The main reason I’ve hated working so much since May 15 may not be what you think. True, I didn’t have time for blogging or reading much. I didn’t like getting up earlier. I was tired at the end of the day. I didn’t sleep as well. But the main reason I hated it was that I gained five pounds.
For background: I put quite a bit of effort over the last four or five years into losing 23 pounds – just a bit shy of my goal. I gained some back (about five pounds) last winter when my bone doctor wanted me to eat two servings of fat-free yogurt every day to increase my calcium intake. We agreed this wasn’t good, so I started focusing on other high-calcium foods (mostly leafy greens and nonfat milk) and cut back on the yogurt. I stopped gaining but didn’t shed any of the pounds I’d gained.
I was just beginning to adjust to the idea that I might not be able to preserve my remaining bone density and still get to my weight goal when I agreed to a contract with Bloomberg BNA - my first work in two years - to help launch the new Premier International Tax Library. Specifically, my friend Rita McWilliams asked me to help her with the International Tax Developments Tracker, which consists of daily summaries of recent tax developments from 114 countries. Most of my work needed to be done in the mornings, and that killed my daily workout routine. Some weeks I didn’t get to the gym at all. Bad news!
During the work-up to launching the new product, I gained another five pounds. Now that the Tracker is live, I’ve returned to my routine of going to the gym every morning. Since early August I’ve lost two pounds. Now we are headed in the right direction …
The only dietary change I’ve made this summer is to cut back on the amount of wine I drink. I’ve found that I enjoy the right wine just as much when mixed with seltzer – a “spritzer,” I think it’s called. A couple of ice cubes and a slice of lime, and I can drink two glasses for the calories of one. Such a deal!
I made this change in early summer, but I didn’t see the weight gain begin to reverse itself until this month, when I started exercising regularly again. Perhaps it’s not a very scientific study, but I’m taking the results seriously. And maybe, now that we’ve changed weight direction, I will eventually achieve that goal set years ago.
Other changes since I stopped working so much, particularly in the mornings, include sleeping better, reading more, and now this: writing for this blog again. I’ll try to get back in the habit. Not sure what I’ll write about – but thinking of topics and writing in my head come more easily while I’m on the elliptical machine. I’m sure something will come up.
Cheers!