Day Forty-five: the towel test

Anyone who is slightly (a lot) larger than average will recognise the towel problem encountered at hotels, spas, gyms (?!) and the like. Any towels provided are generally the smallest possible they can get away with. If you are a stick insect I'm sure they wrap snugly around your sleek form with no problems, but in my case I'm sometimes hard pressed to get the ends to meet at all. 

It's not an issue in a hotel room, although slightly irritating, but at a spa or pool where you want at least a pretence of modesty, it can be embarrassing. If I'm lucky I can just about tuck the ends in around my chest but am left with a glaring expanse of wobbling thigh causing heart failure in those of a delicate disposition. I have been known to take my own super-size dressing gown to spas with me to spare the need for medical intervention.

At home I have dealt with this by buying the most enormous extra-large towels I can find. I have several that cross over properly at the top and comfortably meet around my thighs with a few inches to spare. I noticed however yesterday, that I'm having to wrap the towel further and further under my arms to get it to stay up. My measurements aren't showing a massive inch reduction but the towel shows a noticeable difference in this particular aspect of my shape. I don't think I'm ready to risk using a standard towel in public but it's these unexpected small alterations to everyday activities that are so great to achieve.

In the meantime I am settling back into my normal routine, fasting in the office today with my flask of coffee. Monday was a bit different for me as my kids were home but we kept busy and I only had a momentary pang when I treated them to their last treat of the holiday - fish and chips for supper. It would have been fine if the younger one hadn't left half her food on her plate for me to clear up. I am grateful at least that she knows how to stop eating when she is full. I did, of course, resist despite the delicious aroma of temptation.

My fasts this year are enhanced by the fact that my lovely boyfriend has started 5:2 as well. Being a lanky fellow, he doesn't really need to lose any weight, but is doing it to gain the excellent health benefits and hopefully stave off incipient dementia ;) With any luck he will write another guest blog post to share how he is getting on. He is, of course, a hoopy frood who always knows where his towel is.

Day Forty-three: 2014 Master list

I've never really done New Year resolutions. It seems like an arbitrary line to draw, and inevitably leads to failure, or at least a perception of failure. I do however like writing lists, in particular when I get to cross stuff off the list. I also think there is a great mental benefit to reviewing and remembering our successes, and lists are a simple way to achieve this. We so often fall into the habit of dwelling on the negative, thinking about things we haven't done or wish we hadn't done. So rather than making resolutions, I have decided to write a list of things I would like to get done this year. I will add to it and possibly take things off as I go along, making it a living record to consult when I need to remember that I am, in fact, rather good at some stuff.

So here is version one.

1. Weight loss goals - I have several mini-goals written elsewhere, but my overall goal for this year is to lose another 2 stone.
2. Walking. By the end of the year I hope to be walking at least 10 miles a week. This depends on getting my back/pelvis issues sorted, so I must do all the exercises prescribed by my physio to make this happen. I will invest in a measuring app to track my activity once I'm in a position to walk regularly.
3. Work. Complete the IR Diploma and any other tasks set by my manager in order to get promoted in 2015.
4. Writing. I used to write fiction. Granted, it was pretty awful fanfiction, but I enjoyed it a lot and got to know some great people in the writing community. I stopped pretty much on the day I separated from my ex. Maybe it was my outlet for dealing with the stress of the relationship and I didn't need it any more. Anyway I miss it and have a couple of story ideas rattling around in my head, so I aim to finish at least one of them this year.

In the meantime, I am on my first fast day of the year, about to go to my first physio session of the year, and looking forward to great things. I'll leave you with Woodie Guthrie's list of "rulin's" from 1942, courtesy of Brain Pickings. I particularly like numbers 13, 19, 20, 31 and 33.

http://www.brainpickings.org/index.php/2013/01/01/four-famous-new-years-resolution-lists-jonathan-swift-susan-sontag-marilyn-monroe-woody-guthrie/