After being officially diagnosed with sleep apnea, it was time for the CPAP machine to arrive. Let’s just say I felt like a cross between a giddy kid on Christmas Eve and as reluctant as Darth Vader probably would’ve been in the bedroom. Little by little, I’m feeling better, thanks to the supportive gear for my lungs.

What is the last thing you quit to better yourself? Reflecting on this past year, 2018 has been a very interesting year for me all around, and I have grown a lot. In with new and out with the old, here’s what I’m changing for 2019.

Because it’s a sleep study, and not, say a cat scan, I didn’t expect my doctor to get all solemn, take a deep breath, and ask me to “sit down” before delivering the news.

In recent months, my fiancée noticed long pauses between breaths while I’m asleep, followed by gasping for air. Not good. If it’s like everything else in my life, this major CPAP milestone should make for a good story. Plus, my readers really seem to enjoy it when I suffer.

This is a weird time in my life waiting for a heart transplant while trying to maintain a normal functioning life. However, these three basic things have helped me tremendously in my everyday routine.

With my old ways of thinking, I kicked ass and got better. But I’ve figured out along the way that it’s like nitrous: it’s great for a quick burst, but powerlifting isn’t a quarter mile.

I was 417 at my biggest, and very ill-informed about my strength. Powerlifting seems to have a general acceptance of “bigger” meaning “stronger,” but bigger isn’t always better.

Life changes as our goals change, and life sure has changed a lot for me. My excuses of the past that let me go to extremes and live in excess during the holiday season are now gone.

Thirteen months into my time as a member of CPAP Nation, I’ve made several ground-breaking discoveries for optimizing the use of your CPAP.

Truth be told, we can never be sure if the program we are on will give us the best possible result, as each program has a different efficacy for different individuals.

And if all else fails, I’ll do what all other powerlifters do with nagging injuries, I’ll ignore it.

It usually starts like this—an elbow to the ribs in the middle of the night from your spouse.