Saturday evening diary – Alfie’s body isn’t the only body that has changed.

I have always been a curvaceous adult…let me rephrase that…I have always been a chunky…wait, no, total honesty…I have always been a FAT adult.

Like many, I was a skinny child right up until I hit puberty – between hormones and genetics – I was screwed. The weight piled on and deep down I hated myself for it. But adulthood hit, college, career, life, and I just eventually learned to accept that I would never ever be skinny.

Throughout my adult life I belonged to several different gyms, and noticed an immediate change with my body once I started working out – I was losing inches, gaining muscle but not actually losing any weight – a truly frustrating scenario. In fact, my weight has been the exact same number, give or take 5 pounds for the last 5 years. To my doctor, yeah, he’s happy because maintaining weight is much better than gaining, but what happens when your actual weight matters – to your horse.

They say a horse can safely carry about 20% of its body weight, which includes rider and tack. This is a number that is constantly in my head. This is a number that I base everything I eat or don’t eat on. Yes, you read that correctly.

Once I discovered this, how much weight a horse could safely carry, all of my food choices weren’t just for me anymore, but for him.

So while he’s in the best shape a 26 year old horse could be in, complete with a beautiful top line muscular back, so is his rider. I’m 44 years young, I’m down 15 pounds since June and I’m doing it all for Alfie. Sure, I want better health

for myself as well, but my motivation is for Alfie.

So why this topic for my Saturday diary? What happened today that prompted it? Well, nothing more than a desire to ride other horses in our barn that I’m still a bit too chunky for.

My lesson today with Alfie went very well. He tries super hard all the time as do I. My weight loss journey is just that, it’s a journey, much like learning to ride. The destination isn’t important, how you go there is. ❤️🐴