Starting weight: 241.2lbs
Current weight: 234.0lbs
Weight lost: 7.2lbs
Week 1 Challenge - Water instead of juice
Week 2 Challenge - 10,000 steps a day
Ugh, I have a nasty cold and I’m working nights this weekend. Not a great combination, but I’ll just have to get over it. Between being ill this week and a frankly horrific exam last week, I have actually not done too badly. I have been far from perfect (Chinese restaurant to celebrate my exam being over, extra halloumi on my vegetable skewers), but I have been mindful, even in my excesses. I have been reasonable with my treats and pretty good at balancing them out by being extra super healthy the next day.
I don’t want to feel deprived and hungry all the time, because that is no way to live, and it is not sustainable in the long term. No change I make will ever stick if I can’t live with it long term. I had a few days when I strayed a bit too low with calorie intake (1200-1500) which is just too low for someone of my size and activity levels. I felt exhausted and absolutely freezing constantly, signs that if I cut my intake too much, my body is smart enough to balance the budget and start to use less.
I think the excessive calorie cutting was because I felt I didn’t have time to balance food with exercise, so I felt I had to just cut the food. Trying to balance a workday that lasted either 9 (normal) or 12.5 (on-call) hours, a two hour round-trip commute and trying to cram in some hard core revision meant I was barely getting 6 hours of sleep as it was. The resulting constant low-level exhaustion and anxiety was not conducive to working out when I got home (nevermind good exam performance, but that is another story).
So, my new mini challenge is to increase my physical activity (easier with the exam out of the way). I accidentally set myself a mini challenge during week 1, and it seems to have become a habit, so I thought it would be worth setting a fresh one each week or so.
Week 1 - Water instead of juice
I’m not usually one for sugary drinks, but I didn’t really have plain water. Usually I would have weak cordial. Not a terrible vice, but I pretty much wouldn’t drink anything else. I usually got through one big bottle of cordial a week, and I worked out that was 1300 cals worth. I figured that was an easy 1300 cals to save, and that switching to water meant I would actually drink more, because I wouldn’t have to worry about the calories. So, I got rid of the juice and just drank water by the pint (a beer festival pint glass with a welsh dragon on it cheers things up a bit). I drank lots of water. First thing when I got home to help curb cravings until dinner, during meals to help me feel fuller sooner, when I got bored and thought I wanted food... I still wouldn’t say that I LOVE water, but it’s ok, it has less sugar, and it’s helping me with my appetite. Pretty good bonuses for something that is inoffensive and free :)
Week 2 - 10,000 steps a day
Due to the tug of war between my calorie intake and my failing metabolism, I think that having good regular exercise has to be a cornerstone of my progress. So, starting relatively small, I am aiming at getting the often-quoted 10,000 steps a day. I have a pedometer app on my phone, but when I changed handset it suddenly went from around 3,000-6,000 steps a day to 15,000+, so I don’t exactly trust it. So, given that I really seem to respond well wearable tech and tracking apps (I may be a little bit addicted to this, RunKeeper and SparkPeople) I figured that getting a FitBit would be great motivation to get moving, it syncs to my DietBet and Sparkpeople accounts (saving me from having to log my exercise manually, and automatically comparing my logged food with my expended calories), and if I’m spending £80 on something, I can’t not use it.
I started the challenge and bought my FitBit on Friday of last week, and had a lovely weekend with my soon-to-be-sister in law coming to visit. The weather was glorious, and we went on walks around town, lakes and along the coast. My 10,000 steps a day were not only easy, they were a delight. However, come Sunday, I had to take a long hard look at the coming week and remember why I had struggled to get 10,000 steps before: long days, long commute, relatively sedentary job, not much time at home, hate being seen working out in public, not many well-lit safe places to go for walks late at night. So, my evil plan to top up any remaining steps I need, in order to get to my 10,000 a day, comes in the form of a mini-stepper machine. It is not as versatile as the gym-standard equipment, but it is small (maybe the size of two shoe boxes), portable and I can do it in front of the TV (chatting in front of the TV with my fiance is time that we use to unwind and share stories about our days, so it is important to me). It is also surprisingly hard work, enough really break a sweat and to motivate me to get my steps in through normal walking during the day. So, officially no excuses for not reaching those 10,000 steps, rain or shine. Except for my weekend of night shifts (however portable the steps are, they are bloody loud sometimes, and it wouldn’t be fair to inflict them on the person downstairs in hospital accommodation, where I’ll stay during the day). I may try doing lots of walking around the hospital during my down time, or going for a nice bright morning walk when my shift is over. I’ll work something out.
Wish me luck :)