I didn't have enough time for a full Spinning class tonight, since I'd arranged to meet up for a warm Chicken and Bacon salad (dressing on the side) before the cinema to see yet another Hollywood movie that sounds 10 times better than it actually was.
There was a spare 25 minutes to go for a jog, though! Since time was tight, I opted for a new approach - the 8 minute set, times two.
I felt great after the first 8 minutes. Not overly out of breath, nice muscle feelings, etc. Half way through the second 8 minutes I thought I was going to die. Heavy, heavy breathing coupled with my first (very painful) stitch and a severe loss of will power meant that I was about to cop out at 6 minutes. Then something strange happened; something pleasantly strange. It was a reverse of the "calm before the storm". I'd already gone through the storm and suddenly my breathing returned to almost normal, my lungs stopped hurting and my legs felt amazing. I found a stamina rich "work zone" and I felt I could just run and run. I was actually disappointed that I had to stop, but keen to explore this zone again.
Current weight is 16 stones and 6 pounds (230 pounds / 104.5 kg)
My weight loss challenge of reaching 17 stones before the end of March was easily surpassed.
Mental note: I'd easily be under 16 stones now if I hadn't touched the booze this month, but where's the fun in that!
Friday, 28 March 2008
Wednesday, 26 March 2008
Jacuzzi injuries
After all the physical activities I've been taking part in over the last 5 months, including Heli-boarding, the greatest injuries have been sustained in that most dangerous of places, the Jacuzzi.
The first injury resulted from a flying plastic disc that hit me an inch above my left eye at full speed while I was quietly sitting in the Jacuzzi. If it was intentional it would have been a 9.5 out of 10 for accuracy - a little lower or slower and it would have taken my eye out. Hot on that incident's heels is a bacterial infection called Folliculitis, which I've further self diagnosed to be Hot Tub Folliculitis. Never having had a rash that's appeared so quickly did cause the traditional male "I'm going to die" response for a short time. 30 minutes in casualty, with the pay-off of an attractive female doctor laughing at my insignificant injury, was time well spent.
Current weight is 16 stones 10 pounds (234 pounds / 106.2 kg)
Noteable point: I now weight less than I did at school.
The first injury resulted from a flying plastic disc that hit me an inch above my left eye at full speed while I was quietly sitting in the Jacuzzi. If it was intentional it would have been a 9.5 out of 10 for accuracy - a little lower or slower and it would have taken my eye out. Hot on that incident's heels is a bacterial infection called Folliculitis, which I've further self diagnosed to be Hot Tub Folliculitis. Never having had a rash that's appeared so quickly did cause the traditional male "I'm going to die" response for a short time. 30 minutes in casualty, with the pay-off of an attractive female doctor laughing at my insignificant injury, was time well spent.
Current weight is 16 stones 10 pounds (234 pounds / 106.2 kg)
Noteable point: I now weight less than I did at school.
Monday, 24 March 2008
Altitude training
Of all the winter activities available in the French Alps, I never expected to be doing lengths in the outdoor swimming pool. But that's exactly what complemented a day's snowboarding at Alpe d'Huez.
During the high altitude swimming, there were two strange experiences of note. The first was the obvious breathlessness due to the reduced oxygen at 1880 metres. You become very out of breath after only a few lengths, but it seems to disappear after a while and you can return your breathing to normal. The second was the French approach to communality; standing naked in the male changing rooms watching the suited female swimmers pass by the doorless entrance while the female cleaners are milling around mopping the floors. Perhaps French ladies have just seen it all before.
I successfully managed to avoid increasing my weight during the week's holiday. Trudging for hundreds of metres through 2 feet of fresh powder snow at over 3000 metres was also pretty good for the lungs and it offset the cheese overdoses encountered on more than one occasion and the even more frequent boozing.
Tuesday, 11 March 2008
Counter joint
Tonight's session was taken by a different instructor since Kristy is on holiday, but she'd been left with instructions to work on my legs.
I arrived early so I went on the cross trainer for 10 minutes to warm up. Then the running was lengthened to 3 * 6 minute jogs with a 3 minute walk between them and straight on to squats. 100 squats to be precise, using a variety of apparatus include the Bozu, weights and the gym ball. All this leg work had the unusual effect of opening up some 7th dimensional extra knee joint that I didn't know I had. My jellied legs took on a completely new gait as the new joint, just above my knee but with a countering motion like a badly assemble mechano man, caused me to walk around the gym and swimming pool like Bill from Bill and Ben. Come to think of it, I could just as easily have resembled Ben. For every normal attempted step forward, my lower thigh seemed to stop briefly and then move forward 10 inches horizontally the very second I lifted the opposing leg, throwing my balance off centre. I could have been deposited as an extra in a budget spaghetti western - the one who can't walk after riding for 4 days straight.
Current weight is 17 stones 3 pounds (241 pounds / 109.3 kg)
I arrived early so I went on the cross trainer for 10 minutes to warm up. Then the running was lengthened to 3 * 6 minute jogs with a 3 minute walk between them and straight on to squats. 100 squats to be precise, using a variety of apparatus include the Bozu, weights and the gym ball. All this leg work had the unusual effect of opening up some 7th dimensional extra knee joint that I didn't know I had. My jellied legs took on a completely new gait as the new joint, just above my knee but with a countering motion like a badly assemble mechano man, caused me to walk around the gym and swimming pool like Bill from Bill and Ben. Come to think of it, I could just as easily have resembled Ben. For every normal attempted step forward, my lower thigh seemed to stop briefly and then move forward 10 inches horizontally the very second I lifted the opposing leg, throwing my balance off centre. I could have been deposited as an extra in a budget spaghetti western - the one who can't walk after riding for 4 days straight.
Current weight is 17 stones 3 pounds (241 pounds / 109.3 kg)
Tuesday, 4 March 2008
Marathon Man
The only resemblence to the title and today's jogging session would be if I had toothache.
Still, 15 minutes of running at 10 kmph in 3 by 5 minute stints was pretty spectacular for me. I've never, ever run before. Not even at school. Perhaps it was the new outfit I was wearing that spurned me on? More likely it was the £155 price tag that I didn't want to regret. But it felt good! The shoes are sloped downward towards the front, which has the effect of enticing you to go faster.
I even managed a spinning class later the same day, so double points for me.
Current weight is 17 stones and 7 pounds (245 pounds / 111.1 kg).
Noteworthy landmark: I've now lost 4 stones in total, nearly a stone per month.
Still, 15 minutes of running at 10 kmph in 3 by 5 minute stints was pretty spectacular for me. I've never, ever run before. Not even at school. Perhaps it was the new outfit I was wearing that spurned me on? More likely it was the £155 price tag that I didn't want to regret. But it felt good! The shoes are sloped downward towards the front, which has the effect of enticing you to go faster.
I even managed a spinning class later the same day, so double points for me.
Current weight is 17 stones and 7 pounds (245 pounds / 111.1 kg).
Noteworthy landmark: I've now lost 4 stones in total, nearly a stone per month.
Tuesday, 26 February 2008
Deja Vu
No, I don't feel like Denzel Washington. But I do feel pretty good despite a slow weight loss week.
You see, I've found out from various (much fitter) sources that the body has a memory. So all those Monday mornings when I stand on the scales thanking some mystical power for my weight not increasing after a weekend's indulgance, I was simply deluding myself.
The body reacts to food taken on board anything up to a week ago. I've been swinging from the rafters trying to work out why I'm not losing any weight after 5 days of vegetables and brown rice. It was those 15 pints of beer last weekend, dummy.
If I hadn't sought advice, I might have removed those pesky vegetables from my diet and stuck to solely beer and chicken wings.
On a more sensible note, I actually jogged for the very first time today. I'm still a stone over my jogging trigger weight, but Kristy very rightly could see I needed a boost. Imagine! I can actually view jogginig as a boost! If I wasn't so healthy now, I'd probably pass out due to a laughing clot. If you want to know, I actually jogged for 9 minutes, which beats my previous record by around 45 seconds and 8 minutes.
The jogging felt pretty good too. Tonight's instructions were to go from the heel to the ball of the foot and then get some height from a spring off the front of the foot. I have previously received many, many hours of advice from a "bare foot" runner. You know, like we used to do when chasing wild boar for food. I found a suitable balance in between the two styles, paying homage to the "falling forward" motion. I was actually slightly bemused that I didn't collapse in a sweaty pile after being ejected from the rear of the treadmill. Bemused but delighted.
Current weight is 17 stones and 12 pounds (250 pounds / 113.4 kg).
You see, I've found out from various (much fitter) sources that the body has a memory. So all those Monday mornings when I stand on the scales thanking some mystical power for my weight not increasing after a weekend's indulgance, I was simply deluding myself.
The body reacts to food taken on board anything up to a week ago. I've been swinging from the rafters trying to work out why I'm not losing any weight after 5 days of vegetables and brown rice. It was those 15 pints of beer last weekend, dummy.
If I hadn't sought advice, I might have removed those pesky vegetables from my diet and stuck to solely beer and chicken wings.
On a more sensible note, I actually jogged for the very first time today. I'm still a stone over my jogging trigger weight, but Kristy very rightly could see I needed a boost. Imagine! I can actually view jogginig as a boost! If I wasn't so healthy now, I'd probably pass out due to a laughing clot. If you want to know, I actually jogged for 9 minutes, which beats my previous record by around 45 seconds and 8 minutes.
The jogging felt pretty good too. Tonight's instructions were to go from the heel to the ball of the foot and then get some height from a spring off the front of the foot. I have previously received many, many hours of advice from a "bare foot" runner. You know, like we used to do when chasing wild boar for food. I found a suitable balance in between the two styles, paying homage to the "falling forward" motion. I was actually slightly bemused that I didn't collapse in a sweaty pile after being ejected from the rear of the treadmill. Bemused but delighted.
Current weight is 17 stones and 12 pounds (250 pounds / 113.4 kg).
Thursday, 21 February 2008
Diet diet update
The Scarsdale Medical diet was refined over 19 years of private study and formulated to provide a completely balanced two week eating plan for the purposes of effective weight loss.
Nowhere in the entire book does it say that you should substitute the meals on days 5, 6 and 7 for a hedonistic weekend binge of chicken wings, pizza and beer and then abandon the remaining 7 days of meal plans in favour of the "Exotic Asian Cooking" book that caught my eye. Mr Scarsdale must be turning in his grave. On the other hand, Mr Tesco is delighted because I just spent £74.78 on exotic asian ingredients.
I was bang on 18 stone last Friday morning after 4 days of Scarsdale. I was back up to 18 stone 3 pounds on Monday morning. (Thankfully ONLY 3 pounds up.) After receiving the expected "more fruit and veg" advice from my previous week's dietry analysis, I began Monday with renewed vegetable vigour. 3 days and many vegetables later, I'm returned to where I worked so hard to get to.
My current weight is 18 stones exaclty (252 pounds / 114.3 kg).
Edict one: I've been issued with an executive training directive (my very first to date). Running has to begin before the end of March to stand a snowballs chance in hell of making it through the Triathlon. I have to be less than 17 stones to begin running to avert serious joint injuries. The mathematics is quite straightforward.
Nowhere in the entire book does it say that you should substitute the meals on days 5, 6 and 7 for a hedonistic weekend binge of chicken wings, pizza and beer and then abandon the remaining 7 days of meal plans in favour of the "Exotic Asian Cooking" book that caught my eye. Mr Scarsdale must be turning in his grave. On the other hand, Mr Tesco is delighted because I just spent £74.78 on exotic asian ingredients.
I was bang on 18 stone last Friday morning after 4 days of Scarsdale. I was back up to 18 stone 3 pounds on Monday morning. (Thankfully ONLY 3 pounds up.) After receiving the expected "more fruit and veg" advice from my previous week's dietry analysis, I began Monday with renewed vegetable vigour. 3 days and many vegetables later, I'm returned to where I worked so hard to get to.
My current weight is 18 stones exaclty (252 pounds / 114.3 kg).
Edict one: I've been issued with an executive training directive (my very first to date). Running has to begin before the end of March to stand a snowballs chance in hell of making it through the Triathlon. I have to be less than 17 stones to begin running to avert serious joint injuries. The mathematics is quite straightforward.
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