Change your clocks, Change your life

For those that have followed me from the beginning and know my journey, you already know the significance of this day.  For the rest of you, here is all you need to know!  3 years ago today, I made the decision to change my life, when I changed my clocks...and here is the blog post from that day...

http://iadviseu.blogspot.com/2010/03/gotta-walk-before-you-run.html

I had already moved the scale from 310 to 280 over 2 years when I made this declaration and for those that know how this played out, I opted to only complete one of those two marathons, but the journey was real.

I share this today for multiple reasons.

1)  It's good to reflect!  As I pushed through mile 9 on today's 13 mile training run at a sub 10 pace, I used this as motivation to go faster each mile all the way home.  I smiled a few times just thinking to myself how far I've come.  And I ran faster in fear of how far I have yet to go!

2)  Maybe in some way it motivates you?  Remember "TODAY" is the day that I said I would run a MARATHON in NOVEMBER, and I did it!  And you can too!  If you need perspective about where I was, take a minute to scan this blog update I posted just a couple weeks into my journey.. http://iadviseu.blogspot.com/2010/04/3-weeks-down-and.html

3)  Celebrate your success!  I bought my first Garmin watch the following month, and have logged every step of walking, running, cycling, and swimming since!  35 months later... 5165 miles logged!  669 hours of exercise!  654,000 calories burned!  Multiple Marathons and Half Marathons.  Multiple Triathlons at nearly every distance.  And, yes, the scale has moved a lot, but I wouldn't measure my success by just that number.  I measure my success by my energy level, my lower resting heart rate, my lower cholesterol, my lower blood pressure, the way my clothes fit, the way people smile when they ask me if I've lost weight, and so on.  There is no way to know how much time I may have added to my life by improving my body, but I have no regrets....

Okay, so maybe I have one regret.  Those 669 hours were spent away from my family, in a somewhat selfish way.  Perhaps someday, my wife and children will join me to a greater degree in my exercise regimen, but until then, I do regret the time away from my family.  It is a trade off, and one that I'm thankful they support.  If I've extended my life by more than 669 hours, isn't it worth it?  My guess is I have extended my life by at least 669 days, or even 669 weeks!  God only knows, and time will tell.

I get it, not everyone wants to run a marathon, or an Ironman, or invest hundreds of hours a year into exercise, but what about you?  Did you make a New Years Resolution to improve your fitness lifestyle?  How's that working for you?  As my friend Amy F says, you don't have to wait until next year to recommit!  You can do it TODAY.  You changed your clocks today...maybe even the smoke detector batteries, or furnace filter...anything else you want to change today?   Looks like a good day to do it!

So that's my story...and as the saying goes...I'm sticking to it!