

So I took my 257-pound self out for a run on a Saturday. I knew that waiting until the New Year, or even the following Monday, was going to make getting back on track all the more difficult. It felt like I was going into another hopeless freefall, much like years ago when I surrendered myself to "holiday eating" and packed on 40 pounds over a four-month period. The ultramarathon I had been training for was canceled due to the pandemic, and with that announcement, the desire in my heart and the "want to" in my legs just evaporated. If you're still here, I guess you still need more convincing, so I'll take it back to last year around this time, when my transformation from being in the best shape of my life to becoming a binge-eating layabout reached its conclusion. Why are you still reading? Go out and run! I'm here to tell you there's no better time to start than right now. 1, the challenge of getting in shape is staggering. We tell ourselves "one last go around here and then I'll be ready" until we've dug ourselves into such a big hole that by the time we get to Jan. It's tempting to embrace the warmth and comfort of the holidays and tell yourself that workouts can wait until New Year's 2022. I can't say I blame us, not when there's turkey, stuffing, mashed potatotes, and several weeks of Christmas cookies still to be had. The last thing we're thinking about at this point, of course, is our fitness. One piece of candy at a time - to protect our children from foul play, that is - it's the time of year where we pack our stomachs and condition our bodies to go into somewhat of a winter hibernation mode. I always get laughed at when I say this, but I firmly consider Halloween to be the offical start of the holiday season. Watch Video: Meet 78-year-old inspiration for Forrest Gump who ran through York
