Moving The Glacier

Hubbard Glacier

Sometime in April or May I hit bottom- or maybe I should say top- with my weight. I was painfully aware long before I actually decided to do something about it though. My feet hurt when standing, my hips hurt when lying down, my back hurt all the time, sitting, standing or lying. I was lumbering. Those of you who know me- have known me for many years know that I used to be a fast walker, and some of you might even remember when I could run. Now I was lumbering.

I hadn’t weighed myself in many months because I didn’t want to see the truth. Obesity. I knew it; I just didn’t want to see it. Then one day, I felt sick. I was scared that maybe I was becoming diabetic and with no insurance, I realized the only thing I could do was try to change the way I eat and start getting some exercise. My main goal- amazingly unselfish of me – was to stay alive for my son. Oh sure, me too, but mostly him, because he already lost one parent and I saw the toll that took on him. I wouldn’t do that to him if I could do anything to prevent it. And I was hoping I could.

I have been to Jenny Craig before with good results, so I picked up the phone and made an appointment. I had not forgotten how much I hate the appointments though. I hate being asked how my week was. I hate being asked if I got any exercise. I hate being asked about things that make me overeat. I hate the pop psychology of it all. I made the appointment anyway.

I weighed in. 197. Well, I told myself, at least it wasn’t 200. I bought my food and started my diet.

I knew that I had to start walking more and faster. I already walked a mile a day- most days. Now, I had to step it up. I started coming home for lunch and walking a mile at lunch and a mile after work if I had an ounce of energy left to do anything.
On weekends, I try to take a longer walk or a nice hike in open space. A couple of times I walked so far the dog had to rest. Once I walked too far and got the shakes and I thought of how mad I would be if I were one of those people that dropped dead getting some fresh air and exercise. (Remember to hydrate my Marine son would say.)

Losing weight in your 60s is not like losing weight in your 40s or 50s, which was hard enough. Losing weight in your 60s is like trying to move a massive glacier with a snowplow. It’s not easy, it’s not fun, and sometimes it’s downright depressing.

Eventually though, people start to notice, your baggy pants, your thinner face, your increased energy and that gives you the little push you need to get through the next plateau. And plateaus are aplenty.

I stopped going to Jenny Craig after two months. Mostly because I couldn’t afford it. Partly because I really am annoyed by the same questions every week. I have a stressful job; sometimes it makes me want to eat the universe. I do the best I can. I push myself to make smarter food choices- but once in a while, I am going to have a box of Good & Plenty. Trust me Jenny Craig- I won’t blame you for my failure.

On June 27th, I downloaded an app called Runtastic. Runtastic let me keep track of my miles and calories burned. It shows a map of my walk, and gives me my miles per hour. You can upload your session to Facebook and your friends can see you are moving. You are trying. You are on a mission.

Since June 27^th, I have walked 46 times, a distance of 68.29 miles (todays walk yet to be) and I burned 7713 calories. Now the thing about calories is that you keep burning them all day long, so 7713 is only what I have burned during my walks. I like being able to see my progress and eventually upgraded my Runtastic app to the paid version. That is all the psychology I need- evidence that I have pushed myself yet one more day.

Today I weighed in at 180. 17 pounds. Picture 17 pounds of butter. That is how much fat I have lost. Still I have a way to go. At least another 20 pounds. I don’t expect to ever be skinny. I’ll be happy with healthy and clothes that fit.  Finally- I can buy some pants without an elastic waist!