Maintaining A 34" Washtub

One evening not long ago, my son Robert told me that he had not eaten any sugar all day long. He had intentionally avoided eating sweets. This is something new for him.

I was kind of surprised and pleased and asked why exactly he had decided to abstain from sugar. “It’s not good for you,” he replied.

Well, we all know that and I personally make a point of avoiding most all foods containing refined white sugar or high fructose corn syrup. I have eschewed white sugar since high school, with varying degrees of conviction over the years.

Robert further informed me that he was on a diet, which surprised me because the boy is not overweight. It turns out that he is trying to “get in shape.” He further told me his objective was a “washboard” stomach and he is doing some sort of military workout that will give him the defined abdomen of his dreams. The workout stresses that refined sugars must be avoided.

My son is a chip off the old block. I think most 17-year-old boys are inclined to want to be in better shape, no matter how fit they are, and I was no exception. I was highly focused on fitness in my teens. I never played organized sports but I was into fitness. I told Robert that I had a washboard stomach when I was younger. But now, 30-some-odd years later, my washboard stomach has swollen into a washtub stomach.

Having just turned 51 years old, I am now fighting the Battle of The Washtub Gut.

I weighed 145 pounds and I think I had a 30 inch waistline when I got married at 22 years old. Now I am up over 185 pounds and my waistline is pushing 35. But my jeans are all 34 inches. I have determined that I will NOT buy jeans with a 35 inch waist. I will hold the line at 34.”

I used to work physically every day as a carpenter and remodeler. I did that for over 20 years. Then I got a supervisor job in a factory nine years ago. It is a sedentary job. In the winter months, I get home from work, sit at my computer, and write a book, or this blog, and do not get the consistent physical activity every healthy body really needs. It's a wonder the ol' washtub isn't even bigger.

If I can maintain the 34” washtub until spring, I’ll have garden work to do. Then I’ll be doing the kind of work this body was made to do. It's the kind of work that keeps a body trim and healthy. I always feel healthier when I’m working in my garden. I'm anxious to get back to the garden. I need the garden.

I am ready for spring.