A Healthier Ballerina

I really want to go en pointe.  Like, really REALLY.  I've had soo many dreams about dancing in shiny pink pointe shoes, I stopped counting after the 4th or 5th.  But recently I've been rethinking it.  I've heard that it can mess up your feet, and many dancers eventually get arthritis in their feet.  Now, in my family, we were taught to take care of our feet.  Breathable leather shoes, good support, good fit, all that stuff, because you will need your feet for the rest of your life.  When I hear dancers talk about their ugly feet from pointe, sometimes I don't want that.  But then I think about the beauty and rewards of dancing en pointe.  When my time comes, I think I'll try it.  After all, we only live once.  I don't want to one day regret choosing to dance en pointe, but I don't want to regret not doing it either.

Also, you're holding your whole body weight on your toes.  The heavier that weight is, the worse it is for your feet.  Besides being nowhere near ready for pointe shoes, I'm quite overweight.  I want to lose some weight before I'm ready for pointe.  Like, 25 pounds.  So I'm going to start a diet.  Already started, actually.  A low-carb diet, I guess.  I'm just eating less bread, pasta, potatoes, and crackers, that type of stuff.  Since I only get moderate exercise two or three times a week, I was eating way too many carbohydrates for my body to use.  Basically less carbs, more fruits and veggies and nuts. I'm going to start running, too.  My city has this huge annual 5K, and this year's is coming up in a few weeks.  I'm not going to run competitively, but I want to run in it to motivate me to train.

I guess that's kind of all I'm doing for right now.  My goal is to become stronger and healthier.  Diet, running a couple times a week, and my usual dance exercises.  And lacrosse is starting up soon too, I can't wait!  Do you guys have any personal health goals?