Thankful for a reality check, now I just need to lose weight

I’m getting fatter. There, I said it. Are you? For the last couple months, I didn’t want to admit it, but I hope the truth will inspire and set me free, rather than depress me.

This week, as I paused to give thanks and reflect on what went right for me this year, the reporter in me also pauses to examine the things that didn’t. Three days after Thanksgiving, I must admit that there’s one thing I have that I’m not thankful for — dunlap disease.

For those unfamiliar with the term, the condition exists when your stomach has “done lapped” over your belt. For the women, the muffin top, a similar condition occurs if improperly sized pants are being worn.

I discovered my condition on a steamy afternoon in August.

On my way to report on an event, I glanced through my closet and smiled as I carefully selected a white oxford shirt and black slacks. Unlike some, I look forward to dressing up.

But when I pulled those pants up, my smile turned to a grimace.

I discovered that I was unable to close them. The shirt was also too tight, feeling much like a large smooth hand around my neck.

So with a heavy heart, I relented and purchased a few pieces of clothing in a larger size.

Earlier this year, I chronicled for the Star-Exponent my efforts to slim down while participating in the Powell Wellness Center’s Lean on Me program.

I gained a little confidence and lost a little weight.

Since then, however, instead of slipping by the gym, I’ve slipped into sweatpants instead and rolled into bed, a pack of Oreo cookies by my side.

I’m thankful that there’s such a great variety of establishments in Culpeper that serve tasty, well-prepared food.

But I’m even more thankful that the seeds of health are planted and that I still have a clear mind — most of the time anyway. Put a slab of genuine Virginia ham in front of me and I might have a momentary loss of control. But I digress.

Recently, while shoving down some greasy delight on one lonely evening, I ran across a television special about Kenneth Brumley.

Dubbed the “half-ton dad,” Brumley’s weight had eclipsed the 1,000 pound mark, earning him that lamentable moniker.

“I don’t know if it’s an addiction. But once that weight gets on you, it’s hard getting it off,” Brumley told the United Kingdom’s The Sun in 2008.

After radical lifestyle changes and gastric bypass surgery, the latest reports are that Brumley, freed from the prison of his own weight, is doing well.

Many of you, myself included, might still be bloated from that second helping of potatoes.

Or perhaps you don’t want to think about food at all after Thursday’s decadent indulgences. But the reality is we must make a choice to make our health a priority. Otherwise, we’ll soon reach a point when we lose control.

I’m thankful I had the opportunity to participate in the Lean on Me program, and this coming year I hope to put that knowledge back to use. I know what I should be doing health and exercise wise, but I can’t seem to make it happen. I’ve learned what works and what doesn’t.

But I haven’t learned it all.

So as 2010 approaches, I want you to know that I plan to renew my commitment to being well in mind, body and spirit, with the goal of being healthy not just some of the time, but all of the time.