Shrink Me Out of These Trousers!

I must confess...when I lost weight I never got rid of my "Chubby Girl Trousers" these wide leg charcoal pants that make me appear thinner than I am and that literally fall off of me when I am close to my goal weight. These trousers that are currently too snug have remained part of my wardrobe when they probably shouldn't have. Some people hold on to clothing in hopes that they will lose enough weight to fit into them again and I just have to wonder if holding on to these pants was my way of subconsciously accepting an inevitable weight gain. Nevertheless, they have become a symbol for a non-scale victory challenge.

A "Non-Scale Victory" consist of weight loss that isn't measured by the amount of pounds you lose but rather by mileage you run, the weight you lift, or inches you've lost, etc... It is a victory that is earned but is often overshadowed by the pesky numbers on the scale. In order to maintain my motivation I will do my best to ignore the scale and celebrate these other victories.

I am no expert but I am discovering that dwelling on failure is no way to rekindle your motivation. In fact it will do the opposite and keep you down. My "Chubby Girl Trousers" may be too snug now but after a few weeks of changing my habits they will loosen up. I am going use these pants as a stepping stone in the right direction.

• Stone One: The pants will become so loose I will need a belt to keep them up 
• Stone Two: The pants will become even more loose causing me to move back a few notches on that belt
• Final Stone: The pants will become too big that the belt can no longer hold them up.

After the final stone I will donate these pants and move on to the next challenge. I know that I am not perfect, I know it will take time to change my bad habits, and I realize that beating myself up is no way to live. I lost motivation, I got comfortable, and I gained weight but here I am trying again. Trying is a part of life...think of how many tries it took before you learned to tie your shoe, how many tries did it take before you learned how to ride your bike, and how many tries did it take before you found an ideal companion and that's if you're not still trying. In my opinion as long as you keep trying you don't really fail you fall. I have fallen but I am getting up at my pace and I challenge you to do the same!

'