When the low hanging fruit is gone

First off, yesterday was a darn good beginning. Had a much better attitude due to seeing some changes implemented, plus I walked & ate well. We are going to the gym tonight due to a change in the boy’s schedule. Which probably was for the best, as I was able to get in a really good speed-work session this morning. That might have been tough after leg night. I ran 2 miles this morning, doing some pretty fast (for me) runs with walk breaks. Felt great! After just a day of eating well and exercise, I feel like a brand new woman! And my husband even got up and walked a mile this morning, which made me very happy.

I was thinking about this whole journey. When you first decide to lose weight/get healthier, it’s not simply that you are in the “honeymoon phase”, it’s the low hanging fruit theory. When you go to pick apples off a tree, the first ones you pick are the ones easily in your reach. I submit we do this when we make our lifestyle changes. The first changes you make are the easiest to implement. They don’t take a whole lot of effort. Everyone’s easy changes are different – maybe it’s switching to diet soda, or packing your lunch. You lose weight, then it stops. You make a few more changes and you lose a little more. Until you get near your goal weight. With 10 to 15 pounds to go, you’ve made a lot of changes. If you’ve kept it off, you’ve probably changed your lifestyle. But you still want to lose a little more and there’s no more low hanging fruit in site. If you want more, you have to head for the garage for the ladder cause it won’t be easy!

That’s where I feel like I am. The changes I need to make to lose the last bit of weight are known to me. I know what I have to change to lose the rest of the weight. But what’s left are the tough changes (for me). And given the fact that I derive emotional safety from this extra fat, I have chosen to sit here on the fence. My goal is in sight, but I am hesitant to go there. If you read what I write here, you know I want to go for it, but I am afraid. And I know the changes will mean some sacrifice. Is it worth it? Will I fish, or keep cutting bait? Only time will tell.