Characterizing the person I am today is rather difficult. On one hand, I consider myself an active individual and an accomplished athlete. On the other hand, I realize I am not as active as I should be and I "was" an accomplished athlete. Not any more. Instead, I am someone who has very little time to work out, eats far more than he should, and is a far cry from what he use to be. Sound familiar anyone?

The first 20 years of my life were very much focused on playing sports (football, basketball, baseball). I played competitive sports year round from the age of six thru college, and truly gained a love for athletic competition and achievement. I enjoyed working out and constantly pushing myself to new heights. Eventually I went on to play football in college and had aspirations to play professional sports. I was in incredible shape (low body fat, good muscle definition and great cardio-vascular condition) and my overall speed and strength were very good.

Then came graduation, and the realization that a professional sports career was likely not in the cards. This marked the beginning of the next 15 years and the gradual decline in my physical fitness level. Long work days, extensive travel, and family demands made working out very difficult. I attempted to maintain some sense of a lifting and running regiment, but time made that difficult and continuity was a challenge. This has been my personal battle for the past 15 years. I work out for a couple weeks, then all of the sudden stop. Overall I have gained 25 - 30 lbs. over the years, lost much of my muscle definition and surely cannot run at the speeds or distances that I use to. Although I convince myself that this is just the realities of life, I know deep down I can do better.

Clearly time has truly been a major impediment in my struggle to stay in shape, but my biggest enemy has always been food. I developed my eating habits early on in life (playing sports and eating for the most part whatever I wanted, in the quantities I wanted) and have never really been able to curb that appetite. Yeah, maybe I don't eat the three Big Mac's after practice anymore, but I do eat more than I should. I go through phases where I eat well and do in fact drop weight. However, the more I work out, the hungrier I get (especially from weight lifting). And that begins the awful cycle of gaining all the weight back. Once the eating starts up after dieting for a while, it is hard to stop. This is the dreaded cycle I have been trapped in forever.

I am so frustrated with how far "off the apple cart" I have fallen and desire so much to get back the real me. I am still in ok shape and some might think I am crazy for complaining about my weight and lack of conditioning. I still play basketball, can easily run a 10K and do lift weights (when time permits). But the level I do those activities is a far cry from where I was 15 years ago.

So the question is do I "accept my reality" or do I "do something about it".

Getting involved in the "Who wants to get Active" campaign is very exciting for me. I clearly need help understanding how to change my diet, need help integrating workouts into my busy work and family schedules, and most of all need help holding myself accountable.

I am ready to make a change in my life and to dedicate myself to the pursuit of health and fitness.

My goals are to lose 25-30 lbs., become leaner and stronger and improve my running performance (speed and distance). My first major athletic goal is to run a half marathon in the next 6 months. Then, I would like to continue progressing and eventually run a marathon in the next year. Most important, though, I desire to obtain "permanent" results, breaking away from the 15 year cycle I have been trapped in.

I have the fire and passion to make this happen and am excited to partner with the diet professionals and athletic trainers at Active. It is time!!!!