So, how's that New Year's resolution to become a 'buff babe' or 'strapping stud' goin', eh?
Yep, it's not quite as easy as those magazine covers promise, is it? "YOU CAN LOOK LIKE THIS IN ONLY TEN DAYS!" 'Hmph, talk about a pile of pies-in-the-pasture!' I say, quite indignantly.

Why is putting ON weight so darned pleasant and taking it OFF so horrifically painful and oft times humiliating? I remember laughing with friends, popping little tidbits into my mouth, and feeling so gay - never once thinking that these "savory sweets" would turn into "lard lumps."

So, I asked myself, "What are ya gonna do about it, hmm?" It comes down to two choices. You treat your life as though it's some sort of dress rehearsal and that you get to choose when the real performance begins.

Or you realize that this life is all you're gonna get and you make the choices and deal with the consequences that coincide with those good or bad choices.

I've heard it called "tough love" but it also translates into "a swift kick in the rear."

I already had a membership at Highline Athletic Club in Burien, so it was just a matter of dragging my sorry hind-end through the doors to find out about the latest miracle program that was being offered. Gee, do I sound skeptical? A bit jaded, perhaps? Well, it didn't happen without years of bouncing back and forth from "buff babe" to "spud bod", let me tell ya!

It seems that every club has THE miracle program that will transform your body - forever. And every snake oil peddler has a SECRET proven formula that will mysteriously melt away the fat, while you sleep. I think we all get tired of the false promises and "new and improved" stuff. We just want someone to give us what they promise, ya know?

Well, HAC just happened to have a new program that was starting up in a week. 'How conve-e-enient' I mused. However, facts-is-facts and my particular fact was that I had some serious weight to wrangle and I couldn't or wouldn't do it alone. It was time to try yet another new program. But this one included the 'big gun' - a personal trainer!

The week went fast, as I gobbled down all of my favorite food friends and prepared myself for their banishment from my life. Don't laugh; you know that you've done the same thing.

Here's where I shift gears and leave my pessimistic commentary behind, because there really was something new and different. It was a little armband called an Exerspy. Yep, the name fits it, too.

This little technological peeping tom keeps track of exactly how many steps I take, how many calories I burn, even how long and how well I sleep. It's like having a controlling mother strapped to my arm!
But, I've gotta say that it works. I use the computer to plug in what I eat, but other than that, this little "cyber snitch" records everything else that I do or don't do. It's become a bit of a game and has aroused my competitive nature - to the point where I check it to see if I need to hop on the mini trampoline to get in those last few hundred steps, so that I do my full 10,000 a day.

Yes, the "Techno Tard" has given in and invited a bit more technology into her life, in order to take off a proper portion of plump. In one week, Jaime, my trainer, and I have managed to whip off ten pounds of unwanted lardage. Yep, a bit of a record, I believe. Typically, a pound a week is considered successful.

Mind you, I'm not doing anything stupid - mostly because the computer won't let me. It tells me how much I should eat, what I'm lacking - proteins, carbs or fats (yes, there are good fats!) and when to stop eating - that is not the fun part. But this whole system really makes me interactive and accountable. I like that. I see what's expected from me, I see the results I can anticipate and I see those results on my computer screen.

I won't say that dragging my trainer around the indoor track on an iron sled is the most fun I've ever had.

Nor will I tell you that I feel perky and particularly pretty, when I'm leg pressing 200 pounds. However, the alternative is to totally give up and live with the consequences of my past failures. THAT just isn't in my nature, so I had but one choice - attack!

I'm not endorsing a product or a club. However, I do endorse the taking of this one life that you were given and squeezing every last drop from the tube, before you let it go.

I hope that you'll join me and share your journey. I'll be checking back with more information, in a few weeks. You can reach me via the comment link or at hteditor@robinsonnews.com. Blessings to you, as you squeeze the tube of life!