You awaken to realize results are slower than anticipated, moving at an unremarkable rate of zero to a half pound per week. Hope rises weekly, only to fall short of expectations. A flatlining, the stagnant momentum, and the deadened journey approach central station far from the final destination. No longer able to take the bullet train to the intended juncture, you exit the railway car lost, tattered, worn, and in search of direction. At a crossroads, wandering aimlessly while still towing the line of faith, persistence, and burning desire to reach the intended target, you stagger forward intuitively knowing the path.
As a perpetual student, fatigued by the process of documenting each morsel, prepping for all occasions, and helping others leap hurdles toward health and healing, courage is deeply tested. Weight upon my shoulders slouches my posture, yet I heave forward with every breath, eliminate the past, and lurch further in the direction of my dreams, present to engage another day. Wanting the dead weight lifted, the fat dissolved, and maintenance to begin, I wade through open waters, certain my destiny lies ahead. Gears twist and turn, plagued by the weight of unwanted pounds; I expect their release, plummeting from a plume of protection and purgatory.
A status quo existence at my current weight correlates with stagnation, inactive duty from “gettin’ it done.” Yet slim progress persists at a tortoise’s pace, while watching hares whisk swiftly by with ease. Weekly I wish for speed, agility, and strength to run faster, dig deeper, and dial down greater numbers. Certainly knowledge, persistence, and desire for change produces momentum, movement, and a magnitude of decreased mass, while dedication, follow-through, and daring greatly in the face of past failures constitute struggles worth victory? Has anything been left undone, an education unfinished, or a derailed dietary need gone undetected?
Within the slow I require sits a pivotal shift. The embedded lifestyle, engrained for these plateau pauses, a vast education of information, a richness received regularly, and the strengthening wisdom, a wealth worth wading through, enrich and ready the mind and body for a healthy lifelong existence. Time to embrace, rehearse, and face adversity during the struggle of transformation and routine practice, enhance long term success. Guidance, grit, and grace on the weight loss road less travelled prevent fatal errors when arriving at the gate of maintenance.
When the heartbeat distinctively flatlines, deadened by the exhaustive process, the imperative jumpstart of the heart pumping blood to the veins of our journey in need of nutrients for the lifelong track ahead is life saving. Jumping from the train early forges detoured, alternate paths collecting rich wisdom and encouraging strength, bravery, and longevity for the final destination. Flatlining is a prerequisite, preventing fatal, flawed, and diminished success. Awakened, my heart beats steadily. Yet skipping a beat every now and then to take a breath for a pause is a flat line worth traveling.