So today it's about all things health and wellbeing.
Earlier this year I was investigating the 5:2 diet. It seemed OK to start with but played merry hell with my energy levels. I simply couldn't exercise on 600 calories - in fact it made sleep difficult. Plus I more than compensated on the other days. Now, the diet does proclaim some benefits other than pure weight loss, in terms of levels of certain enzymes in the body etc. But as I didn't have the kit to check any of those, I can't comment. I just got to the point that it got in the way of life and made me unhappy. And so it was never going to work for me*.
But I then did find that towards Easter, my weight was creeping up again. In fact by Easter or a little after it had crept up by half a stone compared to where it had been at Christmas. This is a sort of elephant-y creep - not overly subtle. I was still going to the gym, and the cause was simple. Eating too much. Both at meals and as snacks. Mid-afternoon chocolate bars were creeping in, and late night biscuits and cheese.
In other words - all the stuff that we know is bad. I wasn't overly happy and I ate. Better than self-medicating with booze or worse, but not great.
Well, I'm pleased to say I have managed to get on top of that again. The extra weight has come off (with a bit more as well). I feel much better, and feel I have found a "diet" - way of eating is a better phrase - which works for me on an ongoing basis. Let me tell you what I've done.
- Regular readers will know I was getting uneasy about eating meat. And so I cut down. Then I stopped meat altogether, but kept in the odd bit of fish. In the last month I have been completely veggie. And I have felt much better. Less bloated, and more energy to exercise. Which has meant more exercise.
- I usually don't eat breakfast. When I do, I then start to feel really hungry again about 11am. If I don't I feel OK until about 12:30. So that is simple.
- I am eating a lot of fruit. And veg but more of that later. Certainly five a day of fruit alone. If I am hungry, I will have fruit.
- Lunch is tending to be salads or similar. If I want something else it will be a wrap, not a sandwich. In part this is because the choice of veggie sandwiches is, basically, cheese.
- Evenings. I am avoiding pre-cooked or convenience stuff. Cooking fresh (perhaps a big pot of something for three days or the freezer). Having had a house for some time with kids who disliked 'bits' in their food meant I got out of the habit of eating what are basically vegetable stews. Loads of veg, plus kidney beans, lentils etc. Or a stir fry.
- Frozen veg is cheap and convenient - you don't have to worry about stuff going off. So I will eat more of this, and less of the big carbs providers - less pasta and rice. (These were I think the things that always did for me - because I ate too much of them.)
- If hungry in the evening, toast with some nice jam, or cereal does fine.
- Oh, and no booze - not that I do anyway, but just remind you of that.
And as the weight has come off, I have both pushed up the gym exercise. More weights (I did very little before) and more cardio. To the point where I am sometimes genuinely exhausted after the gym, rather than just slightly sweaty. And as the weight comes off, the cardio gets easier. So three times a week I'm doing an hour on a bike or bike and run. Next will be some interval training I think.
In addition to this, I am trying to walk a bit more - especially in the nice weather. Just wandering around last Saturday, shopping and enjoying the sun and I walked about four miles. Pretty good, but had I not thought about it, I wouldn't have realised it. Plus walking keeps one a distance from the kitchen...
Which leads me to - measurement. It won't surprise you to know I've got a bit obsessive about this. I'm using MyFitnessPal on PC and IPad to track everything I eat, and all the exercise I do. This is really easy - pretty much everything you do it already has the values for. Plus I use my phone to record walking distances etc for input. Lets me see what has gone well, and badly. And gives me something to be vaguely proud of when I have had a good day.
The next goal is to try and embed all of this - so that it becomes a weigh (geddit?) of life and not just a novelty. If I can get to that point then I feel that I can keep doing this forever. Of course, come the winter weather it always gets harder - suspect soup will be an answer there - and my forthcoming ten days off may test me.
So, it's all good. Except for cigarettes, which I still crave. If I am around smokers, I have to really fight not to give in. The good news in this is that even if I do give in, I then have no desire to have one the next day. Whilst it would be much better to not smoke at all ever, one or two once a month probably won't kill me. Well, it might well, but you know what I mean!
* I know lots of people it has worked for - and am not criticising the diet - just saying that at that time and in that place it wasn't for me.
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