One-derland!

Finally. At long last.  Movement on the scale. Movement not in an upward direction, or downward to recover the same three pounds I gained (and lost....and gained...).

This was a big one.  Not just because I hit a major goal....but because I started progressing again in a forward direction.  Because I survived the major slump I've been in for the past two months. Because despite everything, I conquered my fear of success....at least this far.

That sounds a bit dramatic, I know.  But the last time I got this far, I got stuck in the same place, and had a major meltdown on a scale so epic, it stopped me cold.  This time, I've given myself a chance to breathe...to work through all the emotions I was feeling. I prepared for it, so when I got to this point, I allowed myself to experience it.  And I went through it slowly enough to absorb the enormous changes my body has been going through this year.

Yes, this was huge for me.  Probably much bigger in the long run than even hitting my goal weight will be, 29 pounds from now.  But now I know that I will get there. In time.  Nothing will stop me now.  Nothing could stop me.

It might take me a while.  And that's ok.  Best I can calculate, I will probably hit my goal weight around April.  But if it's not until this time next year...I will be ok with that. The important thing is not how quickly I can run this race...it's that I cross the finish line.

I can't tell you what a high I'm on right now. I knew it was coming...I felt the change in my body early in the week, and I knew that I was going to have one hell of a weigh-in this morning.  I worked extra hard this week...every day, putting in the time and effort that I knew I needed to ensure my goal.  My water was good, my eating was right on, my workouts were amazing.  All the elements my body needs to succeed were provided to it.  And that's all it took to ensure success.


Could it really be that simple?


Of course it could.  Nike has the right idea; their slogan is profound.


 Just do it.


Just be that thing you want to be.  Get out of your head and into your track shoes (or whatever your thing is).  Stop thinking so much, and take action.


Lord, may I always have the strength to turn off my thoughts and just do the damn thing.  The mind can be so destructive.  We are not kind enough to ourselves by half.  But kindness does not equal being a pushover. Kindness to ourselves can be the toughest kind of love.  It can be hardcore....if we just learn to listen more to what we actually need instead of what our mind tells us we think we'd rather have.

	Starting Weight, BMI 41 (severely obese)	10/14/2014	281.0
279	New Decade	1/5/2015	277.6
278	BMI 40	1/5/2015	277.6
271	BMI 39	1/12/2015	270.2
269	New Decade	1/16/2015	268.8
264	BMI 38	1/27/2015	263.6
259	New Decade	2/13/2015	257.8
257	BMI 37	2/20/2015	254.6
256	25 POUNDS LOST!!	2/20/2015	254.6
250	BMI 36	3/13/2015	246.6
249	New Decade	3/13/2015	246.6
243	BMI 35 (no longer severely obese, now just obese)	4/2/2015	241.8
239	New Decade	4/17/2015	238.8
236	BMI 34	5/8/2015	235.2
231	50 POUNDS LOST!!	6/5/2015	228.6
229	New Decade, BMI 33	6/5/2015	228.6
225.5	HALF WAY THERE!!	6/12/2015	224.6
222	BMI 32	7/3/2015	221.2
219	New Decade	7/24/2015	218.2
216	BMI 31	8/14/2015	214.2
209	New Decade, BMI 30	9/11/2015	208.8
206	75 POUNDS LOST!!	9/25/2015	205.4
202	BMI 29 (no longer obese, now just overweight)	12/4/2015	199.0
199.8	New Decade, Onederland!	12/4/2015	199.0
195	BMI 28
189	New Decade
188	BMI 27
181	BMI 26, 100 POUNDS LOST!!!
179	New Decade
174	BMI 25
170	GOAL!!!
169	New Decade
167	BMI 24 (no longer overweight)

If I can just stay the course, it's amazing how my body always responds and never lets me down. I just have to give it half a chance.  This weekend, I have a virtual 5K to run, which I had almost completely forgotten about.  I'm running this with my best friend from high school who lives in Louisiana now, in honor of her birthday.  And I will be able to pace with her, which is an amazing accomplishment in and of itself.  I'm very excited to do this with her...it will be our first run together.

Today is a run day for me.  I'm going to try (as I have all week) to get down to the gym and walk at lunch.  Then tonight, I'll head back to the gym after work for a nice long run, combined with a warm-up on the elliptical, and some rowing (which is badly needed...my upper body has been sadly neglected with my focus on running this year).  Tomorrow will be spent doing my usual housecleaning, and resting up for my 5K on Sunday. I'm looking forward to some badly needed R&R as well!

What about you? Any fun plans for the weekend?  Ever had a tough period you were finally able to work through? How did you do it?