It takes a village to lose weight, and keep it off.

A little more than six months after starting the Melt the Middle Challenge with fellow blogger Yvonne Shinhoster Lamb, my waistline is still too thick.  My journey to reduce my middle has been a roller coaster adventure, and along the way I’ve learned something about myself: I can’t do this alone.

My intentions are good and I know what to do but it’s too easy to slip and slide. Generally, I have a healthy diet and saw my waistline starting to shrink when I gave up refined sugar. But I was naive. I told myself that I could eat a small piece of cake or a favorite cookie or a bit of ice cream and not get hooked again. I was wrong.  Studies show that refined sugar is addictive and I clearly am one of the folks most susceptible.

I’m not giving up. I’m renewing my effort to melt the middle but this time I’m going to build a stronger support network. I will be talking regularly with friends who have successfully changed their lifestyles and joining Weight Watchers or some other group. I walk about three miles every other day but that isn’t enough exercise to really boost fat-burning. So I’ve joined a Zumba dance fitness program,  a high-energy, fun exercise class that uses Latin and international rhythms.

I’m still on the path to a healthier lifestyle, despite the detours. I hope you are, too. This time, I’ll have a village of supporters. Stay tuned.

Related posts:

1. Trying to melt the middle, again
2. Melting the middle with friends
3. Melting the middle, at last