Once or twice I have mentioned that all of my postings, pictures, magazine articles, etc., are going into a notebook that I will keep as a constant reminder of where I've been and what I've accomplished over the last six months. I had everything up through about the end of April, but had not printed or inserted anything after that point. I sent some digital before/after pictures, as well as some finale snapshots, over to the one-hour photo lab at Walmart. I've done this a couple of times during Augusta's Biggest Loser, without incident. I sent the pictures early this morning over the internet, and received confirmation that they would be ready by 10:00 AM. I walked into the store, went to the photo counter, and waited for someone to man their post. A lady came from the electronics area of the store, and instead of "may I help you?", she just said, "Hi!". Struck me as a little odd... but I said hello back. She didn't even ask me if she could help me - she walked over to the pictures that had been processed, pulled out my envelope, came OUT from behind the counter, and shook my hand as she said, "Congratulations! I saw your pictures when I went to cut your 5 by 7's... you look great!" She asked me a few questions about the contest - how much did I lose, how did I do it, etc.
Everybody wants to know how I did it, until I tell them. Yes, I did it faster than the average dieter, but in a nutshell, the answer is "diet and exercise". It was just at a pace that very few people are willing to keep. There are plenty of people at the gym that can work circles around me; there are people at PHC who are better at sticking to their food plan than I am. But by and large, the dieters won't exercise with any degree of intensity, and the gym rats won't eat right.
I had my PHC appointment today - my third stabilization visit. I was down nearly 3 pounds, which is good, because I had put back on some weight since the finale. Most of it was bound to return - dehydration and prolonged, intense exercise tends to wear the body down. But I'm slowly dropping again, and as long as my body is in the mood to drop a few pounds, I'll run with it. This time, though, it will be fat weight, not water and stuff-I-might-actually-need-one-of-these-days. Just before I left, my counselor Savannah handed me a white PHC t-shirt and a Sharpie, and said they were having all the Biggest Losers sign it, and they would hang it in the lobby. I was the first one to sign, so I asked if they were looking for "thank you's", or something that would help inspire their clients. She indicated the latter, and after a minute of thought, this is all I wrote: "I did it - so can you! | 342 - 199 | Ed Chavis, WINNER!" I've never talked to Pam Segers or Bernard Milligan, the season 2 winners, but I remember Bernard saying to us that November night when we all learned our fates, "If I can do it, ANYONE can do it." He doesn't know me from Adam, but his words helped drive me forward; I hope my few words will compel someone to stick with it just a little longer, when everything in them and everything around them says, "you can't".
One other neat thing today at PHC: the latest copy of CSRA Active magazine is out, and inside there is a story about our journey, and the promise that the next issue will feature the winners. I hope they do a photo shoot, because the last time their reporter was out to talk to us and take pictures, it was at the end of a workout, and we all looked horrible. One way or another, it looks like Nandy and I will be gracing newsstands around the Augusta area in early September!
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