(image credit: Google images)

A few weeks ago, our CEO and I traveled to the Big Apple, where my palate fell in love, but my hips didn’t lie afterwards.

I thought I would hate traveling to New York City, and was hesitant to even go, but I’m grateful I did. (I‘ve purposely avoided the Big Apple because I had no desire to be in the presence of 8 million people)

The trip overall was a business success, but an epic-fail because of the sheer amount of garbage I ate.

The culinary mea culpe

We stayed in Hoboken, at the W Hotel. The W was amazing, but the most amazing part was Pier 13 which is across the street from the W Hotel.

Pier 13 is a large, long pier that extends over the Hudson River. The Hudson river separates New Jersey and New York, in case your geography is as bad as mine.

The coolest part of the Pier is that it’s lined with food trucks. Food trucks are basically trucks that resemble Fed-Ex delivery vehicles which create culinary masterpieces, like home-made-waffle-meals, custom chicken sandwiches, and toasted panini, among others.

Pier 13 in Hoboken is a must-visit when in New York/New Jersey.

Misery sets in

When I returned from my foodie-foray in New York, I was miserable. I was the heaviest I’ve weighed in 37 years and physically felt awful.

Being I traveled to New York with my friend, we shared our miseries with one another, and after getting home, chose to come up with a plan to shed our unfit nature.

We decided to do a 4-day cleanse. The cleanse consisted of one part water, one part pure maple syrup, and one part squeezed lemon juice, all for four days. There was to be no food, just the delicious drink and half an ounce of water per body weight each day.

The cleansing-concoction sounds nasty, and it was anything but. It tasted amazing, and this coupled with the water I drank every day, for four days, allowed me to accomplish a few feats.

1. First, the cleanse allowed me to lose a few pounds of excess water weight, while “cleaning” my pipes. No need to explain in detail…
2. Second, the lack of food during my cleanse forced my stomach size to go back to a smaller size.
3. Third, the drink I consumed for four days was an appetite suppressant that helped kill my addiction to coffee, sugar and Dairy Queen blizzards. (yes it’s possible to be addicted to DQ)

After the misery of eating like a fool in New York, the result of the cleanse was just what the doctor ordered.

Then what

Now that I successfully completed my cleanse, I wanted be active outside, taking advantage of the great outdoors, and summer evenings in Fargo.

There’s really nothing better than a summer evening in Fargo-Moorhead, or anywhere in the Midwest for that matter. (Twin Cities and Minnesota included)

So, I bought a great new pair of Mizuno running shoes and began running on the hundreds of miles of trails that surround West-Fargo.

Click here for the best places to bike, jog, or walk in Fargo.

I also highly recommend Mizuno’s Wave Riders. I’ve been running in them for over five years and love them. I bought mine here. 

Beyond that, our CEO and I have been holding each other accountable by working out every morning at 6am. (6:15am to be precise)

I feel the accountability, and camaraderie, is key to sticking to a workout routine. You have to share your life-goals with others in order to make them a reality, and by working out with Brady, I accomplish this each day, as does he.

Write it down

And let’s not forget setting goals.

I know, I know…goal setting and establishing commitments is boring. Such a buzz-kill, right?

But it’s not.

Goal setting is one of the most powerful exercises a person can do to find success.

Besides, if you’re going to go through all the trouble I did in a four-day cleanse, buy new jogging shoes, as well as invest your time, you’d better not quit. One of the best ways to not quit is by writing down your goals.

Often times, people quit really good endeavors because they had no defined purpose or goal. – Dave Scott

By writing down your goals you’ll subconsciously be on your way to being fit in Fargo…or wherever you live.

Watch this video to see how I create goals, using the S.M.A.R.T methodology.

And by writing your fitness goals down, your subconscious mind is triggered and becomes a powerful ally in your fight of fat.

Take action

If you’re unhealthy, or want to make a change, it starts with taking action. Don’t dwell on your troubles, rather take action. Start somewhere, and get active.

Then establish good eating habits. You ARE what you eat. If you eat lots of sugars, breads, and the like, you’ll gain weight and be unhealthy.

From here, break the status quo by creating goals. Most people who are unhappy, won’t make or keep goals. Change status quo and be different. By not taking action, and thus being different, you’ll never become healthy.

The results

In the last month I’ve lost 10 lbs, leaned up a bit, and overall feel mentally and physically great. If you take the above approach, you will become fit in Fargo, too.

Are you unhealthy? If so, what action do you need to take in order to improve your lifestyle? What are you willing to do in order to find physiological success?