How to lose 120 pounds quickly and keep it off: Dump your girlfriend and change your phone number. For the ladies, follow a similar approach; you may stand to lose more weight. It’s worked for me.

Oh, hell yeah, I’m going to poke fun at gimmicks! We see them all the time. “Lose weight over night.” “Eat all you want, and get thin.” “Flatten your stomach in a month.”

I find it very ironic, and mildly amusing when I get junk mail that says “Lose 3 inches in one day,” and the very next piece of junk mail says, “Gain 3 inches in one day.” It’s so confusing. Let that one sink in a moment.

I’m not going to pinpoint any gimmicks out there, but I despise the plethora of them that take advantage of the obesity epidemic in this country, and the great many that simply lack knowledge to know any better. (Wow, that was kind of deep; I’m glad I wrote it). They are magic, but magic isn’t real.

For years now I have relied on a health and fitness option that works well, trail running. You are probably familiar with it. I never got into trail running to become healthy. I have always been pretty health conscious, and my body has just been determined to keep active. I just evolved to become a trail runner, and now I just don’t understand why I didn’t start sooner than I had.

For those who don’t trail run, I can’t guarantee overnight results, a flat belly in a week, or that your own hair will grow back on your head. I will guarantee this, you will get dirty. You may get tired. You may not like it, but that would be your problem. You may love it, and you certainly couldn’t be blamed for that.

We trail runners know the passion associated. I would be willing to bet to that no true blue trail runner has “looking better” at the top of the list for running trails. Many don’t even think of being healthy as a top reason. This doesn’t mean that we aren’t lean and healthy. Incidental benefits that go along with the passion aren’t too shabby.

I know I’m preaching to the choir here, but convince others of the advantages. Those who are looking in to the gobs of gimmicks should be directed to real answers. Sure, trail running isn’t the exact answer, though we may see it that way. Exercise, in general, a healthy diet, quality rest, etc. blah blah blah. We know the sales pitch that people don’t really want to hear, but it works. Trail running is just more an adventure on the road of health.

If you’re new to the sport, go run a half mile and pat yourself on the back. Run/walk for a while. Set short term goals. One, you’ll achieve those, and two, they add up to make larger goals. Don’t kill yourself because you’ll stop doing it quickly. Make it easy. Great challenges can always come later. First, challenge yourself to just get up and do it. Also, go get some trail running shoes. They motivate me, and you’ll feel the fool if you pay all that money for something you don’t use.

Most importantly, have fun! Don’t consider exercise as work. This is precisely why I recommend trail running, because we trail runners love what we do, and we’ll do it again tomorrow. And, if you really want to view it from a “looking better” perspective, that will never happen with something you won’t do next week also.

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