Since we're near the end of the month, I was just glancing over my stats, and it's very disappointing.

Where I had been walking in the six, seven, or eight-thousand steps range this summer and fall, in January my steps have fallen WAY off, so much so that I've had several days where my steps fell between 3000-5000.

I track my weight on a site that gives me my weekly averages, and for all four weeks of January, I've gained between one-third to a half-pound a week. This is the WRONG way for the scale to be going.

I've always loved cold weather, and used to walk year 'round, no matter what the weather was. I don't know if it's because I'm several years older now, or what, but these days when the high has been only zero or single digits, I haven't done more than take the dog out for her bathroom breaks. No walking in the woods at all, and I'm feeling it.

I was telling my sisters today that all the improvements I had started feeling this summer and fall are starting to disappear. I'm back to having no energy; it's not as easy to climb stairs, etc. I had been able to feel a difference in the waistband of my jeans, but that difference is gone.

I can't believe how FAST improvements can be reversed.

I could let myself be discouraged and depressed about this, and throw in the towel, but I'm not going to this time. I am going to KEEP GOING, KEEP TRYING TO IMPROVE MY HEALTH, even though this month hasn't gone the way I wanted it to.

That's a new thing for me. Usually I give up and end up gaining even MORE.

Not this time. Keep walking...