Personal Goals: Achievement Unlocked!

If you’ve read my bio, you’ll notice that sports and exercise are not mentioned in any way, shape, or form. There’s a reason for that. I don’t watch them, I don’t do them, and I don't like them.

I’m an avid walker. That was my physical activity of choice, the only thing I truly enjoy doing. In the summer, I will go out for a twenty-minute stretch break and do a one-mile (1.6 km) loop around my house, and I’ll do three of these a day. That works out to five miles a day, four or five days a week. I thought I was doing pretty well.

In September 2018 I went in for my annual physical. My doctor said she wanted me to start adding cardio to my walking regime, so I added weekly one-hour three-mile walks to get my heart rate up. I thought that would be good enough.

Wrong.

A year ago this week, I thoroughly embarrassed myself when I got winded walking up a hill in Calgary. When I got home, the first thing I did was join a gym, because that was not going to happen to me again.

I made myself three promises:

  1. I was allowed to be terrible at the exercises.
  2. I was not allowed to cheat.
  3. I was not allowed to quit.

My first goal was to get into good enough shape that I would not be winded when I went on my UK trip last summer. Not only did I confidently walk all around Scotland (and let me say, that entire country is either uphill or downhill), I did it carrying my suitcase.

Goal #1 – accomplished.

Goal #2 – bench press 100 lbs. With any luck, I should hit this goal by my birthday (which is three months from now.)

I’m posting this today, though, because I hit another milestone. Today I accomplished 125 lb weighed squats and 135 lb sumo lifts. I’m still 15 lbs away from my bench press goal, but I’m a lot closer than I was.

There’s no magic pill to replace exercise (believe me, I looked.) This has taken a sincere commitment and a lot of time on my part. It’s taken me a year to get this far but I’m very proud of myself and I’m not about to quit now.

If you are on the same journey as me, I send you lots of encouragement. And if you are thinking of starting, I wish you all the best.

Return to News