Downhill Skier and Other Silly Stuff

Even though I've lost 127 pounds (side note: after awhile, the numbers become so meaningless - AND meaningful, it's crazy. I had to pull up another online tab to see my weight loss tracker to see how much I've lost, haha), there's still a lot of odd stuff going on in my head related to all those years of obesity.

One of them is my toes. A measure of weight loss success, I feel, is being able to see one's toes. Especially for us "apple" shapes, where I carried almost all my excess weight in my belly. And boobs. 

You can imagine my disappoint after all this weight loss, and I'm still only able to see the tips of my toes when I look down! Soooo frustrating. I blame all this belly fat and loose skin.

Well, I did, until my massage therapist, whom I've been seeing twice a week in the epitome of luxury and spoiledness and Cadillac insurance plans, commented on my posture. As in, why do you stand like you're skiing down a mountain?

Bahaha, she didn't say that. But she did point out that my posture is very, very forward-leaning. I remember this from the center of gravity tests on the Wii Fit, too. You're supposed to keep the blue dot within the circle. My blue dot was always at the outer edge of the screen. This is how I stand:

I don't look this good in spandex, though.

See me standing back there? I guess I'm more bow-shaped than skier-shaped.

Anyway - a long story to tell you that when my massage therapist corrected my posture, I can not only see my toes, I can see my whole dang feet and everything else down there. So I've been berating myself for this big saggy belly, and a lot of it is just bad posture. :) I'm working on it.

Now, a bit about what an athlete I've become. :) Yesterday, I was sooooo looking forward to working out. Like, really. Really looking forward to it. Then my daughter was sick and quite pale and I didn't want her working out. So I decided to go for a nice long bike ride by myself. But by the time I got the kids squared away, my iPhone calendar reminded me of an appointment my daughter had that she couldn't miss. I only had 30 minutes or so to get in a quick work out.

Dedicated athlete that I am, I hopped on my bike and rode around the neighborhood. It wasn't a long ride, but it was a satisfying one. And after that, I parked that bike and ran around the block. Yay me! Seriously - I am (getting) addicted to exercise. It has happened. My whole life I have wanted this to happen. I love it!

And finally, a quick update on the man front. We have two contenders. They need nicknames, because the Date # thing is just not working. Both are Class A, Grade #1, Super Contenders. I am eagerly watching to see how this turns out! Interestingly, both of these men are well over 6' tall. Can you believe it?? I am only 5'3", so I can wear 13" heels! BAHAHA! We are all roughly the same age. I think I am actually about a year older than both of them. (Waves cougar paws in the air gleefully)

Dawg: You know him. He's the techie I went out with a couple times last week. Best first date ever. Really, really like him a lot. But he seems to work 'round the clock, and even though he texts every day, who knows when I'll see him again! He has three kids that are G-B-B like mine, almost exactly the same ages. We have been divorced almost exactly the same amount of time. When I asked him how he felt about dating a woman with kids (this will be a sore spot for me for awhile, haha), he said, "I'm in no position to throw stones, am I?" He also suggested we pair them off by ages, put them in a room until only one is left. This is my kind of man. :)

Rebar: New blood! He's a construction superintendent who builds bridges. Oh dear, he is crazy about short women with big smiles: we may be a match made in heaven. We started emailing, then texting, just yesterday. Boy, it is pretty rare that the emails just click along like that - and we have a lot in common. But his kid is 23 and already out of college, and he's been divorced ten years. I am liking, liking, liking this guy, so I have pre-date jitters. Did I tell you we're meeting for a drink tonight? Yes! I hope it goes as well in person as it has thus far. Plus, he loves kayaking - only one of my favorite things in the world (we sold our boats in the divorce, though). And when I said I went on a long bike ride this weekend, he knew exactly where I went and has done that ride before. We are practically neighbors! Wouldn't that be nice? Rebar asked me how many kids I have and how old; I am very don't ask/don't tell about this information, haha, but I will respond honestly if asked directly. So I said:

Kids...yes, I ((cough, cough)), have ((cough, cough)) some. ;) I've got three: daughter, 13 and sons, 11 and 7. It's the dating equivalent of wearing a scarlet A (scarlet K?) on my chest, haha. But they are with their dad (literally) 50% of the time, so I actually have plenty of free time for myself. They've got a great dad and we parent well together, so it only sounds terrifying on paper. ;) And then he said:

That's a chunk of kids! Damn!! Ha. I'm guessing it must make dating a little harder. Trust me, being kid free doesn't make it much easier.

So I like him. :) I'll keep you posted. I'm liking my selections, though - things are looking bright.