Monday, September 2, 2013

"Never, ever give up" Diana Nyad - September 2nd, 2013

Since today is a holiday, I have been planning to update my weight history and write a little post for this blog, in my spare time, on my day off from work. I had only a couple vague ideas about what I might write as I sat down in front of the computer.

I thought I would check the news before jumping into this project and was instantly rewarded with just the right story. It turns out that just today, Diana Nyad stepped out of the water and on to a beach in Key West, FL after swimming the 110 miles from Havana, Cuba in 53 hours. In doing this Diana set a record for the longest ocean swim without a shark cage or flippers.

The title of this post, "Never, ever give up" is what Diana said after finishing this historic feat. She also said, "Your never to old to chase your dreams" which is a reference to her age of 64 years. Yes, Sixty Four, that is not a typo.  You see, Diana first tried this swim 25 years ago in 1978.

I guess I find this interesting because lately I have been wondering a bit about why I have been able to have some success with this body weight management thing considering just how difficult it is. I believe the answer has two parts. First, I think that when I recognize negative "self talk", I tend not to let it divert me from my ultimate goal.  Secondly, I haven't given up. Sure, some of the things that worked for me 25 or 30 years ago are not the things that seem to be working for me now. But I've kept at it. The things that still work (exercise), I still do. But when something isn't working, I move on in search of the thing that will.

Since its been awhile, I will remind all that I still consider my goal weight to be 160 to 165 pounds. The last time I have been in this range was December 10th, 2012. I am back to weight training and feel that I am headed in the right direction. My weight history is updated in the right sidebar.

This past month I read "Sugar Nation" by Jeff O'Connell. This book could have just as easily been called Diabetes Nation and gives a very scary account of what insulin resistance does to the human body.  From there I moved on to "Meals that Heal Inflammation" by Julie Daniluk. I find this book to have a lot of good information and it turns out, I seem to be doing a few things right, well at least according to Julie.:)

I will also note that my acclimation to life in Jacksonville progressed today with my initial exploration of a bike route to my office. I am not going to have the luxury of a rail trail for my commute here so I will need several more exploratory trips to make sure I have a safe route to work on two wheels. Due to my ongoing right shoulder issue I have decided it is finally time to give up the traditional diamond frame "wedgie" bike in favor of the recumbent I've been riding for the last year or so.

So, as we move through September, I can only second the statement that Diana Nyad made on the beach this morning in Key West.

Never, ever give up!