It Really Is A Merry-Go-Round

By Tawny Weber

This weight thing isn’t easy. And it's not like I expect easy, you know? After all, writing can be termed a pretty tough career, right? Between the creative struggles, the rejections and bad reviews, the stress and ups and downs, this isn’t a job for wimps! And so much of its completely out of our control, yet we keep on trying, focusing, working until we achieve the goal.

So I keep telling myself if I can jump into the deep end of the writing gig, I can handle something that’s theoretically totally WITHIN my control. My weight. My attitude toward food and exercise and the way I address my health. My willingness to use the spare half hour I have each day to exercise instead of cruise the net.

And yet it seems to be the furthest outside my control so much of the time.

Years ago, a good friend of mine, Betty Hanawa, and I joked about this theory that we are each given a finite amount of dedication and willpower. And when we’re writing, it all goes to that, so we have nothing left over to focus on getting our body healthy.

Now I have to admit, that depressed the heck out of me.

Four years later, I think I’ve finally figured it out. This weight thing is like a merry-go-round. It’s the big picture, if you will. If writing one book is an achievement (woot, and it is!) then a career of writing and selling books is a lifestyle. So it is with being a healthy writer. It’s never going to be about the one shot diet deal, or the four weeks of dedicated exercise before sliding into sloth. It has to be the long-term commitment. Or to quote Mad Eye Moody – constant vigilance – of keeping my eye on that brass ring. You know the one, the healthy, balanced, well-exercised and successful writer brass ring.

That’s doable, right?
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Tuesday's progress (Trish):

Calorie intake: 1,682

Exercise: 2 hours 15 minutes yard work (cutting and hauling brush, weeding, weedeating); 30 minutes housework

Steps: 13,376