Milestones…
Marian May 30th, 2010
This has been a week of chalking hings off of the “Bucket List”.
Let me preface by saying.. A year ago, I began a personal journey. I was looking at a milestone birthday, and the fact that I also have a disabled child that would more than likely be with me for the rest of my life. I was also at the heaviest weight I had ever been. So, I made a decision that something had to be done, and I was the one that had to do it…
I joined a brand new gym, started watching the food I ate. Now, mind you, I didn’t not eat certain foods, I simply began watching my portions. I did everything I could to to make it as fun as possible, and made it to the gym 6 days a week at first. I walked around my neighborhood at first to kick start my cardio routine to get used to working out.
Now, the other thing is to say, I began my journey at Thanksgiving and went through the Christmas Holidays… But, by New Years I had lost 11 lbs. By June I had lost about 30+ lbs. In January of 2010, I had lost 65 lbs.
The Reward
During the summer 2009, after a lot of physical therapy for injuries related to my workouts, and my determination not to stop what I was doing, I started riding my bike. We live in an area that also has a State Park with a great system of trails and roads all around us, all suitable for cycling. So, at first I would just start riding a few miles here and there. Eventually that increased to 12 & 15 and eventually 20+ mile rides.
This week, I reached a milestone in and ticked something off of my “Bucket List” that I have wanted to do for several months. I rode down our mountain with a friend and then made the return back up the mountain. 5 miles, all up hill… I had one place where I had to stop, and walk for about 5 minutes, just to catch my breath… But, that done, I got back on and rode the rest of the way up… The picture at the right was the reward once I reached the top of the mountain and the Scenic Overlook in Monte Sano State Park.
Since my last post I have undertaken some changes! For the past several years, I have have had a variety of problems with my feet, which has curtailed a lot of my activity. But, last Autumn, I had a catharsis! Time to make a change. As I approach the half century mark in my life, and look to the future with a challenged child, I decided I need to do a little maintenance on myself! I also knew that I would need to learn to work through the pain in my feet. Some days are better than others, and some are really great! But, this whole process is 90% mental!
In September, I saw that a new gym was opening near my son’s school.. So, I waited, though September, then October. In October, before the gym was even open, I joined. I waited a while longer and just before Thanksgiving it finally opened! 
