That first night on the Appalachian Trail was quite interesting. There were 10 hikers crammed into the simple wooden shelter on the top of Springer Mountain in North Georgia. Of those hikers, 9 were trying to hike all the way to Maine. I had never met any of them before, but we were all starting the same adventure.
When morning came on April 13th, 1980 it was raining. Can you backpack through the rain? Sure, but it isn't a lot of fun. And since it was the first day, my pack was the heaviest it would be (about 40 pounds). The rain probably added a couple of extra pounds too. The rocks on the trail were slick and the mud clung to my giant mountain climbing boots. The start of this grand adventure was a bit damp, but I pressed on.
Fast forward to April 13, 2011. This morning I stepped on the scale to see how much damage I had done yesterday. Sure, I ate salad at lunch....but I also had two big bowls of soup, one was "loaded potato soup" with cheese and bacon bits. And then there were the rolls..... OK, so I stepped on the scale and it said 187.4 For those keeping track, it means I gained 0.6 pounds. At that rate I will weigh 274 pounds by the time this project is over!
Realistically speaking, weight does vary from day to day. I really can't do anything about what happened yesterday. All I can work with is right now and do better in the future. I hiked the Appalachian Trail in 146 days. It wasn't a sprint, it was a steady pace. Getting down to my ideal weight won't happen overnight. There will be setbacks, but I have to persevere. Even if it rains, you have to press on! Now it's time to eat a big salad for lunch!
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