"People seldom see the halting and painful steps by which the most insignificant success is achieved."
This is one of the quotes I gathered on a copy&paste spree last week. I only just today got around to cutting them out and sticking them around my room, and something about the above one just really resonated with me. It does so even more now that I went back to see who said it. Anne Sullivan. If you're like me, you went "Hey, that name sounds really familiar..." and then when you looked it up on Wikipedia, you felt a little dumb. Granted, teaching Helen Keller is a much more noble pursuit than weight loss, which is what I was going to talk about, but whatever... We can't all be Anne Sullivans.
I read Wendy McClure's I'm Not the New Me so many times in my early days in Korea (when I had very few other English books), that there are still a lot of phrases I can remember almost word-for-word. She's describing, sort of off-handedly, a few months when she's doing pretty well on Weight Watchers, and she says she's "going through the motions, faithfully trying to re-enact a week when I lost a pound." These days, since my new healthy lifestyle routine has become sort of... well... routine, I've stopped thinking about it. When I think about weight loss, or I look at that snazzy 55 pound bling on my sidebar, I sort of find myself wondering... How did that happen? Which just proves how accurate this quote is.
Sure, when I meet (or read blogs of) people who've lost 100+ pounds, it's amazing. I read the brief "My Weight Loss Story" link, and it all seems very inspirational and inevitable. But this quote makes me remember that really... it wasn't. They had to make a million correct decisions to get there. Day after day they forced themselves onto the treadmill or into the gym. Meal after meal they turned down the extra helping, threw away the chocolate. And each step, each decision, was so relatively unimportant. Passing on the dessert just once has almost no effect. But passing on that same dessert 20 days out of 30 in a month... how many pounds could that be? Like today I went to the gym and jogged/walked faithfully on the treadmill for 30 minutes, for a sum total of about 275 calories burned. But that's a drop in the hat. I have to do that same thing 6 times a week, and eat on-plan, to succeed in losing the week's allotted 1-2 pounds. Then repeat that, all the while upping the intensity, 49 times to lose 100 pounds. That's why each step is so "halting and painful" - because it is so small.
How hard is it to do the right thing 90-100% of the time when it takes at least a month to see demonstrable results in the mirror, and when the scale moves so slowly at a healthy rate? Those 2 pounds a week are exactly that... "insignificant success" in the grand scheme of my big goals. And it's not just that we can't see the "halting and painful steps" others are taking. Most of the time we aren't even aware of them ourselves. What if I congratulated myself, wholeheartedly, everytime I woke up at 5:30 to go to the gym? Usually I'm too tired to even think about why I'm doing this. I put on my clothes and drag myself through the dark, stick my headphones on and start lifting, trying to think of anything but the pain in my muscles.
What I should be doing instead is giving myself a pep talk. "Way to go, Briy. I can't believe you! You're on fire! A year ago you wouldn't have dreamed of getting out of bed at 5:30 for anything, let alone to lift weights. You're obviously serious about this weight loss thing. And this is the third time this week! I know you'll see those results soon. Just keep it up. Enjoy it!"
If I could be aware of every little thing I did right, instead of dwelling only on the things I did wrong, I'd be able to be proud of myself, justifiably. And I might enjoy my workouts a bit more, even the early morning ones. If only I could keep in mind that every cookie I don't eat, and every vegetable I do, is a penny in the bank account. Every minute I clock on the treadmill is an investment. What's that other quote? The journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step? I just need to keep my eyes on the destination, and remember why I'm doing this.
20 comments:
One of my favorite quotes is from Starhawk. She said:
"All I could manage was baby steps. I just kept going and going, and then eventually, I looked back, and realized that my baby steps had taken me across the universe."
YAY for getting up early and going to the gym and eating the vegetables instead of the chocolate and doing everything you can to lose the weight. You're an inspiration!
Wow, Briy
That was an amazing post. You continue to amaze me girl! You're right, let's all be Anne Sullivans!
Thanks!!
Rose
"If I could be aware of every little thing I did right, instead of dwelling only on the things I did wrong...."
I think we all suffer from this disease, and you're so right, it is so self defeating. I agree, wholeheartedly, that baby steps are to be celebrated. Thanks for the reminder.
j
So true, so true!! I think thats why we always refer to weight loss as a journey... all the little steps we need to take to get there. Very thought provoking!!
Wonderful post!
It is so hard to feel great about doing the right thing when you've done it 100 times...it's hard to remember that every single time continues to count. That's why it really is so important to take the process a day - um, no, a decision, at a time and celebrate every single thing you do right.
It's hard though...and easy to forget and get discouraged. Thanks for the reminder. :-)
V.
Fabulous, fabulous post!!!
Great post! I loved it! You've given me so much to think about!
What a powerful post! What is it inside of us that can focus in on what we've done wrong but not look at all the things we've done right? I think you've summed it up beautifully here. Thank you for this amazing post!
this is a fantastic post. not only do I love the quote, but so much of what you wrote is true. I often look at the negative vs the positive, and the positive is so important in order to keep leading a healthy lifestyle. so praise yourself for what you do right and never be too hard on yourself when you slipup either.
Just the words I needed to read...hear. Thank you for summing it up. :)
That 55 lbs gone badge is gorgeous and you worked hard to get it! Celebrate it! Enjoy! Focus on the positive! :)
Thanks for stopping by my blog. You are so right about the day to day little things being a big investment for us. Great Stats by the way.
Selma
Thank you for this. Amazingly well written, and just what I needed to hear.
A fine reminder to reflect on the small good things before I go to bed at night.
Wow, this is a really great post (I know, everyone else has said it...)
We're all our own worst critics and it's so easy to get bogged down in the I-suck-itis. I'm going to bookmark this and come back regularly to read!
Eeek, I've mimicked your topic today, though not nearly so eloquently as you have. This is an amazing post, so filled with truths about what we do to ourselves without a change in thinking.
Here's to your continued success!
Wow, read this over on the HYC site and loved it. It really helps put things in perspective. Thanks for helping me remember that every bite I put in my mouth, every bite of unhealthy food I don't put into my mouth and every step of exercise is a penny added to that investment I'm making in myself and it's all going to add up to something huge (and it won't be me!) ;)
Woo-hoo! Well said!
Very true! great article.
I think we all need to keep those thoughts at the top of our mind. It is so easy to kick yourself for a bad decision.. today I will slow down and congratulate myself for all the good choices I make!
This post is another good example of a great idea for Newsweek's "My Turn" column.
Great mental work, and thanks for verbalizing what many of us have obviously been thinking. You are indeed an inspiration!
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