What I Learned Today on the Treadmill

Early today, I was doing my “old lady fast walk” on the treadmill at the fitness center, watching mindless television which I never do at home—Say Yes to the Dress I think it was...  I was moving, going fast, perspiring nicely.  There was nobody else there; it was great!   After about 20 minutes a young, toned fellow leapt onto the treadmill one over from where I was.   He cranked that baby up until he was running about a gazillion miles an hour on that thing.  Suddenly, I felt as if I were hardly moving.   

That old, familiar feeling of “What am I doing here?  I don’t belong here.  This is for young/skinny/good-looking people.” started to come on.  But I said to myself, “Self, this is for you.  He’s doing his thing; you’re doing yours.  There’s no difference.”  And you know what?  I was right! 

It was great!  That was a huge step forward for me, to just stay there comfortably doing my “old lady fast walk”, even if it wasn’t that fast, while he did his “young fella running like hell” run.  

We can only be right where we are.  If we aren’t there, we aren’t anywhere.  Right now, I’m a too-heavy aging lady.  I will be thinner, but I will never be younger.  And that’s okay.  I’m where I’m at right now.  The great thing is, I like it! 

Eight Words

As I’ve lost weight, people often say wonderful things to me, things I will never forget. Some are witty, some are moving, and some are absolutely charming. Also, I recently had about 20 inches of my hair cut off, feeling it was time for a change. It has been a very good change. 

Two weeks ago, a man said something to me I will never, never forget. First a bit about the man, Joe I’ll call him. 

I knew Joe some years ago when I worked at a Church. Joe was the music director. Most of the time, he inhabited another world altogether. He connected with the ‘real’ world only tangentially, and then, only transiently. I knew Joe for about three years before he stopped looking puzzled every time I greeted him, as though wondering if we’d met before, and if so, when and where. Joe lives in music. 

I am fond of Joe, and I admire his talent tremendously. He’s an incredibly gifted man. Over the years, since I left that job, it has been my good fortune to see Joe and his wife from time to time at concerts and recitals. And he has finally come to recognize me on sight, which is delightful! 

Recently, we were at a fantastic piano recital, and we usually see Joe at those. During the intermission we were walking in the lobby and there was Joe. Joe looked at me, stopped in his tracks, and said eight words that are indelibly stamped in my mind: “You’ve lost weight and I like your hairstyle.” And then he walked on. It was classic! 

Thank you, Joe. You made my whole week! 

Out of the mouths...!

I teach piano in my student's homes, which is a very safe and secure environment for children to have a piano lesson. One evening, one of my lessons was at a house where I teach the four-year old; I also used to teach her older brothers. One of the boys, about nine years old now, came in the front hall where I was chatting with the Mom as I was leaving. He needed to ask his Mom a question 'right now', as kids do. He said hello to me, then started talking to his mom, stopped mid-sentence to look at me again, and said, "You look skinny!", as only a little kid can! I thanked him graciously, and his Mom told him that was a very nice thing to say. She then asked me if I'd been trying to lose weight, as she'd noticed that I was. I said, "Yes, I am." She said, "Well, you're doing an incredible job of it!"
Ah, yes, it was a very good day!

Originally appeared in my SparkPeople blog.  

That's a Third Grader!

This is SO weird. Today my weight loss is 70 pounds. I teach kids that size! I've lost the equivalent of a whole student that I've been carrying around? Yikes! No wonder I feel so much better. It's fantastic! 

 

I finally ordered a new pair of slacks. I'd been pulling my old ones together and pinning them in the front, past where the button and zipper are. Last time I did that, my pockets were on my tummy. Okay, time for new slacks! More good news! But I'm only getting one pair. These will be too big soon. 

 

Love SparkPeople! 



Originally published December 4, 2009
at on my blog at SparkPeople.com

Better than a skirt fitting!

Originally published on SparkPeople.com

Friday, October 30, 2009

 

 Last week I had the fabulous experience of trying on a skirt that had been too small for me, I mean WAY too small.  And it fit perfectly.  What a thrill that is! 

For the past few weeks my wedding band has been falling off.  Now, this is a cheap replacement wedding band I had gotten when my original got tight and uncomfortable.  I was going to have to have it re-sized, or something, and really did not want to do that on a ring that probably isn't worth it.  First though, I started looking through my boxes and drawers, and amazingly enough, I found my original wedding band. 

I was delighted to have found it, but scared to put it on.  I knew it would be too small and not fit.  Steeling my courage, I slipped it on my finger.  Oh, my gosh!!!  It fits!  That was even more thrilling and incredible than having my skirt fit.  I can't tell you what it feels like to be wearing my "real" wedding ring again.  It is so wonderful.

I guess this works

Originally posted on

Saturday, October 10, 2009

at SparkPeople.com

It's strange to find myself in a state of disbelief that SparkPeople could actually work, but I am, and it does! I finally decided that since I've lost 50 pounds, I would make a blog post.
When I lost the first 10 pounds, I thought, "Hmmm, that's interesting." Then another 10 came off and I thought, "Whoa, can this actually have happened?" I would get off and back on the scale two or three times to make sure I hadn't misread it.
Then, another 10 pounds came off. "Wow, that's really cool!" When the next 10 pounds came off, I said to myself, "Okay, if you actually lose 50 pounds, this thing works!"
Today was the 50 pounds lost day. So, here I am, saying both to myself and in a blog, "Wow, this thing really works!"
The most amazing thing about it is, that it hasn't been that hard. It's a habit now of logging what I eat. I've entered a lot of food into my favorites, so it's much easier now. I, like most people, tend to eat the same things over a period of time. So food entry isn't difficult. I find that when we are gone for a day or so, and I can't enter my nutrition information, I really miss doing it!
The important thing is, that I know this program works. Can I keep at it, is the question. And the answer is, yes, I know I can.
Thank you!

Whoa. A blog? Me?

Well, that was a little scary. I clicked on "create a blog", and then I did it.

So many people have said to me recently, "How did you do that?". What they are referring to is my 116 pound weight loss in the past year. I've considered starting a blog to answer the question: "How did you do that?" I guess, with those few clicks, I've started my blog!

I've become an expert in this experience: I see somebody I've not seen in a few months, their eyes travel from my face down to my hips, then slowly back up again not believing what they assume they've just seen. What they've just seen is me minus 116 pounds. And you know what? It's fantastic!

I love it! Whereas in the past I would avoid family dinners, reunions and so forth, now I look forward to them. I absolutely love getting that "once over slowly" look.

Okay, the blog is started. I hope to keep this thing going. Please pass it on if my story can help anyone. Thanks!