One trained back to three-mile walks after hip and spine surgery while another logged daily walks<\/a> and yoga without eyesight. A mom used group fitness to help her cope with the loss of her son. Others focused on non-scale victories<\/a>, steady daily movement and protecting their mental health. <\/p>\n Here\u2019s how they did it. <\/p>\n 2025 challenge accomplished: Achieving her 100th non-scale victory (NSV).<\/p>\n Top tip: Focus on being healthy, not on the numbers on the scale.<\/p>\n Archer\u2019s journey started on July 1, 2022<\/a>. That was the day she decided she was done feeling blah, being out of breath, eating her emotions, not sleeping well and skipping activities with her kids because she couldn\u2019t keep up with them. \u201cI was done not smiling like I used to. I was just done,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n That morning, she walked a half mile with her sons near her home in Buffalo, NY. She walked again the next day, and the day after that. \u201cEven if it was only a half mile, it was more than I had done any day before July 1st,\u201d she says. She also started portioning her meals and drinking more water<\/a>.<\/p>\n \u201cI wanted to keep my motivation going and make sure I didn\u2019t get discouraged. I also wanted to focus on being heathy and not just on the number on the scale. That\u2019s where NSV\u2019s came into play,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Archer, now 46, aimed for 10 NSVs at first, choosing simple things like drinking water instead of soda and lengthening her walks. As her journey continued, her list grew to being able to cross her legs and fit into clothes she had stored away for years.<\/p>\n \u201cSix months went by, and my list exploded,\u201d she says. \u201cI began to tune into my mental health.\u201d Her list included positive self-talk daily as well as things like carrying a case of water down the basement steps, relearning her relationship with food and saving the money she had been spending on takeout and using it for a family beach vacation.<\/p>\n She shares some of her 2025 non-scale victories:<\/p>\n Hiking: Achieved in August while camping in PennsylvaniaUsing heavier weights<\/a>: She\u2019s up to 12 poundsWalking three miles in under 60 minutes: This was her 100th NSV<\/p>\n Her top goal for 2026 is walking two miles in less than 30 minutes.<\/p>\n \u201cMy list grew by leaps and bounds because it wasn\u2019t about the numbers, it was about me being proud of me for all my progress and achievements and valuing my health more than my image,\u201d she says. \u201cI\u2019m healthy and doing things I couldn\u2019t do before even though I\u2019m not a size 2, but rather a size 12. That to me is the biggest NSV of all!\u201d<\/p>\n The Start TODAY app<\/a> uses One Small Thing to help you celebrate the small, daily victories! Each day, you are given a new, doable step you can take toward better heath.<\/p>\n Jean Marmo<\/p>\n 2025 goal accomplished: Returning to three- to four-mile walks after hip-replacement surgery<\/p>\n Top tip: The more effort you put in, the better the result. Start small and build up every hour, every day.<\/p>\n \u201cMy happy place is getting out on the sidewalks,\u201d Marmo says. She especially likes walking in Arizona, where she goes to escape the Michigan winters. But in fall 2024, hip pain started to limit the three-to-four mile walks she loved to take every day. She expected that within three or four years she would need a hip replacement.<\/p>\n But by April 2025, she was limping, and she couldn\u2019t even walk a mile. An injection didn\u2019t help with the pain. She needed hip replacement, and because of scheduling issues, she couldn\u2019t have the surgery until October. \u201cI am so glad it is done and I can now get back to moving as I did,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Within two weeks, Marmo, 72, could walk a mile<\/a> without a walker or cane. \u201cEvery week I added a bit more,\u201d she says. By seven weeks, she was back to walking three miles. \u201cThe hip feels great when walking,\u201d she says. \u201cMy husband and I are signed up to complete a 5k race<\/a> in mid-January. I hobbled my way through it last year and am excited to walk much better this year.\u201d<\/p>\n 2025 challenge accomplished: Walking for 2 hours every day.<\/p>\n Top tip: Know when you start that you\u2019ll hit roadblocks, and figure out how to overcome them.<\/p>\n Catron, 57, set a lot of goals for herself for 2025. \u201cI kept them all,\u201d she says. \u201cThe key is starting them in August or September and making them a habit before it\u2019s real. By the time January 1st rolls up you\u2019ve worked out the kinks.\u201d<\/p>\n For example, she started walking outside near her home in Fredericksburg, VA, but bad weather turned out to be a roadblock for her some of the time. So, on January 1, she joined a gym where she could walk on a treadmill<\/a> when the weather was bad. \u201cThat helped on days when it was too cold<\/a>,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve stayed with the same two hours every day since January first, one hour early in the morning and an hour in the afternoon,\u201d says Catron. She lost 74 pounds, and she\u2019s starting to run <\/a>part of her route and add more time to her walks. <\/p>\n If weather is a roadblock keeping you from getting your steps in, have an indoor walking workout in your back pocket, like this 10-Minute Indoor Walk<\/a> or this 1.5-Mile Indoor Walk With Al Roker.<\/a><\/p>\n Along with walking, Catron set and kept goals for other areas of her life, too. She now follows a bedtime routine, reads the Bible every day and attends church every Sunday and keeps money in her bank account as a cushion for emergencies.<\/p>\n Heather Harne <\/p>\n 2025 challenge accomplished: Walking and practicing yoga every day in spite of a disability.<\/p>\n Top tip: We all have obstacles, and we all can find ways to get in movement that fits our bodies.<\/p>\n Harne, 52, had eye cancer (bilateral retinoblastoma) when she was a baby. Treatment meant her right eye had to be removed at that time. Her left eye, which gave her partial vision, needed to be removed in 2017. <\/p>\n Before then, she had been active with yoga, Pilates, dance, kickboxing and walking. But becoming completely blind, plus having back surgery around the same time, caused dizziness and balance issues.<\/p>\n At first, all she could do was stand for one minute an hour. She lengthened her standing time, and slowly started walking in place, then around her house, adding minutes and miles.<\/p>\n Over time, she began walking in a local park where she could follow the path with her cane. She also takes a private yoga class once a week, and practices a short yoga sequence every morning<\/a> and every night. She committed to maintaining her walking and yoga habits throughout 2025, and succeeded.<\/p>\n \u201cBeing blind is only part of my story,\u201d she says. \u201cI believe we all have struggles, challenges and obstacles. That could be internal, with mental or emotional difficulties, external, with snow or rain or heat, or physical, with injuries or surgeries. Everyone has something, and even so, we can all build strength and get movement in throughout the day.\u201d<\/p>\n Trisha Stringer<\/p>\n 2025 challenge accomplished: Coping with the death of her son through group fitness classes and walking.<\/p>\n Top tip: Grief is a lonely road. Taking that first step is the hardest, but it helps.<\/p>\n In June, 2024, Stringer had a late dinner with her 24-year-old son, Dakota, and his fianc\u00e9e after she finished a 14-hour shift as a nurse. They talked about one day hiking part of the Appalachian trail and leaving \u201chappiness rocks\u201d painted with words of encouragement along it. <\/p>\n The next day, when her son was working on an oil land rig, it fell over and killed him.<\/p>\n \u201cI knew I had two choices the day after he passed. I could stand up, or lay there and die with him. That kind of grief will kill you. I chose to stand, and asked God to help me. I made a promise to him I would stand every day,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Before her son died, Stringer was walking two miles four or five times a week near her home in Sandy Hook, MS. Afterward, she continued walking, but not as much. She ate at night for comfor<\/a>t and gained 53 pounds. \u201cI knew I was spiraling with my weight, and wanted so badly to change that. I told my physician I was eating my emotions. He suggested I take time and give myself grace,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n In early 2025, she joined a gym and began taking fitness classes. \u201cIt was hard. I don\u2019t think my body was ready,\u201d she says. \u201cBut the group classes helped me get social activities in on my darkest days. There were times I didn\u2019t want to be around people when I was in deep grief, but I would push myself to get out and go. It helped me tremendously.\u201d<\/p>\n She kept at it, and she restarted her walking routine<\/a>. By October 2025, her weight started to drop. She\u2019s committed to fitness and for her 43rd birthday in December, she treated herself to personal training sessions three days a week.\u201d<\/p>\n Stringer wants to make sure the tragedy that killed her son won\u2019t happen to anyone else. She is working to pass a law, Dakota\u2019s Law, that would require permanent tie downs on all oil rigs in Mississippi. \u201cIf the site my son was at had tie downs, he wouldn\u2019t have perished,\u201d she says. \u201cI know my life has a purpose that now includes my son\u2019s story.\u201d<\/p>\n Looking for a community to support you on your health journey? Join the Start TODAY family<\/a> and connect with like-minded people for encouragement. <\/p>\n 2025 challenge accomplished: Rebuilding her fitness routine after spine surgery.<\/p>\n Top tip: Respect your body and what it can do.<\/p>\n 2025 put Englander\u2019s commitment to fitness to the test. After a health scare in 2021, the Floridian changed her nutrition and committed to daily movement. \u201cWalking became my foundation \u2014 not about speed or distance<\/a>, but consistency \u2014 and over time I worked up to averaging about 10,000 steps a day<\/a>. Step by step, those walks added up,\u201d she says. \u201cI released 40 pounds, my knee pain eased, my mobility improved<\/a> and my energy returned.\u201d<\/p>\n But walking wasn\u2019t easing her back pain. She was diagnosed with spinal stenosis and sciatica, with three pinched nerves. \u201cIt was debilitating, interfering with walking, sleeping and my daily life,\u201d she says. <\/p>\n Physical therapy and epidural injections weren\u2019t enough, so the 70-year-old had spine surgery in November 2025. \u201cI went into it stronger and healthier than I would have years earlier. Releasing those 40 pounds and building a consistent walking foundation gave me physical resilience and confidence heading into recovery,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n Some days are short. Some days are slow. But every step is forward.<\/p>\n Sue Englander<\/p>\n Within three weeks, she was back walking, intentionally, carefully and with respect for what her body can do. \u201cSome days are short. Some days are slow. But every step is forward,\u201d she says. \u201cThis journey has taught me that walking isn\u2019t about perfection. It\u2019s about participation. Bodies change. The rules change. But you\u2019re never too old to start upgrading your health.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"New Year\u2019s resolutions have a reputation for fizzling out fast. In fact, the second Friday of the January…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":425565,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[49,48,407,84],"class_list":["post-425564","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-fitness","tag-ca","tag-canada","tag-fitness","tag-health"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/425564","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=425564"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/425564\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/425565"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=425564"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=425564"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=425564"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Start](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/start-today-melissa-archerbs260120-e82a34.png\")
Melissa Archer achieved her goal of hitting 100 non-scale victories in 2025.Melissa ArcherMelissa Archer<\/p>\n![\"start](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Jean-MarmoBS260120-6877cb.jpg\")
Jean Marmo worked her way back from hip replacement surgery to walking a 5k pain free.Jean Marmo<\/p>\n![\"Start](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/start-today-Jenny-Catron-26-1-15-d9b626.jpg\")
Jenny Catron has lost 74 pounds by making walking a daily habit.Jenny L. Harrell CatronJenny L. Harrell Catron<\/p>\n![\"Heather](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/start-today-heather-harne-bs-260115-11dfeb.jpg\")
Heather Harne committed to making yoga a part of her daily routine. <\/p>\n![\"Start](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/start-today-Trisha-springerbs261215-7e534e.jpg\")
Trisha Springer used movement to help cope with the grief of losing her son. <\/p>\n![\"Start](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/01\/Sue-EnglanderBS260120-28bdf8.png\")
Sue Englander before back surgery on November 25, 2025 and back to her 4-mile morning walks one month later!Sue EnglanderSue Englander<\/p>\n