Keep Well and Carry On

2.13
I've shared on this blog before that my weight topped out around 220 back in the late 90's. Now my normal weight is about 155, give or take a few pounds. That's a big difference... I've carried 50 and 60 pound bags of stuff, and it's really tough to go for very long, much less a whole day or a whole year! And yet, I chose to carry that weight daily, and tolerate it in everything I did.

I have been reminded of this extra baggage lately, as I'm training for a half marathon coming up in April. I bought some 15 pound and 5 pound dumbbells and have added them to my workouts. Now I do flights of stairs with the extra 30 pounds, and I do my cardio / aerobic portions with the 5 pounders (maybe I'll size up... we'll see). The point is to work on my endurance and stamina with the extra weight so when I put it down and run for time or distance, my body has gained valuable strength for that longer, broader based exertion.

Interestingly, that extra 30 pounds gets me back up around 185, which was my target weight for years, prior to 2012. I figured it was a BMI of around 25, and that was good enough to keep me out of the overweight categories on the charts, so that became my number. Now, I can't imagine carrying that additional weight with me all day, every day, everywhere I go... how exhausting!

And it's not that shedding weight and keeping it off is easy because it's not. I still love to eat, it's just that now I eat really great, whole foods (with little to no wheat and dairy) which are filling and nutritious, so my body rewards me by maintaining a very appropriate weight.

If you're struggling with extra pounds, I get it... my struggle was decades, and maybe yours has been as well. The good news is that there is hope and help available through power pantry choices. Today is a new day, and you can push the reset button anytime to begin living out a healthy wellness lifestyle.

By the Way

The coolest thing about dumbbells is that I can choose to pick up those thirty pounds any time I want... and I get to put them right back down as well.