Weight Loss and Exercise...It Really Is Hard Work

If you watch TV at all, you are bombarded with commercials promising instant weight loss if you drink this shake, take this pill, or use this machine. Some claims are so unbelievable, they make me laugh. Really? I can take your fancy-space-age-tested-on-a-lab-mouse pills and eat ANYthing I want and STILL lose weight?! Wow! The weight will just drop off! (Gee, that sounds a little gruesome.) I hear these types of ads and the rational side of my brain thinks, "Hmmm, if a person can continue the bad habits that got them into being overweight in the first place, what kind of weird chemistry is this pill going to do to my system to trick it into shedding calories? That doesn't sound safe." The human body is a marvelous vessel (some might call it a temple). However, many of us treat it like it's disposable. I am guilty of this at times. I was always a skinny kid, and I was very active throughout my early life. Then "work" happened, and I became a little more sedentary in my late 20s and in my 30s. Something else very natural happened: my metabolism slowed down. All those adults who told me, "just wait 'til yer older...you'll gain weight!" They were right. 


I did manage to lose weight while going through my divorce a few years back. I slimmed down from a size 8 to a size 6 and I was thrilled. Sadly my habits (eating less and exercising often) didn't last. I became sedentary again and started eating more than I should have. I also went through several stressful periods that caused me to adopt poor eating habits. Now I'm back to a size 8/10/12 (that's another topic that irritates me: women's clothing sizes, but I'll tackle that another time). I am now facing a decision: put up with the weight I've gained (I am heavier now than I ever have been in my life) or DO something about it.


I've chosen to do something. That "something" involves getting back in the habit of exercising and being smarter about eating. I'm not going on some radical diet or joining some crazy exercise program. I am paying more attention to how much I eat and what I eat, but I am not eliminating anything from my diet. I am making a conscious effort to eat out less. I am also controlling my portion sizes and eating slower. These may not seem like big steps, but small changes are easier to digest (no pun intended). For my exercise, I've chosen running. I purchased a good pair of running shoes from a store that specializes in running. They watched me walk on a  treadmill so they could find the right shoe for how I move. So far I've not progressed very far, but I am still working on it. The salesman at the store recommended the Couch-to-5k program (plug that into your favorite search engine and you can read about it; there's also an app for it!). I've had to restart the program three times now, and I might have to start over again due to some tendon issues in my lower leg. But I refuse to give up. In the meantime I will stick to walking until I'm able to run again.


This goes to prove my point: losing weight (and keeping it off) isn't an overnight success. It takes real effort and a strong desire to push through life's obstacles. I've been working on it for months now, and I haven't lost any weight. Even sticking to an exercise routine without interruption over the past three weeks has not yielded measurable results. But then again, I didn't gain 30 pounds in a month; I certainly won't lose it in a month. If I can lose 10 pounds over the next three months, I will be happy. If I can get back down to a small size 8 or a large size 6 by the end of the year, I will be ecstatic. I figure my patience will be rewarded by new habits and weight loss that won't evaporate when I quit taking the pills or drop out of the trendy exercise program. I will have easy to follow eating and exercise habits that will be fun and painless to follow for many years to come. In the meantime, I refuse to beat myself up if I have a doughnut or miss a day of exercising. Weight loss for me is a marathon, not a sprint.

I Never Thought I'd Say This...

It is a gray, rainy day in NoVA, and I am happy to see it. Yes, yes, I know...I complained vehemently about being stuck in the Pacific NorthWet for 11 years with nasty gray rain. This time is very different. For the past two weeks, the Mid-Atlantic and other parts of the South and Mid-West have been trapped in the grips of deadly heat. We're not talking a little bit hot here; we're talking deadly heat that broke every record for days on end. We're talking about heat so powerful, it buckled pavement on many roads in the area. We're talking about heat so strong it caused an airplane to sink four inches into the tarmac at one of the local airports. We're talking about no rain for many parts of the country for quite some time. We're talking about the kind of heat that when you open your front door, it hits you like a blast furnace and sucks the air out of your lungs. 


People weren't enjoying the outdoors unless it was by a pool or fountain. You literally rushed from your house to your car then from car to store just so you didn't melt into a puddle on 130 degree pavement. Heat index values were well above 100 for several days and actual air temps were at or near 100 for days in a row. We kept all the shades drawn in our house and even put up blankets over the windows to keep out as much heat as possible. We lived in an air-conditioned cave for two weeks. Our tomato plants actually dropped underdeveloped fruit and quit producing blossoms. We watered every day, but the heat was just too oppressive. It burned up some of our flowers. Our gas grill showed a temp near 200 degrees even though it wasn't on! Yes, this was some nasty, hot, debilitating weather for sure.


Then something amazing happened. Thunderstorms came through with a cold front yesterday and the temperature went from 97 degrees to 78 degrees in the matter of an hour. Last night had a low temp of 70; the lowest in weeks. We got up this morning and we could open all the shades in the house. We no longer had to hide from the oppressive oven outside. And I've never been happier to see a gray, rainy day in a very long time. 


I'm sure the hot weather will return, but for now, I will enjoy the mid 80s. I'll also appreciate every drop of rain that falls.