More Thoughts on the Small Victories

I redid my bedding today. I had planned to put it off until tomorrow, but it's supposed to be very cold. When I considered what that would be like for me, I opted to just do it today. I'm writing about that because for me, this totally ambitious and practical, like way more so than I usually am. Ever. I'm kind of not sure I put the right sheet on there. This one tends to slip around a lot. It's really warm though, so maybe it will be worth it. If not, I'll just put another one on.

I'm going to give some advice here and fully well realize that as I give it, it's certainly something I don't always follow myself.  I should though, because I think it's really vital in terms of the long term weight loss process. Anyway, the advice......as you lose weight and gain strength, be brave sometimes and try to do stuff that used to be hard/basically impossible for you.

Now, it is possible that you may still not be able to do it or that it may still be really rough on you physically, however, there is also the chance that it won't be as bad as it used to be. It may not be EASY, but 30% difficult is still better than 70% difficult. Hell, 69% is better. Even a small little bit of improvement is worth it.

Why is it good to know this? Because losing a lot of weight is HARD. It takes years of your life and tons of choices and lots of doubt and millions of moments when you may just think the whole thing is impossible. Discouragement is with you a lot.

However, it is a very amazing feeling when you attempt to do one of those things that was basically impossible for you before and you find that you have an easier time with it. It is a moment of power. And let's face it, a lot of people who have been heavy for years don't really have a lot of moments of power. I think seeing these improvement is vital to the long term weight loss process.

I felt this today when I worked on my bed. Changing my sheets has always been a monumental task of agita for me. It was awkward and rough. It always left me breathless and tired for hours. Today though, I did it and, yeah, I was a little out of breath, but it didn't destroy me for the rest of the day. The DREAD that I feel at the prospect of handling my bed is gone. And that is damned nice.

Losing weight is like being happy. If you focus on only finding enjoyment and benefit from it when you reach a certain goal, it's always going to feel like a mountain you have to climb. Enjoy the small victories. Celebrate the little changes. No, you may not be a size 2 yet, but you're closer than you were.....and you are having an easier time living in your body. That is a beautiful thing to experience. Let yourself experience it.