July 4th, 2003. The alarm goes off at 5 AM, and I slowly make my way downstairs. 

I don’t need caffeine quite yet. The adrenaline from how far I had come in six months is enough to wake me up.

After all, six months earlier, I was over 300 lbs, wearing 46-inch jeans and XXXL shirts.

At this point, I had lost 75 of the 115 total pounds. I was on a high. I was confident… finally.

I had never ran a race in my life at this point, but somehow, my friends convinced me to sign up for the largest 10K in the world, the Peachtree Road Race.

It was hard to believe I could finish such a feat, because on day one of my journey, I could barely complete one lap around my old high school track.

Just being transparent, my one and only lap ended up with tears filling my eyes, wondering if I was capable of doing this.

As I get ready, I look back at all the hard work I had put in. I looked back at the better decisions I made like choosing water over soda and eating one less bagel at our weekly office meeting so I could focus on my goals. I even stuck to a workout routine.

I missed my breakfast of Mr. Pibb and a Honeybun at first, but I knew I HAD to make a change.

It was just six months, but I remember the victories, both large and small. I remember the big moment when I was in 40″ size pants.

That means I was close to being out of the 40’s, which was a huge deal.

“Tom! Tom! Dude! I’m in 40″ pants!” is what I practically yelled from the dressing room at JC Penny. Yes, I called my friend Tom from the dressing room.

It had been an amazing ride, and I wasn’t even done yet.

As I arrive in Atlanta with my friends, I could feel the goosebumps.

Everyone there had an insane amount of energy and people were already lining up the sidewalk cheering people on as we made our way to the starting line.

Because of my number, I had to go in a different group than my friends. I was nervous, excited and jacked up on adrenaline and caffeine.

This was it. This was my big moment. This was my first event in my new life and my first race.

As I made my way through Atlanta, I simply just soaked it all in. I felt like everyone clapping and cheering was just for me. Alas, it was for the random guy handing out beer and donuts, but I still pretended it was for me (the donuts, not the beer 😉

“There was a random guy that handed out beer and donuts at 8 in the morning?”

Yes, there was. Now stay focused.

Before I knew it, I was approaching mile six. Before this race, the most I had ran was about three miles. The adrenaline and happiness of where I was took me to this moment.

Mile six was a huge turning point...

I could stop running and decide to walk the rest of the race, which was about a quarter mile, or I could run the whole thing. 

I was TIRED.

However, the decision was made. I was going to finish this thing strong.

I knew it would be tough, but so was my journey so far. It’s supposed to be tough. If it were easy, we'd all have 6-packs and 8% body fat.

The irony was that as I approached the finish line, tears filled my eyes yet again.

In January, the tears were filled with doubt, fear and frustrations. This time, they were packed full of confidence and victory.

It was like all of my past frustrations and doubt were finally being released.

July 4th, 2003 – that was one of the biggest days of my life. It was a big turning point because that day taught me, “Anything is possible”.

So here I am now, 115 lbs lighter.

So, how did I do it? How did I get here?

It comes down to four things...

1. Surround yourself with family and friends for social support. 

2. Celebrate each and every victory – whether it’s large or small. Did you avoid eating a piece of cake? Tell your friends and brag. It’s OK, and you should.

3. Set deadlines. Deadlines are the cure to procrastination disease.

4. Understand it’s going to be hard. I knew I would have to make sacrifices along the way. Whoever tells you that you can lose weight effortlessly is blowing smoke.

Sure, there’s more to it than that. But this is a solid start.

So figure out what exactly will be your "Peachtree".

Pick your “big day” and go after it relentlessly.

To achieving YOUR big day...

Your friend and coach,
Mikey

PS - This is a message I send to my clients every year around the 4th. I hope it gives you perspective as we enter the last half of 2024.