I'm not the man I used to be.
At least, not all of him. You see, I've been on a diet. A real one, with exercise and everything. I've been really working on limiting what I eat and exercising as often as possible. Rachel and I joined the Y and I started out swimming 2-3 mornings pre week. Now I'm up to 5 days a week, most of the time.
So last night Rachel needed to go to Target to get some school supplies. I had been thinking for some time that I might want to get a cheap jacket to keep at Long's for when it gets cold -- they keep the air conditioners going so high it ends up being freezing inside. So while she looked at pumpkin decorations, I looked at Jackets.
What I had in mind was a light fleece job, with a full zipper (I don't care for pullovers.) I found a few that catered to the dregs of society that are Target's main audience for clothing, but nothing that I would wear. Then I spotted one that actually looked okay. They had it in an off-white, navy blue, and a couple other colors I wouldn't wear.
I tried one on and it wasn't too bad -- except that it was too big. Now, I've worn XL's for probably the last 15-20 years, and this was the first time I've ever thought an extra-large might not fit (at least, the first time I thought it might be too big.) So I tried the Large, and damned if it didn't fit!
Now Target might cut their clothes a little large, but not that big. Still, I'm gonna have to check at some other clothing stores to see what's up. I've also been thinking of late that my pants might be getting a little baggy, so I might just see if I can fit into something smaller than a 42-fat. I don't know if I can squeeze into a regular cut; my thighs are still pretty monstrous, but I'll bet I can get into a size 40.
The interesting possibility inherent in all this is that some (well, okay, many) years ago, my Dad told me that if I could fit into size 30 jeans, he would -- drumroll, please -- buy me a car. So, what would happen now, if I managed to slim down that much? Mind you, I don't think it's really possible -- there are some bones that I think would get in the way -- but it's fun to think about.
Like I said, I've been swimming almost every weekday, and there is a scale in the men's locker room at the Y. It's one of those doctor-types, with the sliding weights on top. There's a big one that goes in increments of fifty pounds, and the smaller one with can slide anywhere from 0 to 50. For as long as I can remember, I've always just slid the big weight on over to 250 and then adjusted the little one appropriately, usually up around 25 or so.
Well, that little one has been sliding over to the left for some time now, and today it hit bottom. Today I had to put the big one on 200, and slide the little one all the way over to the right -- just below 50 pounds! That may not seem like much, but it is, when you can't remember ever being able to put the big weight on 200 and get it to balance. Now I just have to keep that little one moving to the left.
I've still got a long way to go, but these milestones are definitely on the right path.