I haven’t posted a progress pic in a while. So… here’s my...

I haven’t posted a progress pic in a while. So… here’s my progress.

I’m still doing a 5K run and strength training five times a week, but now I’m breaking it up into:

3 days of exercise1 rest day2 days of exercise1 rest day

While doing research for my latest book, Pretty Sure You’re Fine (<- shameless plug), I learned my previous schedule of 5 days exercising in a row was actually not the best way to go. If you’re into fitness you already knew, but I didn’t realize your body doesn’t build muscle when you exercise, it builds it when you rest. Hence, my adjusted schedule.

And the workout bench my family got me has made my strength training exercises—crunches, weights—much more efficient.

If this picture looks nearly identical to my last progress shot, it’s because I’ve kinda plateaued. While I’m tracking my calories, I’m not really changing what I eat. (What? I like pasta.) And I also still enjoy cocktails, too, and alcohol is like a calorie bomb.

So, barring a tapeworm, this might be my final form. And I ain’t complaining. I used to get winded trotting with my dog for half a block. Now, I’m in the best shape since I was in college and back then I looked like a heroin addict on a hunger strike.

And I’m going to reiterate my advice about getting in shape, especially for people like me who feel like doing so is an insurmountable task: Start small and don’t weigh yourself.

Yes, I said don’t weigh yourself. I have only weighed myself twice since I started this fitness journey a year and a half ago.

You see, when you start exercising you may not see any results for a long time. So, if you continually look for a drop in pounds and don’t see them, you could get discouraged and give up. Instead of setting a weight loss goal, try setting a routine goal and, like I said, start small. Try to walk for a half-mile. Once that gets easy, add a half-mile. Once that gets easy, jog that mile. Just slowly level up your routine, but that routine is the goal.

It worked for me, anyway.