Your Reason Why

Your reason why. 

Probably one of the most challenging things for me has been maintaining a healthy weight. I was very fortunate that for the first forty years of my life this was really a nonissue. It seemed that my diet of Cheetos, Ruffles Potato Chips, and Oreos had little effect on my weight. 

So around forty for the first time in my life I found myself at a Weight Watchers meeting thirty pounds heavier. Three months later I walked out the door at my goal weight. I wish I could say that the weight comes off as easily today, but unfortunately that doesn't seem to be the case. 

Over that twenty year time span I found myself returning time and time again back to Weight Watchers to lose those same twenty or thirty pounds. Sometimes it was easier than others, sometimes I was more motivated than others, but either way I was always glad that I returned. 

I learned a lot about myself over those years. I learned that losing weight was always much easier for me than maintaining it. I never found myself cheating, and could count on some type of weight loss each week. I learned that I was more successful if I just abstained from something over having it in moderation. Get me started on a bowl of chips at a Mexican restaurant, and you might as well forget about it. On the other hand, I could be perfectly content drinking my tea, and never eating even one while I waited for my meal. 

I also learned more about my all or nothing personality style. Once I went on a cruise, and came back four pounds heavier. Rather than getting right back on the program immediately, I pouted and sulked about my minimal weight gain, and didn't return until I was twenty pounds heavier. Fortunately, I learned the error of my "weighs" and have learned not to be so hard on myself. 

What I'm finding now as I've entered the sixth decade of my life is that my why has changed since I first graced Weight Watcher's door. Back then it was all about my looks. I found myself so unhappy in what I was viewing in the mirror I knew that I had to do something. As the pounds dropped my self-esteem soared, and there was a spring in my step as I embraced my new lighter body. 

Now this alone is not a bad reason to lose weight. However, as I became older, and especially this last time I found myself for the first time feeling "old." Things actually hurt, and I had very little energy. My face looked puffy, and ten years older. Okay, maybe not ten, but it was beyond the few wrinkles that had begun to show. 

I also found myself thinking more about my golden years, and how I wanted to spend them. All those times of visiting my father in Memory Care made me start thinking about whether I had any control over how I would age? Listening to friends talk about chronic illnesses that had come along with age made me wonder if I could prevent any of this? 

As I tend to do I began learning more about how diet and activity can really effect the aging process. I found myself back at Weight Watchers, and began the extremely SLOW process of losing weight. My journey began in April, and in that five month period I have only lost fourteen pounds. Now of course, this is fourteen pounds less than where I was before so I am not really complaining. 

What I am doing is accepting the fact that at my age the weight does come off more slowly, but guess what it DOES come off. So my why this time had more to do with my health than just my looks. Except, when I look in the mirror I'm seeing a much younger me. More than anything, I feel SO much better. My energy has returned, nothing is hurting, and I am thoroughly enjoying exploring all the amazingly delicious food options available to me that promote my health. 

I am convinced that what we eat plays a huge role in how we feel, and that by asking yourself about your why might just be the first step to getting started. I also know that you will stumble along the way, and that is okay. Find a program or eating style that works for you, and begin having a say in how you will approach aging. 

I still have a lot more to learn, and there are still areas in which I can improve, but in knowing my why I don't find myself discouraged. On those days I find myself losing motivation, I just allow myself some time, and then continue taking the next step. Hopefully, you can identify your why, and start moving towards it. The results are more than worth it, and if there is anything I can do to help or encourage you please let me know.