A Quiet Celebration

This morning, just like every morning, I woke up used the bathroom and went naked to my scale. Measuring myself at my lowest point of the day has been a ritual I have done for the last two years. I find that no matter what I have eaten the day before it is best for me to get a reading on what the truth is. Not everyone agrees with weighing everyday, but I find it to be a huge motivator. I have a scale that measures down to the fifth of a pound so I can tell if I lost two tenths of a pound and not have to wait for a whole pound either direction to know which way I am heading.

Two years, one month and three days ago I started this weight loss challenge. I needed to lose weight and I was about to start my role as the Board Chair of the Food Bank of Central and Eastern North Carolina. The previous chair, Ed Carney, had been an executive with Cisco, which just happened to be our largest donor for many years running. Ed was a great board chair who I learned much from, but I was very worried about following him since I did not have thousands of generous employees donating to the Food Bank.

My weight loss challenge in no way raised as much money as Cisco gives, but it was my small way to generating funds. It worked, in fact, my cousin Ellen just found my blog and donated this week, even though she lives in Florida. But the challenge was not just about raising money, it was my accountability to a healthier me. At the time of my challenge I set a five month time period for the money portion but I also set a larger pound goal of getting off 98 pounds for myself.

Not to bury the lead, but this morning when I got on the scale I had reached my goal, right down to the fifth. I had to look at it for a few moments. I got on and off the scale to see if it would remain the same. I went to my phone to log my weight in my fitbit app and to make sure that was actually the goal I had set. My app gave me a “WooHoo” I guess I had met my goal.

I kept quiet about it. As Russ and Carter were going out the door to their respective jobs I just said, “Have a nice day.” I did not tell them. I went to the gym to workout with my trainer. I did not tell her. I came home and got on the treadmill trying to get my steps in like any normal day.

After my regular lunch of arugula from the garden, chicken thigh, caramelized pear and blue cheese salad I decided to try on the last of the clothes in my closet of dreams that had been too tight two months ago. They fit. They are not all in style since the last time I weighed this little was in 2006, but they are confirmation.

The timing is perfect. Next week is my last board meeting as chair of the Food Bank. I spent two terms being thoughtful about food in everyway. But now it is time to set a new goal. Although I am very happy with attaining this one, I am still a flabby middle-aged woman who could improve.

I also know, as a life long yo-yo dieter that I am either going up or going down and I need to find a way to stay on the downside as much as I can. So no great fan fair for reaching my goal. I’m off to get a Mani Pedi as my reward. My new goal will be to lose five more pounds. No time frame to do it in, just inching down one fifth of a pound at a time. I’ll keep the “WooHoo” on my phone for today and change my goal number tomorrow. That’s my own quiet celebration.