Realizations

As I lose weight, I keep finding fun little changes to be amazed about. A few weeks or months go by, and one day I suddenly realize, "Oh hey, my nose is getting smaller!" or "Wow, even my shoes are too big!" One day this week, my realization of the day was that for the first time I can remember, I can now cross my legs comfortably. It is always heartening to have such reminders along the way of the success I am achieving one day at a time. My weight loss has slowed down a bit over the last few weeks, but mostly because I haven't been eating as well or exercising as much as I should.

I did feel like I was failing myself on a few occasions over the last few weeks, like when I gave in and had a binge on cookies, or put off going to the gym again (and again, still haven't been back for about three and a half weeks). But I have to put things in perspective. Considering how stressful school has become, I should be proud of myself for keeping it together as much as I have. If you let yourself, it's easy to get caught up in the idea that if you're not perfect on your diet or with your exercise plan (or whatever goal you are working for), you are a failure. I am not a failure. In spite of less than perfect diet and exercise, I have still continued to lose some weight, just not as much as I did when I was better about both. And sure, there have been a few times when I have been irresponsible about eating in the last few weeks, but I am still keeping track of everything I eat and keeping things under much better control than before I started making changes at the beginning of the year. So no, I'm not perfect, but I should not expect myself to be perfect either. The important thing is that I am moving in the right direction in spite of obstacles.

It's also important that I recognize the obstacles I face and the mistakes I make along the way, because if I'm not learning from my experiences what good is it all? The simple fact that I am monitoring my nutrition and activity level helps me to learn so much more as I go. I feel so much more encouraged today than I did last week or the week before.