For those of you already on a diet and fitness plan, this may be a boring post, but many who read this blog are still in the research phase of their health journey. They’re compiling information, looking for the right thing to do, or even looking for that motivation to get started. Let me help those folks: start now.

I started my first Whole30 over four years ago. Now, I’m at the healthiest I’ve been in my life. I’m at a good weight, and I am fit. I am a runner (on hiatus due to injury) and a weightlifter (active). I am a National Guard Soldier, and according to my semi-annual physicals, in excellent health. This is all due to a decision I made over four years ago to get healthy.

A month ago, I started weightlifting. Today, I’ve already doubled my starting squat weight and nearly doubled my bench press and overhead press weights. My deadlift is almost up to my body weight. None of this would be possible had I not started with the light weights and worked slowly.

Don’t start with a boot camp fitness program. That’s the WRONG way to go about starting a fitness plan and will likely lead to you not going back due to the pain. Don’t start with a super-restrictive diet like chicken breast and lettuce. You’ll get palate fatigue and have cravings and you’ll start binging.

Whole30 is a great way to get into cutting a sugar addiction, and can be started with minimal planning. Just eat meat and non-grain/non-legume vegetables and make sure nothing has added sugar. Of course, visiting whole30.com is the best source of info.

StrongLifts 5×5 is a GREAT weightlifting program to get into increasing your functional strength. It starts you off easy and light and you work up to heavier weights as your body gets used to the movements and the weight. Best of all, there was minimal muscle aches and no real pain.

Running is easy enough to get into as long as you don’t overdo it and try to run 4 miles on your first stretch. You can start with brisk walking, get yourself into light jogging, then fast jogging, and finally into actual running. That’s how I did it, and again, I felt no pain.

The key for me and fitness was recognizing two important facts:

1. Your body needs rest. You need to NOT workout the day after a workout. Your body builds muscle on the rest days, NOT on the workout days.
2. Your body needs sleep. At least 7-8 hours a night. This is a priority, and you have to make sure you can get this.

Start now, but start smart. Don’t overdo it. The diet part, for me, was pretty easy to get into. Fitness is easy to get into as well as long as you go slow and steady. That’s what I’ve been doing, and I’ve kept going where many others have quit.