not going to consume caffeine, dairy or peanut butter and is going to drink 64 oz of water per day and do cardio for 30 minutes four times a week and stretch for 30 minutes three times per week.
• Clare is giving up all dairy products.
• Colleen is going to walk at least 10 miles per week.
• Dawn is going to do some type of physical activity for at least 30 minutes a day.
• Erin is going to eat three vegan, high-raw dinners per week.
• Hanlie (Fertile Healthy) is going without bread, coffee, sugar, or alcohol!
• Henry is going to run a mile each day.
• Hethir is going to eat vegetarian and high-raw and run four days a week to prepare for her first 5k!
• Holly (The Healthy Everythingtarian) is eliminating diet soda from her diet!
• I am going to eat three vegan, high-raw dinners from Thrive per week, and do foam rolling and stretching the other four days each week (and mix in a little Bikram yoga).
• Joe is going to eat no meat.
• Kelley is giving up meat and sugar!
• Laurie is giving up caffeine and is going to run/walk 30 miles in 30 days!
• Lindsay (Chasing the Kenyans) is going to watch her calorie intake.
• Megan (Meg Aug) is going to run three days per week to get ready for a 5k, avoid sweets, and stop eating Double Chocolate Zone bars!
• Melissa (Veggie Runnr) is going to make her lunches and dinners entirely out of food from the farmers market.
• Sagan (Living Healthy in the Real World) is going to focus on intuitive eating and eat fewer grains.
• Vickie is going to start each day off right with a healthy breakfast, eat less than 1200 calories per day, and drink less than three alcoholic beverages per week.

Way to go everyone!  If I missed you, messed something up or misinterpreted your challenge, or if you have a link you want me to put next to your name, let me know and I'll get on it.  And if you still want to sign up, leave your commitment as a comment and I'll add you to the list!

Lastly, I encourage you to show this page to as many people in your life whose opinion you value and who will hold you to your commitment.  If that means sharing a link to this page on and showing all your friends on Facebook, then great, and good for me too.  If it just means showing one special person at home, then do that instead.  What it does is create leverage, so that it becomes much more painful to give up on your challenge than to just stick it out, because you look stupid in front of your friends!  Having this kind of faith in yourself might be uncomfortable and unnatural for some of you, but I know of no better way to make changes last.  And for a little more leverage, I'll do something different this time.  If, when I check in on everyone and ask how you're doing, it seems like someone's flaking out, then maybe I'll just have to call you on it, on the front page of the blog!

Congratulations again everyone; I have tremendous respect for anyone who is willing to take even this first step.  You've already earned points with me.  Good luck on your first day–it's often the hardest one, but they'll get easier.  And if you've already started, let us know how it's going!