(Day 151 / -89 lbs.) Dr.Suess Warned Me There'd Be Days Like This

Yep- up a pound. Not what I wanted to see but not entirely unexpected either. Granted not a huge deal, but telling.

But on you will go
though the weather be foul.
On you will go
though your enemies prowl.
On you will go
though the Hakken-Kraks howl.
Onward up many
a frightening creek,
though your arms may get sore
and your sneakers may leak.

I was given Dr.Suess' Oh The Places You'll Go by a business associate at the end of a company retreat some fifteen years ago. I thought it a joke at the time. It wasn't until reading it on the flight home that I came to realize the unconventional wisdom contained in its all-too-colorful pages. I still find it inspiring and recommend everyone read it with a mind wide-open.

So...
be your name Buxbaum or Bixby or Bray
or Mordeci Ali Van Allen O'Shea,
you're off to Great Places!
Today is your day!
Your Mountain is waiting.
So...get on your way!

It's funny. After almost five months “climbing my mountain” I've come to develop an intuition of-sorts in regard to my weight. I think it is probably due to an increased overall focus on diet and activity and its' effect on how I feel and what the scale is going to report. Weighing myself three days a week helps too- heightening my awareness of the effects of different types of food and different levels of exercise.

This morning I KNEW I had gained weight even before I stepped on the scale, not in a doom and gloom, depressing kind of way, but in a way that I can only describe as “clinical”. Yesterday we took our kids to the orthodontist for an evaluation. It was an early morning appointment and conflicted with my track schedule. Ah, priorities. I've also been experimenting with the introduction of different foods and discovered, Scientifically speaking,

Consumption of regular white flour pasta (ravioli) in an exercise-free environment = weight gain

So there you go. Consistent weight loss requires consistent vigilance. Considering that I still have a ways to go to meet my goal, you can be sure that I am reverting back to prior (successful) methods. Namely sticking to my original plans of consuming the proper foods in the proper quantities while maintaining consistent exercise.

You have brains in your head.
You have feet in your shoes.
You can steer yourself
any direction you choose.
You're on your own. And you know what you know.
And YOU are the guy who'll decide where to go.

I'm going to reach my goals. I've decided.