I’ve cheated death for 39 years and it’s time to start living.

For the last 5 years I’ve been inactive. I turned off the part of my brain that cared about being in shape. I used to be in excellent shape, very fit, ripped even, not an ounce of fat on my stomach. I had a ripped 8 pack. I was slim and athletic. Now I have a thick layer of fat covering my 8 pack, it’s not healthy.

Then

I was chained to my desk for the most part. Not because I had to be, but because I was scared that I’d get mocked, whispered about or worse, fired if I didn’t stay at work until 9PM like some of the other developers. I saw it happen to others and it was weird. It seemed like no one trusted anyone and there was always some sort of drama going on.

The office was amazing, bright colors, 2 organic cafes, ping pong tables, tennis courts, basketball court, putt putt on the roof. It was all great, but not necessary. Did it make the days go by faster? Sometimes, but mostly not. Some days I didn’t have time to leave my desk for more than 15 minutes to run to the cafe and get a bite to eat.

Even though I wouldn’t eat all the time. I made excuses to not be healthy and I got fat. I had all the tools at my disposal to lose weight, but I gained a lot of weight. I wasn’t happy with my job. I didn’t want to be there, so I left. I’ve kept the weight on.

Today

The thousand yard stare, this is what I look like when I work. My face has never been as filled out as it is in this picture.

I woke up today and put on my running shoes, grabbed a banana and a water and went outside.

I didn’t go far, I’m out of shape and I didn’t want to hurt myself, but I did something that I haven’t had the drive to do in a very long time. I made a positive change. It felt amazing. I’m doing it again tomorrow but I’m going further this time.

I’m 39 years old as of yesterday and I’ve never been as motivated in my life to change who I am, not only on the outside, but also my outlook on work, life, relationships and my future. There’s no doubt that I will do it.

You can do it too, I promise. It only takes a few steps to get started and you can rearrange your life into something amazing. You don’t need fancy running shoes or Gatorade or an Apple watch to check your heart rate, you just need you. Go do it. *

It’s like coding, you put the right pieces together, compile it and you have an amazing outcome that can change lives. But this time you’re not doing it for anyone else, only yourself. You can build a new you. The new you will be incredible if you assemble the pieces correctly.

I work for an amazing tech company that allows me tremendous freedom. They trust me and listen to my ideas. Not only do they listen but they use my ideas. It’s awesome, I’m very happy.

We are innovators in our field and do amazing things that have never been done in this space. I want to be at work. I will be better at what I do.

Let’s do this together, I got your back.

  • consult a physician before starting any diet or exercise program.

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If you have any questions please send them along to my twitter @littlesparkvt and I’ll do my best to answer them.