The Sad Step

This week's blog reading music is Testify by Rage Against the Machine.  This was on in the gym this week and is a perfect heavy bag hitter.

I've had a couple of moments this week that remind me that this whole process is still going well and that's important because I took the weekend off and was very lazy, technically I was being sensible and needed a rest because I was worn out from the gym but I enjoyed being lazy.  So I had this random picture taken of me in the office, totally normal boring photo right?  Well for me to see this photo was pretty cool, being someone who has been overweight their whole life I always hated seeing myself in photos, I knew I didn't look great but seeing myself was always even worse that the mental image I had.  So as a result this was a pleasant surprise, not posed or angled or sucking in the gut or any effort made for appearances but a reasonably healthy looking person in their natural habitat.  Almost didn't recognise me.

 Things like this are important, my guru/spirit animal Kat from 12 Rounds has taken a few ladies from the gym to Thailand on a fitness retreat (yes, I'm jealous) and posted an update the other day about body weight and how getting on the scale is not necessarily the best way to measure our relative success or failure and it's really not, I do use the scale as a general state of where I'm at but there's so many things that can effect it a few lbs either way it's really not something to get hung up on, the amount of sweat that's poured out of me in the gym recently would see my weight bouncing all over the place if I weighed myself before or after working out. Seriously, it's gross.  Stepping on the sad step every morning and not seeing a change in your weight can be depressing, seeing a photo of yourself looking kinda the way you'd like to look or fitting into clothes that were too small is  much more motivating.

4 days off from the gym and my first session back was an
hour spent with these bastards.   Urgh.  Felt great, afterwards

Yeah, BEEFCAKE!

Another non scale related success this week - I sat down to give blood on Monday (you do give blood if you're able, right? Click here if not.) and had the big velcro strap around my upper arm to take blood pressure, "Just make a tight fist for me Daniel" as they always ask and RIIIIIIP!!!  Open comes the velco Incredible Hulk style! WOO HOO!  Now, I'm not actually getting big beefy arms and I don't lift big beefy arm type weights but this definitely never happened before. Purely something only I would notice but a cool thing.  Also a pair of shorts that last year I couldn't fit past my thighs this week fit with space to spare, super satisfying! So these things all made me happy even if the scale's been pretty immobile the last week.  Actually I've probably put on a couple of lbs after my lazy weekend (there was pizza, twice) but screw it, I'm happy, motivated and looking forward to noticing all the small changes I'm making happen, only one of which will be a number on the scale.

Got into making frittata this week. Simple to make in advance
and keeps well for lunchess

Thanks for reading.  Here's a puppy enjoying a massage.

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