Procrastination….

This week I have been talking a good game, but slightly missing my exercise target by one workout. I have thought about training more and have even been talking about training more, but for one reason or another I missed it.

Saying that I did run 7.3 miles on Sunday and I have just done a 40 minute kettlebell session at 22:00 pm on a Friday evening!! Now that is dedication… well more punishment for missing my target. To be honest though, I actually enjoyed the workout. It felt good to finally work out muscles that had been dormant for so long! For those who do not know what kettlebells are, here are some:-

They are moulded hunks of metal that you use with a swing motion as opposed to a straight lift. This brings your core in to play as your body works to stabilise itself whilst working the other muscle groups too. After years of bench pressing with limited results, I love working with kettlebells. I have a 12kg and a 16kg weight but aim to be working with heavier ones later in the year as I get more proficient.

I think tonight’s workout was also out of panic as my weigh in is tomorrow morning and trying to burn those precious calories last thing on a Friday night. Not obsessive at all!!

Stay posted for tomorrows weigh in results. I am hoping for another good one, although only the scales will decide!

And I’m feeling good….

I am writing this whilst waiting for my next game of badminton to begin. I am feeling great. I had a sneaky pre weigh-in weigh-in, and needless to say I was very pleased with the number I saw.
Ultimately though it is just a number and I didn’t need my old enemy to tell me what I already knew. I am shifting lard and at quite a good speed at the moment. I already feel more comfortable in my clothes, in fact I am wearing a top tonight that I bought months ago that I was never confident enough to wear! I also looked in the mirror today and I am beginning to see a semblance of the man I used to be (the slimmer one!).
I have vowed to myself to keep going at a steady pace, and I want to be at my previous weight for my birthday in June! Then its time for a shopping spree for ‘new me’ clothes; well interim ones anyway!

9:00 a.m on a Sunday morning….

I thought it would be a good idea to get back running distances over 5k; particularly with the 13.3 mile MK half looming on the first week in March. I also thought it would be a good idea to re-join my old running buddies for their Sunday morning run. That was until I stepped out of my house at 8:45 to a frosty reception – it was bloody freezing.

By the time I had scraped my car and drove over to Delapre (fashionably late), I had warmed up only to spend the next hour and a half running in these Arctic conditions. The group had grown substantially since last I ran with them. My confidence in running the distance that was already low and to see quite so many runners was a little daunting at first, especially that this was my first attempt at anything over 3 miles in about 6-7 months. My fears were unfounded (as usual) and the group was amazing and although I struggled to keep up at times, I still managed to run the majority of the 7.3 miles that I travelled.

The run went well and was actually a lot better than I expected. There is still a lot of training to cram in between now and March, but this mornings run gives me a boost of confidence to know that with a little effort and hopefully a few less lbs to carry, the half marathon is definitely achievable.

Thanks to Vicky for organising the run and thanks to Sue, Becky, Joy and a number of others keeping me going for the distance.

I must say that I had forgotten exactly how draining a run like that is and I have spent most of today in a semi-vegetative state and I am sure that my legs will seize up tomorrow, making me walk in a highly comedic manner. The things we do to get/keep healthy!!

The next one is planned for Salcey Forest (my nemesis run) and is a 9 miler and I plan to complete the whole damn thing one way or another. Hopefully I won’t lose my money mid-route again so I will also be able to partake in the cake eating post-run!!

The results are in….

So here is the first weigh in day of the new me. I was expecting a few pounds, but I was very happy when I saw seven! To recap:-

Starting weight:- 19st 12 lbs (278 lbs)

Current weigh:- 19st 5 lbs (271 lbs)

Lbs to go to target weight of 15 st – 61 lbs

On top of this I am staring to feel a bit better about myself, my clothes are already beginning to feel looser. There is a long way to go, but this is just the kickstart that I needed.

In way of the competition, I am slightly behind as my wife lost a staggering 13 lbs!!! She does think that some of that was down to water retention, but even so this an amazing achievment. Well done Laura.

We have both been religiously sticking to healthy food, keeping within our calorie goals and excersising almost everyday so this is hopefully the start of something great. I am keeping realistic and I know that the loss will slow down over time, but as the old addage goes, make hay whilst the sun shines.

I am re-joining a wonderful group of ladies tomorrow morning for an 8 mile run to try to get back on track for my half marathon. The masochist in me is actually quite looking forward to it and not just for the slice of cake afterwards (well I am allowed one indiscretion a week, and I will have bloody well earned it!).

I am happy now that I will hit my goal for January to get my weight down to 18 something. At least I hope I can shift 6 lbs in 3 weeks.

Incentive….

The gauntlet has been thrown down, the race has begun. There is now money involved.

Me and my wife are now competing to shed the pounds and the loser on a monthly basis has to buy the winner a gift worth £50! I am determined that the prize is mine; sorry Laura but I hope you have put the money aside for my prize.

Our weigh in’s are due every Saturday morning with Januarys final weigh in being on the 29th.

Who will win, the scales will decide??!!

Inspiration….

To get motivated to even try to begin the journey that I have embarked upon is very difficult and most definitely requires inspiration. I just want to take time to pay tribute to those people and things that both got me going and keep me going.

My beautiful wife is the most inspirational person I know. Her drive when she gets the bit between her teeth is awe inspiring. We started the initial weight loss together and she actually bettered my achievement. Then I spoiled it all by getting her pregnant!

That takes me to my second inspiration. My amazing little son Aidan. Even before he was born, I was terrified that I wouldn’t be able to fulfill my role as his dad. Financially the strain was solely on my shoulders for the first time. There was also the fact that I was now to become a role model to a little life. Even at this early stage, I do not want Aidan to enter into the battle that I have been fighting for most of my life. The best way of ensuring this is to become what I would like Aidan to aspire to. I have upped my game at work, now it is time to do the same with my health.

Thirdly, I have now experienced what it is like to be thinner. What it is like to walk into a clothes shop and be confident that I will be able to fit into whatever I like and to have people comment on my appearance in a positive light. Ialso now know what it is like to be able to challenge myself by entering  a half marathon and then going on to meet that challenge with all my heart. Regaining my fitness is key as it gave me a lease of life that I never thought I would have.

With these within me, I have absolutely no reason to fail!

Over the past two days, I have really taken to the plan. I have stuck to my calorie limit absolutely religiously. Yesterday, I ran 4.5k (which felt great!) and today I cycled 8 miles to work and back. Not bad even if I say so myself!

Please share what inspires you.

Before and After….

Before

This is me 2 months before I decide to do anything about my weight – May 2007

After

This is me in April 2009 at my lowest weight.

I am currently in the middle. I will get there again!!

The First Rule Of Fat Club….

So here is the plan. I am going to take a lot of what I learnt over my last weight loss stint and try to adapt it further to fit with my altered lifestyle.

Things that have changed:-

My work is more desk based

I now have a child, which means that exercise has to be planned in advance

I now know what it is like to be slimmer and fit into nice clothes

The target

As of the 1st of January, I weighed in at 19st 12 lbs, over 3 stone heavier than my lightest point.

My goal is to get down to 15 stone. That is a total of 4st 12 lbs to lose. I am going to give myself 1 year to lose it – that is only 5.6 lbs per month – how hard can it be!!??!!

The Plan

• Eat between 1750 to 2000 calories per day
• Eat as much fresh/unprocessed food
• Allow one blowout per fortnight – takeaway or meal out
• Keep hydrated every day, at least 2 litres of liquid per day
• Excercise at least 5 times a week (minimum of 30 minutes per session)

I am currently bricking it about the impending half marathon in March, so most of my excercise will be pounding the streets for the next 8 weeks, but I am going to try and keep it varied so I don’t get bored.

I am now going to sign off to go for my first run in months. Will let you know how I get on tomorrow.

My introduction!

I am David, a 30 year old man who calls Northampton his home. I am married to Laura and have recently become the father of a beautiful little boy, Aidan.

I work as a sales manager for a local business telecoms company Comms Group (www.commsgroup.com) and have worked for them for the past 3 years. Things are going from strength to strength and I am excited for the future.

Since early chilhood, I have always battled with my weight, or more correctly, a very unhealthy addiction to food. Combined with extreme laziness, I hit my peak at a scale busting 25 stone. Luckily I decided to do something about it before wobbling my way into the super morbidly obese category! Over a period of 2 years (from August 2007) I managed to shed 8 and a half stone.

I was of course happier with my weight, and being 6’5″, my ideal weight was in sight. My fitness was the best it had ever been and I even completed a half marathon in April 2009.

Soon after this however, my wife fell pregnant and something switched in me. I started taking less care over what I was eating and my trips to the gym were steadily becoming less frequent. I am currently sitting here weighing in at 19 st 12 lbs, and have decided to once again jump on the wagon and share my experience with all of you lovely people. As a guy trying to lose weight, I have noticed that there are not many places to share experiences or to get advice specifically for men. That is why I am starting this blog.

I am going to try to revisit what gave me the success the first time around, to try and get below my previous benchmark. To kickstart this, I have entered the Milton Keynes half marathon in March. Bearing in mind that I haven’t ran farther than 5k for over 6 months, I am absolutely bricking it, but I am determined to do it. I will keep you updated!