Have You Ever Wanted to Just Start Life Over? We Did!

It was two o'clock in the morning, January 1st, 2012. Unusual for me to be awake at that time of day. However, it was a fun week, ending with a very fun day. Now it was quiet, a good time to reflect on the blessings of 2011. In a fun conversation with God I reflected how he had shown Cheryl and I grace during the previous 12 months. Not only had I lost more than 150 pounds, we had moved from Missouri to Florida, bought our dream home, I started a new job and Cheryl quit going to one. We knew that we had been blessed beyond what we imagined at the start of 2011.  As the new year of 2012 started I said, "Thank you, God!"

We started over. Cheryl had lost 80 pounds in 2010. With her encouragement, I was now much slimmer and in better shape than when we got married. All because we saw opportunity to "just do it", to start over. Yes, it is  possible to be fat and still have fun. But I am here to tell you that it's more fun being 210 pounds than it is being 367 pounds. Daily activities are just easier when you don't have all that extra weight to move around. There's an extra bounce in my step these days. Co-workers ask how I stay trim and fit. Old friends ask how we did it. The answer is simple. Eat right. Exercise.

Eat right doesn't mean counting calories. Just cut back on the portion size. Quit adding salt. Drink more water. Quit buying potato chips. Losing weight is not rocket science. It's simple math. Calories consumed has to be less than calories used. Read the nutrition labels and make better decisions about what and how much you eat.

I repeat: You do not have to count calories to lose weight. As I have said before, I did not start that way. It was three months into my journey when I stumbled on MyFitnessPal.com. Their tools made it easy to set daily goals. You should re-read my post of March 16 about metabolic rate. Use their BMR calculator to find out how many calories your body needs in order to maintain the weight you are now and then subtract some calories from the daily limit. (check my Tools page for a link to MyFitnessPal).

Exercise does not mean you need a gym membership. If you have one, use it. I didn't have one, so I simply made it a DAILY HABIT to walk. Short distance at first, gradually increasing until I was walking about two miles a day. As you know from my posts about Monica Adams, eventually I did get a gym membership and started working with her as my personal trainer. But, you do not HAVE to start that way; just start doing something. Walking is the best and easiest way.

If you are overweight or out of shape, or both, you are the only one that can do anything about it. If you want to start over, then just do it. Start. Begin now. Enjoy your journey to a new and healthier life.

Be sure to get some breakfast, and take Clif Bar with you.

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Eat Right. Exercise. Get Plenty of Rest.