TBT and what it means to me!
7June 10, 2014 by 43andfatfree and RobertRoyston.net
“Throwback Thursday” is a phenomenon sweeping across social media these days. The idea is simple: on a Thursday, you post an old picture, video or other memory to your Facebook or Twitter wall – or whichever social media site you use the most. It’s a fun concept, but I’m starting to think there should be some rules about what you’re allowed to post.
For instance, if you’re going to post a photo, you should probably be in it! Lately, I’ve had people posting TBT pics of me from the early 90’s that, quite frankly, I want to forget! Okay, I’m kind of kidding. I guess I should be thrilled that I am not that fat guy in the pictures anymore! I suppose I should share them, re-post them, use them as before and after pics blah blah blah, and I probably will do that.
The strange part is when I look at them, I also get reminded of how unhappy I was inside, and how I was constantly fighting my inner demons; being happy-go-lucky and the life of the party on the outside, and so unhappy on the inside. My only escape was food. Food: my drug of choice. I look at those pictures and think, “How could you have let yourself get that big?!”
I also think about life now, and I wonder if I will be able to handle all the stress that comes my way. I have to learn to cope with that stress and not go back to FOOD as my crutch. I currently have a lot of stress in my life: people pulling me in many directions, people counting on me for emotional support, difficult business endeavors, traveling so much and needing to make money to pay bills and provide a better life for my kids.
All that just sounds like LIFE doesn’t it? I have no more stress than the next guy I guess, and less than some for sure. But from time to time it starts to get overwhelming, and all I want to do is eat and eat and eat! I haven’t given into the urges in awhile, and I feel like I may not again lose my way with food. But there are other things I must start doing! Things I wasn’t doing in those TBT pics. I need to clean my house, both literally and figuratively (my office at home is a mess!), and I also need to stop carrying other peoples’ stress and emotional baggage alongside my own.
The only people I should be jumping through hoops for are my family! I have this issue with trying to please everyone and it just becomes too much and then I disappoint almost everyone in my circle.
Okay, those TBT pics have inspired me!! This next month is my time to clean the house! I feel like getting my physical life in order has helped me to realize that I can do this! If I can master the diet I have, and the exercise program I am on, I can simplify my life and be more productive. I can spend more time with my kids!
I trimmed the fat from my waist, and now I need to trim the fat from my life. Pay the bills I owe, call my mom back, don’t over-promise and under-deliver, get help from people who can make my business run more smoothly and so on. I think you get what I am saying. I feel like writing about it has helped my weight so much, but to assure I have made a true life change, I must also be aware of the added stress that I put on myself and how to avoid it.
You, my readers, have been so helpful these last two years, and I look forward to writing more about how getting your life in shape, and your body in shape, can truly be a road to happier living.
-43&FF
43andfatfree Blog 
Too beautiful Robert. So honest, so true. You are a constant inspiration. Thank you. I love you dearly.
Very well said and very True…Life is about spending your energie wisely. You seem to be doing a great at it Buddy. Keep it up.
I have always thought you were awesome. No one ever knows the struggles one faces unless you want them to know. The fact you wanted to change your life and you succeeded is an inspiration to all of us that want that change too. Don’t forget to make time for yourself. You will always be one of my all time favorite dancers.
AMEN! We all need to cut the Fat from our lives. If you are happy, people around you will be happy…we can all be less people-pleasy (not even a word)!
Wow!! I so relate. Still such a battle with nervous munching. I will try the cleaning thing too, b/c the entropy of my home, etc is not a way to grow & thrive! Thanks for being a great example!!
Thanks, Robert, for being an inspiration in so many ways to those of us who have followed your life. Having just retuned from the cardiologist and being able to only last 11 minutes on the treadmill your words have hit me right square in the heart. It’s time to take stock, quit with the excuses and literally ‘shape up.’ I look forward to hearing your further progress and hopefully sharing some of mine.
As far as your old TBT pics – that was the time that I found out who you were and fell in love with you and everything you do. You’ve always been ‘cuter ‘n’ s***’ (as they say down south). Love ya, mean it!
YOU are so damn fabulous!!! I love and appreciate how deeply you are sharing yourself. That courage to be that open and intimate will come back to you ten fold.