And I've still got 37 pounds to go.
By the numbers, this was a total bust. There are a hell of a lot of stones still in that jar, and I'm still wearing my stretchy pants. Per the scale this morning, I shed an average of 0.56 ounces per day*, which is not exactly going to have people clamoring for my weight loss secrets. If I was being graded, even on a curve, 26% progress would be an "F" for sure.
But I'm not going by the numbers. I'm going by the results.
Thanks to this project:
- I drink gallons of water every day. On purpose**.
- I literally crave exercise.
- I am surrounded by incredibly supportive people who have helped me more than they can possibly know.*** More importantly, I let them.
And best of all, I eat well.
Not just in the way my husband meant when he said it. I truly eat deliberately these days. I choose the bread and butter when it's really good bread and butter. Otherwise, I choose the salad. I enjoy a cocktail or glass of great wine and skip the Skittles and the caramel corn. I'm just as avid to try new restaurants, a fabulous blue cheese and bacon burger, or a noted hot spot in a city I visit for work. But I pack almonds and fruit for my flight instead of cheese and crackers, and hit the gym in the hotel. I bake cakes and cookies and pie and sample them all happily, but then I tote the rest across the street to work or ship a package off in the mail. I feel, at last, in control.
For example, I chose to enjoy a nice big piece of this cake today, because it was awesome. I mean, Chocolate fudge cake with cream cheese frosting? No way I wasn't diving in.
Food and me.
We are in a healthy (well, healthy-er) relationship now.
I still want to be stronger, and slimmer, and in much better shape, so I'm giving myself an extension on my project, and my grade is...incomplete.
After all, I am going to be 50 for a little while longer.
* The equivalent of getting rid of 16 paper clips or six pennies every 24 hours. Honestly, my cat sheds more than that.
** I carry my own "vat" around, and am roundly ridiculed for it by my family.
*** Especially my family. When they are not making fun of me, that is.
