Weight loss success stories are nearly as ubiquitous as the fast food joints within a mile of the Reporter’s office in Covington — there’s seven of those restaurants, by my count.

As a society, we love NBC’s “The Biggest Loser,” which started its 14th season Jan. 6, and exercise programs like CrossFit or boot camps or Zumba. We love to be part of the journeys of others as well as go on our own. We try out all the latest quick weight loss diets, known more and more people who have undergone lap band or gastric bypass procedures, and in a sea of junk food we marvel at anyone who sheds more than 20 pounds.

Losing weight is no easy task. And it’s not an easy subject to bring up. You can’t just ask someone who lost a bunch of weight how they did it because sometimes it was due to a serious illness they have kept on the down low for various reasons. Or, he hasn’t lost weight which makes the whole rest of the conversation awkward because then he thinks that you think he is chubby and could stand to shed a few pounds.

As the pages of the calendar approached 2013, many people likely tried hard to dodge the temptations the holiday season threw at them from well, actually October through Jan. 1. Surely there were many right here in our own communities who pondered change, how to get rid of the baby weight or the extra 20 pounds they’ve carried since college or just how to be healthier in a realistic way.

I also thought about my own journey during the past year or so as I’ve shed more than 35 pounds, how I started walking then running, and how my list of goals for 2013 includes running in five more 5K races by the end of June. The plan is to train this summer to run a 10K race in the fall.

It occurred to me that there are likely many success stories in Covington, Maple Valley, Black Diamond, Ravensdale, Hobart and other neighborhoods nearby. Why not find those people and tell those stories?

Then in late December a couple of gentlemen from Pinnacle Therapy came in with two ideas. They wanted to advertise and they wanted to see if anyone on the editorial staff would be willing to write about what they do.

As I listened to them tell me about Pinnacle I knew this would be a good connection for finding fitness journey stories in the community.

Since then I’ve also asked Kristy Fassio, owner of Stroller Strides Maple Valley, if she could introduce me to anyone with a great fitness journey tale. She volunteered herself if no one else is willing.

I’ll reach out to a couple of other potential sources, too, for my next series which right now I’m calling Fitness Journeys.

There are two groups of people I want to talk to, but, I’m not sure yet which order the series will run. One group is made up of individuals from the community who have achieved success in their fitness goals. Their stories of how they did it — but more importantly why — are surely to be inspiring. The other group I want to focus on consists of people who have recently started down the road to health. I want to know what that moment of truth was for these folks, what was the turning point which set them on the path to their fitness goals, what they have done so far and what they hope to accomplish.

I am excited to tell these stories because this will go beyond resolutions, something so many of us fail at, and delves into how people have truly changed their lives. It’s not about a new year, new you idea, instead it’s about the journey toward long-term, long-lasting changes for a healthier and happier life.

The first part will run Feb. 8. I hope you like it and if you want me to tell your story, please let me know.