The Internet is really, really great for so many things. In this case, it's because I can post from my iPhone. Pretty cool.

Day of Reckoning, Final Edition

"Final Edition", 'cuz I'm never doing that again. Epic fail on the weight loss plan. Clearly, declaring my intentions in public didn't make me any more likely to be successful. All in all, app. 10 lbs. down total since September. I never made it to more than 14 lbs. down during the past several months. At least I didn't gain weight. ;-)

I have learned some things about what works for me (other than not going public). I am prone to making grand plans and then dropping them if I don't follow them to a "T". I need to just settle down and focus on the basics: get healthy and fit. How I get there doesn't matter as much as if I get there.

Dairy is not my friend. I've mostly removed it from my diet and I feel better. Cheese and butter taste so good but make me feel so bad. Chocolate is also a frenemy. Despite what I keep reading, chocolate does cause acne. Within a day or so of eating it, I break out in evil cysts. So not fair.

The South Beach Diet plan is also a mixed blessing. If I follow it to the letter, I lose weight like crazy. I also feel awful and fairly deprived. I need to figure out how to customize the basic concept so it works for me. I avoid dairy, artificial flavors and colors, and artificial sweeteners. That eliminates all of the dessert options. Boo hiss.

Exercise is a good option to lose weight, but only if I do it consistently. I think what I need to do is try to become strong and healthy, instead of focusing on burning the calories. Get healthy and the weight loss will follow. Even if it doesn't, I'll still be in better shape than I am now.

The most dramatic lesson I learned recently is that, why, yes - kidney stones are more painful than labor. I've been through natural childbirth and I drove myself to the hospital when I had appendicitis. The pain I had two days ago was so bad that I was crying and unable to move until it subsided. A visit to the ER soon after brought news that I have multiple stones in both kidneys, including a 6mm one in my right kidney (where the pain was). They gave me nice drugs and a referral to the urologist. I'll see him next week. In the meantime, I've been doing a lot of reading about kidney stones. It's clear that I still have some dietary changes to make. I owe it to myself and my family to try to be healthy. Will this involve further weight loss? Probably - but you can bet I won't be talking about it until after the fact.

Music Monday

On Friday, I turned 39. One more year 'til 40! Believe it or not, I'm pretty excited about turning 40. Every year, I feel a bit more comfortable with myself. 40 should be even better, right? For now, I still have to wait nearly a year to find out if I'm right.

The Wii Fit did put a tiny dent in the celebrations. It told me to not "let age get in the way." As if! Age is but a number. It's how you feel inside that counts.

The song that came to mind after that reminder was No Time at All from Pippin. I love everything from Stephen Schwartz, but Pippin was the first musical I adored. This song, in particular, fits my mood for now. A couple of quotes that I love from the play:

"Now don’t take life so seriously. Just take things as they come along. Don’t do too much planning, and don’t do too much thinking. How’s that for wisdom so far?"

and

"It’s time for me to start living...and stop worrying. Maybe that’s the secret. Just to enjoy all of the simple things in life."

So, why wait until I'm older still? Now's the time to live, and laugh, and love.