One year ago today I walked the very first 5K of my life, the BL Dallas 5K. It’s so hard to even imagine where I would be today had I not done that. I suspect that I would still be sitting in my apartment alone “wishing” I could lose weight and be healthier but doing absolutely nothing about it. I also imagine had Christy and Bev not been so psyched to go with me I may not have even gone at all. But I’m so very glad I did. I remember hearing about it on the radio and thinking, “I have to get there…” I had no idea what was in store for me. What an amazing gift God blessed me with that day. What an awesome, once in a life time opportunity that changed my attitude and my world for the better and set in motion a lifestyle change that was GREATLY needed. I reflect on this year and am so grateful for the many blessings that have come into my life and for the trials and hardships along the way that have made it all even sweeter and more appreciated.
A year ago today I was 65 lbs heavier, 2 dress sizes / pant sizes bigger, 3 shirt sizes bigger, depressed, sad and eating my way into an early grave. A year ago today I had high blood pressure and was on the fast tract to type 2 diabetes. Thank God I got my wake up call and have been able to lower my blood pressure and significantly reduce my risk of diabetes. You would think with all the heart disease and diabetes in my family I would have never allowed myself to get that way. YOU WOULD THINK that losing my mother at the very young age of 56 to diabetes and a massive stroke would have been a wake up call. YOU WOULD THINK that 18 months later, losing her baby sister at the even younger age of 42 to diabetes and a massive heart attack would have been opened my eyes. YOU WOULD THINK that watching your father have a quadruple by-pass, 3 pacemaker surgeries and almost lose both his feet to diabetic ulcers would have been enough to scare me into a lifestyle of health and wellness and make me do all I could possibly do to have a healthy heart and do everything in my power to ward off diabetes and high blood pressure. For whatever reason it all wasn’t enough for me to actually make any changes to my life – I blindly and willingly allowed myself to just simply and passively exist – I was allowing life to pass me by and not doing one single thing in my power to improve my situation. Oh I “wanted” to change – I "wanted" better things for my life, but wasn’t at all willing to make any sacrifices or do any of the hard work it takes to really make it happen. The death of my mother and of my Aunt only left a gaping hole in my heart that I tried desperately to fill with nothing but solitude and food. I know I’ve talked about all of this in past posts and I will continue to say it again and again and again - the saddest part about all of this was that like Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz I always had the power within me to make all of this happen. I just never realized it. Thank you Lord, for opening my eyes and my heart to the positive change I so desperately needed. Had I not gone to the Dallas 5K, had I not met O’Neal and Sunshine and Allison and all the amazing contestants and wonderful people there that day, I would have never had that moment where the Biggest Loser went from being a TV show I loved to my very own personal reality.
I share all of this again today to not only remind myself where I’ve been and where I’m going, but to also to hopefully encourage someone else in some way. I share with you my thoughts, my ups and my downs to hopefully help you realize that YOU have the power within you right at this very moment to improve their health and improve their life far beyond what you could ever comprehend. You may feel like your situation is hopeless or not worth it, but you are so very wrong. You are worth it and no matter how bleak it all may seem it is not hopeless. I hope you search yourself and find within you the strength to fight for your health and wellness. It doesn’t matter if you have 5 pounds to lose or 500. It doesn't matter if you are as healthy as a horse or sick as a dog. You are worth the fight and I know you CAN do anything you set your mind to! You are far more capable than you ever imagined and I know this because I am doing it and if I can do it you can do it too.
I haven’t walked or biked more than 2 miles since I tore my calf muscle. Today I will go to the gym (since it’s still pretty cold outside) and I will walk another 5K. I will take each step acknowledging how far I’ve come and complete those 3.2 miles knowing that I can do anything I set my mind to. I’ll do it today and I’ll continue to do it everyday until I reach my goal weight because in the end it’s all up to me and all the warm, fuzzy feelings in the world won’t melt off the rest of this weight. Only sweat and hard work will shed it and I’m ready to continue on that journey and make it happen.
