Back on the Straight and Narrow... Tuesday 2010-01-12

Ok so since about November time, this blog, and my motivation, have kind of gone out the window. I've done very badly at sticking to a regular gym/exercise routine, and my diet has been pretty shocking too.

Now I need to sort my shit out and get back to where I was, only better. I've put on weight and inches in the usual places, and that needs to go.

So I'm starting again with it all. I was going to wait until the weekend to do a starting weigh-in etc, but I figured I may as well just do it now. It's not going to be pretty...

Tuesday 12 January 2010

Weight 146lbs (66kilos)
Waist at navel 34.5" (87.6cm)
Waist 2" below navel 37" (93.9cm)
Hips 38" (96.5cm)

I'm only measuring my waist and hips, because I know that's where the weight is, and that's the only place I'm interested in seeing results. Plus it is far too cold right now to be taking clothes off to take measurements elsewhere!

So here is the plan:

• eat more fruit and vege
• cut out junk food
• cut down on Coke/fizzy drinks (I know if I cut them out completely I'll just fail)
• plan meals rather than just eating whatever happens to be handy when I'm hungry
• give away all the biscuits and sweets left over from xmas
• go to the gym/exercise at least 3 times per week
• repeat weigh-in and measurements every Tuesday or thereabouts

I think if I can cut back on all the crap I've been eating, and just generally be more active, it shouldn't take long to get back to where I was before I fell off the path last time; then I can start working on getting to where I want to be, which is about a stone lighter than I am right now!

This evening I decided to ease myself back into the old exercise regime by doing a Davina McCall dvd. I did the "pump" section and I've a feeling I'll be a bit achey in the morning. I do miss that ache though!  With the weather at the moment it's a bit tricky to get to the gym before work, and I've had a pretty bad cough/cold any way so don't want to spread my germs. Will continue to work out from home until I'm healthy.

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Ok, here we go. Second time with all the extra measurements...

Weight 141 lbs (1 pound off!)
Chest 35.5" (1 inch off... think I may have measured this wrongly - I'm not lucky enough for my chest to have shrunk!)
Waist 1 (2"above navel) 31" (same as last week)
Waist 2 (at navel) 32" (same)
Waist 3 (2" below navel) 36" (half an inch on - again, may be dodgy measuring on my part - I hope!)
Hips 36.5 (1 inch off)
Thigh 1 (2" above top of kneecap) 16" (half an inch off)
Thigh 2 (4" above top of kneecap) 17" (1 inch off)
Thigh 3 (6" above top of kneecap) 20.5" (half an inch on)
Calf at widest point 13.5"
Bicep 11"
Forearm 9.5" (half an inch on - think that's all the rowing!)

So all in all... ok. I think I need to be more precise with my measuring, ie not standing in a badly lit room, half asleep and not sure what I'm doing! But I'm happy with this, I've lost a little weight, some of my measurements have gone down. I'll be really impressed if my chest has shrunk! I'd be happier if I could take a little off my waist, that can be my goal for this week.

The food has been a little better this week. Am still eating too much junk, but I've started eating Dorset Cereals muesli-type stuff for breakfast in the mornings, which has stopped me from spending the rest of the morning grazing on junk so that's handy. I'm off work now until Wednesday, ironically when I'm off work my eating is usually a lot worse so my main aim is to eat sensible meals and not pig out on junk whilst sitting on my arse doing nothing for the next couple of days!

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Well I've not done one of these for a while, I think it's safe to say I fell off the bandwagon there for a while! I've been a little scared to weigh or measure myself, because I knew it had gone up. But now it's time to just bite the bullet and get back to it.

I read an article a while back that suggested taking more measurements, so that changes in body shape can be seen, and where you might not lose from your waist, you might lose from above or below that point. So here goes...

Weight 142lb (64.4kg)
Chest 36.5"
Waist 1 (2"above navel) 31"
Waist 2 (at navel) 32"
Waist 3 (2" below navel) 35.5"
Hips 37.5"
Thigh 1 (2" above top of kneecap) 16.5"
Thigh 2 (4" above top of kneecap) 18"
Thigh 3 (6" above top of kneecap) 20"
Calf at widest point 13.5"
Bicep 11"
Forearm 9"

So there we are. I've put weight on, and it's gone to the usual places - waist and hips. Oh, the joys of being a woman! Hopefully this time next week I will have some good news to report!

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Ok so I do this every week, and every week I say my diet has been shite and I need to improve it and blah blah. Well this week my diet has been nothing short of exceptional. I've been eating chocolate, drinking Coke, I had a McDonalds for breakfast one day, pizza for dinner and then breakfast the following morning, croissants, danish pastries... a proper fatty, sugary nightmare.

I've also not been to the gym since Wednesday. I've been really knackered (probably due to the diet), and working in the evenings so just basically chickened out of any sort of exercise other than walking to and from work.

Weight: 139 pounds (63kg)
Waist: 29.5" (75cm) - up by half an inch
Hips: 35.5" (90cm)
Leg: 22" (56cm)
Arm: 11" (27.9cm)
Calf: 13.5" (34cm)


So the only thing that's changed is that my waist has increased by half an inch. That's probably down to all the bread I've been eating.
I've a feeling this week's debauchery may catch up with me on next Sunday's weigh-in. I can only hope that by busting my ass this week I can offset some of the damage.


I really need to get back into doing weekly food diaries and giving them to my trainer, that's the only way I can keep track of what I'm eating, and figure out what's going wrong here.


Am also thinking I might start listening to that Paul McKenna CD, since a lot of the time I'm eating crap when I'm not even hungry. I'm an idiot, I know.

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Weight: 139 pounds (63kg)
Waist: 29" (73.6cm)
Hips: 35.5" (90cm)
Leg: 22" (56cm)
Arm: 11" (27.9cm)
Calf: 13.5" (34cm)

So basically, no change at all. I'm pretty gutted to be honest. Then again, thinking about the amount of crap  I put away yesterday, I suppose I should be glad none of it went up! I also ate some chocolate this week, which was not a clever idea. I think the problem with taking a week off work and not making proper plans, is that I was just bored and spent a large amount of time watching TV and picking at food one should not pick at!  Perhaps going back to work will cause something to change. I certainly hope so, as I'm a little fed up!

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Weight: 139 pounds (63kg)
Waist: 29" (73.6cm)
Hips: 35.5" (90cm)
Leg: 22" (56cm)
Arm: 11" (27.9cm)
Calf: 13.5" (34cm) - half an inch off

So basically no change since last week.
In a way that's good, as I've eaten an awful lot of junk this week (especially in the last couple of days).
In another way it's shite. Why bother doing all the gym work if you can't keep your diet in check?! You can't out-train a bad diet, and I'm walking proof of that!

I'm off work this week so am planning to do more at the gym, and eat healthily. Not being sat at my desk bored all day should help with this!

On the plus side, I am getting more definition in my upper body, especially my shoulders, and am pleased with that.

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Weight: 139 pounds (63kg) - a pound on!
Waist: 29" (73.6cm) - half an inch off
Hips: 35.5" (90cm) - half an inch off
Leg: 22" (56cm) - no change
Arm: 11" (27.9cm) - half an inch off
Calf: 14" (36cm) - no change

How the hell does that work, I've put on weight but still lost inches?! Bloody weird. My diet has been shocking the last few days though, far too much sugar. I'm going to give myself this long weekend to go mental and hopefully get it all out of my system, and then back on the straight and narrow on Tuesday.

I've done more weight sessions this week and hardly any cardio, so the weight increase could be down to my muscles getting more dense and thus weighing more. Who knows with these things though! I'll just keep my fingers crossed for it to go back down next week!

I have next week off work, am hoping to do some sort of "boot camp" type thing on myself, and basically train a lot until I fall over. I've been looking over the timetable for classes at the gym, and might see if I can do a different class every day, as well as my normal gym workouts, and maybe even some swimming if the pool's not too crowded. Fingers crossed. Any way I still have to get through this week first, and hopefully lose weight.

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Weight: 138 pounds (62.5kg) - no change
Waist: 29.5" (75cm) - no change
Hips: 36" (91cm) - no change
Leg: 22" (56cm) - no change
Arm: 11.5" (29cm) - no change
Calf: 14" (36cm)

I've started measuring my calf muscles, I'm ridiculously paranoid about them being massive or something! Am sure they've been quietly growing!

Am dissappointed I've not managed any loss at all this week, but I suppose that's better than a gain! Also I've not been able to get to the gym as much as I'd like, and if I'm honest I've probably slacked off a bit too. I don't know why but my mind is just not in a very healthy place at the moment. It's in a sweet shop gorging itself on E numbers! Every week I do this weekly update thing, and say "it all changes this week, back on the straight and narrow..." and my will power lasts about half an hour before I'm dreaming of cakes and donuts!

On the plus side, I do think I'm getting more definition in my upper body. My shoulders definitely.

Am really going to try hard this week, I'm back to updating my food diaries properly, so hopefully that will help. The ear bashing I'll receive from my trainer if I've eaten too much junk will certainly help!

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Well I gave myself a day off the gym on Friday, feeling too tired to move. Yesterday I didn't go to the gym, but I did have a very active day moving PCs with work for close to 10 hours.
Today I was due to go for a run, but was feeling ill and generally run down so have allowed myself a third day off.

Weight: 138 pounds (62.5kg) - no change
Waist: 29.5" (75cm) - half an inch back on
Hips: 36" (91cm) - half an inch back on
Leg: 22" (56cm) - no change
Arm: 11.5" (29cm) - no change

I think the fact my weight has not gone shooting back up is a miracle. Am not surprised to see my waist and hip measurements suffer. I think this is due to a few things, all interlinked:
1. not enough exercise
2. bad food choices
3. too much work, not enough chilling
4. I have IBS and when it gets bad I get bloated and fat.

I've also completely dropped the food diary again this week, which is always a bad move.

For the week ahead I need to be more determined and focused. I don't have another weekend overtime stint for a month, but may be working some evenings. I also want to attend some evening classes at the gym - this means I need to be organised with my planning to make sure I have good food choices ready to eat. Otherwise I get lazy and eat rubbish.

I feel like crap today, mainly because of my IBS, which I'm sure has been caused, at least in part, by my bad food choices. I had a McDonalds breakfast yesterday, and one last Friday too. I hadn't had one in months until last Friday, and my body really noticed the grease and badness.

I'm pleased that despite the stress and long hours, I've still not resorted to drinking Coke or eating chocolate. I also decided this week that since I seemed to be replacing the Coke with Irn Bru (kind of daft!) I have to cut that out too. So I'm trying to limit my fizzy drink intake to lemonade only. And sugar-free varieties wherever I can.

Goals for this week:
1. better quality gym sessions
2. fill in the food diary properly!
3. plan my meals effectively

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Weight: 138 pounds (62.5kg) - no change
Waist: 29" (73cm) - half an inch off from last week!
Hips: 35.5" (90cm) - no change
Leg: 22" (56cm) - half an inch off from last week!
Arm: 11.5" (29cm) - no change

I've had a pretty bad week, food wise. I keep forgetting to fill in my food diary, I've been too tired/lazy to prepare food in advance for things or do proper shopping. I think this shows in the fact I've not lost any weight or proper inches, despite having done extra classes at the gym. To be honest I'm surprised my weight hasn't gone back up slightly.

This coming week is likely to be a bit mental as well, I'm working in the evenings and next weekend. I need to be more organised and less lazy if this is going to work!

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Weight: 138 pounds (62.5kg) - 1 pound off since last week!
Waist: 29.5" (75cm) - 1 inch off from last week!
Hips: 35.5" (90cm) - half an inch off from last week!
Leg: 22.5" (57cm) - half an inch off ffrom last week!
Arm: 11.5" (29cm)

I'm really pleased with this, I was concerned that my lack of proper workouts this week would mean I wouldn't lose any, but I've tried really hard with my diet, and the overtime I've been doing at work is very active.

Am slightly concerned that the couple of slack days I've had recently might screw all this up for next weekend but fingers crossed I can turn that around in the gym this week!

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Ok...

Weight 139 pounds (63.04kg) - a pound off since last week!
Waist 30.5" (77cm) - same as last week
Hips 36" (91cm) - same as last week
Leg 23" (58cm) - same as last week
Arm 11.5" (29.21cm) - half an inch off from lasy week!

Am reasonably pleased with that. I would have liked to lose more weight, but a pound off is better than a pound on! I think I need to do more work on my abs to lose more off my waist. Also my diet has drastically changed in the last couple of weeks and now I'm starting to see results, hopefully it will continue!

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

Second weigh-in, here it goes...

Weight - 140lb (63.5kg) - same as last week
Waist - 30.5" (77cm) - 1 inch off from last week!
Hips - 36" (91cm) - 1 inch off from last week!
Right leg - 23" (58cm) - same as last week
Right arm - 12" (30cm) - half an inch off last week!

I'm disappointed in the lack of weight loss, but the inch loss is good! I've been to the gym less this week than last week, but I think I've been working harder. Also I've been more active in the times I've not been at the gym - 3 evenings and 1 whole day of overtime at work, lifting PCs, moving desks and generally running around.
My food has been better this week too I think, less slip-ups. My PT called me on Monday and gave me some useful tips for snacks (the main place I was falling down) and I've been trying to use those where I can. I've still been eating things I shouldn't (sausage rolls, crisps etc), and my fizzy drink consumption is still too high, but I do feel I'm getting better with it.

So the plan is to really push it this week and see if I can actually lose some weight next Sunday!

I'm seeing my PT on Thursday morning I think, and I think this week is 6 weeks since the first time she weighed and measured me, so am interested to see what results we get there. Will report back here!

Sunday - weekly weigh-in

So here it is, the first weekly weigh-in.

Weight - 140lb (63.5kg)
Waist - 31.5" (80cm)
Hips - 37" (94cm)
Right Leg - 23" (58cm)
Right arm - 12.5" (32cm)

My weight has been the same for the last couple of weeks, am hoping any day now my body will notice all the exercise and vegetable-eating I've been doing, and I'll suddenly drop a few pounds. My waist tends to hover around that figure as well... or it did. Obviously now I am on a major belly-shrinking mission, so it will be much lower, very soon.

Wow, it's quite depressing to actually write this sort of thing down. Thing is, I went a long time without checking my weight or measurements, and when I did start weighing myself I didn't think I'd put any weight on - until I looked at an old workout book from 2008 and realised that in the course of that year I put on a stone. Whilst still going to the gym and everything. I've lost half a stone so far this year, the rest is proving to be a little more tricky. But it'll be gone soon enough!