Well, here I go. Time to finally get serious about getting back into shape.

Growing up I was always a little chubby, and as I got older it got worse. I was never obese, but even my doctor used to tell me that I needed to lose weight. For years I was in a high stress job with crazy hours that didn’t leave time for fitness or attention to anything other than what was on my desk. When I hit 232 pounds (at 5’9”), I knew it was time for a change.

And change I did. I changed my career, changed my outlook on life, changed my attitude toward my health. I learned to eat right and to enjoy exercise. Over the course of a year I dropped 50 pounds and became a new, happy  person.  I was fit, and somewhat of a health nut.

That was six years ago.

I maintained it for a good year or two, and then life slowly seemed to take over. My new job started taking up more and more time. Family and relationships started heaping new challenges on my plate. Stress started causing me to eat for comfort. In other words – LIFE HAPPENED.

Now I’m back up to 217 and ready to reassert control. I’ve done it before so I know I can do it again, but I need to do it differently this time. I’m not sure how, but I need to find a way to get fit without it taking over my life as it did back in 2005 (I became a verifiable health nut for a short time back then, which was fun, but probably not sustainable on reflection). I need to define my goals and finally stop with the excuse of “I’ll start tomorrow,” or next week (or next year).

With so many different types of 12-week challenges out there for exercise and nutrition, I figured it was time to start my own 12-week challenge. I’m not going to lose 30 pounds in 12 weeks, obviously, but I figure it’s long enough to get a solid start but short enough to keep me focused on an attainable goal. This blog is a way to hold myself accountable during the journey.

Let’s see what I can accomplish over the next 12 weeks. What have I got to lose?