In the first of an ongoing series, I’ll be documenting my journey to a smarter, healthier and sustainable lifestyle in partnership with Mississauga’s Element CrossFit.

In my adult life, I’ve been 240 pounds. I’ve been 150 pounds. And I’ve been nearly every variable in between.
Equipped with a 5”8-ish frame, the variance has hurt me on the higher end.
My 30’s swam between 190 and 210 pounds; I simply couldn’t find a way to break those bookends, so I conceded “defeat” and settled on the “that’s just how it is” mentality. I’d be the fat and funny guy, which didn’t seem all that bad.
(There was sporadic exercising/gym memberships, along with jumping on fad diets, which clearly didn’t help. And yes, I’ll take responsibility for the shortcomings.)

In June, 2020, I was 42 and 210 pounds. A long-term relationship ended and in typical cliche fashion, I decided that this massive life change would be my springboard to permanently improve my health.
I looked ok-ish; a 4/10 on a good day wearing black to hide the fat and if I didn’t eat garbage for a few days prior.
Look good, feel good. Look awful, feel awful.
I strategically avoided nearly all photographs but there are a few out there (and in this article) for reference.

In April of 2021, I was down to 173 pounds, a drop of 37 pounds, which I’m damn proud of.
I did my 10,000 steps a day from the day after the break up (a terrific reason to leave the house when you’re living uncomfortably with your ex…)
I ate better via cutting my stupidly big portions by 50%.
I focussed on what a healthier life would enable me to do physically and mentally going forward.
Dating-wise (I’m only recently kinda-sorta-maybe-perhaps-we will see-open to it) would’ve be a challenge because I imagine the “round and squishy” body shape isn’t at the top of many people’s list.

From April to July, I plateaued.
I looked good but wanted to break through and look and feel great.
I ate much better foods. I introduced weights. I drank more water. I got more sleep. I bought a yoga mat I seldom used.
I bought a kayak that I use quite often.
Still, the 173 pounds held steady, so still good but not great.

Here’s the lightbulb moment: I realized in early August 2021 that while I’ve made strong strides forward, I’d gone as far as I can on my own - I needed to ask for help.

Of all the options in Mississauga, choosing to work with Alex Cibiri, owner of Element Fit, was an easy choice.
I’d known him for a few years, kept an eye on how he managed and grew his business and knew it would be the right fit and solution for me.

We had a brief chat where I explained everything you’ve read so far, and that i didn’t want to be “ripped and buff” but instead, sustainably lean and healthier.
He thoroughly explained how this could be achieved, the strategy, the values and beliefs that have made him successful and how they could enable me to reach and sustain my goals.

The first step was for me to get baseline figures, and here they are:
(Can’t plan forward if you don’t know where you are, right? Right.)

The plan was to do four one-on-one sessions with a trainer, Kristen (who’s truly remarkable, intelligent, approachable and patient) then move on to 2-3 weekly classes.
As of today, I’ve wrapped up my Kristen sessions and I’m much more aware of what my body can and cannot do.
There’s also a strong nutritional aspect to my journey where it’s not as tedious as counting calories.
Instead, it’s being aware of what my body needs to achieve and sustain my goals.

As I end Part 1, I strongly stress that asking for help is always a strength and should never be viewed as a weakness.
Sure, I’ve made terrific progress on my own and I’m thoroughly proud of myself.
However, I’ve always gone to the experts for anything out of my wheelhouse.

I’ll answer any questions anyone has during this journey - hit me up via jay@modernmississauga.com

If you’re interested in what Alex and Element does, click anywhere on this line.

I’ll be writing updates every few weeks as in this case, the journey is more exciting than the destination.