164.4 pounds

Before going to bed last weekend, I stepped on the scale for the first time in a while, and what I saw disgusted me.

Here’s what happened...

I went to Heckscher State Park on the Saturday after Thanksgiving with my family. We walked a 5K together for charity.

Despite going to the gym one too many times a week and staying in shape, I decided to walk.

Why run when you can take it easy and walk? I thought.

Ten minutes before the race began, I changed my mind.

I ran.

And I finished in 26 minutes and 42 seconds.

Not bad for someone who hadn’t run more than a mile in five months.

But that time didn’t satisfy me.

Back in 2020, I ran every day. And when I ran every day, I never dipped below 3.1 miles—that’s a 5K if you didn’t know.

My 5K time was 21 minutes on the dot.

When you run that often and eat pretty healthy, you have no choice but to be in good shape.

I stepped on the scale one day and weighed in at 164.4 pounds—yes, I remember the decimal.

But I had no muscle mass since I only ran and never went to the gym. So, I ran less and lifted weights more—to the point where I ran once every few months.

When I stepped on the scale last Saturday, I didn’t see 164.4 pounds show up…

Nor 185...

Not even 190…

And I would have even loved 195…

But I weighed in at 200.4 pounds. (I didn’t forget the decimal that time either)

That pissed me off.

I never broke the 200-pound barrier in my life. And I never wanted to.

That moment made me realize I need to care for my body more.

With the new year coming up, I could have decided to change my health come January 1st. You know—run more, eat cleaner, track my progress, blah blah blah…

And I’m gonna do that.

But I’m also going to be smart about it.

Standing on the scale, watching that 200.4 taunt me, I realized something…

Why wait until the new year when I could start now?

That’s why I’m telling you this story.

Most people set new year's resolutions weeks before January 1st hits. Yet, they wait to take action.

You set resolutions that you want to accomplish as quickly as you can.

The best way to make that happen is to start today.

Not in two weeks.

Today.

This is what I want you to do after reading this:

Before you go on with your day and head to work or school, take a minute to think about one resolution you have for the new year.

Ask yourself: What can I do today to get one tiny step closer to my goal?

Once you do this, you’ll be surprised at what you can accomplish.