This is more of an inner rant, than a blog entry, but I thought I’d share. In the past, I’ve made a conscious effort to stop smoking. Successful in that effort, I have been smoke free for well over 5 years now; I have also gained a considerable amount of weight since then. I am not sure if quitting smoking was the reason for my weight gain, or if lifestyle, job, and genetics also played their role. Although I am relatively sure, each have led me down this path of weight gain.

Thinking back through my 34 years of life, I can only think of about 4 years where I was thin, and those were during my time in the Army. I liked the feeling of being able to fit most anything I bought, and not have to search the rack for XXX Large size shirts, and big boy pants. Not so recently, but recent enough, my first daughter has started to struggle with her weight, and with her clothes not fitting, I’m sure it’s getting to her emotionally as well. It pains me to see her struggling with it same as I do, and I worry about her self esteem and emotional state due to it.

This all gets me to thinking, what if I continue to be fat? Will I be able to enjoy my new house for many years to come? Will I widow my wife at an early age, due to some complication of being overweight. What will my daughter do if she stays on a path of weight struggle and strife? Will she have to write a blog in the future to detail her trials and tribulations of her overweight life?

Let it be known, that I, Brady Bowen, am done with being overweight. I will make the same conscious effort that I did with smoking, to stop. I am doing this not only for myself, but also for my children and my wife. I hope to set the example for my daughter, so that her weight will begin to taper off and she will get back on track. I also love my wife and family and I want to be around for as long as I can. I’m sure it won’t be easy, but I feel once, I acknowledge the fact that I am overweight, that I DON’T like being overweight, and that I am DONE with being fat, I am well on my way to being thin, by THINKING THIN!