The Power of Positivity

The last few weeks have been very busy for us as a family. We have had to juggle school events, extra murals, family obligations. Even though our lives return to "normal" as from today, I woke up with a heavy heart, grumpy and exhausted.. I didn't do any weekly prep work over the weekend, so I felt irritated and ill-prepared to face Monday. Having a Melancholic/Phlegmatic personality...this was not a good start to the week.  I just could not see the proverbial light at the end of the tunnel as even our normal weeks are rushed and busy.

I felt like I was being sucked into that deep, black hole again. I have not been taking my medication as consistently as I should...partly because my routine was out of whack and partly because I had gotten too comfortable with how well it was all going that I felt I could "cheat" here and there and that I could handle it. But, like any other addiction, a little cheat turned into a complete binge and I have not been following my prescribed eating plan. Nor have I had the time to go walking. Parkrun has taken a backseat to Master J's soccer matches, at least until the season finishes in September.

I had an appointment with Amanda this morning and was very near to cancelling it. I was feeling downright fat and frumpy and even went as far as sending Amanda a message to say that this weigh in was not going to be pretty. She was waiting outside for me when I arrived and welcomed me in with a warm smile and a hug. She listened as I literally off-loaded what had been happening in my life for the past two weeks.

Amanda's attitude towards me reminded me of what Roald Dahl wrote in The Twits:

To cut a long story short, Amanda showed me immense kindness and we worked on a plan to get back on track. Quite simply, I need to do what I did the first few weeks:

• Follow my meal plan.
• Shop according to the meal plan.
• Have no junk or anything that might temp me in the house.
• Keep my meals simple.
• Keep a food diary.
• Have a very small dinner so that I go to bed slightly hungry.
• Dry body brush daily.
• Drink lots of water.
• Walk at least three times a week.
• Drink my meds.
• Get as much rest as I can.

After going over my plan of action, it was time to weigh. I even wore jeans as I was not expecting much. To those of you who are not familiar with the whole weigh-in thing, this is a big no-no as they are so heavy. Anyway, I took off my shoes and jersey and got on the scale, completely expecting to have gained at least a kilo. But to my surprise the scale said I was down a whole kilogramme and I have also lost 3cm over 2 weeks!

I left my appointment feeling not only physically lighter but also emotionally. Amanda's positivity and "can-do" attitude was contagious and just what I needed to get my head right again. I feel like I CAN beat this weight problem. That I CAN improve my health and fitness. It just goes to show that surrounding yourself with positive people can have a huge impact on your state of mind too. 

So, I have added one more thing to my action plan and that is to try and have a positive influence on someone else's life too. I want to be the energy I want to attract.

Until next time,

XX-L