Simple != Easy

We all know what we SHOULD be doing. It's simple:

I get to sleep and wake up on a reasonably regular schedule, getting at least 7 hours of sleep a night.

I exercise every morning before going to work.

With a baseline of rest and activity under my belt, I my appetite is under control and I can indulge in tiny portions of dessert at the work-provided lunch without shame.

I'm ultra productive at work and at home.

But it's not easy. You know what's easy? This is:

I find myself staying up until after 1am most nights, waking up tired.

I sleep in and don't exercise.

I'm ravenous all day, trying to make healthy food choices but taking normal to large sized dessert portions.

I'm tired, so drink far too much caffeine through the day.

Sometimes I go back to the cafeteria after lunch hours but before they take away the dessert trays, and I get another portion.

All this refined sugar makes me sleepy in the afternoon, leading me to drink more coffee.

I'm not productive at work OR at home, which causes me to stress out more.

I stay up late trying to get things done (and probably hopped up on caffeine), but am too distractable and disorganized in this walking-sleep-stress state to get things done effectively.

Guess which senario is true right now? :( I think this all stems from caffeine: I never used to drink it on a regular basis, but the coffee setup at my new job is very appealing and tasty and stuff. I need to stop drinking the caffeine so I'll feel sleepy at bedtime. Once I start getting enough sleep on a regular basis EVERYTHING else will fall into place: time for exercise, feeling more alert at work and home, and thus being more productive in my life overall. Right now I feel like I can't concentrate on anything for more than a few minutes at a time.

Corrective Action #1: I have ingested no caffeine today. I drank some decaf coffee becuase I have gotten used to the hot-coffee-as-comfort-food ritual, but I should really stop doing that too.

Corrective Action #2: Two days ago I set a "go to sleep" alarm for myself. Tuesday night was out at dinner when it went off, last night I just kept snoozing it until I finally turned it off and didn't go to bed until 2am. TONIGHT I'll set that alarm (which is on a wristwatch) and put the watch somewhere OTHER than next to my computer (crack, that thing is), somewhere I have to get out of my chair to get to. A full night's sleep will be mine.

Corrective Action #3: Make micro-task to-do lists so I can get things accomplished even if I'm feeling very scatterbrained.