I fasted until I got off work yesterday, and then I broke the fast by getting a cheeseburger and fries from P. Terry’s. Other than the fast food, the only thing I ate before going to bed was some (too many) raw almonds. Anyway, I weigh almost four pounds less this morning than I did yesterday morning—but I don’t think all of that weight loss was due to fat loss. I think some of it was poop loss.

I tend to overlook the impact of poop in terms of weight. I was disappointed after weighing in yesterday, but then I had a couple of cups of coffee, and, as expected, I had to poop (more than once, actually). And I have no doubt that after emptying my colon I was lighter. So, while I’m happy to be down four pounds today, I recognize that it wasn’t solely four pounds of fat that was lost; some of it was poop lost. I think I’ll call this variable the Poop Factor from now on.

I woke up very early this morning and didn’t try to go back to sleep. Although I’ve always been a night owl, I’ve come to like waking up before the busy-ness of the outside world begins. I like the quiet; my brain works better when there isn’t a lot of external stimulation. Also, I like making the weekends feel as long as possible. Monday morning will come quickly enough as it is, so I’d like to stretch out Saturday and Sunday.

This past week was another challenging one at work (that’s putting it mildly). At this point, I’m convinced that the ongoing stress from my job is shrinking my brain (see: https://tinyurl.com/2f9fb5vr), and I can’t tolerate that much longer. I’m middle-aged now, so I think about time differently and much more often than I did when I was younger. I recognize more than ever that my time on planet Earth is limited, so I have to spend it wisely. Currently, I’m pissing it away at a job I hate.

I realize that I frequently go off on tangents about my job. My job, however, is not unrelated to my weight. There is a correlation between chronic stress (which my job is a huge source of) and weight gain (or the inability to lose weight). So, I continue to try to think of ways to exit corporate life (which I was never meant for). In terms of healthy living, that’s one of the smartest moves I could make. I’ll probably keep mentioning my work situation regularly as a reminder to myself that I need to bail sooner rather than later. My health depends on it.