I found exercise that I actually wanted to do. For me, this started out as cycling. I enjoyed being able to go places and see things. I used to just cycle casually with my family but when the COVID lock downs happened, I would go on 30+ mile bike rides. It was nice to get out, see things and the roads were pretty empty around me so I could go just about anywhere.

The biggest problem with that around here is that it gets really cold during the winter so I started doing a combination of cardio, hand weights and basic exercises like pushups, etc to just get my heart rate going and sweat a bit. I do have an indoor bike trainer but I don't enjoy that quite as much because it's just sort of boring compared to being out and seeing scenery.

I was sort of stuck at this weight of around 190, which by the BMI charts is a few pounds overweight for my height. This last fall, I was challenged by my sister in law, along with her other siblings, to run a half marathon. I used to play soccer and I used to run for a good while in my 30s - it's how I stayed in shape back then and was able to lose a good bit of weight. So I started running and I found it to be really easy, probably because I didn't have to fight through the getting winded - it was mostly my leg muscles getting used to running. Now I run around 30 miles a week, even in the cold. The only thing I struggle with now is taking care of my knees and leg muscles as that's the biggest issue I run into that could prevent me from keeping it up. I've been running since November and am down to 180 and I feel great.

Now food wise, I mostly just try to be generally aware of going in excess for anything that is just sugar or a food that calorie dense but not providing nutrients. I try to keep fruit around the house. if I think I am hungry, I ask if I am hungry enough to eat and apple or a plum - something like that and will do so if I am. I still snack on stuff like pretzels, crackers, etc. I eat things that aren't healthy for me but I try hard to not go overboard on anything.