Oh the Places I'll Go...

So the challenge is officially finished.  In the morning I will post my final weigh in for the 60 day challenge to finish 2010 well.

There have been ups, downs, slips and slides but all in all I've consistently lost weight during the two toughest months of the year.  How cool is that?

Pretty cool.

My mom is reading "Oh the Places You'll Go" to my daughter next to me right now.  I love that book.  It was given to me when I left RTI earlier this year and has meant a great deal to me.  I love how it talks about how you will end up going to some places that aren't necessarily grand or pleasant on your journey but that you will at least be going somewhere.  Moving in a direction.  And that even with setbacks we are all destined for great things.  Mountains.

My weight loss journey has been much like that.  Oh, the places I've been.

This year I've become a runner, against all odds.  On January 1, 2010 I weighed 257.4 (down almost 30 pounds from my August starting weight of 285).  I lost down to 245 (40 pounds) and then fell down my front steps on February 19th and badly sprained/fractured my left ankle.  I had every reason then to give up.  And the old me totally would have.  But starting to blog rescued me from giving up.  I sat there designing the page with a cast on my leg up to my knee and dreamed of becoming a runner.  I wanted it so badly that once the cast came off I dove into physical therapy and worked my tail off.  I asked every week when I could run again.  The day my PT said yes I was ecstatic and I've been that enthusiastic about running since then.

My plan was to run a 5k race sometime this year, in spite of my injury.  I've run 4.

So the "place I went" to become a runner wasn't exactly the peachy journey I would have chosen for myself.  I would have run my first race way sooner...but man, 4 races?  And setting a PR in that last race over 4 minutes faster than my first one?  Would I have been so motivated had I not fallen like a spaz?

I'm glad things happened the way they did.  Because I became a blogger too. :)

This forum allows me to stay accountable and enables me to stay motivated.  Without having this place to check into, to download my thoughts, I wouldn't be able to look back and see as clearly how far I've gone...all the places I've been.  And each place has had some lesson, even when it was tough and I wondered if I could continue.  Each setback has made me that much stronger, more determined, and ultimately more successful.

So as you look back over 2010, and think about the places you've been, don't fret if you didn't exceed or even meet every goal you set for yourself.  Instead, look at the places you've been and see how well you came out of the setbacks.  If you're still struggling from them, decide right now not to.  Decide to learn from them and move on.  It's not too late.  After all, in a few minutes, right now will be one of the places you've been...

Be where you are!  More to come on inspiration to kick start the new year... in the meantime I'm not one of those people who thinks I have to be awake exactly at midnight to ring in the new year...sleep is calling my name!

Happy New year...and Happy Places We'll Go in 2011!

~Clara