I had big plans for this blog when I started a little over a year ago. I was on a great path with my fitness, things were going relatively well — and then everything changed.

I got a few long posts up on the site and felt like I was building momentum. But soon after, things took a turn. A large company acquired the small startup I was working at. They had held off on making any major changes for a while — until January 1, 2024. The transition was immediately challenging. I wish I could describe it more clearly, but let’s just call it what it was: overwhelming.

Corporate Chaos and Personal Strain

There was a lot to learn, tons of new people to meet, and even more to do. It became too much, and I paused this blog. The stress and anxiety from work bled into my personal life — I exercised less, slept poorly, and on top of it all, I had a newborn at home. I was trying to navigate this new corporate environment while parenting a four-month-old. It just kept piling up.

Then in April, I found out I was being laid off — part of a 10% company-wide cut. It wasn’t performance-related, but damn, it still stung. I was completely shocked. My final day was May 1, 2024.

The Job Search and Lingering Stress

I immediately began a job search that lasted until September. I felt incredibly lost — the job market was (and still is) difficult to navigate. I did manage to regain some consistency in my exercise routine, which helped, but I faltered when it came to eating well. Like many people, food is my stress comfort.

Even being home — where technically it should be easy to exercise — was tough. I constantly felt like I should be spending more time on the job search. Should I lift weights or send more resumes? Hit a workout or message people on LinkedIn? That push and pull wore me down.

A Spark of Hope

In early summer, though, I had a small but meaningful victory: I biked 50 miles in one day, completely solo. That felt amazing — a spark of hope in the midst of a rough season.

Slowly, my infant started sleeping better (he’s a great sleeper now, thankfully), and that helped me begin recovering from the chaos of 2024.

A Major Turnaround

In September, I landed a job with a small startup, and things immediately began to improve. I wish I could say that my mood and happiness weren’t tied to employment, but the pressure of being a father to two young boys and needing to provide was immense.

I’m so grateful for my incredibly supportive wife. Not long after starting that job, another twist came: I got recruited to join a much larger company — alongside a group of 15 or so former colleagues. It was like my luck flipped overnight. That’s when I was able to truly get back on track.

Progress and Support

Since January, I’ve lost 10 pounds, been going to therapy more consistently, and I’m lifting regularly. I feel much happier and more stable. I also increased my depression medication dosage, started seeing a nutritionist and a fitness coach, and even joined a Monday men’s workout group.

I have so many great posts and fitness experiences to share, and I’m looking forward to documenting them — starting now.

What I Learned

Here are a few things I’ve learned during this time:

1. Reach out for help. That includes friends, family, therapists, and even adjusting medication if needed.

2. Clean eating, exercise, and sleep are critical. I hate to admit this, but I’ve had to relearn this over and over. Life will always throw challenges at you — you’re better equipped to face them when you’re physically and mentally well. That’s really what this newsletter is about: building and sharing that mindset.

3. Give yourself grace. Sometimes life just hits hard. It’s okay to step away. It’s okay to recognize you can’t take on all the things you want to accomplish and not feel guilty about it. Focusing on the fundamentals will eventually bring you back to The Path.

Looking Ahead

This year is going to be amazing — in fact, it already has been. I’m excited to share what I’ve been up to these past few months. Let’s freaking go!

Along the way, my fitness journey faltered: my exercise routine became sporadic, I started binge eating due to stress, and I stopped tracking food intake.

That’s the point of documenting my journey, though—to show that fitness journeys are not linear. Life happens, failure happens, but what matters is picking yourself back up and starting again. Today, I’m doing much better and back on The Path.

Let’s begin by reviewing what I originally planned for 2024.

Original Plan

"One year of obsession can change your life."

I perked up after hearing this sentence on the My First Million podcast. It perfectly encapsulates what I’ve been working toward: the realization that if I’m going to accomplish meaningful change, I need to be “all-in” on fitness.

This year, I'm obsessed with health and fitness.

Now, “obsession” typically equates to negative, unhealthy behavior. In this case, I need to make fitness my main focus, following healthy habits every day. So far, as mentioned above, it’s been a challenge. Here are my original goals:

Big Goals

• Lose some amount of weight weekly

  • Ideally, 1 pound per week (2-week grace period, so 50 pounds total for the year).

• Reduce BMI from obese to overweight.

• Bike ride 75 miles in one day.

  • Previous record: 36.9 miles at Bike the Barns 2023

• Share my fitness journey on the HF Substack. 1 post every 2 weeks! 25 posts total.

Checkpoint Goals

• Lose 25 pounds by July 2024.

• Bike 50 miles in one day by July 2024.

• Log 6 InBody scans by July 2024.

Daily Systems

• Track food in MFP every single day in 2024.

• Strenuous Exercise 4x per week

• Prioritize sleep in the evenings. 7+ hours

• Alcohol: only 1 real drink, the rest N/A or alternatives.

Revised Plan

In January, my goals felt ambitious but doable. Today going forward, I need to revamp them to be more realistic. There are 33 weeks or 7.5 months left in 2024. Changes have been bolded.

Big Goals

• Lose some amount of weight weekly

  • Ideally 1 pound per week (30 pounds total for the year).

• Reduce BMI from obese to overweight rating.

• Bike ride 75 miles in one day.

  • Previous record: 36.9 miles at Bike the Barns 2023

• Share my fitness journey on the HF Substack. 1 post every 2 weeks! 16 posts total.

Checkpoint Goals

• Lose 10 pounds by July 2024.

• Bike 50 miles in one day by July 2024. [I think this is still possible!]

• Log 2 InBody scans by July 2024.

Daily Systems

• Track food in MFP on the remaining days in 2024.

• Strenuous Exercise 3x per week

• Prioritize sleep in the evenings. 7+ hours

• Alcohol: Still limiting by mixing in n/a drinks. I want to enjoy myself, so tracking will help keep me in check.

Here are the changes I’m making to accomplish these goals.

Weight loss: I am my own worst enemy. Overeating, especially when stressed, remains my biggest obstacle. I eat healthily these days, but sweets/desserts/snacking derail all of my hard work. To address this, I need to track my food in MyFitnessPal again because it’s proven to help me stay on The Path.

Exercise: This is the one area I’m proud of. I’ve consistently kept up my weight training and biking even during the tough times of high stress and low sleep. This is even easier in the Summer when I’m outdoors more.

Sleep: I stay up too late and (due to my small children) get up too early. I also want to work on side projects again, like this newsletter. My new plan is to allot an eight-hour timespan by being in bed by 10 pm and waking up at 6 am. Except in some cases where the kids wake up early, that gives me 30 minutes of “me time” for projects and seven hours or more of sleep.

Forward!

It’s been a difficult first half of the year. I have concrete action items to follow to remain on track and accelerate my health and fitness. Let’s do this!

The health and wellness industry’s (de)motivation.

Every day, we are bombarded with the “cure” for obesity. Influencers who have never really struggled with their weight show off toned muscles, unrealistic, beautiful bodies, and time-consuming fitness routines. The result is the opposite of motivation for those of us living in the real world. They just make you feel bad about yourself.

Crash diets, pills, and weight loss programs offer quick wins in the short term, designed only to keep you hooked and continuing to pay long-term. Lose weight fast, sure, only to have it pile on again quickly. Where is their motivation to transform your life for good? They would no longer have anything to sell you.

Instead, concentrate on the fitness foundations: eating well, sleeping, and exercising. Diets, supplements, and false promises are a distraction. Influencers and weight loss programs promote miracle cures because health fundamentals have to be followed, not sold.

The odds are stacked against us.

Our food choices are unhealthy by default.

• 73% of American grocery stores contain ultra-processed foods.

• Restaurant meals are tasty because they are drowned in salt, fat, butter, and sugar.

• School cafeterias serve junk food, leading our kids down the wrong path from an early age.

We can control the food we bring into our homes, but our discipline is challenged and worn down every time we step outside.

We’re told to focus on the number on the scale.

Stepping onto the scale makes sense when you have only a few pounds to lose. But when you’re an obese person, it’s discouraging and makes the situation feel impossible.

The scale is an awful way to gauge progress because many factors affect the number shown at any given time, such as time of day or natural body fluctuations like hydration level. Converting fat to muscle through weight training means sometimes you’ll gain weight, but of course, that’s a good thing!

Since the scale doesn’t reflect an obese person’s true progress, it’s better to measure body composition: chest, upper arm, waist, and thigh girth. Your body’s visible changes may seem negligible, but the impact is tangible. In one recent measurement period, I “only” lost ten pounds, but the results were incredible. My arms became more toned, my XXL t-shirts fit better, and my energy levels increased significantly. If I focused solely on the scale, I would have felt dejected instead of inspired.

Losing weight is tough enough without piling on the stresses of society. Once we understand how society influences our efforts, though, we can begin to fight back, making weight loss more likely.

Besides health, typical life priority lists include a mishmash of family, career, relationships, faith, and purpose. After a long, arduous journey spanning many years, I've realized that health and fitness should be number one because they profoundly affect every other priority.

Family, often listed as priority number one, should be number two. It's challenging to support your family if you're not healthy. As a parent and role model to your kids, how you live your life influences them for their entire lives. Of course, being healthy means having the energy to keep up with them physically and remaining calm during the most stressful times. When you're not distracted by health concerns, you can focus on providing the care, financial support, and love a family needs. 

Speaking of financial support, most people have to work for the majority of their lives. Given this massive time investment, good health means bringing your best self every day. Over the long run, this translates to building lifelong relationships with coworkers, more opportunities to advance, and an increased sense of ownership and purpose. I've solved the most demanding work challenges when feeling my best.

Feeling your best is strongly correlated with religious faith. Many feel religion provides life extension and positive mental benefits. In fact, "people who represent their relationship with God as being loving and satisfying pray more and report fewer mental health symptoms." Naturally, when you're healthy, you'll build upon that foundation. You can better serve others and develop close-knit relationships with fellow church members. Good health and faith go hand in hand.

All of these life priorities share something in common: relationships. Building close relationships is the key to a satisfying life. Being healthy provides relationship optionality. Whether through fun physical activities like sports, hiking, swimming, etc., or traveling abroad to explore new cities and cultures. Maintaining friendships takes work. Work that requires time and effort is only available with good health. Being mentally healthy means being emotionally available to friends, a crucial aspect of creating deep connections. 

My Results After a Year of Change

Making health my priority #1 this past year has led me to achieve remarkable results. By focusing on health and fitness, I've lost 30 pounds, gained several pounds of muscle, and slept better than ever. I wake up most days feeling amazing - more focus, mental clarity, and purpose. I'm a better father for it, too, with more energy to keep up with a rambunctious toddler and newborn sons.

Whenever I struggle to "Stay on the Path," revisiting each life priority reminds me of what I'm gaining by sticking to my health goals. Like a roaring waterfall, the positive effects of good health and fitness cascade into all other parts of life.

Typical life priority lists include Health, Family, Career, Relationships, Faith, Purpose, etc., with Family being first. But, I've realized that health and fitness must be #1 because they deeply affect every other priority:

• Family: It's difficult to support your family if you're not healthy. Being a good role model, providing financial support, engaging in physical activity, and much more.

• Career: Poor health means work absences, not performing at your best, etc.

• Relationships: You'll miss out on many fun experiences if you struggle with physical activity. It's tough to maintain friendships if medical issues take over your life.

• Faith: "Your body is a temple" means treating it with respect.

This realization has motivated me to put immense energy into bettering myself and helps me "Stay on the Path" when I'm struggling.

Why Now? What Changed?

I’ve tried dieting. I’ve tried exercising. I’ve “tried everything.” For the first time last Fall though, I began working on my health with intentionality. This meant:

• Exercising 4x per week.

• Eating clean and tracking all meals.

• Getting at least seven hours of sleep per night.

• Researching and learning everything I could about health and fitness.

Call it a “eureka!” moment, perhaps. I realized that I’ve devoted an immense amount of time and energy to anything I've mastered. This includes computer programming, where, over many years, I read/wrote blogs, delivered talks, went to conferences, contributed to Q&A forums, and built side projects. Most recently, product management has been my career focus, and I’m obsessively learning as much as possible to become a great PM as fast as possible.

Besides intense focus, ultimately years of struggling came to a head. Other reasons that sharpened my drive towards better health:

Tired of being heavy. It is exhausting being overweight/obese. Every day, you are reminded that you're fat. Every year I would say, "This is the year," but it wouldn't happen. I was tired of disappointing myself.

Recognizing my current approaches weren't working. Over the years, I've had solid bouts of weight training, but I didn't really get stronger, nor did the weight come off. Why? I wasn't following a serious training program and still ate poorly! It took a long while to recognize that, though.

Being a role model for my kids. There are many complex feelings here, including:

• How can I expect them to grow into healthy adults if I don't demonstrate healthy habits?

• I don't want to embarrass myself physically by not keeping up with them.

• I can't bear the thought of abandoning them by dying young.

Since the new year, I've lost 24 pounds and have gained a ton of muscle. I've never felt better!

What's working for me?

1. Tracking calories

Ugh. It's tedious and annoying to track foods. Guessing calories from takeout and restaurants will always be challenging. But most of us underestimate our calorie intake. The biggest win is helping me be mindful of the foods I eat so I don't overindulge.

2. Exercising multiple times per week.

You can't out-exercise your diet. Believe me, I've tried and failed many times! It helps with weight loss, strength, flexibility, better sleep, and more. I mainly bicycle for cardio and lift weights to build muscle (which burns fat).

3. Reducing fat and increasing protein intake.

Limiting fat intake helps with weight loss. High protein diets help build/repair muscle and satisfy you so you don't overeat.

4. Prioritizing sleep.

Weight loss is said to be more effective with 7 to 8 hours of sleep per night. It's tricky since it cuts into my limited free time (2 kids now), but it is necessary for recovery and energy.  I feel my best after 7+ hours of sleep.

5. Getting lots of help.

Becoming healthy isn't easy; it's a lifelong struggle for many like me. My success stems from seeing personal trainers and nutrition/health coaches over time. My spouse is incredibly supportive.  It takes a village! Don't be afraid to seek help.

6. Make it fun.

Serious weight loss takes time. I've had a lot of ups and downs, and my loss hasn't been linear. Focusing on staying positive and celebrating wins helps. Finding the activities you enjoy (for me, biking and weights) is crucial to sticking with it long-term.

What's not going well?

Overeating. While I did lose a decent amount of weight, throughout the year, periods of yo-yoing back and forth or stagnating for months were common. I'm not sure I have a full-blown "food addiction," but a lot of the behaviors are there: eating more than intended, feeling guilty, trying to quit certain foods, being unable to control the consumption of unhealthy foods, etc. Even when I commit to only having a small portion of unhealthy food, I find myself unable to stick to it. I'm working on some strategies to combat this in 2024.

Non-scale Victories (NSV)

Losing weight is great, but I've learned that it's the improved energy, the increased physical strength, and other changes that make the most motivational difference. Some of mine this year were:

• My clothes fit better. I'm able to wear old T-shirts that don't fit now. When I went to a Summer wedding, the suit I’d owned for years fit better. It was a huge confidence booster since I was around family I hadn't seen in a long time.

• Lifting heavy things by myself. It's such a satisfying feeling when someone asks me if I need help moving something like heavy furniture; I say “no,” and to their shock, I move it myself!

• Ability to bike up hills. When I started biking, I couldn't make it up any hills without stopping to walk. It feels incredible to keep up with my peers.

• My left knee pain is gone. For years, my left knee has given me trouble, but through proper stretching and weight training, the pain has disappeared.

Stats

I tracked various physical stats throughout the year.

• Weight start/end: 281 and 257 pounds

  • Total weight lost: 24 pounds

  • Number of Henry's lost: 0.75 (One Henry, age 2 = 32 lbs)

• Starting/Ending BMI: 40.0 and 38.0 (-2)

• Starting/Ending PBF (percent body fat): 40.2 and 39 (-1.2)

• Start/End SMM (skeletal muscle mass): 90.2 and 92.2 (+2)

• VO2 Max: 26.8 or "poor" rating. Ran 1.06 miles in 12 minutes via the Cooper test

Body Circumference: Just a bit of change, though positive!

Onward to '24

2023 was a great year for my health and fitness journey. I'm just beginning, but I'm excited rather than intimidated by all the hard work ahead! I have so much to learn and put into practice. I'm ready to dive headfirst into 2024. LFG!

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