A beautiful morning jog at Colonial Park, Somerset NJ
I write well but I’m a terrible writer.
I can waste hours upon hours writing silly things on Facebook or Reddit. I can make witty responses on work MS Teams chats which get maximum laughy faces.
But if we relied upon my writing, we’d all likely starve.
So one day, here I am, staring at the wall, wondering what will come out of my fingers. I goof off, as I am wont to do. I have no angle. I have nothing to share. Writer’s Block sits in the corner, laughing. I curse at Writer’s Block. He throws a book at my head. I hate him.
Eventually, the thought comes. What do I have to share? Well, duh. The topic should be self-evident: I lost about 100 pounds in a year and a half. That’s not nothing. And if one needed a topic for a Substack blog…voila ici.
Seriously, here’s a before and after:
I am noticeably different. A friend joked that I went from “Dad to Daddy.” LOL.
But that’s not the half of it. I am a different animal mentally. This was a full transformation of self.
I am not going to go into detail on an introductory post. I’m not even going to give a whole biography. That’s what this blog is for.
So, what’s my deal? I want to document the mental process that I adapted in order to achieve these results. I want to know more about how I was able to affect this change. I want to see where the mental and the physical intersect.
Under it all, bodily recovery is a mental mind-screw. The physical results flow only when your mentality allows for it. You will only achieve those weight loss or fitness gains when your motivation is aligned with desire and pleasure. You will not do things you do not want to do. So you better learn to rewire that mentality into your mind.
So this is the place where I will unpack my thoughts, with the aim and goal for others to adopt a similar mentality to achieve actual results. I believe life has true meaning when you're able to help lift others up.
Before I go further into the weeds, let me get this disclaimer out and done with:
I AM NOT A DOCTOR. I AM NOT A PSYCHOLOGIST. I AM NOT A PHYSICAL TRAINER, DIETITIAN, PHARMACIST, OR ANY OTHER SIMILAR PROFESSIONAL. DO NOT UNDERTAKE ANY FITNESS REGIME WITHOUT ADVICE FROM A DOCTOR. PLEASE DO NOT SUE ME, I’M BROKE AS IT IS.
(My page of legal disclaimers can be found here. They’re actually not horrible.)
I am merely a guy who learned how to hack his mind from what he learned from his struggles with depression. It does teach you some stuff.
I despise the neologism “neurodiverse.” I don’t want another label. I’ve got a mental illness—One which is thankfully mostly in remission. That said, I think there are things that I've learned that I wouldn't know if I wasn't crazy.
And I don’t think you need to have a crippling mental illness to get to where I am. It just takes the right mindset, coupled with motivation, physical exertion, and self-mastery. And pleasure. There will be a LOT of talk about pleasure in this blog. Again, you will not do things you do not want to do.
Bodily recovery is a mental process with physical results.
So, that’s my deal. I hope that reading my Substack will help you with your own wellness goals. At the very least, if you were wondering what I did to change in my mid-40s, you’ll have an answer.
P.S. Writer’s Block? Go eat a bag of dicks.
OMG FIRST COMMENT WOOT!
One step at a time... both with your weight loss journey and this blog. You succeeded with your health goals, this blog will be your next adventure. Good luck! I'll keep reading