6 mornings well spent...

Seven days, six trips to the gym,

from last Sunday to this past Saturday.

It was cold, it snowed,

I was tired, I had things to do.

I had almost 300 pages to read

in less than a week (I lead 3 book clubs),

a house to de-Christmas,

laundry piling up, my son home from college,

a 50th birthday party to plan for my husband,

bills to pay, dishes, laundry, pets,

a full time job, meals to prepare.

But...at age 48, I also have

stage II hypertension,

early onset coronary artery disease,

high cholesterol (genetic),

a few extra pounds since this time last year

and no room for excuses.

So, after 7 days and 6 EARLY morning trips to the gym,

over 90 minutes of weight training,

more than 4 hours spent on the treadmill,

bike, stair master,

elliptical and incline trainer,

20 miles, 3127 vertical feet,

101 steps climbed later,

...2589 calories left at the gym

(not counting those burned during weight training),

and attention paid to what I fed my body,

I lost 2 pounds this week.

My heart is better for my efforts.

I'm energetic, sleeping well, my brain is clear,

and I'm ridiculously happy...

feeling mighty fine in fact.

One of my favorite quotes on fitness comes

from Olympian Mia Hamm...

"I am building a fire, and every day I train

I add more fuel. At just the right moment

I light the match."

Goal? To be the healthiest me ever.

To care for what's on the inside.

I love life. I don't want to miss a minute of it.

-t.