I started 2025 on the wrong foot both physically and mentally.

I was waking up drenched in night sweats. Weight and muscle were melting off my body. I struggled to lift five pounds, which felt impossible considering where I’d been just weeks earlier. At the time, I didn’t know I was dealing with a hyperthyroid issue. I just knew something was wrong.

And yet, I had already committed to a goal of completing Peloton’s 100-day challenge, taking a class every day to start the year strong!

Even when I was exhausted and weak, I showed up. Some days that meant nothing more than stretching. Other days, it meant doing my best with five-pound weights. The point wasn’t intensity, but rather it was consistency.

In just a few weeks, I lost more than 30 pounds. No matter what I ate, my body burned it off immediately. I was forced to rebuild myself from scratch.

For years, I’d exercised regularly. I’d started lifting weights the year before, driven by a growing interest in longevity, and living longer and healthier. I’d watched people close to my age, and I saw how quickly health declined after a fall.

As someone who is blind, this hit close to home.

I learned that balance, strength, and muscle matter more as I get older. I saw how strength is a form of independence, after seeing what was happening to people close to me, who were aging. 

Now I wasn’t just exercising, I was rebuilding. And the 100-day streak gave me something I hadn’t had before – accountability without perfection.

Week by week, I got stronger. Five pounds at a time on my lifts. One pound at a time on the scale.

Halfway through the 100 days, something unexpected happened – I became stronger than I was before I got sick, I slept better, I had less pain, and I even felt better than I had for much of my 30s!

This wasn’t a New Year’s resolution, but rather a mindset change.  The beauty of the 100-day challenge is that it sits in the sweet spot, at the intersection of long enough to create change, short enough to be achievable, flexible enough to meet you where you are!

I also expanded what counted. Stretching counted. Meditation counted. All of these days mattered.

By day 100, staying active wasn’t a goal anymore, it was part of my lifestyle. 

But as we begin 2026, I find myself in a familiar place – starting over! Just like at the beginning of 2025, I’m limited to lifting only five-pound weights. This time, it’s not due to a thyroid condition, but recovery from a torn retina. The difference now is perspective. I know what rebuilding feels like. I know that progress doesn’t come from leaps, but from showing up consistently and adding strength, even if it is five pounds at a time. And with that, a new streak begins!

Try out these three Small Actions that have helped me out, and might be right for you too:

1. Choose consistency over perfection.
2. Set a Goal That’s Flexible, Not Fragile  
3. Track Progress You Can Feel – Not Just Measure

So, as I wrap up, I challenge you to rethink what resolutions mean to you, and try out a streak for yourself, and if you do that, I promise, you’ll find your own success in the new year!

Let me know what type of change you want, and what streaks you are going to start! I’m here to support and be your cheerleader as you build yourself up!