Martin Gonzalez, July 10th, 2013

Time: 5:34 am

It’s the third day of the hunger strike and last night I couldn’t sleep. This is the hump day once I get past today I should have more energy and not feel so sluggish. Every morning I do 150 push-ups to keep my muscles from getting lazy and get my heart rate up. I only do one set of 150 push-ups, even though my body and mind begs me to do more. I’ve been exercising two to three hours a day, five days a week for over five years, and stopping my routine has me restless! I hate just sitting around doing nothing, that’s why I find things to do to keep busy. Exercising has always been one of my favorite pastimes cause I always feel better after I workout and when I catch the c/o females (correctional officers) and staff checking me out, that keeps me motivated too. 🙂 After this hunger strike my abs are going to be tight as hell! If you look good you feel good so I think exercising and practicing good health habits is important, especially in here. Happiness is a state of mind, not a stated place so even when they put me in the hole or restrict my program I always do my best not to dwell too much on the things I can’t do and focus on the things I am able to do. It’s not always easy to stay positive when there’s so much negativity around you but that’s why you must ignore the negative and find reasons to be happy for. When I find myself going/ getting negative I quickly start thinking/ looking for reasons to be happy. I think it’s the reason why I didn’t lose my mind when I was stuck in the hole. I have so many plans and goals for the future and every day I dream up new ones to pursue. I figure if I am always pursuing a dream, my life is headed towards a happily ever after.