OyChicago blog

Right before the end of the year, I wrote a blog post for JUF News in which I reminisced about 2011 and shared my personal aspirations for 2012.

Like many people, one of my New Year's resolutions was to get in shape, although I purposely avoided using those words. Instead, I wrote that I wished to "commit myself to a yoga practice." (I've found that it's easier to achieve a goal when it's specific rather than global and abstract. What does "get in shape" even mean? Being fit enough to run a marathon? Running several miles every morning? Taking the stairs instead of the elevator?)

Like many people with full-time jobs, I had gotten lazy over recent months. I would come home from work and think, 'Oh, I'm tired, I worked today, and I don't have energy to exercise.' And then I'd eat pasta and all sorts of yummy carbs that nourished my palate but certainly didn't diminish my waistline.

By the time December '11 came around, I was certainly at the heaviest I'd ever been, and I wanted to make a change. So I wrote that I wished to "commit myself to a yoga practice." But here's the only problem:

I was too out of shape to commit myself to the yoga practice that I wanted! (I'd love to go to Core Power Yoga several times a week, but the introductory class was so brutal that I almost passed out.) So a consistent, challenging yoga practice was out of the question for now.

So I decided that I'd work out at least three times a week, not so much with a weight-loss goal as much of a fat-loss goal and the desire to change my attitude about fitness and health.

With some Googling, I found a training-only gym where you get one of three different trainers at every session, including a former NFL player. I've been going for over two weeks now, three times a week, and have already lost over 2% body fat.

It's too early for a pat on the back, but I'd have to say I'm proud of myself for choosing a realistic goal and sticking to it. My diet's still not perfect, but pasta is certainly no longer included in it. 

It feels good to stick to a goal, work hard and see progress. I wish all of you the best of luck in achieving your own New Year's resolutions. If they're really important, perhaps they should be life goals… not just yearly ones.

P.S. Who doesn't love a corny stock photo?