Fresh Start Fitness

When I started my fitness journey 5 years ago, what I wanted most was “the appearance of thin”. I might have felt vain and insecure expressing it that way, so I disguised it as “my health”, but that’s what I really wanted the most.

“Appearing thin” is still important to me, but not in the same way. It’s hard to be overweight and feel uncomfortable and insecure in your own body. But at this point in my journey, the confidence and security I get is from being strong, not thin.

If your main objective is to lose weight, you are pigeon-holed into achieving a calorie deficit. You can eat less than you use by dieting, exercising, fasting, weight loss surgery, or weight loss medication. But the process is the same: eat less to make yourself smaller.

If you have an over-arching goal of “overall health, wellness, fitness, longevity, and happiness”, what you eat, how you move, how you look, and how you feel each serve a purpose. You can move your body to “burn calories” or you can move it to get strong. Or to have fun! Or all of the above.

You can eat food because it’s fueling, or because it’s fun and comforting or nostalgic, or because it’s nutritious and delicious. You can choose not to exercise one day because you are enjoying your life in other ways, or resting.

Now as an experienced exerciser and real actual grown-up, my biggest and best goal is to pursue longevity. I want strong muscles and bones as I age. I want to protect my heart from a heart attack. I want to live independently and get myself up and down off my toilet until I die.

I also have performance goals: I want to run a second marathon, this time with a time goal. In order to achieve that, I need to run a spring half marathon under 2 hours.

I have process goals: to exercise 5-6 days a week, a variety of bike rides, running, and lifting weights.

But above all, more important than my performance goals, process goals, or being thin, I want to continuously pursue things that improve my overall health and wellness, physically and mentally. In keeping that as my overall goal, I have the freedom to pursue variety, fun, rest, and meaning from what I eat and how I move, regardless of the number on the scale.