Last Friday, I was heading out of town to celebrate a long weekend for our 36th wedding anniversary when I realized I completely forgot to write a blog.
It happens. I’ve been really busy, lately; I am married to a teacher who is wrapping up the school year, I’ve been coordinating a lot of events with a couple of groups I volunteer with, as well as working and taking care of my mother. I stay pretty busy these days, and I admit it completely slipped my mind because I was focused on the weekend.
We went to a favorite haunt; the same city where we spent our (really brief, college-student-cheap) honeymoon, and where we often hang out when we want to get away for an afternoon or a weekend. This time was different, though; it was the first time we’ve both been totally able to walk anywhere we wanted, including hiking on Saturday morning. We walked mountain trails and a promenade; just over that 5K distance, again. And, since both of us have been through the Knee Recycling Program over the past two years (him in 2017 and mine in 2018), we both felt pretty proud of what we accomplished.
It occurred to me as we were strolling around without limitations that while I’ve been a bit disappointed in myself at not pushing further with my weight loss efforts, it just might be a mental thing: everything I just imagined doing six years ago, I can now do. It’s nothing, these days, to walk out the door in the morning and stroll city streets for a couple of miles. Just one year ago, I was proud of making it past one mile, just a few days before my first of two knee replacements.
I still maintain that much of this journey is mental. I have not given up on my weight loss efforts, but I haven’t truly pushed through, either. I’ve met just about every single goal I set out to conquer. While I don’t have a recent assessment of my health, it’s possible I’ve gotten to the point where some of my medications should be reevaluated. Next week, my first knee replacement will be a year old.
I can walk into just about any clothing store that I want and find something in my size. I can even wear those One Size Fits Most garments that were more like a cruel joke, before; I bought one on a whim while in a clothing store last weekend. The clerk said I’d love it. I do. And I’m surprised as hell.
As I look forward to an active summer ahead of me, I’ll be working on a new goal that pushes me that final distance forward; something I still can’t do, yet, that I want. My journey isn’t over, yet, but it sure is great to be actively doing the things I once thought were lost to me.