It's scary, I know. Part II

Part II: Transition to Healthier (Changes Begin)

With my new found motivation (the girl), November 2007 to September 2008, marked the beginning of my transition to healthier.  My transition began by taking baby steps like: spending less time at the bar, eating less fast food and beginning to do some exercising.  I was, and still am, amazed by how much better I felt by making those few changes. 

September 2008 is when it all got serious.  I was going to turn 30 in six months and I was still overweight and not in good shape.  With a doctors appointment set for my 30th birthday, I feared I was going to be told I had high blood pressure, high cholesterol and that my internal age was 60 (thanks to watching Biggest Loser).  I was scared.  I had to make some changes.

I began by setting one big goal for the next six months.  I was going to weigh less then what I did when I graduated high school.  I graduated weighing 190 pounds and when I set the goal I weighed 215.  From there I set monthly goals and then broke those down to weekly goals.  That is what kept me motivated.  Celebrating achievements on a weekly basis is a great feeling and gets you excited for the week(s) to come.

To lose the weight and get into shape I started running.  My first run lasted four blocks before I thought I was going to die.  How embarrassing, but the next day I went out and ran five.  Next thing I knew, I ran my first mile and then my second until I was up to eight miles.  As for eating, I did NOT go on a diet.  I simply cut my worst eating habit out of my diet each month.  Month one was frozen pizza.  Month two was macaroni and cheese.  It was crap I didn't need and I replaced them with better options. 

Those six months flew by and all of a sudden it was February 17th, 2009.  I woke up, got on the scale and was pumped to see 185 pounds.  I lost 30 pounds in six months.  It was the hardest thing I had done.  I could have made so many excuses and they would have been justified too.  I was managing a restaurant working 50+ hours a week.  I often didn't get home until 4 am and there were times when I had to be back to work at 10am.  But I didn't let that keep from my goal.

It's all about how bad you want something.  If you want it bad enough, you won't let anything stand in your way!  You will "work towards something greater".