Seventh verse, same as the first

I'm so sick of seeing the same number on the scale yet again! I'm trying, rather unsuccessfully, to feel grateful to see that number for the seventh week in a row. Had I been able to exercise at my usual level and intensity, I most certainly would have posted a loss.

Wouldn't I?

I only managed to get 215 minutes of intentional activity this week, and I had been posting 450 to 550 minutes per week. I just can't manage to chalk up the same amount of time on the rowing machine as I can walking outside.

I bet you couldn't either.

The Shuffle and I have a date this morning: I'm going to try out the new athletic shoes on a Real Walk today. The only 'pain' I feel is when I intentionally press my heel hard into the floor, and it feels like a slight bruise fading away. Rest, ice, stretching, elevation and Aleve have done the trick, much to my relief.

Anne is asking readers to post their reasons for losing weight, after attending her weight-loss group meeting where that was the topic. I added a couple of my reasons to her list.

It's worth thinking about what motivates us to go through this struggle. At least, it seems most of us struggle; I know I can't look at this as … ahem … a walk in the park. One of my neighbors was at the breast cancer walk, and said she'd recently dropped eight pounds just by cutting potato chips from her diet.

Do you read those suggestions for cutting fill-in-the-blank from your daily diet and wonder what else you can do? Because you already don't eat fill-in-the-blank? My current vice is Coffee-Mate Sugar-Free Hazelnut Creamer. At 15 calories per tablespoon, and about six tablespoons daily, I guess I could cut it out and gain a small advantage. But is it worth it?

I substitute light margarine for real butter, whole-wheat for white, sugar-free soda for regular … you get the idea. When I read those "cut out this" and "substitute that" suggestions, I usually just snort. The last time I ate a candy bar daily [cut out 250 calories by eliminating your afternoon candy bar!] was in middle school. [We called it junior high, back in the old days.]

Maybe I will go back to using the fake creamer only on weekends. Like chicken soup in a car wreck – it can't hurt!