I’m not really going to keep doing that, I promise.
I went to Starbucks this morning. Forever, I went to Starbucks every Friday morning. I mean, for years. I did it the first time I lost weight- Friday morning was like my treat. As I was walking out of Starbucks with my Peppermint Mocha and chocolate-glazed donut, I had a pang of missing this. Missing my Friday morning Starbucks ritual. It may be a silly ritual but I still miss it.
I also miss something I did yesterday. I miss being able to choose from whatever “restaurant” I want, be it fast-food or a real restaurant. I miss saying, “hhmmm. I’m really craving Taco Bell right now. I think I’ll go.” And once I get to said whatever-restaurant-I-want, I miss ordering whatever I want. Caramel apple empanada, please.
I miss the meals I used to have. Half a bag of peanut butter oreos with a tall glass of milk for breakfast. A bag of tortilla chips, half a block of cream cheese, and salsa for lunch. A bagel, two donuts, and a hot chocolate for snack. (yes, there’s clearly no need to wonder how I got fat.) A box of macaroni and cheese for dinner, followed by a huge bowl of full-fat ice cream.
Lime tortilla chips, Starbucks, cream cheese and salsa. In and Out (that’s actually part of a whole different post about California), Taco Bell, Wendy’s, KFC. The desserts and bagels at Panera. Pizza. Oh GOD, pizza. Brownie batter. Hot chocolate from Dunkin Donuts. The freedom to do whatever I want. The freedom to walk into Target and get a Snickers and huge bag of Cheetos on the way out just cuz I feel like it.
The sleep. The sleep I have lost as part of exercising. Not having the ugly Firm box cluttering up my living room. The space next to my cable box and DVD player where all my Firm videos are.
Sometimes I want to wallow in the things I miss. There are things that I have going right now, while I am somewhat out of control, that I don’t miss. I don’t miss this feeling of always-being-tired. I don’t miss feeling completely out of control. I don’t miss the guilt. I don’t miss the draginess my body is feeling because it’s not being well cared for. I don’t miss the on and off nausea. I don’t miss the anxiety.
I have alot more reasons to be healthy than I do to not. The reasons I have to not are stupid. They all last about five minutes and the consequences of them last alot longer. ALOT longer. Not only the stuff I listed above and the reasons I don’t want to get fat. But also? The increased risk of diabetes. The difficulties getting pregnant. The consequences of diabetes once I do get it- my grandmother the last few years has experienced a whole host of health problems directly related to her diabetes that I would much prefer to avoid, thankyouverymuch.
I’m getting there. I can feel it. Getting myself back to a place that is out of the out-of-control spiral I’ve been in. I’m on my way back. Bear with me while I get there. And I’ll try to bear with myself while I get back there.



5 comments
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December 1, 2006 at 4:02 pm
themiddlemanager
WOW! A terrific post - I know exactly how you feel. This post is spot on. I could not have expressed it any better.
I have struggled with those same feelings from time to time, but there is no way I could have expressed it as eloquently. Stay focused and you will get there.
Keep up the excellent posts, I enjoy reading your blog!
TMM
December 2, 2006 at 12:46 am
Its a daily stuggle for us all… « The Middle Manager
[...] Before you do, however, surf over to “Less of Paige” and learn all of the reasons that giving up is a BAD idea. Paige’s post is the best I’ve seen at explaining the trials and tribulations of weight loss, and turning it around to say that the reasons for not losing weight are not nearly as good as the reasons for burning fat. [...]
December 4, 2006 at 12:26 pm
merseydotes
Congrats on finishing NaBloPoMo, Paige! I really enjoyed your blog and will keep coming back.
I love this post because I have puffed up over the holidays so far - I’ve been fluctuating between being 2 and 5 pounds (please, can it be water weight bloat?) over my pre-Thanksgiving weight for the past two weeks. And I’m so tired…I know exactly what you mean about just wanting to eat what I want. I think I’ve been doing too much of that lately, and it’s showing in how I look and feel. Thanks for the reminder not to give up.
December 5, 2006 at 7:15 pm
Colleen
I found your site on BlogHer - I have a blog about training for the 3-Day walk for breast cancer as well as other health/fitness topics - would you be interested in a link or entry exchange?
December 9, 2006 at 10:37 pm
Tom
Paige,
I’m no expert. I’ve only been trying to lose weight for a few months. Thing is, I don’t cook. I had to figure out how to eat lower calories, and low fat without giving up the drive through window. I did some research and found out that there’s still at least one thing I can eat from my favorite restaurants. Taco Bell is actually one of the better ones (all bacteria aside). You can get them to substitute fresh-chopped salsa for cheese and sour cream. I admit that so far, I’ve been more concerned with calories than with fat, cholesterol, sodium, etc. I’ve created a spreadsheet listing “safe” items from the places I frequent the most. I’ll post it on my in a little while.