The Woman in the Mirror - 23 days left

Today my husband and I road down a newly completed highway near our home for the first time since it had opened.  Yes, I must admit that this type of activity is one that we find amusing.  You see, we have been anticipating this road being completed for the last five years since we moved back to Minneapolis from Atlanta.  And this spring, once the snow was melted, road crews began to work adding exits, lanes, and eventually paint to connect the road all the way to the next city.

I feel like my weight loss journey over the past 90 days is very similar to this road (minus the 8 people standing around for every 2 people working).  I have been anticipating great things when it comes to the new strides I have made toward better health.  And once I finally got up and shook off all of my excuses to why I couldn't be fit and healthy, I began to see inches lost.  I started to feel better.  I noticed an increased level of energy throughout my days.   And just as my husband and I enjoyed driving down that new road together today, I have enjoyed actually looking at myself in the mirror for the first time in years.

The change in how I feel has also crossed over into other areas.  When I go to leave the house, I now put on all of my makeup instead of just lipstick.  I have started using hairspray again to hold my hair in place and not just a ponytail holder.  Today, for the first time in over a year, I painted my fingernails.  I also do my best to make sure my clothes look neat as opposed to that "just rolled out of bed" look that I had become accustomed to, even though I promised myself years ago I would never get to that place.

Believe me, it is quite alright if you are not one who loves to put on the makeup or use hairspray or paint your nails or an old t-shirt and sweats is your outfit of choice.  I am not saying that my list above is required to be a good person.  And this certainly is not vanity run amok either.  What I am saying is, for me, putting on so much weight over the last 12 years has not only affected my health, but other areas of my life that were once important to me.

So for those of you who have not seen me in the past 15 years and could never imagine me as the no makeup, no hairspray, wrinkly clothes girl I just described, stop gasping for air wondering what on earth could have happened to me and know that I am now on my own personal road to recovery.  And for those of you who have only known me as the girl who has looked as though she has been run over by a truck each morning before you have seen me, look out when I see you again in the fall or you might not recognize me.  Sure, I am still the same girl at heart that I was last Spring.  That has not changed.  Well, maybe a little.  However, the newer version of me is much easier to look at and happier than I have been in a very, very long time.


Proverbs 31:30 (New International Version) - Charm is deceptive, and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the LORD is to be praised.

WOD (Workout of the Day)

• NONE!!  I took the day off and enjoyed it with my family!