I started 2014 weighing 162 pounds. In March, for Lent, I tried a challenge I’d seen online. The challenge was 21 days without chips, soda, diet soda, chocolate, candy, white breads, cookies or biscuits, fast food and no cakes, pastries or muffins. Since Lent is 40 days long, my challenge was 40 days not 21. My logic was that I can cheat on a diet but I can’t cheat on God.
Also, in that time, I graduated from power walking (my go-to exercise for ages) to running. I’d always thought I hated running but I learned that running in seventh grade PE was different than running as an adult. I really liked having “me time,” and pushing and competing with myself.
Well, Lent came and went and after Easter I realized I no longer wanted the foods that had been forbidden for those weeks. I relaxed a little bit with the restrictions but I kept to about a 95/5 rule with eating healthier. I also kept running. In June I ran a 5k. Ok, I ran most of a 5k. I did the same in July and August. I loved feeling like a badass and the weight just slipped off. In September I started a circuit training class and a barre class. I could feel myself getting stronger. I LOVED it!
On October 4, 2014 I reached my goal weight of 127 pounds. Thirty five pounds gone in eight months. But all of that is just background information. This story goes way deeper than losing weight.
In June 2015 I got sick. A week prior, I ran a 5 mile race; I was still a badass. Then the next Saturday I caught a virus that I didn’t recover from until the following May. For almost a whole year, I was physically incapable of staying awake for four hours straight. Working out, running, heck even walking were completely out of the question. So here is my point: that whole time I averaged within 3 pounds of my goal weight. WEIGHT DOESN”T MATTER!!!!!! Weight is not a measure of health. As a matter of fact, for a bit I hovered around 124 pounds and that was the period I was feeling the worst.
So now, I’m recovering. I’ve returned to work. I’m awake all day. I even started walking and last night I actually ran for the first time in fifteen months. Oh my God, during and after I felt like a badass again! So let me tell you what’s different now. This morning, I didn’t say to myself, “I ran last night. I wonder if the scale can tell.” I didn’t run to impress the scale. Or to even move the scale. I ran because of how it made me feel. For the last year, I’ve felt like my body wasn’t my own; I had no control over it. We’ve been enemies. Last night I felt like I’ve reclaimed some of the power over my body. Finally! And you can bet you arse I’m excited about this evening when I’m going to try to run just a little bit farther.
That’s what I want you to learn from my experiences. This Transformation Tuesday isn’t about before and after pictures. It’s about transforming a mindset. Don’t eat healthy and exercise because of the number on the scale. Do it because your body is yours and you have control over it. Do it because YOU CAN! Do it for your own sense of empowerment and enjoyment. Do it because you’re a badass.
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