When my mom went on a specialized plan in January that included guidelines for meals, workouts, and even meditation, I was happy for her. But, knowing my mother, she would use this opportunity to drag me into her plan, which I was scared of trying and failing. So, starting after New Years, my mom began to follow a program proctored by a woman named Danette May.

I have always felt fat, but I wasn’t confident enough in myself to start a program, and I wasn’t going to start it until my mom started seeing the benefits of clean eating. She bought new pants because she dropped a size and was more active and just felt better overall. After seeing her results, I felt like I needed to do something about my life. My main goal wasn’t to lose weight; I simply wanted to feel better about myself, and my mom did that while losing weight. I wasn’t going to do this for my mom, I wasn’t going to do this for my doctor–I was going to do this for myself because I wanted to feel better. I can now tell you, in week three, that it doesn’t get easier, but it does get better. It gets better because I feel better and I look better.

To clarify, I’m not on a diet, and neither was my mom at the beginning of the year. I am on a plan to become healthier, happier, and cleaner in my eating. I eat low to no carbs, no sugars unless it is coming from fruit, and a vegetable and pure protein-based diet. So for example, last night’s dinner was sauteed red peppers, onions and zucchinis with cubed chicken and homemade teriyaki sauce. Nights when I am with my family are easy. I get to eat what I enjoy with people who I can enjoy my time with, and just eat to live rather than living to eat.

Nights where I am out without my parents are the hardest. I try and get a salad at a restaurant and that usually works, but if I am in need of a quick dinner, like during a late night golf round when I should be studying, I get a quick burger with no bun and no fries. This plan really makes you think about what you eat. Not so much that it consumes your entire life, but enough so that you know how to make good decisions for your body.

This program does come with some consequences. My mom and I are spending more money on food this month so the trade off is not getting to go shop at the mall. My friends and I like to go and get food after a lot of our sports or activities but the places we go never have the foods that I am aiming to eat, so we have made compromises by eating homemade food or the library, rather than out to eat. I’m halfway through the plan, and It’s not getting any easier–but I am confident that it won’t get any harder.

I am confident that I can be healthy, sustain a fulfilling diet, and still live my life through the rest of these 30 days and into the rest of my long, clean, healthy life that I am guaranteeing for myself. If it turns out to be as great of a result as I had hoped for, then I think I will feel happier than I had ever felt before.