And so begins another year! And with a new year comes even more resolve to get myself in a healthy place. This time last year I attempted a diet with the YouthPastorDiet.com group led by youth ministry extraordinaires, Doug Fields and Josh Griffin. They created this idea to inspire youth pastors to get real about their health. Why? Because so many of us, as a result of the ministry we are involved in, are around a lot of food that would fit into the “unhealthy” category: burgers, fried food, pizza, wings, chips, cookies, candy, etc.. Teens can burn this stuff off with no problem. But for this 50 year old youth pastor, my eating habits have expanded my waistline more than I want.

So anyhow, last year, January 2018, I started the diet topping out at 230 pounds. Throughout the course of the diet I lost a total of 21 pounds. That was Round 1. That was good. But like most people, once the challenge was over, the bad eating habits came back with a vengeance. Currently I am at 228 pounds. I am embarrassed to say I gained most of it back. So now begins Round 2.

As a result of No-Shave November I decided to grow a beard. I kept it through out the holidays. But much to the chagrin of teenagers with no filters, when it comes to their mouth, both in the church and in my family, I got told I would make a great Santa Claus by one too many. So I shaved off the beard today and I am ready to start the process of getting back to a healthier place. My goal is to get down around 189. And yes, I am signed up for Round 2 of the Youth Pastor Diet. This year it goes for 100 days, ending on April 11. My other goal is to not have to do this again in January 2020. At least not to the extent that I am attempting to lose this year. I want to keep it off for good this time.

To reach these goals I am going to go to the gym (Planet Fitness) every day possible after work. No less than 3 times a week, but if I can make it 6 or 7 times a week just to at least drop weight then so be it. As long as the weather is wintery outside, the gym is my only option. But when the weather starts to get better in March/April, I would like to get outside and start running again. If things go really well I may even sign up for the Flying Pig half-marathon that is always the first Sunday in May. I have done that race 3 times. This is a huge goal, but if I get some running partners to run with me I know I will be more motivated to do it.

So here is to a great start to 2019. I’ll keep updates coming.