One Down, Six More to Go

Yesterday I completed the National Press Club 5K (in 46 minutes). Not exactly a record-setting pace, but given my recent shin splint/ankle troubles, I'll take it. I had hoped to walk back to Falls Church after it was over, but made it to Foggy Bottom/GWU before I decided I needed to pace myself and call it a day. So this morning, I finished the route, walking from Falls Church back to GWU -- about 6.5 miles. It felt wonderful to be out in the sunshine and to stretch my legs. Next Saturday, it's on to the Four Seasons 5K!

I've added two more walks (as part of the seven) in the next few weeks:

Sept. 22: Out of the Darkness Suicide Prevention Walk (Washington)

Oct. 6: AIDS Walk (Washington)

The big finish will come at the Reserve Officers Association marathon walk on Oct. 20. I still have a ways to go to get ready, but assuming my ankle holds up, I know I have the determination to finish it.

So, to get back to the weight-loss portion of the blog ...

I'm the weight today that I was when I graduated from high school 15 years ago. I put on most the weight (40 pounds) that I lost while I was in college. How did that happen? Well, a lot of it was emotional eating. Any kind of emotion: stress, boredom, fatigue, happiness, unhappiness. The hours I spent on the school newspaper, while among my fondest memories of college, didn't help: the personal pan pizzas at the student center where the paper's offices were located, the late night fro-yo runs, the bowls of ice cream I grabbed on the way out of the dining hall as I rushed to The Wellesley News. I didn't make exercising a priority -- the athletic center was on the other side of campus from the dorm where I lived the first three years, and between editing the paper, taking a full courseload, applying to grad school and writing a thesis my senior year, I was lucky if I had time to dry my hair, let alone exercise. (Yes, I know I'm making excuses, but senior year really was nuts!) And, of course, while Wellesley is wonderful about catering to its students, a lot of that catering involved not-so-healthy foods, such as the phenomenal cheese blintzes that appeared during parents' weekend and on other select occasions, peppermint stick pie served at the holiday dinner and even the homemade hot chocolate my dorm's head of house made my senior year as he read us stories on Sunday nights (I'm pretty sure that doesn't happen at co-ed schools).

After college, I spent nine months in grad school at Columbia University in New York City. Let's just say that the budget of a grad school student doesn't necessarily lend itself to healthy eating, which I've found is often more expensive than unhealthy eating. The chief criteria on my shopping list was whether the food was cheap. So I had lots of pasta, Swanson frozen dinners, etc. Again, the gym got almost none of my time.

It didn't come off in the years after school, either. And I gained 10 pounds in the year between when I took my current job and when I started Weight Watchers, thanks to the fact that we always seemed to be having office parties where cake was served, and I didn't say no (not couldn't, just didn't).

So there are many reasons I gained weight. And as I think of the reasons now why I want to keep the weight off, a number come to mind:

1) To stay healthy and reduce risk of disease, especially breast cancer

2) To be able to fit into all the nice clothes I've purchased in my new size

3) To feel good about what I've accomplished

4) To enjoy being able to finish a 5K and work toward the goal of completing a marathon walk

5) To be able to join in more activities than I could previously (such as going with friends on long walks)

6) To enjoy the endorphin boost.

7) OK, this sounds vain, but it is nice to be noticed more on the street now. I don't think I'll ever lose the self-image of the larger me (and other people I've talked with who have lost weight say the same thing), so it's somewhat strange that other people don't necessarily see me how I see myself. But that's a topic for another day.