I am the only person on the planet who would feel like a failure after losing 36 pounds in less than 60 days. I just completed back to back 60-Day Challenges and lost a total of 50 pounds and up until I sat down to write this essay, I have felt like a failure for not losing enough weight to win the grand prize. Over the past few months, I realize that while I have been laser focused on my weight and percentage, I have missed the fact that my body has completely changed and that I have gone down four pants sizes. My goals have morphed from being to jog until the first song in my playlist was finished to regularly running three miles. After leaving my first one after five minutes, I attend Ann’s spin classes multiple times per week, often staying behind to do additional mobility work. I have tried yoga and can hold my own in the Barre classes. It seems that I am the only one who did not observe the change! Even Facebook has stopped showing me ads for plus-sized clothing; instead, I now see a constant barrage of advertisements for fitness companies.

Because of my tunnel vision, I have not noticed that my pain medication (medication which, after having a benign meningioma removed from my spine, my doctors told me I would always need) has gone untouched for weeks. Or the fact that I was always the person at a party that needed to be sitting and now I do not even realize that I have been standing the entire time. Or that through seeing my husband and I make dietary changes, my children are even more aware of what they are eating and how what they consume fuels their bodies. The other day, my mother-in-law offered my kids cookies, and they asked her how much protein was in them.  

When I started my first 60 day, I had three children under the age of four, including a three-month old. I did not acknowledge the challenges of doing the 60 day under those circumstances. Nor did I acknowledge the challenges of having not exercised in two years and going back to the gym in that capacity. I did not notice that my workouts with trainer, Chris Donnelly, were significantly more difficult than those I had done previously.

Now that I have weighed out a second time and taken the time to reflect, I am only beginning to realize what I have accomplished. I have gone from living a sedentary lifestyle to signing up for Alpha classes in just a few months. And, more importantly, I have adopted a healthier lifestyle for my family and made our lives healthier and happier.