It Starts With You

Guest blog by Rob Longert

--(Rob Longert is a great friend of mine and a fantastic supporter of Priority Fitness. We are truly proud to introduce him as the first person to write a guest blog. He has achieved so many amazing goals in his life. One of the achievements that stands out in my head is about his health. Here is his story about what he has done and what has helped him get there. Stay tuned for a follow up blog of other reasons why he was so successful!)

What happens when we take shortcuts in life? Chances are that whatever we skipped and got around will come back to haunt us at some point.

There are weight loss pills, drinks, diets and even some types of food that claim to make us skinny in a hurry to look like the people on the cover of a magazine… Are we that foolish as a society to believe them?

Living a healthy lifestyle comes down to two basic principals in my mind. Brace yourselves… diet and exercise. Complicated, right? WRONG!

A year and a half ago, I decided I had to change my lifestyle. To put it plainly, I gained a few pounds when I went to college. And by a few, I mean between 40 and 50. I wasn’t happy with the way I looked, my energy level was nowhere near what I knew I was capable of, and I reached a point in my life where being healthy was important to me.

On January 14, 2008, I went into the Weight Watchers by my office and joined as the first step to the new me. 15 months later, I am proud to say that I am 62 pounds lighter and in the best shape of my life.

Is the Weight Watchers program great? Yes. I recommend it to everyone who wants to reach “their healthy weight,” but it is really just an amazing starting point to living a healthy lifestyle. It helped me to become aware of what I was putting into my body, and from there, I started moving more.

It started with walks and jogs, and evolved into a training regimen of working out in some capacity, 3-4 times per week. It varied from working with a trainer, going to a variety of classes, running, and now that the weather is turning nice, working-out outside.

There is the ability in all of us to reach the goals we want to accomplish. When we reach those goals, it gives us the positive reinforcement we need to go ahead and reach other goals, but we need help. Help from the people around us and help from ourselves.

We work hard at our jobs and make sacrifices for our close friends and family, but we cannot forget our minds and bodies. We need the will do something for ourselves too.

It was that realization that helped me achieve a healthy lifestyle and feel in shape. Not any pills or drinks or crazy diets. I worked hard at diet and exercise and didn’t take any shortcuts. Now I am in a position, psychologically and physically, to reach the next level… constant maintenance.

Want to know the best part after all this time? Achieving a healthy lifestyle can be a metaphor for the way we live our lives. Work hard and good things will come to you.