my heaviest weight dragged me down
two hundred sixty pounds of obese mounds
when three flights of steps got me more out of breath
than right now, after running a seven mile stretch
a new personal best as my body adapts
to healthy decisions, these carefully placed bets
choosing to live with a dash of common sense
that food could never prevent anxiety
escape in consumption could never fix a mental mess
it was all just temporary relief
until putting this fight to rest
and instead of self shame and self hate
I turned to love and physical activity
mindfulness, meditation, and resistance to the apathy
when realizing all the change I needed
so I started singing along, moving my body to song after song
letting music guide me forward, letting melody make me strong
as I transform fat-borne stretch marks into tiger stripes
this fleshy reminder of all the times I lived wrong

—
Photo by Dev Dodia on Unsplash