I have received some comments of shock that I actually put my accurate age in the paper. I say the same thing every time, "Some women lie about their age. I do not. I’ve earned every one of those years. If I were to lie, I would go the opposite direction."
Have you ever met a woman and she says she’s 35 and you know darn well she’s older? Why would you want to tell people you are 35 when you are 45? To me, it makes it look like you’re aging badly. If I were to lie about my age, I would say I’m 60. I’ve been told I look darn good for 47, but don’t I look even better for 60?
I have also received a request to change the picture connected to my column because it looks nothing like me. I’m hesitant to do that. I like being somewhat incognito. People know me but they don’t make the connection. The biggest reason is probably my picture in the paper not looking like me. I’m going to leave it up to my boss, James Clark. If he changes it, then so be it. Maybe it’s time I come out of the closet. It’s getting kind of crowded in there anyway – so funny!
I wasn’t going to do an update on my healthy eating and exercising so soon but I’ve had some shocking news and I’ve got to share it with you. Morris Media is holding another Step10 Challenge, a walking competition where we are all encouraged to walk at least 10,000 steps per day and keep track of them. Yours truly won last year’s walking competition. Go me!
While I didn’t readily sign up because I remember how tough it was the first time, I was encouraged to participate again. Peer pressure! I went on the website and signed up. While on there, I noticed there was a way to personalize my site where I keep track of my steps. I filled in my height, weight, and entered the number of steps you take in 50 feet. When I hit calculate, that site told me my stride length in feet, how many calories I burn from walking one mile, the average steps you take in one mile, etc. At the very end, it told me my BMI (Body Mass Index).
Well, save the best for last. BMI is a number calculated from a person’s weight and height. For those of you who do not know, it says “BMI is currently the most widely used body weight diagnostic tool. BMI provides a reliable indicator of body fatness for most people and is used to screen for weight categories that may lead to health problems.”
I’ve known my BMI in the past and wasn’t too happy about it. Now, that I’ve lost 72 pounds, my BMI says I’m “Normal (Healthy/low risk).” I’m happy as heck about that.
I guess this column is all about me.
Standard reporter Lisa Hobbs can be reached at 473-2191.