October, I'll be six years sober, y'all!!!
I just typed that sentence and it still doesn't feel real! (Someone pinch me....okay don't for real but WHATTTTTTT!!!!!!?!?)
This week I have been allowing myself to sit with gratitude and reminisce on my personal development journey.
(I truly started that in 2018...that's another story for another newsletter I'm sure)
My health has been a huge subject of importance to me and it struck me that… dang I'm coming up on almost 6 years of consistency with letting go of a toxic substance that was killing me from the inside out.
And I freaking let it go cold turkey #nochaser.
My fitness journey has been directly affected by my choices and actions that began in October of 2020 when I made the emotional decision to take on the Elsa persona and "let it go let it GOOOOOO" haha.
How did I do it and what happened to get me to stop you ask.....
Let me take you on a quick journey into Cordell's Hippocampus (part of the brain that holds long term memory y'all hehe)
I was out in Oklahoma visiting some friends as during that time in Covid businesses and travel began opening up again.
While out there I (like my wild self) was getting lit with friends, taking shots, getting my normal Adios MF drink and partying.
It was my last night in OKC before I needed to go home the next day.
I had a conversation with a good friend that night that sparked some questions in my mind on what happiness looked like for them and myself.
Side Note:
I had already had in my head that I needed to cut back severely on alcohol.
And at this point from my studies, journaling, and reading up on the book The Miracle Morning by Hal Elrod then diving deeper into the world of self-help that there needed to be a catalyst of emotion strong enough for me to physiologically and emotionally alert the nervous system and shift my reality of letting alcohol go.
Basically I had to emotionally want to let alcohol go and had primed myself subconsciously for the event.
Back to the story....
The conversation at Pink Cadillac (the bar I was at with my friend) was getting intense and so was my level of intoxication.
We ended up expressing a lot of loveeeee for each other, sharing some insecurities and realities we were both living then after being dramatically emotional partying the night away.
“CRAP I have to be at work tomorrow in Texas!”, remembering at 2 am.
That did not stop me from hanging out until around 4 or 5 am and being drowsy and super tired when I woke up around 9 am still drunk.
BAD idea Cordell.....BAD idea.
The crappy thing was I was so tired I could barely keep my eyes open on the drive.
There were two moments when my eyes shut while I was driving because of how tired I was, and my tires hit the rumble strip, that irritating, life-saving hum on the side of the road.
It scared me so deeply the second time I pulled over to a gas station and yelled at myself "I'm freaking done! I'm tired of living like this. No more liquor, dude!"
My life is worth too much and I could have put myself and others in a bad spot. So I got those 5 hour energy drinks and an extra can of Red Bull and powered through the trip back to Dallas to get to work.
From there I have not touched alcohol again.
Here's what's wild about six years.
The other day I was driving home from hanging out with my friends late at night and got cut off (how dare they!!! lols)
My head tilted, and my nervous system stayed calm.
How cool is it that now when driving someone can do something that would have pissed me off or irritated me and now calmness and some sarcastic humor keeps me grounded and composed when driving.
(I do consider myself a grandpa driver, my friends. I drive nothing typically over 5 mph unless there is a 18 wheeler then I’m speeding past them full throttle aha)
A hell of a step up.
The action of dropping alcohol changed my life.
I love the man I'm becoming and proud of the elevation.
This week, that memory showed up tangibly for me working out and creating a new protocol in the gym.
Little Cordell II would be proud and excited to witness this guy.
I signed up for a new gym closer to where I live and got an InBody scan then used it in combination with one of my previous Styku body scans from 2022 (I was only 6.6% BF then, wild) to help create my next 3 month workout program, from weights to nutrition and holistic practices like breath work and visualization.
Six years of clear-headed consistency, now pointed deeply at my wellbeing holistically!
(Also, fun fact for the new folks: I did track and field from 7th grade through college! Pretty damn amazing to see that kid still in here. Just needed the fog to clear to find him again.)
Three weeks of y'all reading along with me now.
That still gets me hype.
And if you know someone that may enjoy this read.
Forward this letter over to them.
We can all grow on this human experience together.
Reply and tell me what you're rebuilding/creating right now.
I read every single one.
Let's level up together.
Love y'all, Cordell Weathersbee II
