Lighter Side of Weight Loss: Chapter Sixty-two

 Lighter Side of Weight Loss: Chapter Sixty-two 

It's Only a Number

We as weight watchers, worry about numbers on the scale, but I did something this week that taught me an important lesson. As a new Mustang owner, Ford invited me to Mustang Unleashed at the Charlotte, North Carolina Speedway, in my opinion it's the adrenaline capital of the world. I chose the Drag Strip option because I like adventure and also because I may be crazy. My sister went with me for two reasons: the experience was free for me and a guest and she's a younger crazy person. We both would be given the opportunity to drag race, do drift brake slides, complete an Urban X course, practice accident avoidance lane changes (sounds tame, trust me, it is not!) and several other heart stopping maneuvers. All of these events were accomplished while driving EcoBoosts, GT's and the big daddy Dark Horses. 

Here's where the number part is important. The easy but scary part of drag racing is slamming the gas pedal to the floor, aiming straight ahead and waiting to brake at the proper point. In my first race, I was great at acceleration, but braked half way to the finish line. Who does that?! Remember I told you I might be crazy. The pit crew told me my speed was 70 mph (LOL, I did that driving to North Carolina). However, I improved with each race. My fastest speed was 101 mph with a RT (reaction time) of 0.418. It took me only 13.053 seconds to cross the finish line. Now I could be complaining about my speed (I lost my race, but it was close). My reaction time was great. Time to the finish line was measured in seconds, not minutes. My whole point is who cares about the numbers? I had the time of my life and that's all that mattered to me. I'm determined to apply this same mindset to my weight loss journey. I want the number on the scale to be smaller, but who cares if I'm trying my best and having the time of my life.

As a bonus, I was able to get in over 8,000 steps in this one day (from 7am to 5 pm) without doing any walking. It was from doing extreme turns on the steering wheel which my watch registered. The extreme turns were not on the drag strip (that would be crazy and fatal), but will write more about the other events at another time. 

An interesting fact is there is a large area of deep sand at the end of the drag strip. It is called the beach and if you do not brake in time, you will end up there, which has happened. So do not park your Dark Horse there. People will not be happy with you. 

My advice on this journey is to take risks and be a little crazy, it's a lot of fun and gives you something to do besides complaining about your health and vegetating at home. Now it's time to go watch my scary drag strip video. I was filmed while inside the car. I should be able to see me and the road ahead. 

Sandra Warholic Seeley - All my life, and half of someone else's, I have lived in a humorous place called Earth. My muse is a tiny menehune from the island of Oahu in Hawaii where I lived for a year. Ernest Hemingway once sat under the exact same coconut tree where I did most of my writing. I'm also a sensitive to criticism Virgo who loves to get paid for writing and speaking funny stuff. Even though my mind is filled with volcanic ash residue and I'm still finding sand in my shorts, I will continue to write until my muse retires or I run out of pretty blue drinks, whichever comes first. Don't be bashful, email the author.