June 18th.  Today is the day that I celebrate another year of keeping off at least 100 pounds!  I am still not at the magical goal number (or maybe I am….), but the weight that I did lose is staying off.   That is more important to me than reaching goal.

2 years ago, I bought a rose bush to celebrate hitting 100 pounds lost and planted it in my garden.  I was excited when it came back last year and bloomed at about this time (appropriate!).

This year, I was worried about my rose bush. I thought the last freezes we had might have killed it because the growth started so late, but it is blooming again right now as a reminder of what is possible.

Also, the fact that it made it through some late hard freeze and continued to thrive is sort of representative of the challenges that we face in losing and keeping off weight and yet it can be done.  It is not always an easy road, but it is certainly a travel-able road.

In the past year (June to June), I have done

• A triathlon
• A duathlon
• Six 5K races
• New Rules of Lifting
• Chin ups!
• and a heck of a lot of bike miles.

I’ve kept the weight off through a year’s worth of holidays, birthdays, celebrations,  various binges, a cruise, and an injury.  Of course, this isn’t to say the weight has remained the same.  I have ranged around in a 10-pound area with 145 seeming to be the sweet spot where my body gravitates.  I really struggled last summer learning how to feed my body while training for a triathlon.  I was trying to do that and lose weight, which do not necessarily go hand in hand.  I found my body just fluctuates a lot, and that is okay.  I know how to handle it now (not that I am always successful).

Flash back to 5 years ago at 250 pounds:

Here is a shot I took this morning of the jeans I am wearing in the above picture.  24W.  I kept this pair as a reminder of where I never, ever want to be again.

I can’t believe I used to fill these jeans up.  It’s embarrassing, really.  I have this strange mixture of pride and shame about the weight loss.  Shame that I ever disrespected myself enough to get so large and yet pride that I was able to take the weight off and treat my body the way I need to in order to be healthy and fit.

Now a couple fun shots.  2 years ago at 150 being a superstar :

This week at 145 trying the same pose:

Not much weight difference, but a big body composition change with the strength training.  I do have a fair amount of loose skin, particularly in my butt/legs, but it has firmed up some over time.   I wasn’t even sucking in my tummy LOL!  And I swear my butt looks a little higher??  Go squats!  Lift those weights, ladies!! (and guys).  It’s kind of neat that the older I get, the more revealing my clothes are, and I am embracing the imperfections rather than trying to hide them.

I hope that next year I will be posting again with pictures of this rose bush.  When I tuck it away for the winter and start checking on it again next spring to see how it weathered the winter months, I hope we meet again in the same spirit.