Day 294: A Bigger Purpose

"There's nothing more powerful than a humble person with a warrior spirit who is driven by a bigger purpose."

Humility was on my mind much of the day as I continue to receive compliments regarding my appearance. I appreciate this so much, because it's an acknowledgement of the hard work I've been putting in and it helps keep me motivated. In the face of that, I'm also working hard to stay humble. Suffice to say there is a new confidence in my step but there is so much more to a person than their appearance, so I try to keep that in mind. I'm still the same person, just a smaller, healthier and much happier version ! Losing weight doesn't make me better than anyone else. If I liked you before, I still do. If we didn't get along before, we probably still won't. It's a sad fact that it can change peoples perception of you but I'm still me. The old fat, unhappy and depressed me won't be sitting on the couch all winter eating, playing Farmville and thinking about all the things I should be doing around the house. The new happy me will be looking around to see what else needs to be done. The new happy me will be scrolling through workouts and putting in some time on the treadmill to chase away the winter blues. The happiness  I feel today is quite a contrast to the despair I felt back in December. I look at those Christmas pictures all the time because it reminds me where I started. It's a place I will never go back to and I'm looking forward to this years Christmas pictures ! I find that visual reminders work really well for me and it's part of the reason I sometimes watch shows like "Hoarders" or "My 600 Pound Life". I can relate to some facets of their lives, though I was never a hoarder and my weight was nowhere near 600 pounds. You go through life thinking you're the only one hurting and shows like this illustrate the fact that you are not. Many people are suffering ... and many people are suffering so much more than you can ever imagine. I know that years of emotional trauma contributed to my weight, but I made the choice to eat for comfort. I don't put the blame on anyone but myself. At the same time, I give myself all the credit for turning things around when it comes to my weight. The fire and its aftermath drastically improved my living situation, but the weight loss is all me. For once in my life I did something for me and I'm succeeding !

Breakfast was a 3.8 ounce 90 calorie turkey ham and cheese omelet with sliced peaches, which adds 80 calories. Had that with brown sugar crumble coffee. Second cup for the road was maple pecan. Breakfast power fuel was 100 calorie string cheese. Morning snack was a 155 calorie chocolate shake with peanut butter powder. Lunch was a 4 ounce 210 calorie beef stir fry melt with raw carrots. Afternoon snack was a Light & Fit toasted coconut vanilla yogurt and 2.5 cups of Skinny Pop popcorn (100 calories). This left 385 calories for dinner and an evening snack. Dinner was an 8 ounce 180 calorie creamy chicken broccoli pasta that I served over riced broccoli. Evening snack was a 1.8 ounce 140 calorie butterscotch cake. Since tomorrow is a work from home day I had a nice cup of maple pecan coffee with it. Total calories for the day are 1135 and I got 64 ounces of water in.

My new habit is to go out during my lunch on Thursdays and get gas. I got the car washed today too since it was a nice day. It might not be so fun during the winter but I'll always need gas and I've always hated having to stop for gas on the way home from work. The paving company texted me a photo of the driveway this afternoon and it made my day ! I was amazed at how fast they got it done. They will put the top coat on tomorrow so I'm glad I'll be home to inspect the finished product. It'll hurt a little to write that check but it's going to be well worth it ! Next year I'm planning to paint the house and I'd also like to have the garage door replaced.

I don't know what I was thinking, but tonight's workout was quite a challenge after a long day. It was the last of the 12 part Lake Tahoe series (and I haven't done all of the first 11) so naturally it was the most challenging. Lots of incline and 1 minute intervals at 3.2 or 3.3 mph, followed by 1 minute recoveries at 2.6 or 2.8 mph. The last 6 minutes was a steady 3 mph and throughout the workout incline varied but there was a lot of 6 and 8%. I can handle the mid-range incline pretty well but about 30 minutes in I was near my breaking point on an 8% stretch. My back was starting to hurt so I put my hands on the side bars. Right at that moment the incline dropped back down to zero so the hands came off and I made it through to the end with just that one quick touch. I worked up quite a sweat and an appetite .. plus I'm #9 on the leader board for my age group on that workout ! I left work at 5 and never sat down until nearly 7:30. I'm sure that is nothing new for folks with children and other responsibilities ! I did make use of my post-workout energy and threw a load of laundry in while my dinner was heating. Needless to say, its been a full day ! As soon as the clothes are dry I'm heading for a shower and bed.