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| Hi all. Welcome to the home of my next journey...my route to being a "Thinner Copper". I'm Robin, and although this certainly isn't my first venture into the weight loss arena, I'm determined to make it my last. I'm 44, not getting any younger, and DON'T wanna get any bigger!! I'm a devoted fan of Weight Watchers, although not always such a devoted follower. On April 6, 2004, I went back to meetings after trying it on my own. Actually, I did pretty well, initially. Started on September 2, 2003 after having seen photos of me at my 25-year high school reunion. Wow...what a wake-up call! By the end of the year I'd lost 37 pounds. |
| Unfortunately that's where I stopped. Well, actually, I didn't really stop, I gained a few back. Just couldn't get myself motivated to start dropping the pounds. Even my upcoming trip to Germany this summer with my good friend, Hillary, wasn't doing the trick. Finally decided that I needed to go back to meetings. I'd lost almost 50 pounds back in 1997 under a fantastic leader and motivator, Mary Evans. Well, like many things that we lose, I found them again, and then some, but certainly not due to anything Mary failed to do for me. It was all me. "I NEED MARY!" I thought. Last week I visited the center, hoping to find her still there. My innocent question, "Does Mary Evans work here anymore?" seemed to stop conversation. "Mary passed away in February from leukemia..." was the answer. You could've knocked me over with a feather. Now mind you, I hadn't seen Mary or spoken with her in close to 6 years, but I think everyone has a "special someone" in their lives who may have only been there for a short time, but who makes a profound impression on them. She was one of those people. I sat in on the meeting, shedding more than a few tears, but feeling her presence on my shoulder, or rather behind me, kicking me in the butt saying "C'mon, Robin, you did it before, now finish it up! I know you can!" So, dear Mary, although this journey is for me, I'm doing it with a "hats off" to you. Don't forget that it's never too late to start fresh and to live life to its fullest! I just started this site in April 2004, so I don't have a lot of progress shots yet since I just take the "official ones" once a month so that changes will be more noticeable. I'll be in here improving and adding as the days go by, including adding pictures of various things "along the way", so check in every now and then. Update: June 25, 2004: Well, it's been awhile since I wrote those first few paragraphs. I've come a long way, leaving almost 29 pounds along the wayside since April, and a total of 57.2 since September. Let's visualize this...57 pounds...that's a 2nd-grader I've detached from my caboose, or maybe three Costco-sized bags of cat food that I've stripped from my thighs and belly, or even better, umpteen gallons of half and half that, instead of using in my coffee or in my fettucini alfredo, I could use to take a decadent milk bath. Ah, weight loss. Can it be a struggle? Yes, absolutely. But it's also given me the most empowering feeling I've had in MANY years. I'M in control now, not my body or my fat cells. I'm controlling what goes in, what I do with it, how I move it. It's amazing to look in the mirror, do that little "Popeye" muscle pose and see a muscle pop up and move beneath the skin. Amazing, invigorating, stimulating and encouraging. Sure, I've got a long way to go, but heck, I've done one-third of it already and I'm really not complaining. It's been fun, it's been an adventure. There've been a couple stumbles along the way, and I'm sure there will be in the future, but I WON'T let them deter me from reaching my goal and maintaining that goal. Vacation's coming up, it'll be a challenge, but I'll be back, I'll need to re-enter reality and start right up again. Simple!! Just think of the rewards, those sweet, sweet, rewards (and not the sugar-coated variety, either!!). Update: October 7, 2004: Wow, it seems like forever since I've been back here. The past three months have been a very different three months from the first three. Just goes to show you how one thing in your life can really knock you for a loop and change the course of everything else. Just one week after writing the above words, I found out that my mother has terminal cancer. THAT made many things change, put a different perspective on things. Unfortunately I haven't had the same vitality and enthusiasm for the weight loss as I had before, which is a really bad thing, as my mother so very much wants to see me at goal weight, and I'd hate to disappoint her. Maybe coming back and reading this more often, trying to recreate the feelings I had before, will help. Just goes to show you, though, that this is truly a journey, with many cycles, bends in the road, U-turns and speed bumps. Having a map, though, and knowing the ultimate destination is definitely a positive thing. Having this set in mind and knowing that THIS TIME I'll get there...maybe with a bit of a delay...but that's OK. It's certainly preferable to the alternative...staying unhealthy and unhappy. |
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| Starting Weight, 9/2/03: Starting meeting weight, 4/6/04: Final goal weight: Challenge goal weight, Memorial Day weekend: (from 100+ message board) Germany goal weight, 7/9/04: Lost over 50 pounds...first time EVER! |
| 300 271.4 145 255 (made it on 6/2, hit 248) 245 (made it EARLY, 243.4, on 6/16/04) 52 pounds, 6/2/04 |
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