Here's a thought

If you have a slip in your diet remember:

"even if you only diet half the time you still do 50% better than not dieting at all"

- From "overcoming procrastination" by Ellis and Knaus

Maintain perspective!

Week 8/10 Part 1/3

This seems more like it, I am behind my goal of 1kg a week overall but this week after sticking to my calorie allowance more carefully I did lose 1kg. As going over my allowance was mostly through carelessness this gives me an incentive to be more careful.

Up a notch

I just got back from a cycle, my feet were still hurting so there was no chance of running or walking but I felt like doing something. I'd avoided cycling because basically my bum would hurt within seconds of setting off but tonight was great.

Firstly I was wearing a decent pair of cycling shorts, mountain bike style long ones with an internal padded Lycra pair that clips in to match. These were great and of course the weight loss to date also helped. This meant that the only pain I felt was in my legs and lungs. And I pushed myself quite hard, my performance was probably poor compared to an athlete but the point is that I pushed myself. And I think this marks a turning point where my body is basically ready to do exercise proper, ready to go into something more like training.

The no bullshit diet

I found this last night and I have to say it is really great:

http://www.thenobullshitdiet.com/

The rest is just details, you could tweak the calorie level to match your current weight more exactly if you wanted, you should try to have a balanced diet and consider that some foods are more filling than others but ultimately they are all tweaks that make life a little easier.

I think any diet plan that involves doing anything other than eating a bit less and exercising a bit more is bullshit and it is amazing how much of it there is out there!

Determination

I think that to get fit and lose weight need not be hard. I mean there are many days when I come under my calorie budget and I have had an hours exercise and never felt like I was enduring any great hardship.

But it is not always like that. I think what this tells me is that the urge to eat something I don't really need or the reluctance I might feel to exercise are really all in my mind. I'm not really hungry, rather I'm bored or upset or depressed or worried or stressed or ...

So to the subject of this post, determination. If your weight loss or fitness plan is making your life hell then perhaps you are doing it wrong, so look at the practicalities (e.g. You need a calorie deficit but you can still eat foods you enjoy) . Then when you have found a way to get it right on your good days show determination to ensure that everyday is a good day. You do need to be determined to reach your goal but to do that you need to be determined to solve problems that get in your way rather than to starve yourself or slog your guts out. So if boredom drives you to food find distraction, if depression does then get help, if temptations do then avoid them.

Keep plugging away but remember it need not be hell. And that persistence is more important than perfection!

Walk-run, the new run-walk

I just went for my first run since I started trying to get fit and lose weight. This comes after 7 weeks of walking, playing tennis and even a little cycling.

In the past I have got myself into it by running and then stopping for a walk when I can no longer run. This time I had the opposite mind set, I followed the course of my usual walk and when I felt like it I ran for as long as I still felt like it. What might have been a fairly pathetic run felt like a super high energy walk. The point is I felt positive about the whole thing and did not feel guilty when walking. And after a while of walking I would get bored and run. I think I may have even released an endorphin or two.

I feel really good about it and the only sore part of me is the soles of my feet, I think I need to moisturise them each morning for a while so they are a bit more supple. And because my walks are in a hilly area I think my calves were well prepared for barefoot style running which has saved my knees and shins from my extra weight.

Week 7/10 Part 1/3

0.6kg lost. Better than last week but I could do better, had a couple of slip ups enough exercise, tennis is fun but I don't think it is the calorie burning work horse walking is, I need to put some continuous hours in and crack down on the naughty stuff which this week included a cooked breakfast, a sausage and bacon bab as a second breakfast, a large pizza on top of my dinner and beers and some cheesy chips with my otherwise healthy chicken kebab. Actually the fact I lost any weight is a miracle, one of these things would be fine but not all. And I was supposed to be being extra careful this week! Shows my emotional state I feel, a lot of stress right now.