We had brunch yesterday at the home of friends. They had a house full of guests including the two other couples who had been at my house back in January. Our hostess had also invited several people from her family, all together there were over 20 people there. It was so nice to be a part of such a vibrant and lively group. It felt like being a part of a family and thats something I haven't experienced in quite a long time.
The weather was cool and comfortable, a nice change from our hot week last week, it was such a nice casual get together with lots of healthy foods like quiche, fruit salad, crudité platters, shrimp cocktail, cheese and fruits, pastries, and muffins something for everyone. They even had the waffle iron working at full capacity which made Ken very happy!
Some of you might recall the post from my last get together with this group, Dinner and a Workout, where one of my guests was in tears after our walk because she was 100 pounds less than I am and 5 years younger than I am and she struggled to keep up on our walk, she thought that because of my size I'd be really slow. I gave her a pep talk and some encouragement and apparently she took it to heart, she looked FABULOUS!!
She had weighed about 260 or 270 the last time I saw her, she said she had been following her plan faithfully and she was down 48 pounds! She said she now walks 2 miles a day in about 35 minutes. Honestly, I am genuinely happy for her but part of me felt a twinge of frustration, not with her but with myself. I don’t feel jealous of her but rather anger with my body that is clinging to every pound. In the past two months I haven’t dropped a pound, sure I’m down inches but I’m not down in weight and it’s so frustrating.
My calories have been within range, my eating has been very clean for the most part and I’ve been getting plenty of exercise every day. Yet still my weight isn’t budging and it leaves such a feeling in the pit of my stomach. I feel like I’ve been kicked.
On the drive home, Ken knew my mind was spinning because I was so quiet so he hit me with the “whats up with you?” half out of curiosity, half said with dread. Has my whining become that predictable? I told him how frustrated I was with my body not wanting to give up these pounds and he told me that I can’t talk like that because it leads to a defeated attitude and I can’t give up or quit. He reminded me of the seed I planted from the clementine and how I planted it and watered it for two weeks and nothing bloomed and I gave up on it and put the pot out on the patio. He kept watering it and waiting. I gave up. A week later he brought it to me with a tiny green sprout sticking from the earth. He was concerned that I would give up, I have NO intention of giving up, the alternative would be certain death within the next 10 to 15 years. I won't go down without a fight!
I know that overall I’m down about 60something pounds and that’s a positive, I know I need to quit whining, work harder and stop comparing myself to others. I don’t want to be a whiner; I want to be a winner.
Ken said that I gave up on that seed without realizing that under the surface good things were happening and the same is true with my body. Good things are happening on the inside. I can’t see them but I have to keep the faith and know that results will follow.
![[Valid Atom 1.0]](valid-atom.png "Validate my Atom 1.0 feed")
23 comments:
Really, really awesome. I love this analogy. There are so many times when we just can't see results and it's so very hard not to give up...or not to be miserable, even when we keep on. This is a great thing to keep in mind; sometimes the changes take a while to reach the "surface" but that doesn't mean they're not happening.
Hang in there; doing all the right stuff long-term despite not always seeing results, is a lot more impressive to me than someone doing the right things for a few months and having great success, then going back to bad habits when they've met their goal.
You're very inspirational.
V.
You are an extraordinary woman and your husband is a sage! The two of you could start a motivational business!
I'm sorry that the scale is stubborn, Diana, but I'm more than impressed with you for not giving up! Well done!
I so appreciate your wisdom and courage...
You can't fail between your diligence and your husband as a cheering section! I can't believe what a sweetheart he is - and I love the sprout story. I think all bodies need a break to catch up when they lose a lot of weight like you did - it will start again, I think your body is just readjusting!
{{{{{H U G }}}}} I think you so needed one of those. I wish you could see from our side just how awesome you are really doing. You amaze me every day with the steps you take to get healthier and skinnier. You are doing so well. You are going to make it. You really are!!! Heck look how far you have already come.
Always cheering for you!! You inspire my day!
*SUPER BIG HUGGLES*
=0)
I feel your pain vividly. I lost 20 pounds without much effort through the beginning of March and then a whole lot of nothing!! And yeah, I lost inches but doesn't it feel so much better to say I lost 50 pounds...or more...yeah, duh! So it's so very frustrating to see the scale not correlate with what's going on. That's why I'm doing the weekly challenges - I needed to switch things up. Maybe you should try taking a week off from the exercise, maybe you should cut out one of your staple foods, even if it's good for you, maybe you should've drink a ton of water for two days....I find that switching it up is what works for me! Keep with it though, I know how easy it is to get frustrated and give up completely!
What an awesome, supportive husband you have! Good for Ken! It is frustrating, but there will be results and you will see them - - in time. Giving up is not really an option....Look down the road a year...where do you want to be? How are you going to get there? Just keep plugging away...before long that "sprout" will be evident and after that a massive oak tree will evolve! It all takes time, but you can and will succeed! You already are!
I hope my cheers of you can do it!! arent annoying as, sometimes, when I feel miffed I wanna STAY that way for a bit and not be cheered up.
I adore your writing and so feel as though Im right there with you when I read your posts.
may I say that some of the weight is MUSCLE?
take care,
M.
It just proves you are an inspirational person to many and not even just in blog world...you are inspirational in the real world too!
Erin
P.S. I fixed the color problem on my page!
I LOVE the analogy of the seed sprouting! That is so beautiful, and now I think I'll be inspired for the whole day! Thank you so much for posting that story!
What an awesome post today - especially about the seed. All so true.
Way to go! It's great to see how you helped that lady turn her life around!
Thank you for visiting our blog. We like Kesey's face too. It's tasty!
We bet you walk faster than our Mommy too, so keep up the good work!
Ken's a pretty smart guy. What a great analogy with the clementine seed. It must be frustrating for you but, you know you've got an arsenal full of the things you need to lose more weight and you will.
I'll bet that it was hard to see how well your friend did (and not out of pettiness either, but hey, you're human!) But, how great was it that YOU were her inspiration!
You're daily blogs are a treat to read and you've started something really great here with HYC. The pounds are sure to follow those inches.
(BTW, no cats in the yard, I'm allergic! just bunnies when my veggies and flowers start blooming)
My thingy didn't go through :(....
Hello Diana, I hope you are well! I still read your blog just don't always find the time to comment! Hope the pooches are well!
Will you please go give your hubby a big kiss for all of us? He sounds absolutely amazing...as are you, Diane. One of the biggest tests of this journey is the plateaus we endure, KNOWING we'll get past them.
Thanks for sharing such intimate thoughts.
ohh boy i love that post.. just have faith.. take your time.. and things do happen.. we all struggle.. and all get frustrated.. but everything in good time.. it will happen.. but u and I both know that if we give in and give up.. then .. what do we have.. NOTHING.. but if we perservere and keep things going.. we have everything.. and thats what we want.. EVERYTHING!!
Great post! How this speaks to me and others who are all fighting this battle. Keep up your great work and your wonderful posts, without you, we would a be a little lost!
oh I know how frustrating it can be! I am stuck too and its hard to just keep on going when you want to see results. but obviously you were quite inspiring to this woman and that shows that you are working hard and your results ARE showing, just not in pounds. Im sure Ive said it before too, that to me, inches are way more important than pounds anyways. sure who doestn want to weigh less, but in my opinion, it takes a lot more work to lose those inches. I mean, I lost a lot of my weight just through eating right alone, not exercise. so weight can be lost with less food, but inches takes hard work and exercise and that you are doing. so keep it up and dont worry about that scale.
That Ken sounds like a keeper! What a wise fellow, and how great that he "gets" what you're struggling with, given that he doesn’t have the same issues.
Be patient with yourself, Diana. Be persistent with your efforts. The scale will catch up to all you're doing.
Hi, it's me again... I should have mentioned this before: when I was a leader for Weight Watchers and would have a member stuck at a plateau, I'd recommend that they stir things up: new forms of exercise, different foods, varying amounts of calories (or in WW case, Points) from one day to the next.
Our bodies get used to whatever we're doing and the progress stops. That could be part of what you're experiencing. You might try mixing things around with some of the suggestions above, to see if you can break through the plateau. I know it feels safer to stay with the routine because you know it works. But so does your body, and it needs to be reminded that things are not status quo!
Good luck, and let us know how it goes!
Can I call Ken once in a while :)
Great support system!! That is really hard..it's so hard not to compare to others. I have been watching someone shrink each week when I see her at my daughters gymnastics and I know we began at the same time..
Stay strong..look how you motivated your friend and look what you have done for us!!!
and yes..you have lost inches and 60lobs...wooooo hooo..keep up the great habits..it's happening for you. We all know it is!!
It is frustrating sometimes....you're so blessed to have such a supportive husband!
Do yout hink your calorie intake may be too low? I know that sounds strange - but sometimes when it's too resticted the metabolism grinds to a halt. Just a thought....
Post a Comment