Monday, February 26, 2007

Sporty: Finding Balance

A couple years ago I read the book A Fine Balance by Rohinton Mistry. It was wonderfully written and it explored the "fine balance" between despair and hope in the lives of its characters. The concept of "a fine balance" stood out to me because for the past few years I have been struggling with balance.

In college instead of gaining the "freshman 15" I gained the freshman 50!! Despite numerous diets, gym memberships and trainers, by the end of grad school the scale said 215 lbs (a 75lb weight gain). Yikes!!!! After graduation I was determined to "finally" dedicate the the time and effort to beat the scale. Here is the journey thus far:

2000 - Lost 15 pounds/ Gained 20 lbs
2001 - Lost / Gained
2002 - Lost / Gained
2003 - Lost 30 lbs
2004 - Gained 40 lbs
2005 - Lost 50 lbs
2006 - Gained 60 lbs
2007 - Lost 1.8 lbs

As you can see I haven't yet struck that "fine balance". Looking at this pattern I feel the scale tipping to the side of despair ...I've tried and failed many times, I'll never beat the scale, the odds are against me, even if I got to goal (lose 120 lbs) I'll just gain it all back... I could go on and on with negative thoughts but then I remember that the weight loss journey is made up of gains and losses. Time for a new way of thinking.

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