4 Jan 2018 Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda

What Woulda, Coulda, Shoulda Can I Do Now?

In interviews with terminally ill people most state a regret of not doing something in their lives.  It is the old I wish I would have done this, I could have done that, I should have done that.  For a lot of the people it was one or two things that they most regretted. Statistically I am three quarters of the way through my life.   Now I have every intention of living way past that age that the average male dies.  That is one group I definitely don’t want to be below average or average. I created a bucket list of things I would like to do.  I started this in 2012.  It is now very early in 2018.  As I look at the list I see I have not crossed off one of them.  This makes me realize I have to relook at this list and edit it to what I truly want to do. I don’t believe it is possible to live with no regrets.  If someone does say that at the end of their life I think they may have set very few goals, especially ones that are challenging.  Yes it is possible someone may have lived their life exactly as they wanted.  However, I think that individual is the rare exception. There serves no purpose in looking back on one’s life and saying what they should have done or could it have done. I have many things I should have done or could have done, but I didn’t.  Do I regret some, yes I do. I don’t dwell on them.  It won’t change a thing. What is critical, is there something that I could start today? Yes there is.  For many many years I said I was going to get in the best shape I could and maintain it. I think every New Year’s I said I was going to get in shape and at the end of the year I looked back and saw I did not make that a priority. On my bucket list it is right there at the top.  Here is a perfect example of something I put on my bucket list and have had every opportunity to do it. This year will be different.  I see the effects of neglecting this. If I continue and do nothing about it there is a high probability that I will be at best average or maybe even below average on the dying age curve. This is something I can’t put it off. I can’t ignore. Well, I could if I do not want to live longer than average and have a high quality life in those years. There is absolutely nothing stopping me from achieving this goal. This one is all on me. It doesn’t need me to make any financial commitment. That is the beauty of this goal. Though I could do it on my own, having an accountability group will greatly improve my chances for success. This can’t be a quick fix. It can’t be a diet. There has to be some lifestyle changes in order for me to succeed. I can work out every day, however, it is nutrition that is the key to success. This specific woulda, coulda, shoulda  is not going to be a regret anymore.  If this is the only bucket list item I cross off in 2018 then I will consider it a fantastic year.