The Acts of the Desperate

By M Ryan Taylor

As recently as a year ago I had despaired of having the health, energy, and body I wanted. I was tired of the fight, tired of trying diet after diet and looking around for easy solutions to my problems. I was at the rock bottom of a slippery-sided pit and I had given up.
Perhaps despair was a necessary step in my progress. Perhaps hopelessness was needed for me to see that there was no easy way out of my problems, that the only thing that would work was a complete restructuring and reprioritizing of my life and to incorporate the actions of the truly desperate.

Going to the hills was an act of desperation for me. I've never done anything that difficult in my life. Dixie and I hiked for up to 9 hours in a day, three days a week, all summer long. For a long time it was grueling and even though as summer drew to a close I was able to go longer, farther, and higher, it was still difficult.

The weight-loss results were mediocre for such a tremendous effort. But, I felt better than I had in many years . . . I could feel health coming to me. More importantly, I felt something I haven't felt in close to 20 years . . . real hope. I could feel my faith in my ability to change being restored with every foot of elevation gain.

If you find yourself in a desperate place, I hope you will realize that there is a choice and a lifeline before you. Do something positive that might seem desperate. Something grand. Something crazy that you know is going to exhaust you. Choose something tremendous and dive in.

Make your health your first priority and it will benefit every other aspect of your life. It has for me.