I am not a person who enjoys exercise.
I have never been a person who thought exercise was fun.
I don't recall ever running in my life unless it was away from something - like a bee. Or a snake. I remember jumping up onto the bed one time when I saw a mouse.
So, obviously, I was not what you could call an athletic child. Did it matter to me if I didn't get chosen to be on a team. Pfft. Not in the least. I could sit and watch. Or daydream. Or read (surprise!).
Even without exercise, I was the skinniest kid you've ever seen. Pitiful.
My parents fretted about my weight, and my mom asked our family doctor, Dr. Wolf, what to do to "put some meat on those bones" of mine. His first answer was not to worry about it, but because she just couldn't let it go, he suggested a couple of things. Black Strap Molasses. Yum. One of my favorite things is still buttered toast and molasses. The other thing he recommended was milkshakes. So my dad would stop at the Dairy Queen on Sunburst Highway every day on his way home from work and bring home a milkshake. A big one. Yum. Needless to say, I'm still a big fan of milkshakes.
Problem is the word big.
I seem to be getting bigger by the minute.
Since I stayed so skinny as a child, and never had to watch my weight until fairly recently, I never learned how to enjoy exercise. Join a gym?! yech. And I never really learned how to count calories either. Carbs? SO over my head.
I was blessed with the fact that if I wanted to sit down with a pack of Oreos and a huge glass of milk, I could do it and never give it a thought.
Spaghetti? Sure! Give me a second helping, please and another piece of that garlic bread. Yum.
Well, things change.
When I was in my 40's my mom and I decided we needed to drop a few pounds. So we joined Jenny Craig, and we did lose the weight we wanted to. And I kept that weight off for a few years I'm happy to say. But I was right back to eating whatever I wanted, whenever I wanted.
When we moved to Boone I started losing weight. It was a combination of things. I was excited about our move. I was nervous about our move. It had been a stressful few months with Donald being in Boone while I stayed in Georgia trying to sell the house. My reaction to all this was the opposite of most peoples'. Instead of eating, I seemed to just lose my appetite.
Then when I finally got to Boone and we moved into our new house, I was spending my days moving and unpacking boxes. Moving furniture around. And just forgetting to eat. Then one day I went to see my Mom and she made a comment about how skinny I had gotten. I was surprised, 'cause I honestly hadn't noticed. But when I got home I got on the scales.
Whoa.
I had gotten skinny. Too skinny.
I knew immediately, of course, that I was deathly ill. Terminal. (Donald says I read too many books). So without saying a word to anyone, I just started sneaking into town every day while Donald was at work and buying myself a milkshake. A big one.
Well, of course - I'm still here - no terminal illness. But no more milkshakes either.
Waaahhhhhh.
Since then, I've joined Jenny Craig again. I've gone to Weight Watchers. And I've lost the same 10 pounds about a hundred times. But now I need to lose more like 15 pounds.
So, I've stopped with the Oreos (again), and haven't had spaghetti in Lord knows when. Chicken. We eat a lot of chicken. Plain chicken. Grilled on our George Foreman grill. Yogurt. I eat a lot of yogurt. I can't even talk about how boring my diet is. Am I losing a pound? No.
So I've started walking.
This has turned into a good thing, something I'm enjoying a lot.
We have a creek that runs around two sides of our property. It's pretty and it sounds pretty. We have a big ol' pond and it's pretty too. All this prettiness makes for nice walks.
Harley romps around with me when I take my walks.
Harley enjoys them, I enjoy them and do one good walk every single day and most days, two.
Have I lost any weight.
no.
Not an ounce.
I just keep getting rounder and rounder.
Is a gym in my future? oh jeeeeez . . . .
I guess I'm going to eat my words AGAIN. You have no idea how many times I've said how much I hated gyms and exercise classes.
(maybe that's where all this weight is coming from. Continually eating my words. You think?!).
But do, please, say congratulations to Harley.
He's lost one pound.
13 comments:
Elk Knob State Park is just around the corner. A beautiful place to walk and enjoy nature. Just ask Bumble. She and Harley should take a walk together.
Congratulations, Harley!
Kaye - I feel your pain. Truly. I was the third kid in my grammar school to break 100 pounds, and while there have been times in my life when I have been, er, less overweight than others, I've never quite fallen into the "normal weight" category.
I'd offer a helpful suggestion, but I don't believe I qualify as an expert. Drink your 8 glasses of water (or whatever they're saying is the correct amount these days) and keep enjoying your walks with Harley. If nothing else, you're keeping him svelte!
Dear Kaye. I am the QUEEN of gaining weight. All I had to do was READ about YOUR spaghetti, and I gained four pounds.
Maybe you and I can start an online exercise challenge or something. All I know is the scale is not my friend, and neither is the mirror. Once we all got along.
Just keep walking. It's safe and enjoyable. You're beautiful, by the way.
xoxox
Jill - They should! Let's give that a try soon, what say?!
Jonathan - It IS a pain, isn't it?
You know - I have not been doing that water thing. I just forget. Great idea and I appreciate you suggesting it. I'm going to make sure that's part of my daily habit from now on.
I tried to drink 8 glasses of water a day when I was working. Without going into a lot of detail - suffice to say, the loo was a bit of a stroll from my office.
Julia - I'm beginning to feel the same way!! I've pretty much stopped doing all the baking I once was (and miss it!). But these days, all I have to do is pick up my little Pound Cake Cookbook by Bibb Jordan and my jeans are too tight.
If life were fair we wouldn't have to worry about calories and "stuff."
Julie - Thank you.
You know - you are absolutely right. The safeness really does need to stay in the forefront of consideration, doesn't it?!
And, frankly, as we get older (I do forget I'm 62 years old), it's more of a consideration than it once was.
Fad diets can be dangerous, and so can the wrong type of exercise. I'm going to continue the walking, and try to increase it in small increments. And add my water like Jonathan suggested. If things don't improve, I'll decide what's next, but with a little professional guidance, I think.
"Eating my words" is my new excuse! Why had I never thought of such?!
Well, Kaye, unless you do an awesome Photoshop job on your pictures I'd say you are looking fabulous. But I think you're smart to "get yourself in hand" when it's ten pounds or so before it becomes really daunting. Unfortunately, I have to take myself and my ten pounds in hand virtually every spring. Good luck!
I was a skinny kid on the milkshake a day regimen too -- alas, got over that long long and many pounds ago.
Even if walking doesn't help you lose weight, you'll be healthier for it, I suspect.
But Kay, darling -- you've got a LOOONG way to go before you're chubby.
I was a skinny kid on the milkshake a day regimen too -- alas, got over that long long and many pounds ago.
Even if walking doesn't help you lose weight, you'll be healthier for it, I suspect.
But Kay, darling -- you've got a LOOONG way to go before you're chubby.
Kaye, we truly were sisters in some past life. I, too, hate exercise in all forms. I have an ex-boyfriend from my 20s, now a friend, who hold the distinction of being the only person to ever see me run--briefly. I didn't break 100 lbs until I was 28 years old.
Boy, are those days gone! I married, gained weight; divorced, gained weight; joined WW, lost 71 lbs; got tired of depriving myself; gained more weight than I'd lost and that's where I am now.
Unfortunately, because of hip and disk problems in my back, doing much walking isn't an option for me. So I try to eat mindfully, drink water, stay healthy, and accept that what is, is, and just be grateful for each and every day.
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