My Inner Fighter Has Returned

I saw a second doctor yesterday about my back.  Unfortunately, it was the same outcome.  I am not sure if I am just more accepting since I have had time process it all or if I just trust this doctor more than the last.  This doctor did explain further that I have what is called a “fake joint”.  Regardless, the news isn’t changing and so I now need to learn how to manage my pain without losing the active part of my life I enjoy.

I have seen this doctor before in 2001 when I broke my foot.  Dr. Naeve looks older, as I am sure do I.  It was good to see him and his he still has his great sense of humor.  I shared with him my weight loss and that I have maintained my loss for almost five years now.  I got a bit emotional when I talked about missing the active part of my life and that is the reason the first doctor’s news hit me hard.  The first doctor made me feel like I couldn’t resume my exercise classes at the gym.  Dr. Naeve said I could still be active but to just use common sense.  If it hurts, stop doing it!

He was impressed with my weight loss and the amount of time I have been maintaining.  I wanted to explain further that I am currently over my goal weight right now.  I remember feeling this why after my first year of maintenance.  At that time I was blow goal by 10 pounds and eventually gained so I was back at goal.  But, in either case, I am still a success story. 

 

Sure, I am having a bit of a struggle right now and I am trying to keep my weight from creeping further up.  This doesn’t mean I am any less of a success or that maintaining most of my 130 pounds lost is something negative.  And it isn’t something that needs to be explained!  I have been maintaining for almost five years, period.

When I had my interview with Heather at Half Size Me we discussed my re-gain of 10 pounds.  She said that statistics show you are successful at weight loss if you have lost at least 10% of your body weight and kept that weight off for one year.  She also stressed the importance of not needing to explain.

I am an open book.  I will always be up front and honest with anybody that wants to know about my weight loss journey.  I am not shameful that right now I am over my goal weight or that I had to pay to attend my last WW meeting.  I also don’t have to tell everybody I meet my whole life story!

If you are struggling with having to pay for being over your goal weight, please remember that it is just a number.  We are not less-than for being over our goal weight.  We are also not less-than for gaining some weight back.  We can only do the best we can for TODAY. 

I do believe my inner fighter has come back out.  I went to the Y yesterday afternoon to do my PT at home moves and also try out my plan of walking the track in between the moves to log some miles for my 10 week challenge.  I walked 3 miles and completed all my PT moves in one hour.  I also earned 5 APs.  This is just as good as an hour workout class at the gym.  So that makes me very happy!  I have my plan set up where I walk a total of 12 times and since 12 laps equals one mile I can walk however many miles I want just by increasing the number of laps each time.  It feels good to be active again.

The doctor thinks I will improve so that makes me feel really positive as well.  I broke up with my PT yesterday.  The doctor said a PT is like a teacher.  He said they are there to teach you what to do at home.  He says if after 10 visits I am still going then perhaps I am a slow learner (see what I mean about a sense of humor!).  So I will no longer be going to PT but just doing the moves at the gym.

Thanks for all your words of encouragement during these last eight weeks.  It has been tough but I will persevere.

“To some degree we all live with uncertainty. We have no control over the future. Yet we carry on, we persevere, because, I guess, it's the way we're made.”
Karen Thompson Walker