The Benefits Of Aging

I’m not quite sure if life really does get better with age, or if you just have a lower tolerance as time goes on.  Seriously, though, the older I get, the less I care about what other people think.  It is nice and I wish I could go back to my 20s and have a nice ‘ol pep talk with my younger self.

I truly like where I am at in this stage of my life.  I have a job that affords us travel and a kick-ass, good looking, super sweet travel partner.  I also have a supportive and loving family and a really fun group of friends.  I mean seriously, what else could I ask for?  Okay…maybe more money for even more travel and less work!  Wouldn’t that be sweet.

When FB Memories pop up, I always take a moment or two to analyze the photo (i.e. pick it apart).  Most of the time I am happy with the photo and usually I wished I had a better hair day.  It is interesting when photos from my maintenance journey pop up because I notice right away how low of a weight I reached.

When those photos pop up from a few years ago, I notice how much weight I really re-gained.  In either case, I usually go back to my WW weight records to see what I weighed during that timeframe.  I am often surprised that when I think I “look good” in a photo, then check the date/weight, it is usually a time that I remember I was struggling with the number on the scale. 

Here is a photo from 2015:

This was the year that I got back into the 200s.  After my back issues started in August of 2013, I wasn’t able to hold onto my goal weight anymore.  From then on, I really struggled with the mental aspect of my weight loss journey, no longer being at goal, and feeling less-than because of my weight gain.  It was an even bigger blow when that scale said 200. 

It is so hard to get out of the negative mindset.  I really felt like I was “less than” because of my weight gain.  Who says I am less than anybody else because I carry extra weight around my middle?

I am not less kind because I am overweight.

I am not less pretty because I am overweight.

I am not less of a good friend because I am overweight.

I am not less of a great wife because I am overweight.

I am simply not less than because of my size.

It may have taken me 20+ years to realize this…but I am glad that I have and I’ll continue to work on positive thoughts about myself and my body, regardless of my size.