Pleasant Plateau

I never thought I'd write this, but I'm in the middle of the most pleasant fitness plateau I've ever experienced.

In fact, I'm pretty sure it's the ONLY time I've ever considered a plateau to be "pleasant."

But, in truth, I'm finding this plateau pleasing only because it's not really a plateau.

Let me explain ... my weight has plateaued. And I'm happy with that for a few reasons ... primarily because I've managed to MAINTAIN this weight with my current level of calorie consumption and exercise schedule. I don't feel like I'm starving. I eat at regular intervals, not skipping any meals (I know. Not a healthy thing to do. I had to teach myself to eat breakfast though and it is still not my favorite meal of the day). And, with where I am at RIGHT NOW, I feel like I can keep this up. In fact, I've BEEN keeping this up without hardly trying for the past 4 months or so.

I've actually been surprised each week when I step on the scale and I'm maintaining withing a 2 - 3 lb range.

So my weight loss has plateaued.

But everything else seems to still be changing!

Last night, I put on a pair of shorts I purchased just two weeks ago. And they fit me loose now. Not so much that I need to toss them and get more, but enough of a difference where I need to wear a belt with them. And speaking of belts, I've had to tighten the belt I wear on a regular basis to work by another notch! I did that this morning because my pants were still slipping when at the old notch.

This seems surreal to me! The scale isn't moving. And normally, that would start a downward spiral that is brutal to behold. But my body is still changing, even without continued weight loss!

I've read about it. But honestly, I've never experienced it to this degree. It's happening without me trying. Well ... not really ... I'm working out or jogging about 6 days a week. I'm eating well - at every meal- and not binging when I have a "cheat day." And it's WORKING! Like it is supposed to work!

I know it's silly ... but it's hard to wrap my brain around it.

And that's not all! My strength is returning in the gym. While my dead lifts haven't quite reached my old level, I'm getting really close to that old high water mark. And I'm doing it while 50 lbs lighter than when I last hit that mark!

My body is responding in ways I cannot ever remember it responding before.

In a sense, that's an exaggeration. The year before my Wonder Boy was born, Wonder Dad and I made a concerted effort to get in good shape. And it worked. We ate well. We lost weight. We worked out and made sure we got plenty of cardio (see a theme here??). And we saw these same kinds of reactions. But I got pregnant very soon after that. And it's been almost 13 years now. So my memory of these things is dim, at best.

So this feels brand new. It's exciting! And I can barely believe it. In fact, there's a part of me that worries I will "jinx" it by even mentioning it here. But really, if I can't celebrate these successes ... is it really a success?

I'm not going to worry about it - not today anyway! It's Friday. And I feel good. And I'm less critical about my body today than I was yesterday.

Baby steps.

I'll take it.