I know there’s got to be fatigue on my Facebook page for people who see my posting daily about Paleo, Whole30, and my weight loss. This is a little harsh, but it’s true. I used to feel this way when I saw posts others made about health, fitness, or nutrition: It’s a constant reminder to those who rare not doing something that they know deep down inside that they need to do. It’s a feeling we would rather avoid, so we keep scrolling (or worse, they unfollow me). I know this feeling of fatigue well: that used to be me.

I remember reading posts on Facebook from people who were losing weight or exercising. I would try to be supportive and “Like” their posts, but every time I did that, it was a reminder to me that these people were doing something I was refusing to admit to myself that I needed as well: cleaner living. Healthier living.

Seeing these posts or reading their posts didn’t do anything to make me want to diet or exercise. If anything, it strengthened my resolve to stick with my unhealthy lifestyle. I remember once while reading a post someone made about eating healthy, I had a Taco Bell burrito in my hand. I raised my burrito as if making a toast and said, “Well, you can have that horrible food while I eat this!” and I took a huge bite and savored it. Better to mock them than to join them.

What can someone say to those who really need to do something to save their own life? That’s the million dollar question. Heck, maybe even the billion dollar question. If I had the answer, I could solve the obesity epidemic our society is currently experiencing. Some people think legislation is the way to go: make it illegal to drink from a 20 oz soda cup. I think this is misguided. Further legislation aims to eliminate soda from school cafeterias. This is a good start, but kids still bring their own lunches and will bring their own junk food and sodas.

Doctors tell their patients all the time that they need to lose weight or risk their health or even their longevity, yet people leave the doctor’s office with nary a thought to really making a change. Most people will only do something when faced with imminent mortality. By then, it’s mostly too late and the damage to our bodies is done and irreparable. That’s what I’m trying to avoid, and that’s what I’m hoping to help others avoid.

As of last Wednesday, I’ve lost over 100 lbs in ten months, and over 120 lbs overall. It’s a huge accomplishment that I’m proud of, and one that took a lot of mental hard work, but it was doable and in retrospect, it feels magical. Magical in the sense that I didn’t suffer along the way. Well, not eating pasta and bread may be considered a special kind of suffering, but hunger and pain were not two things I suffered or suffer from. Sure, I get hungry at mealtime, but I don’t get the crazy cravings anymore. That freedom has really allowed me to stick with it.

Nothing I write will make you change your lifestyle and adopt a Paleo lifestyle. Nothing I can say will convince you. I know that. What I also know is that just by being here, by putting myself and photos of myself out there is helping people. I hear it daily. That’s why I do it. That’s why I post progress pictures, pictures of the fat me, and pictures of the new me. It’s why I write some of my innermost thoughts, fears, and challenges: because I want you to know that I’m going through it all myself, and that you’re not alone. There are others out there who are in your shoes that have made a difference, and you can do it, too!

No single post makes a difference, but each post I make is like a drop of rain. After enough of those drops, we get accumulation and eventually a flood. I’m hoping to be that flood that wipes away your bad eating habits and ushers in a healthy lifestyle for you which, in turn, means a longer and healthier life.