I ran across an old weight watcher booklet. It reminded me that when I began #myforeverjourney in April of 2015, I had a goal to lose 40 pounds by my 40th birthday. That booklet was fun to look at, as it showed my progress from my first weigh in on April 8, 2015 to August 15, 2015 which is my actual birthday. It showed I had lost 47.4 pounds and it felt so good just reminiscing those triumphs! I've now had 3 birthdays while working on becoming a better version of myself. And do you know what that means? It means I haven't died yet. And do you know why I haven't died yet? Because I'm not on a DIEt. Things have changed. I eat differently than I use to. Just recently, for fun, I figured out the smart points for the meal I would eat when I went to a local and favorite fast food joint. Should I tell you? Will you still be my friend if you know just how disgusting I was? One meal, the meal I would choose, was 80 smart points. I'm eye rolling SOOOOO hard right now. SO GROSS!!! And that's not the worse part. I'd then hit up a local ice cream joint for a cookies and cream or peanut butter/oreo shake to take home. Those range from 27-40 smart points depending on the size. I'm proud to say I would get the small, so I was ONLY taking in an additonal 27 points. But do the math. 107 points for ONE meal. I bet I was EASILY taking in 130 points on some days. Just thinking about that gives me the pee shivers. Yep. I'm grateful for that "easy" hike I went on during that spring break in Southern Utah in 2015. And had the "easy" hike actually BEEN easy, I may not have ever walked through the doors of my local WW. I'm glad it wasn't. I like the feel good on the inside and feel good on the outside feels I feel. Feel me?
So yes, things have changed in the last few years. And I'm happy that I've been able to have more birthdays. I was doing things to my body that probably made it think I didn't want many more birthdays by the way I treated it. Birthdays are good for you. In fact, Statistics show that the people who have the most...live the longest. :)
What does 42 have in store for me? I dunno. I mean, I'm 42 and I:
- LOVE my onsie fuzzy pajamas
- still bite by fingernails
- am terrifed of thunder and lightening
- want my mommy when I'm sick
- love good luck charlie on the disney channel
- am afraid of the dark and need my closet door closed each night
- spend way to much time on social media
- stay up too late
- drink too much soda
- have stuffed animals
- get excited for Christmas
- build snowmen
- run through the sprinklers
- splash in the puddles
- am darn proud of my accomplishments!
Being proud of your accomplishments is ok. Everyone tends to be a little afraid of being proud of themselves. I say go for it. You earned it! Humility is great but humility doesn't mean you need to be found putting yourself down. I wish more would talk about the great things they've done. I want to celebrate your success. Have you ever seen a child build something with legos, or create a play dough masterpiece and then tell you, "Oh, it's just okay." NOPE! They are excited about it and excited for you to know about it. Between my above list and my desire to share my accomplishments with the world wide web, I guess I'm child like. Maybe childish. Maybe childlikeish. I dunno. I don't care. Yup. Must be childlikeish.
Wherever you are on your journey, don't be afraid to let people cheer you on. I'm great with a pair of pom poms. I just can't cartwheel. Perhaps I have something to work on before my 43rd birthday.
Remember---"A million likes will never be enough if you don't like yourself."
