Nearly eleven months after I set out to lose weight I have not only lost 50 pounds but managed to keep it off. As a result many of my work clothes no longer fit. I can still wear them, but I am swimming inside of them now. At my peak weight I was wearing pants with a 44 inch waist line and using suspenders to hold them up. Over the weekend, with some birthday money in hand, we went shopping for new work clothes.
I am happy to say that the first pair of size 40 pants I tried on were too big. I was forced to go to a size 38. And the 38 inch waist line isn’t any too tight. This was a huge boost to my self image.
For the past several months my weight has been hovering around 200 pounds; some days a bit lower and some days a bit higher. Persistent back pain has prevented me from exercising very much at all and I think the inactivity has contributed to the slowing and stopping of my weight loss. Half of eating less and doing more is to do more. While I wish I was still losing a little weight I am pleased that my normal diet isn’t putting any weight on me, regardless of my slothfulness.
Later this week I am expecting the results of an x-ray series of my lower back. Hopefully we are eliminating structural problems like cracked vertebra or bulging or ruptured disks. Even if we identify a structural problem at least then I’ll know why my back isn’t healing like I think it should. Once I know what is (or isn’t) wrong with my back then I can start a measured program of walking and mild exercise to strengthen it once again.
