I have a ritual that I follow daily. I’m an early riser. I’ll walk downstairs to the bathroom in the main level to avoid waking anyone up. The first thing I do is look in the mirror.

It’s become a daily ritual because I’ve come to the realization that I can actually see in my face whether or not I’ve been on a healthy path. If it’s a Saturday morning and I overindulged with alcohol I can see that. If I haven’t been getting enough sleep I can see that too. After a few days of less than optimal eating or stressful times at work or at home I can see the stress looking back at me. The same goes with missed workouts.

A few months ago I looked in the mirror and didn’t like what I saw. I saw a face that looked bloated and unhealthy. My skin didn’t look good, my eyes didn’t look good. I wasn’t taking care of myself and you could see it. When I gain weight, I gain it in the face.

I didn’t like the person that was staring back at me.