Old and New

I've had a bit of a struggle over the last couple of months with my weight loss program. I seem to have hit a plateau that I can't break, and I was starting to feel like all my efforts were basically for nothing. I started wondering if I wouldn't just rather go back to the way things had been when I could eat whatever I want and didn't have to worry about finding time for the gym. I know I wrote about the gym being my happy place, and that is definitely true, but with having to get up at 4:45 three days a week, I find myself wanting sleep much more than I want to go to the gym. So I've been considering throwing in the towel. Then I found something that changed my mind completely; some old pictures. On the left you will see a picture of me taken this Christmas. On the right, a picture of me Christmas a year ago. Pictures of me over the last several years are pretty rare. Even if I am in them, I tend to be in the background. I hated how I looked. I avoided the camera whenever I could. That is no longer the case. I actually sort of like having my picture taken now. I know I still have a long way to go, but just seeing the difference of the last year gives me all the motivation I need to get my tennis shoes on and hit the gym. I don't need that piece of cake over there. I certainly will NOT eat that pan of brownies. I'm not going back to that ever again. And just in case you need more evidence of the change, let me add a couple other before and after pictures. I'm not trying to tell anyone what they should be doing, I'm writing this as a reminder to myself of just how far I've come so that on those bad days, I can remind myself of just what I have accomplished already.