Beautiful Day

I was a little bit off yesterday as my mind seemed to be all over the place.  I was not feeling down but, my thoughts seemed to be drifting around a bit.  I had some anxiety and fear about what life had in store for me.  I was thinking about the spring and what may or may not lay ahead.  I was thinking about this house and perhaps having to move out in the months to come.  My birthday is coming up and I think yesterday was somewhat natural.  Perhaps it was just some self reflection on the verge of turning 38.  I felt better after I visited the chiropodist in the afternoon to have the bottom of my foot taken care of.  She is quite good at what she does and is very pleasant to interact with.  I left there feeling good.

I was able to get a gym membership yesterday and began my quest to be trim again.  I went in the morning and spent about a half hour there.  I find it best to ease in to work outs and not take on too much too soon, gradually building strength and stamina as the weeks pass by.  I felt amazing afterwards and was able to have a productive and positive day.  Can't wait to go back tomorrow.

I go to SNAP fitness and really enjoy it there.  That is the place where I began a personal transformation about five years a go.  I was on disability at the time and was at least fifty pounds over weight probably coming in around 280.  I got like that as I simply did not care about my personal appearance the last few years I worked at the school board.  I had been so miserable and put no effort in to exercise and diet.  I drank pop like it came out of a fountain and could feel the sugar weighing me down.  It was probably June and I decided to get a gym membership.  I started going 6 days a week for probably three months.  Ollie had come in to our lives around that time and certainly helped me stay motivated.  I lost 50 pounds in that three months and I noticed a huge boost to my mental state of mind.  I felt like doing things and not hiding a way from life.  I was proud of myself and my new level of fitness was evident in changes to my personality.  I highly recommend physical activity when facing challenges with mental health.  It certainly benefited me.

It was a beautiful day today and it was nice to have a break from the frigid temperatures we have been facing.  I believe it is actually going to be above the freezing mark for the next few days.  And we are getting a fair amount of rain on Saturday which hopefully will melt the layer of ice and snow on our driveway.

Looking forward to watching some college hoops tonight.  Arizona at UCLA should be a great game and I am going to try to stay up to watch it.  The Chapmans have landed in Vancouver and are spending some time with Ry, Deb and Rylen.  Cannot wait to see them and hear all about their trip.  Safe travels home guys.

That is all for me tonight, hope this finds you in good spirits.  Take care,  Shawn.

“Suffering has been stronger than all other teaching, and has taught me to understand what your heart used to be. I have been bent and broken, but - I hope - into a better shape.”
― Charles Dickens, Great Expectations