Diet. It’s not great, even as a word. The first three letters are ‘die’ for a start, which is less than inspirational. And yet that is what I had to embark on if I was to shift any of the blubber in which I was languishing. My strategy to date had largely consisted of dressing in such a way as to minimise visual impact of my glutinous belly. Stripey shirts are good, black is good, jackets worn open can cover a multitude of sins. However, everyone has an epiphany. A moment which, when viewed with hindsight marks the end of an epoch of lethargy, gluttony and self-indulgence; and begins the challenging but necessary path to health and happiness. Mine was standing in the changing room of Marks and Spencer in Islington, jumping up and down while furiously trying to do up the button on some trousers which, in another incarnation, could comfortably have provided enough material to hold a medium sized wedding under. Change was mandatory.
So, I've lost 56lbs in 6 months. Here's what I did, and it's nothing drastic, and you may be interested. I said that after I'd lost four stone I'd blog a bit about it. Largely because I never thought I'd do it, but once you get the bit between your teeth...
One of the most difficult things, especially if you are impatient like I am, is knowing how to start and what to aim for. Luckily, I have had some experience in the past, so I had a reasonable grounding, but sometimes fortune loves a trier. At exactly the time I started, a guy began working in my office who I knew was a bit of a fitness/ health freak and his guidance has been invaluable. Now, I’m not claiming to be an expert, nor am I claiming to know everything, but what I have done is lost four stone in six months, so if I put down what I did, and why, then it might help someone. If nothing else, it is mildly cathartic for me.
I think the biggest thing is getting the right mindset. I believe that anyone who says they’re fat and happy is deluded. I also believe that if worrying about your weight in any way made you lose weight, then there would be no fat people. You may disagree, it’s a free country. I don’t know what did it for me, I just knew I had to do something, and it felt like the right time. You know how long it takes to make a decision? A heartbeat. And once you have made it, if you make it with conviction, the rest is fairly straightforward. Give yourself leverage – the more the better. Genuinely face up to health issues, happiness issue, negative self image – often people have inverse body dismorphia, and look in the mirror and don’t see themselves as fat. I’m not a blind believer, but work out your BMI. If you’re morbidly obese, or it’s over 30, you’re too fat. I’m still overweight, but not by much and I consider myself to be in a healthy zone. It’s a good indicator to begin with.
I don’t believe in faddy diets. I don’t think you need them. I don’t even really believe in diets, I think the best strategy is to change your lifestyle to one that is more healthy and the rest will follow. Put simply, eat less and do more. I started with the food side of things, and looked at what I was eating. The results were quite surprising. I’ve always thought I ate fairly healthily, just drank too much and didn’t do enough exercise. And I was partial to the odd Snickers, which had to stop. But I learnt some amazing things about food, which I’ll probably bang on about ad nauseam when I’m next bored.
So once I’d started eating healthily, it was about exercise. I don’t think there’s much to be gained from leaping put and trying to hammer it. You’re not Jessica Ennis. It’s unrealistic and unmotivational. But let me say that I went from doing the odd bit of cycling, to running, daily, before work. I never used to think I’d like running. And I knew damn well I didn’t like running in the mornings. I started by going a long way round when I was cycling home. Soon, I was doing 10-15 miles at a time. It took an hour, and was a great calorie burner. I love pootling round London anyway. You don’t have to be Bradley Wiggins, just cycling at 10-12 mph will burn you 500 calories in an hour. What you’re aiming for is a calorie defecit – you put in less than goes out. I cannot stress enough how useful My Fitness Pal has been in this. Put everything in it, and you’ll be amazed at the info you get back. Now I’m running 3.5-4.5 km a day at 7am, and I can’t imagine not doing it. It is great to start the day with an achievement, and a calorie defecit! I am going to drop it to ¾ times a week though, as I’m getting a few aches and pains, but whatever works for you. I think the most important thing is just to get active, worry about fine tuning it later.
Weigh yourself at the same time every week. I used to choose Friday mornings. Early is good- you won’t have eaten since last night, and you tend to weigh less in the mornings. And if you’re going to go on a cake/ booze/ couch potato mini marathon it’s more likely to happen at the weekend. Don’t weigh yourself every day, it’s bollocks. I now wish I’d taken photos of myself when I started as it’d have been easier to see the difference later on. Manage your expectations properly. I said to myself that I would see where I was at Christmas. Try and aim for 2lbs a week, but it’ll fluctuate. It can be de-motivating when you don’t lose, but I was told to remember my body was changing. It adapts to your efforts to reduce its mass, and also you will (hopefully) be building muscle through exercise which weighs more. Use measurements too – neck, hips, waist. Again, every two weeks is sufficient.
And that’s it really. But what I found is that there are a million ‘diets’ and a thousand strategies to achieve weight loss, but I think there is a huge shortage of advice on the most important aspect- if your head isn’t in the right place, you won’t get anywhere. I’ve got about 8 lbs to go before I’m where I want to be, and it is proving tricky to shift. But hey, slow progress is still progress.
