Warning: Terribly self indulgent post about my weight ahead. It's long and arduous and contains a lot of waffle (as do I). Feel free to go find some porn or something more interesting. I don't actually talk about what I had for lunch, but you have been warned.
I'm overweight. I was fat, now I'm simply overweight.
Everyone says "Oh know don't be stupid your not fat". They lie. Also I am able to hide it quiet well. I wear t-shirts or untucked shirts a lot. It doesn't show as much. Look at me naked (a frightening thought, I know) and I'm overweight. Look at my face in that photograph above and compare it to 5 or 10 years ago. I was fat.
Now I'm simply overweight. I figured I was my fattest sometime towards the end of the first quarter this year. I figure I was 83 - 85 kilos (185+lb/13+ stone). My ideal weight is under 70. I was fat.
Now weight is a relative thing. I know many people much heavier than me who I don't consider to be fat. However personally I was unhappy. I felt fat. I couldn't (and didn't) wear any of my tight t-shirts that make me look good. I had to leave the top button open on my jeans (thank god for belts). I was fat. I was self conscious about it. It didn’t make me happy. I didn't feel like I looked good.
There are many things to blame for me putting on so much weight. I had worked hard to lose weight two years ago. At the start of 2003, I just couldn’t face the routine I had imposed on myself to loose that weight. Then after my birthday party I got a bit depressed. Work was rubbish and I was unhappy. I made a tactical decision not to worry about my weight. I decided that I could only deal with so much at one time, and I couldn't deal with my weight right now, so I wouldn't worry about it for the moment.
Then I was sent to Liverpool. So instead of the gym I was smoking a few fags a night, drinking 2 or 3 beers and eating out. Pretty much 95% of the time. Combined that with sitting in a car driving to and from Liverpool, and the governments secret plot forcing me to buy pix ʼn mix I put on weight like a champion pie eater at a pie eating competition.
After I got back from South Africa in February, I knew I had to do something about it. I started making slight changes to my diet and trying to go to gym. No massive efforts, but enough to start slowly loosing weight. Between going to America and Ibiza I didn’t really bother so much as what was the point, I was just going to eat shit on holiday so I may as well enjoy what I eat before then right?
On getting back from Ibiza, I knew I had to make some lifestyle changes. I’m too old for my metabolism to be doing shit for me so, I had to start changing other things. So I’ve tried to change my diet to be mostly healthy. That means eating healthy lunches. A bowl of organic muesli for breakfast. Smaller meals. Healthier meals. Drinking water instead of other things. No beer. No chips. No cheese. No crisps. No snacking. No chocolates. Less sandwiches. Coke (and I love coke) only at the cinema.
And not going out. And not drinking. I’ve had a quiet month this month. I’ve only drank booze once this month (4 beers at the cricket) but otherwise I’ve been teetotal between the 30th August and 2nd October. And I can see the difference it has been making. That’s why I am not going out during the week if I can possibly avoid it. If I do, I’m not drinking. I’m trying to have only one drinking night on the weekend. I don’t think I can loose much more weight by diet alone so now is the hard yards, the hitting the gym 5/6 times a week. Now is where I have to show more commitment.
Of all the weight I’ve lost, I’ve now just hit about where I was two years ago when I last thought I was fat. So I’ve only just managed to get to where I should have been starting from. I was far behind. Now’s not the time to pat myself on the back, but to step it up a gear.
My target date is when I go skiing (actually going to try boarding) on Friday 7th January 2005. If I can loose 3.3 more kilos by then I’ll be happy. If I can loose 4.5 or more and bring my weight down to below 70kg’s I’ll be exceedingly happy.
Part of my technicque is to monitor my weight pretty closely. It works for me, not everyone. I measure body weight in the mornings, body fat in the evenings, I take my daily readings and average them over a week. I graph all of this, including the number of actual kgs of fat in boyd (body fat % times weight). By seeing the daily changes I can see what a night of bad eating or skipping the gym does. By seeing the weekly trend in the right direction I am encouraged to work harder. I’m a geek and this works for me, but I understand it wouldn’t work for necessarily everyone.
Currently I’m in week 16. My body fat is 16.8% and I have 12.5 kgs of pure fat I’m carrying around with me. I would like to get my body fat down to below 12%, but I would be happy with it being below 14%. Above 15% I’ve failed. Ideally I should have less than 9 kgs of my body as fat. Currently I think those 3kgs are sitting in my face and my gut. It can go. My pure weight is graphed below.
1. Francesca
Good luck. Losing weight is hard, but being on a perpetual diet is even worse, and very damaging for the body. Making changes to your everyday life is the way to go.
Funny how making a decision to drink less means becoming a near social hermit. But it is worth it in the end.
And on another note entirely, you should make the default on your SM question to be “yes”. :)
2. razorhead
ooo, know that feeling. I’ve slapped on too much weight recently and the job change has meant no nearby gym.
But seriously, no booze?
Shit.
3. David
Oh boy, reading that back it’s as though I could have written it myself! I’m continually told I’m, not fat when I quite patently am - like you, my height and clothes can disguise the fact, but catch me in my birthday suit and it’s a different matter. I’ve knocked beer on the head - gone from a liver damagingly bad 4-5 beers per NIGHT to only drinking friday/sat. This is pretty much a repeat of what happened a couple of years ago - I started a new job and during the process had a medical which quite frankly scared me into changing my diet and excercise regime. A year down the line and i split with my girlfriend which lead to a breakdown of my resolve and the weight came back. The recent publicity surrounding Super Size Me, and the line “liver turning to pate” has scared me into action once more. Yo-Yo dieter me? Never!
4. Gordon
I’m fat. Like 4 stone overweight fat. I KNOW I shouldn’t eat what I eat, and it’s not drink for me, it’s lack of exercise and crap diet.
I also know what to do but have yet to get my mind in the right place to make it work. So kudos to you, stick with it!
5. Chris
Out of interest, have you ever come across the Hacker’s Diet? It quite an interesting read, and not nearly so useless and slashdotty as it sounds.
6. Adrian
Nope never heard of it. Is it all about bits and bytes?
7. Adrian
Found it. The Hacker’s Diet - looks very interesting. Have printed it for train reading.
8. Lori
Good luck! Just a shame the new look Sevitz won’t be around for my birthday party :(
9. Lori
Self absorbed? Moi?
10. stroppycow
Gym 5 to 6 times a week? Maybe instead of increasing the numbers of workouts you could see if they could tailor them to be more effective and replace the extra workouts with a more sociable form of exercise since you are going out less already (team sport ? mountain climbing ? that sort of things). Otherwise there is the worry that the rhythm won’t be sustainable and your body could probably do with a change once in a while. Eating out is the worst. Portions are so huge.
11. Adrian
Well I am also trying to play squash once or twice a week, and I go to the gym with friends so it’s not too bad. I’m it’s still gym, but it’s liveable.
I try keep my sessions to about 40 minutes. I don’t see the value in doing 2 hour sessions. 40 mins are manageable, and doesn’t eat up half your day.
12. razorhead
Oh and if you need naked secrutiny, I’d be happy to offer impartial comment. Pictures in brown envelopes please, to the usual address. ;)
13. Adrian
I think I’ll probably wait till I’m looking decent again before the nekid photographs … if it’s all the same to you.
14. terreus
Look at the food labels, my mother is on a diet and all she does to lose 4lb a month and keep it off is to buy food with no more than 5% fat per 100g servings. She still eats large portions but sticks to 3 meals a day. It’s suprising what foods you can eat that you may think you have to steer clear of. Ambrosia Devon Custard for example, 2.0% fat per 100g. Eat it till the cows come home.
15. Adrian
That’s a pretty sensible way of going about it. I try look at the sugar content as well. Many foods are low in fat but loaded with sugars that doesn’t help much.
16. Daisy
The Hacker’s Diet is quite interesting, love this quote from the exercise section:
“Ignoring these signals from your body is the height of folly. It can lead to all kinds of tedious and exasperating side effects such as sudden death.”