Never Too Late

An old student of mine posted this today.

On a day where I've been trying to figure out what I'm going to do when my Advocare 24 Day Challenge stuff comes in the mail tomorrow, I watch this.

I was talking to Melissa this morning on the drive to work this morning, and I told her a lot of what was on my mind lately. With turning 40 being only 24 days from today, I've been doing a lot of thinking of the future, and how important this checkpoint/landmark in my life is.

I don't care that I'm turning 40. I'm not one of those guys who worry about the number. But this time around - I am starting to look at all those 'future' decades. When I was 20, who did I expect to be when I was 40? When I was 30, who did I expect to be when I was 40? Now that I'm turning 40, who do I expect to be when I'm 50?

The reality is, there aren't a lot of 400 pound fifty year olds. And a bigger reality is that there are even LESS 400 pound sixty year olds. And can you even THINK of a 400 pound 70 year old? Because I can't.

I refuse to believe that I am in the last decade of my life. As I told Melissa this morning, I have to make it to at LEAST 55. Olivia is just starting Kindergarten this August, which means I have to make it at least 12 more years to see her graduate. That puts me at 52. And I have to walk her down the aisle - so I need to give her another four to ten years to find the man who is worthy of her. That's 62.

I don't know any 400 pound sixty-two year olds.

But then I look at the scale and think about how hard it is to lose weight. I was told when I was younger to "hurry up and lose it now, because once you get older, it'll be harder to do". I thought I had plenty of time before that "older" kicked in. So, the self pity and doubt have creeped in.

And then, not an hour after these thoughts have been sitting on my mind, someone posts this video. This dude was over 500 pounds (although, let's face it - I'm taller and it's only 40 more pounds than where I was on January 1st). He changes his life, and he did it in a hurry.

So here we go. I've said it a hundred times before this - and if I have to say it a hundred times after this, I'm not going to stop fighting to make myself the healthy example for my kids that they deserve.

My "24 Day Challenge" will start in 2 days, but I've already got my mind wrapped around it again. I did perfect with my eating yesterday, and this morning, instead of a coffee and donuts, I loaded up my shiny new Advocare Blender Bottle (you need one of these things, they are so cool) with a Fruit Punch Spark and I've finished it off. I've got my meal replacement shake ready to go for later, and my oatmeal locked and loaded and ready for lunch. Salmon, broccoli and asparagus in the fridge waiting for dinner.

Soon, I will be making my OWN version of this video. Any volunteers on helping with the film editing? Anybody want to try this 24 Day Challenge with me? Either way, I'm not going to hit 40 without a fight.