You Can't Do It Alone....

The headline of this blog post might be a bit misleading because there certainly ARE people out there that have successfully hit weight loss goals and obtained a healthy lifestyle on their own. And, maybe it's easier that way. You don't have to worry about fixing a meal that only you can eat....you don't have to eat when everyone else is hungry, you can wait until your body tells you to eat...really now that I think about it, I guess maybe it's more possible than impossible! 

But for me, I can't do it alone. I can't eat healthy alone because I lack the ability to THINK before I eat. I just eat whatever's in front of me. And in the past if I've waited too long to make those decisions, sometimes I would end up on the couch with six pieces of toast and a half gallon of chocolate milk. So...it's nice to have a co-eater (Ha, that's a funny title) along side to help make those calorie decisions. 

I also can't work out well alone. I'm good in the gym, if I have my headphones plugged into a TV in front of me but I'm really pushed when I have a workout partner to keep me accountable and to push me. Andrea does a great job of this. Before Andrea, I had a different workout partner. He was a little overweight himself. Pretty hairy. Panted even when we weren't exercising. And insisted on licking the outside of my knees if I stood still too long. It was my black lab, Cisco.

Back when I first started getting serious about losing weight and exercising...Cisco and I would take out for walks in the countryside. I liked him nearby because not only was he intimidating to creepy people who drove by me...but he also pushed me. Made me walk HIS pace, not my slow wandering lope. When we graduated up to jogging, we'd hit the highway and walk the distance to one telephone pole then jog the distance to the next, then walk the to the next pole, and then jog to the next...we did this for a mile until we hit the highway stop sign and then we'd turn around and do it again back home. Cisco would look back at me every now and then with this big goofy lab grin and made sure that I was keeping up with him. Our best day came when we pushed hard and ran our first complete mile together - NONSTOP! When we hit the stop sign to turn around I was so thrilled I yelled, "WE DID IT, BUDDY! WE DID IT!" Cisco stopped. Put his paws up on my waist and gave me a look that read, "I knew we would do it the whole time...YOU were the only one that doubted us!" And it's true. We humans ALWAYS doubt our abilities. We always say "I can't" before we say "I'm going to try that". You don't see dogs do that. They'll jump headfirst into a bush to flush out a cat without hesitating. When they take out on a walk, they don't think, "Oh, I can only go so far, and then I've gotta turn around." They think, "ALRIGHT, a WALK! This is the BEST DAY EVER!" I think we need that attitude, too. 

Now Cisco's jogs get shorter and shorter. While his heart wants to chase that stop sign down again with me, his body has other plans. We still go for walks. We still pay fetch...though his eyesight doesn't always allow him to find the ball as fast as he used to. But mainly, he's my reminder that rest and recovery is just as important as exercise. We lay on the couch with his big furry paws thrown over my chest and think about all that we've accomplished in the day. He's a good boy. And by far the best workout partner I could have started this journey out with.

I hope you, too, find someone to motivate you!