So today was the day… the day of the dreaded body-fat measurement for my Navy Reserve application.
I woke up this morning wondering if I’d be able to suck in my gut and get to 38″. I took my new handy MyoTape measure and put it around my waist. I saw that I was at the 1/2-inch mark. But wait… It was the 37.5″ mark. THE THIRTY-SEVEN AND A HALF INCH MARK!
How on Earth? I had been struggling all week to see 38 and here I was 37.5″! I must admit I was amazed… and confident going in to the Navy Office. But… you never know with those guys. I brought my measuring tape just in case they came up with a different number.
I think i must give some credit to my friend, Liezl, for telling me not to eat a lot of veggies at night since they could cause some bloating. So I ate responsibly and ate a nice soup. And I stopped drinking liquids at 1AM.
By the time I got to the Navy Office this morning, I was bone dry. I had been up for two hours, but I could not pee anything more after my morning ritual. =]
They made me go through the standard procedure. I weighed in at 212 (with clothes). And so I was off their normal body composition charts. So we went to another room to do the bodyfat measurement test.
I was about to show the Senior Chief my super duper MyoTape measuring tape when I noticed he had the same one in his hand. What a relief! So I told him that I measured 37.5″ this morning. Whether it was a masterful stroke up working the Jedi Mind Trick on him or I did, indeed, meet my goal, he came up with the same… 37.5″!
I was delighted because I knew beyond a doubt that I would be in the 21% range. Of course, when it was all said and done, they gave me a 22%. But that still meets their limits… so I was happy.
WOW. I did it. I actually did it. This was actually the hard part. I sweated and slaved over the written application, the recommendation letters, the interviews, the motivation statement… but this was the toughest part of the application for me. The worry. The effort. The arguments with my Mom about not putting olive oil in my food. The discussions with my friends. But in the end, I achieved it. Not without support. Everyone was pushed me on and showered me with encouragement.
Now I have my fingers crossed that it wasn’t all in vain… After finishing up my application, I did notice that I got great interview scores despite feeling that I did not do so well in my final interview. I got a 10 from the first interview and a 9 from the second. Now, it’s up to the board…
I can’t help, though, but to dream a little bigger now!
PS And to celebrate. I made myself a tuna salad sandwich! It was my first sandwich in weeks!
Going Back to Cyberspace 