Broken Down on the Side of the Road

Uh oh. Have you ever had a flat tire, engine trouble or, worse, an accident that stranded you on the side of the road? Well, I have definitely encountered any number of things that completely derailed a trip. Where as a road closure or a pit stop may only delay you for a few minutes or at worst, an hour, an accident or a breakdown can derail your progress for many hours or even days. And in some cases, you may be sent home, only to have to start over at a later date. As always, it is so important that you do eventually get back on the road. It may take you a while to recover, but if you realize that you were on the road for a reason, it shouldn't be too difficult to find the motivation to start over.

I am currently struggling with sitting on the side of the road and watching others pass me by. While I keep telling myself (and any of you who are reading this blog) that this is a long journey and I am only in the middle of it, sometimes it is difficult to face up to the yo-yo effect of weighing every week. When I was heavier, my weigh-ins were down from week to week. But as I get closer to my goal and see my final destination on the horizon, it is becoming more and more difficult to stay positive when I have an up week. I have to keep telling myself that being up a few pounds is nothing compared to being down 100+ pounds, overall. Seeing as I am human, it still hurts the ego a bit! But this is the time when I have to suck it up, call AAA and get problem fixed and get back on the road. It may take more than a week to recover from this week’s accident (aka: bad weigh-in), but I know that I will recover.

I didn't always have this resolve. In fact, if this were four years ago, I’m pretty sure I would have gone straight to Pizza Hut or Domino’s with the mindset of “eff this! I’m up, so I may as well throw in the towel! Deep dish, extra cheese, here I come!" But not this time. Nope, I had to look deep within my self and figure out what went wrong and try something different. How can I expect different results by continuing to do the same behavior (insanity, anyone)? To change my outcome, I must change my outlook, it’s as simple as that. OK, maybe that’s a bit simplistic, but the fact remains, that while I am sitting on the side of the road lamenting how I ended up here, I am not getting any closer to my destination.

So, how long will you sit on the side of the road complaining about your situation before you get the tire jack out and change your flat or get Road Side Assistance headed your way to fix your problem? For me, it was only one day.