1. Home
  2. The 12 Steps
// The program

The 12 Steps

A program for anyone whose treadmill became furniture. Read one a day, or all of them tonight.

  1. Step 1We admitted our treadmill had become furniture.And that our life had become a little unmanageable around the laundry pile.
  2. Step 2We came to believe a 5-minute walk could restore us to motion.Not a marathon. Not a transformation. Five minutes.
  3. Step 3We made a decision to clear the deck.Coats, towels, boxes, the cat. All of it. Tonight.
  4. Step 4We made a fearless inventory of our excuses.And noticed most of them were about how we'd feel, not what we could do.
  5. Step 5We admitted to ourselves, and to one other person, that we were starting.Text someone. Accountability is the cheat code.
  6. Step 6We became entirely ready to go slow.Embarrassingly slow. Rails-holding slow. That counts.
  7. Step 7We humbly put on our shoes.Then left them by the treadmill so tomorrow starts with one less step.
  8. Step 8We made a list of everything we'd rather be watching.And decided we're only allowed to watch it on the belt.
  9. Step 9We made amends with our body.It carried us this far. We stopped talking trash about it.
  10. Step 10We continued to show up, and when we missed, promptly started again.No backlog. No penance. Just Day 1 again.
  11. Step 11We sought to add a minute here and there.Progress is boring and tiny and it works.
  12. Step 12Having had a breakthrough, we carried the message to other treadmill owners.Somewhere, a coat rack is waiting to become a treadmill again.