Mountains

Have you ever climbed a mountain? No, I don't mean Mt. Everest, or even anything near that indomitable. How about a good sized hill? One where you stand at the bottom, look up to the top and think, "Uh oh, what did I get myself into?" Maybe you turned around and decided it was not worth attempting on that day. Or maybe you started halfway up and realized that you really weren't as interested as you thought in reaching the top. Possibly, you put one foot in front of the other, staring at those toes, instead of the daunting summit, and trudged up slowly, resting often and for lengthy periods of time. If you did, if you really managed to get to the top of the hill, what did you feel when you got there? Relief? Joy? Satisfaction? Fear?

I have climbed a few mountains in my life. Some of them literal, and some of them figurative. I have conquered ... and I have failed. I have given up and I have also crawled up on my hands and knees. Weight-loss is very much like a mountain. My Trainer made an illustration today that reminded me of climbing Mt. Woodson in San Diego County, California, a few years ago. There is this goal (the top of the mountain) and when you are standing at the bottom, looking up at it, it seems completely insurmountable. But, being determined to get to the top, you put your head down and put one foot in front of the other and start the ascent. Most of the time, you keep your head down and focus on the mechanics of keeping the feet moving. But every once in a while, you have to look up at the ultimate goal, to measure how far you have come, how far you have to go and remind yourself why you decided to climb in the first place. Then you put your head back down, and you continue on with those mechanics. One foot at a time, one day at a time, staying with the mechanics. You WILL reach that summit. Your legs might ache, your stomach might growl, but once you get there and look back at how far you have come, and out at the stunning view before you, there is not one ounce of regret.

I have a long ways to go. My personal goal is 2 lbs a week, and I am ahead of that goal. (Weigh in today was 200.3, a total loss of 13.5 since I started 4 weeks ago). But when I look ahead, I still have 55 lbs to get to my first summit. That seems so far! However, I am not focusing on 55 lbs. I am focusing on 2 lbs per week. I am focusing on one day at a time. I know what I need to do each and every day. I can look at that goal every now and again, to measure how far I have come and how far I need to go, but my focus is on the little things that are nearer and more within my immediate vicinity.

Kind of like on Mt. Woodson, which has a seriously scary incline. The elevation is something like 1200 ft. in 1.8 miles. It's steep, folks. I remember sweating, aching, exhausted and realizing I was only half way up. I could turn around ... or I could get to that next boulder. Surely, there was flat ground beyond that. Which there wasn't, but up ahead a little farther was another turn in the road, and if I could just get there, I believed I could find a place to rest. I kept telling myself that all the way up that mountain. Just one more bend, make it to just one more boulder ... until I made all the way to the top.

Now, I won't lie and tell you that I immediately jumped for joy, found some previously hidden burst of energy. Truth is, I lay down in the dirt and closed my eyes and thanked God I was still alive. When my legs stopped quivering, I yanked myself up and gasped as I looked at the site before me. Clear all the way to the Pacific Ocean, crisp, clean air, amazing view. I was weary, I was beat, but I would not trade that moment for anything. And remembering how that moment felt has driven me time and time again to climb to heights I never believed I could reach. Literally and figuratively.

We have amazing strength. Our minds, when focused, can accomplish the impossible. Find your mountain ... and climb it. The view is so worth the work.

SUNDAY FOOD DIARY
Breakfast
Egg Whites (All Whites 100% Liquid Egg Whites), 0.7 cup
Strawberries, fresh, 0.5 cup, sliced
Old Wessex Lts. 5 Grain Cereal, 1 serving
Organic Blue Agave syrup, 0.5 tbsp
Lunch
Bread, whole wheat (including toast), 3 oz
Turkey breast meat, 2 ounce(s)
Iceberg Lettuce (salad), 0.25 cup, shredded or chopped
Red Ripe Tomatoes, 3 slice, thin/small
Subway Banana Peppers (3 strips), 1 serving
Swiss Cheese, 2 slice (1 oz)
Yellow Mustard, 2 tsp or 1 packet
Cape Cod Kettle Cooked potato chips, 40% reduced fat, 1 oz
Dinner
Chicken Breast, no skin, 3 ounces
Mache, 1 cup
Ken's Lite Accents Honey Mustard Vinaigrette (10 sprays), 1 serving
Snack
Universal Super Whey Protein Powder, 23 gram(s)
Milk, nonfat, 1 cup
Carrots, raw, 1 cup, strips or slices
Apples, fresh, 1 medium (2-3/4" dia) (approx 3 per lb)

MONDAY'S FOOD DIARY
Breakfast
Ezekiel 4:9 Cinnamon Raisin Bread, 2 serving
Blue Agave, Organic (Wholesome Sweeteners brand), 0.5 tbsp
Egg white, 4 serving
Regular Coffee, 3 cup (8 fl oz)
Strawberries, fresh, 0.5 cup, sliced
Lunch
Father Sam's Wheat Pita (1/2 Pita = 1 svg.), 1 serving
Herdez Salsa Casera (medium), 4 tbsp
Bib Lettuce, 1 leaf, medium
Turkey Burger, Jennie-O, 4 oz
Dinner
Shrimp, cooked, 4 oz
Green Giant Cut Green Beans, can, 1 cup
Snack
Cottage Cheese, 1% Milkfat, 0.75 cup (not packed)
Libby's Tropical Mandarin Oranges w/ Splenda, 0.5 cup
Carrots, raw, 1 cup, strips or slices