A Complete Fresh Start

  Monday September 30, 2024 Here is the link to my original  Day 44 .  It was  Saturday February 16, 2019. My headline that day was "Strength Through Disappointment". I was disappointed to only lose 1.4 pounds. My weight was 278.6 pounds. The scale has been waffling back and forth between 279 and 280 the past couple of days and I'm not sure why I'm not showing a loss. I stopped eating all the junk I had been eating and although I'm not gaining, I don't appear to be losing. It's frustrating but I know it will happen. I also know that consistent exercise is going to help, so I'm going to keep doing what I'm doing. I may just be weighing myself at different times and your weight does fluctuate. I also had my nightgown on today. I'll need to stop weighing myself every day if it starts to impact my motivation. I titled today's blog "Past Me and Present Me" because the journeys have intersected. Before I even reviewed my past Day 44 blo...

  Sunday September 29, 2024 Here is the link to my original  Day 43 .  It was  Friday February 15, 2019. My headline that day was "Peace Is A Journey". I was feeling pretty peaceful at that time and I'm starting to reach that point today. I'm beginning to accept that I may not find a job and retirement may be my only alternative. Although I'm not ready to be retired, I am financially secure enough to get through the next couple of years before Medicare kicks in. That is a big relief and not something most 62 year old single people can say. I got up around 9 am today and only had the new mama cat waiting for me outside. Much later the friendly young male showed up, but the other mama and the younger male were nowhere to be seen. Hopefully that means someone else is feeding them ! Minnie seems to be doing better now that she is eating mostly wet food. I will never leave her alone overnight again. She's fine if I'm out for the day or for a few hours, but that...

  Saturday September 28, 2024 Here is the link to my original  Day 42 .  It was  Thursday February 14, 2019. My headline that day was "Love Yourself". It was Valentine's Day and I was alone. There was a foot of snow on the ground and more coming done, so I had taken a vacation day. It appears I started doing the Hauru Beach Walk with John Peel that day. This is where I started doing the same workout every day until it became easy. I scheduled a workout from part 2 of Road to Recovery and the beach walk for today. My plan is to do the beach walk every day, just like I did in the beginning. It has 2.8 mph intervals, which is a big step up for me right now.  After the beach walk I stepped up to the Atlas Mountains walk with Tommy Rivs. That was a big step for me, because I don't like beards and he had a thick one. He still does but you can't help but love him, even with the beard. It's also a much longer workout at 32 minutes. There is some incline but it's n...

  Friday September 27, 2024 Here is the link to my original  Day 41 .  It was  Wednesday February 13, 2019. My headline that day was "Just Believe". It was cold winter day and I was struggling to get into an exercise routine. I stated I would be happy with exercising 3-5 days per week. At that time I was still going to the office every day and arrived home just before 6 pm each day. That didn't leave much time to do anything in the evening. Today I don't have that excuse. I'm here all day and could be exercising 4 times a day ! Today I will make more of an effort to get at least 2 workouts in. My original day 41 made me a little nostalgic for one of my favorite lunch items .. the chicken fajita melt. It was so good and I used to put a little salsa on it. They discontinued it a few years ago but I still check once in a while to see if it's back. I was awake around 8 but didn't get up until after 9 - I need to stop doing that. I really want to get up earlier...

  Thursday September 26, 2024 Here is the link to my original  Day 40 .  It was  Tuesday February 12, 2019. My headline that day was "Baby Steps". I had taken a vacation day due to a forecast winter storm and it seemed like I was very upbeat. I working my way back toward feeling positive, but it's hard when you keep getting disappointed in the job search. I guess I have to work on not getting my hopes up whenever I have an interview. Maybe I need to go into any interview with zero hope of getting the job. I do feel like the company I interviewed with on Tuesday really wants to hire me, so who knows. People leave jobs all the time, so if someone quits on them they might look me up. I slept in this morning since I was up and awake longer than usual. I was home from rock & roll bingo by 10 but I wasn't tired. I went to bed after midnight and scrolled my phone in bed. I also ate about half a bag of pretzels. It is what it is. I got up just after 9 and fed all the cat...

  Wednesday September 25, 2024 Here is the link to my original  Day 39 .  It was  Monday February 11, 2019. My headline that day was "Nothing Is Impossible", which is perfect for today. There was nothing remarkable about the day, other than the fact that I forgot my breakfast entree. I'm still incredibly disappointed by the outcome of yesterday's interview, but I found a couple jobs on LinkedIn that I'm going to apply for. I will keep trying ! I've got a little bit of momentum going and I can't let the job search become an excuse or allow it to get in my way. Losing the weight will increase my confidence and perhaps make people more interested in hiring me. I will make a decision about my financial status in January. If I haven't found a job I will likely apply for unemployment and start collecting my pension. I may also start collecting social security. I'll chat with my financial advisor when the time comes. I got up just after 8 am and there wer...

  Tuesday September 24, 2024 Here is the link to my original  Day 38 .  It was  Sunday February 10, 2019. My headline that day was "Keep Moving". I found the book for the treadmill, activated my iFit account and did my first workout ! I only lasted 8m8s, but it was a start ! For once, I am ahead of the curve in this new journey ! I was optimistic for the future at that time and I stated that my career was still up in the air. However, I believe I actually knew that I was not losing my job. I suppose I just couldn't talk about it. I got up just after 8 am and there were 6 strays waiting for me this morning. The new mama seems to have recovered well from giving birth. It appears the orange/white female is also pregnant so more kittens are on the horizon. I'd really like to get these girls spayed but right now it's more than I can manage, so I'll just keep feeding them. Breakfast was a 270 calorie breakfast sandwich. Morning snack was a 155 calorie vanilla shake ...

  Monday September 23, 2024 Here is the link to my original  Day 37 .  It was  Saturday February 9, 2019. My headline that day was "Good Intentions". I was trying to get motivated to use the treadmill but I couldn't find the instructions for it, so I gave up. I was happy to have lost 24 pounds, which is right where I am now. I still find it so strange that this new journey and my original journey have collided on the same day. I still think this a good sign ! I've decided to put the Total Gym away for now. I used it for a short time last night and I'm just not at a place where it can be effective. Bottom line: I'm too fat. When I fed the stray cats this morning my pregnant mama was not there. She turned up later and had clearly had her kittens ! She no longer looked like a watermelon and I noticed a little blood stain near her tail. Hopefully her little ones are doing well. I'm tempted to go see if they're in the little house I put out there, but I don...

  Sunday September 22, 2024  Here is the link to my original  Day 36 .  It was  Friday February 8, 2019. My headline that day was "Follow Your Heart". It was a weigh in day and I had lost 24 pounds, so I was at 280. I weighed myself this morning and I am at 280 !!! Is this a sign ? I honestly didn't expect to see 280 this morning. I've been feeling pretty hopeless because I hadn't been able to buckle down and put in the effort required to get the weight back off. I was sabotaging myself every time I went to the grocery store. I'd tell myself I'd use moderation with things like candy and ice cream, but I know better. I've never been able to do that. I did pee a lot yesterday so I'm sure this is water loss, which is normal when you begin a diet program. The water loss gives you a little lift and helps motivate you to keep going. Past and present collided today and maybe I am once again right where I need to be. In the original blog I had decided to s...