A Thorn in My Flesh

Here I am again, starting over with a journey that it seems I've been on for centuries. That is hyperbole of course, but so is life when your struggle is what you put in your mouth and how that manifests in your body. My weight gain journey started at puberty. As my body developed, my weight grew and has grown since that day. Hooray for hormones! I've lost significant weight before, but for some reason, this time it is harder for me.. not the physical part so much as the mental and emotional gumption to get started and stay going.

I cognitively understand that my body is suffering. There are little pings and pangs that let me know my weight is adversely affecting my health. I've seen me not getting past my sixties on my current course and that is not what I want for my life. That is not what I want for myself. I've also seen me well into my eighties healthy and active and in cute hot pink jogging suits being sassy and fit. I have a choice. I know this, I could live either life. Option 1 requires no additional work, just keep going as I am going and my life is over in a little over twenty years. Option 2 with hard work is also available, another 40 to 50 quality years available to do great things if I commit to it.

So that's where we are today, limping towards a new opportunity at bringing my health into focus. Here's what will need to happen:

A. I need a medical partner:

I am going back to my home town of Houston, TX in about three weeks, but before I leave, I'll see my Dr. here one last time and have a conversation about my current state of health. I have High Blood Pressure and I've been flirting with diabetes. I have not said that second part out loud. I have one kidney, that's serious. I know, don't yell at me, I know.. I know.

B. I need to see a psychiatric professional:

That can be pricey, but I have an EAP program with my current employer, maybe I can see someone before I leave. If not, my new employer has the same, either way, within 30-60 days I will see a psychiatric professional.

C. I need a plan:

This plan is for working out and for diet. For the most part I know what needs to be done here. But I'm going to get more specific. I get bored with routine, so the challenge for me is always consistency or finding enough variety in consistency to fool my body into believing we're being different. Maybe whomever I talk to it part B will help me work through this also.

D. I want a coach:

I have a coach at school and it really helps me stay on task. I want to find a wellness coach. We'll make this a 60-90 day goal. We may include a personal training in this later. I don't know. I guess if I'm assembling a team, then this will be a necessity, especially when I start working on building muscle. My initial goal is just to get moving.

So that's the initial stage one plan. I'm hoping that transparency will keep me on point since keeping it to myself hasn't been successful, we'll see how that goes.

Blessings!

KT