Weight Loss Program: Me Not So Long Ago

I went to my Zumba class last night and totally kicked ass again.  I love my class.  It's growing and growing, though...it's getting tough to get a spot!

Anyway, there was a young lady there yesterday.  The daughter of a used-to-be-regular (one of the first guys of the class) and obese.  I always take a spot on the front row because there are fewer distractions and clear view of the instructor, so I didn't see the young lady during the beginning of the class.  When I finally did see her, she was on the wall not participating in the class.  It wasn't that she wasn't engaged but I couldn't tell if it was just too much for her or she did not feel comfortable trying.  Whatever it was, I kept my eyes on her for some reason.

I realized later that she reminded me of me.  I probably wouldn't even have attended the class but she was there.  I decided that I would share my story with her.  After the class, I asked if I could talk to her. I told her that nine months ago I weighed 145 pounds more than I do now and that all it takes is for you to start moving...start somewhere.  I told her I wasn't trying to get in her business or preach to her but that it's possible to lose the weight, even when it seems too big an endeavor.  I told her that I hoped to see her in class again and that it really is possible.

I don't know if she received my little chat in the spirit in which it was given but I had to choke back some tears as I talked to her.  I know what it's like to be in that place where either you feel like you have no control over your life and your body.  Either she was there from her own desire and could not participate or she was made to come and would not participate...either way I was her not so long ago.

But yesterday, while the former me was in the back of the room spectating, the current me was in the front row, helping another new person figure out that thing called Zumba and showing the rest of the class how big girls can keep up with instructors!