The weekend saw more good training, and now I am down to the final three weeks before the 10K. This next two weeks will be very important as i don't want to rely too much on the final week, I just want to tick over then.
I have been avoiding weighing myself and measuring my body fat for the last few weeks, but for a reason. I am due to get a proper fitness assessment done and thought I could use the more accurate measurements I get then as the benchmark. Once done I will then measure my body fat with my calipers and my weight with my scales and see if they tally up the same. Then its time to burn the fat away!!
After watching UFC129 I think its time I stepped into the octagon. I Love watching the shows with GSP training(did you see him doing gymnastics), he certainly is dedicated, but how boring is his fights? He is so technical its like watching a robot fight, no imagination. He needs to face up to a scrapper next time to see what he is made of!!

Last week I was on holiday with the schools being off, it was great to spend time with Kim and Aisha. The downturn in business over the last couple of years may have hit me in the pocket, but the more family time spent has been a bonus.
Training is still going well, though i need to increase the weight lifting side. The running and swimming are going well, and i am starting to feel the difference. I haven't weighed myself and measured my body fat, as I am due a fitness assessment and was going to use the measurements taken then as the bench mark to work from.
Just over three weeks to go until the 10k race, and I think I am in an OK position just now, but I have to keep the pace up, no missing sessions!!!
Diet wise things are going OK, but I need to find some variety in my food as I am starting to get bored of the same stuff!!

its been a really good week, swimming every day this week, running 4 nights so far. diet has been clean, and iam feeling positive. Next week I am on holiday and really aim to up the stakes, doing as much as i can without injuring myself!! Last night i watched the opening show of the new series of The Ultimate Fighter, good to see an old friend of AMAG's Erik Paulson on the show assisting Brock Lesnar's team. Filled my head with happy memories of Pat!!

Decent day yesterday, went out swimming at lunchtime, done 20 x 25m lengths, then more running at night. Today I also went swimming, another 20 lengths. Tonight i will rest as i have friends round for tea. i have momentum with me, I have to keep this going, but am confident I can. The big thing has been giving myself that carrot on the end of the stick. Why didn't I think of this years ago!!!!!

48 days to go

Last week was my first full week training. So how did it go. Bad start to the week, forgot to take my weight and body fat percentage. But that's OK, not a big deal. So i had 5 running sessions, 1 swimming session and two kettlebell sessions. Conclusion, decent start to the week but I need to up the pace. Swimming on Saturday morning, the first time I have done lengths in years. Funny thing with swimming is, when you start to struggle you take in water and start to splutter!! I was struggling to cope with my breathing, when to breath, when not to, and spluttered a couple of times!! But it was good fun, and surprisingly harder work than I expected. That afternoon I headed to the gym for some running on the treadmill. Really enjoyed it, and tracking my progress was much easier. Tonight I head back for an hour on the treadmill which will be a good benchmark of where I am fitness wise. Diet wise things have been good. Tried to calorie and nutrition count last week, but it is very hard. For example on Wednesday Kim had made mince and tatties. I had a small portion for supper. Because I hadn't cooked it or measured it, I couldn't include it so the whole days counting went to pot!! I have decided to keep the same eating regime going, small meals every two and half hours, clean foods like wholewheat pasta, wholewheat bread, chicken, turkey and vegetables, but forget about counting the nutrition. Will see how that goes. If it doesn't work i will review. This week i will need to increase the amount of running I do. As usual I find it hard to work into my schedule, but I read an article with Georges St-Pierre who said all his training is fight based, he doesn't do any running, skipping etc as he doesn't do that in the octagon so why would he train to do it. His cardio, strength training etc all comes from the MMA training he does. Good theory I thought. So I decided If i ever have to decide between say kettlebells or running for that days exercise, running should always prevail as that is what my focus is on just now!!

Training is going well. Last night I repeated the kettlebell routine I done on Sunday. I also went out for a run late at night. Performance wise this wasn't so good, i was tired from the kettlebells, and I left it too late to go out. While running three things came to mind. I need to shift some weight to make the running easier, I really noticed the extra weight I am carrying. Secondly I need to strengthen my legs, as they felt weak last night. Thirdly I need to improve my lung capacity. Plenty to work on over the next few weeks. I have to admit though, signing up for the 10k run has been the perfect motivational tool, it has taken over all my thoughts lately, everything is being geared towards the run. Mentally I still have a lot to go to be able to do this run, but am working towards it. After my runs I have been drinking protein drinks, but am considering changing that to creatine. But first i need to do more research on this.

Spring has Sprung

Its great that spring is upon us, even though I had to scrape the frost off my windscreen this morning. Training for the 10K is in full swing, and with just less than 8 weeks to go I have a helluva lot of work to do. We have a team for the Baker Hughes and a page for making donations, if anyone is out there in cyberspace and has any spare cash, please donate to a worthy cause. The link is http://www.justgiving.com/teamroadnitrate Yesterday I completed a kettlebell workout that consisted of the following. All were 3 x 12 reps Shoulder Swings Full Body Swings Full Body high Pull Overhead Shoulder Press Leg Squat(only using 1 kettlebell) Uni Bent Over Row Chest Press(only using 1 kettlebell) Ab Crunch Side Bend I also got out on my bike yesterday. It was good being out, shame the rain came on half way out. The lighter nights feels good, and will help me to stay active. I have also written up a spreadsheet to help track my food intake. Tonight, I will be out for a run, tomorrow or Wednesday I will incorporate swimming to my routine. Feeling positive just now, and I need to keep that going!!

Still here

My friend Dave died last month, his body completely taken by cancer, only 41 years old and with a one year old daughter. His death was quite sudden and knocked me for 6. I suppose the one question i kept going back to was, whats the fucking point of life? I mean, there is no rhyme and reason to anything. Pat and Dave have both been taken by cancer related illnesses, and two nicer kinder guys you couldn't meet, so what is the point? What does life mean? I really don't know the answer to that one!! Anyway, truth be told i kind of gave up any focus on anything, couldn't be bothered with anything. But as time went on, i realised how stupid i was being, life did matter, well it does to my daughter, and that means it means something to me. If nothing else on this planet, I should always strive to do the best for her. And that means keeping to my long term plans. but talking and doing are two different things, ask anyone who has battled with their weight. So I needed an extra push, and that came with me signing up for the Baker Hughes 10k run in May. It looks like three of us from work will run, and we will be raising money for Inspire, a charity that supports those with learning difficulties.
I have been doing sporadic exercise, but have now got 9 weeks to get into shape to run 10k, this will be a huge challenge, but one I am up for!!

With my father in laws funeral out of the way I can get down to concentrating on shifting this weight. Last week was poor, only two running sessions, which was way below what I hoped. My stats for this week are below

Age: 39
Height: 5' 9"
Weight: 211 lbs
% Body Fat: 28.1%
Lean Body Mass: 151.71lbs
Fat Mass: 59.29lbs

Overall a loss of 3lbs is positive, but i cant get my fat mass to shift away from 28.1%. To be honest with the funeral last week and a night out on Saturday I expected my stats to remain the same, so a shift down is good.
I have been discussing running the Baker Hughes 10k run in May. I have enjoyed the running so far, and will look to sign up next month. A colleague's wife has been diagnosed with Motor Neurones Disease and has only been given two years to live. As a healthy 30 year old it has been very hard to take, so a group of us are going to raise money for a MN charity. That should be good inspiration for us!!

Its been a messy start to the year. Everything was going fine until Christmas eve, then my mum got taken into hospital and things went all to pot. Christmas day was a bit of a shambles, spent driving about and visiting, and that was the routine for the next few days. Then on New Years Eve, Kims dad had a seizure and was taken into hospital. He got moved to Roxburgh house where he lasted until Wednesday 12th January before passing away.
This has meant that my routine has been all over the place, missing work to look after Aisha etc. I have tried my best to keep to a routine but it has been tough.
Anyway, last night i went out for a run, and managed 15 x 1 minute runs followed by 1 minute walks. This was pretty tough as my running had been sporadic and i am full of the cold. But i got it done. I also took my measurements.

Age: 39
Height: 5' 9"
Weight: 214 lbs
% Body Fat: 28.1
%Lean Body Mass: 153.87lbs
Fat Mass: 60.13lbs

I'm still not convinced i am reading the calipers correctly as i never see any difference in percentage. But there has only been a small movement over the festive period. I am back on track with the eating plan, and back on track with the fitness routine, so over the next few weeks expect to see some movement. I am looking at splitting my goals into monthly sections. Hopefully this will help me achieve them if i break them up into smaller targets.

Last night I also worked out my BMR(basic metabolic rate) based on my stats which is 2006. I then worked out my TDEE(total daily energy expenditure) which is 3109 calories a day. This means my aim should be around the 2300 calories a day. Split into 6 meals that is 383 calories a meal. I still need to get more technical with my diet, and start writing things down more.

Here are week 4 results
Age: 39
Height: 5' 9"
Weight: 211 lbs
% Body Fat: 28.1%
Lean Body Mass: 152lbs
Fat Mass: 59 lbs

ok, so looking at the figures it looks like i have once again lost Lean Body Mass but the calipers I use show 30-31mm as 28.1% body fat, and my measurement is down from 31 to 30mm, so i feel there has been progress made. Certainly my overall weight is down and that is good. I am taking steps in the right direction with the eating, splitting my meals down, avoiding junk, simple really. It has an effect on family life and can be tough, not eating with the family due to other constraints, but not that big a deal in the grand scheme of things.The fitness side has been bad this week. A culmination of long working hours, Christmas build up and very bad weather has made it tough, and all i have wanted to do was hibernate. Last night was -14 deg C and it hasnt been much above freezing for the last week. The roads have been trechorious, so things have ground to a halt. But I made a decision if the fitness suffered the diet wouldn't. So looking back on the week i am happy enough all things considered. This next week is the big challenge, not to put on wieght over Christmas. I have already decided to treat Christmas day as a normal day, i dont want things disrupted because I am eating my meals over 5 sittings! But I will avoid the usual excess as best I can!!

Here are my stats for week 2 of my challenge

Age: 39
Height: 5' 9"
Weight: 218 lbs
% Body Fat: 28.1%
Lean Body Mass: 157lbs
Fat Mass: 61 lbs

Looking at those stats the big shift has been the lean body mass, which is dissapointing. But this could be down to me not measuring myself accurately with the accumeasure body fat calipers. I need to practice more to make sure I am doing it right. When i do it and i take a measurement I am not 100% convinced it is accurate!what is good is i lost 7lb overall. Ok so not as much fat as i wanted, but my weight came down and if nothing else it gave me a positive feeling!!So lets review the last week. Nutrition - i am closer to the 5 meals a day target, but still dont measure my meals and have an accurate calorie amount for each meal. But what I am eating is healthy and balanced. One struggle is the in between meal meals, if that makes sense! What to eat at 10am and 4pm!! But certianly i feel progrss has been made since last week, and it will only get better.Fitness - i completed the first week of my running programme, and it felt good, especially with the weather being so awful. I have also devised a simple kettlebells programme that I will follow, I will post this up in the next couple of days. My finger was dislocated in the car accident but is only badly staved and will be back to normal in a couple of weeks. I tried the kettlebell and it will be fine, press ups etc are still a problem. Once I have the running and kettlebell programme going, and am happy with them I plan to add in some swimming. But thats a couple weeks away. I am trying to progress through to these things. One common mistake I made in the past is I would make these great plans in my head about what I would do and never did. This time it is a different approach.

Last night I got myself out and done my 30 minute running challenge in the snow. The snow made it harder, as in some places it was like running on sand. so I headed for the local school as the car park was cleared better than most places and ran round the edge of the car park. i did a minute running with two minutes walking for 30 minutes, and coped surprisingly well considering the weather, conditions and the fact i struggled a bit with it last week!!Back out again on Thursday. Tonight i head off to see the Wedding Present at the Tunnels to re-live my youth. Last time I seen them was at the Venue in Aberdeen in '88, when we all had slimmer waists and more hair!!

WEEK 1
Well thats the first week in, time for a review. I will split it into two sections, fitness and nutrition.
FITNESS - this has been a let down, mostly due to the bad weather. But I cant use that as an excuse. So i will head out tonight running. As I only completed one part of my running plan I will start again from scratch. I also plan to clear out my garage tonight so I can make room for some kettlebell swinging!!
NUTRITION - This has been better than fitness, but is still no where near where I should be. I haven't written up a proper eating plan. I am not controlling my calories, I am still guessing. Where I have made progress is my mental state. Now when I eat something, I think of the good it will do me, and more importantly the harm it will do me. My biggest issue this week has been due to poor planning of meals, I have been going into starvation mode. But I know I am doing it, and I know how to solve it, I just need to concentrate on sorting out the meal plan. Last night was spent making meals for the next couple of days. I will get there eventually!
Below are my new stats for the week
Age: 39Height: 5' 9"Weight: 225 lbs% Body Fat: 28.6%Lean Body Mass: 162lbs Fat Mass: 63 lbs
The change is purely down to me using the accumeasure fat calipers, as my old calipers broke. These should be far more accurate. I am going to measure myself every night, but only to put the practice in so i can get as accurate a reading as possible!
All in all I don't want to beat myself up too much for the last week. My mental attitude is better and that is a big step forward. I didn't expect to lose any weight as I had a day out on Saturday with beer involved, but that's gone and I don't plan any more alcohol until the New Year. This week is another new beginning!

Yesterday i started my 6 week running routine, Christ it was hard work near the end. I also done what was even harder, i took some photos of myself as a reference. Nothing brings it home more than looking at those photos. i will post them up here but not yet. i took a photo with a newspaper to show the correct date, and will use this as my bench mark. i also took some base stats for me to work on. They are

Age: 39
Height: 5' 9"
Weight: 225 lbs%
Body Fat: 32%
Lean Body Mass: 153lbs
Fat Mass: 72 lbs

Now the first two i cant doing anything about, but the rest will get addresses. I used a set of skin thickness calipers to work out my body fat, i don't know how accurate they are but they will do me. I will measure myself each week. So 72lb of fat to burn off. Last night was a start, unfortunately a woman crashed her car into mine last week and I have injured the finger on my left hand. This will restrict the weight training i had planned, and also the swimming I was going to do, but i cant keep putting this off, so i will do what i can. i have the hospital tomorrow so hopefully the finger is on the mend.
My aim is simple, 2lb a week every week, with no lean body mass lost, and ideally body mass increased due to muscle gain. I know that wont happen straight away, i need to work at it, as I still don't have the nutrition side nailed down yet. Yesterday I tried 5 small meals and the culture change is huge, and will have an impact on my home life, but they understand.
Starting now is also significant because I didn't want to wait until the New Year as I would just put on even more weight over the holidays, not what i want!!

Run Fat Boy Run

I have come across an ideal running plan to get me started. it covers 6 miles and takes someone who is a poor runner into someone who can run for 30 minutes. This will be stage 1. The plan is

Week 1
Monday - run 1 min, walk 2 mins, repeat 10 times
Tuesday - rest
Wednesday - run 1 min, walk 1 min, repeat 10 times
Thursday - rest
Friday - rest
Saturday - run 1 min, walk 1 min, repeat 15 times
Sunday - rest

Week 2
Monday - run 2 mins, walk 2 mins, repeat 6 times
Tuesday - rest
Wednesday run 2 mins, walk 2 mins, repeat 10 times
Thursday - rest
Friday - rest
Saturday - run 2 mins, walk 1 min, repeat 10 times
Sunday - rest

Week 3
Monday - run 3 mins, walk 3 mins, repeat 5 times
Tuesday - rest
Wednesday - run 3 mins, walk 2 mins, repeat 6 times
Thursday - rest
Friday - rest
Saturday - run 5 mins, walk 1 min, repeat 10 times
Sunday - rest

Week 4
Monday - run 6 mins, walk 3 mins, repeat 4 times
Tuesday - rest
Wednesday - run 5 mins, walk 2 mins, repeat 4 times
Thursday - rest
Friday - rest
Saturday - run 8 mins, walk 3 mins, repeat 3 times
Sunday - rest

Week 5
Monday - run 8 mins, walk 2 mins, repeat 3 times
Tuesday - rest
Wednesday - run 10 minutes, walk 2 mins, repeat 2 times
Thursday - rest
Friday - rest
Saturday - run 20 minutes
Sunday - rest

Week 6
Monday - run 12 Min's, walk 2 Min's, repeat 2 times
Tuesday - rest
Wednesday - run 15 Min's, walk 2 Min's, repeat 2 times
Thursday - rest
Friday - rest
Saturday - run 30 minutes
Sunday - rest

All this effort to go from walking and being out of breath to being able to run 30 minutes will take combined just over 9 hours of my time over the next 6 weeks. Not much is it. It also means i can work in other exercises such as kettlebells without impacting on my time too much.

This weekend I re-read some of my most recent posts, a little reminder of where I am. I covered diet, and with that i know what I need to do. I also covered metabolism, and that is linked to diet(frequent meals) and also to exercise. So what will I need to do with that? Well lets start with the kettlebell. I will use this for strength and cardio vascular exercises. I will also start hitting the pavements with some running. Cycling might not be a great option with the dark nights and colder weather, and I will also do some swimming. One option i haven't considered recently is going to the gym. I don't like the gym, never have. But I have to build muscle to increase my metabolism, so maybe I don't have that option. Will i write out a plan? I don't know, it seems the one thing i am good at is breaking plans!! I will look at other options as well, like walking. I was out this weekend and it was great just to get some air into my lungs. Anything else? One thing i will look at is taking part in some sports. Football would be beyond me just now, but is a future option, but maybe badminton or squash. Lets see.

Its been nearly two months since I last posted a blog. A lot has happened in the last two months, and my plans have been side railed. My good friend Pat passed away, and that really took the wind out of my sails, then Kims dad was diagnosed with lung cancer which has spread to his brain. But this isnt the right place or time to discuss my feelings at this time. This blog was set up for me to track my fitness progress, and it diverted away to a sound board for me to gripe about life. So its time it got back to being what it was supposed to be.
I have done very little exercise lately, my diet has been poor. Loads of excuses, none of them valid. I re-read my recent posts, and have now got back on track with my earlier aims. I now feel ready to start again.
One thing I havent done with this blog is post any photos, so to change that I am going to post up photos of myself in all my glory, another reminder of why i wanted to start all this. I can then use it as a visual benchmark of where I started. it wont be pretty. But I think by getting it out there it will make me more determined to change. Another big factor is I will be 40 next year, and i dont want to start another decade out of shape. I suppose as I get older health and fitness become even more important, i need to keep reminding myself that!!

Diet

Diet is going to be my biggest problem, i know, because historically it has been my biggest problem and i cant see how that is going to change. I have looked to see why i have such an issue with food. I can remember as a kid scoffing chocolate biscuits before my parents got up out of their beds! I can remember it pissed them off. i can't remember why I had such a hang up with food. But I continue to try and beat it.
My diet will consist of enough calories to keep my metabolism working hard, but not too much that I start to store more fat. The principal of cutting 500 calories a day by reducing intake by 250 calories and 250 calories burned through exercise is still a good benchmark, but my diet has to contain the right foods, the right balance. But strangely the biggest challenge will be to continue eating all day, splitting into 6 meals a day. The body takes 2.1/2 hours to digest a meal, so i am looking to eating every 2.1/2 to 3 hours. This should mean the metabolism is getting maximum energy from food, the right food. One problem is my lack of real knowledge of food. I need to read up on proteins, carbohydrates and fats so i know what i am putting into me is the right foods!
One challenge will be eating out. Aisha likes a MacDonald's now and again, maybe once a month. Taking her and Kim out without eating will be a real challenge. But one i feel i am ready for.

Metabolism

I have been doing research into how I can increase my metabolism for weight loss. One is by energy intake, ie food and drink, the other is by exercise. The key is to get the right balance of the two, so i lose weight while my metabolism increases.
Last night I read about the zig zag effect. its where you have a few low calorie days followed by a couple of high calorie days. The theory is that a few days of low calorie intake burns body fat, and before the metabolism can adjust to this new low intake a high calorie day or two increases the metabolic rate, ensuring fat is burned even faster. whether or not this works I don't know yet, i haven't done enough research, but it would make sense as to how I am not hitting 20 plus stones. I know My diet has been bad in the past, and I look at very fat people wondering, on the basis of how much i eat, how much they must put away! Maybe the difference is that most weeks i would start of with great intentions and this would fizzle out. Maybe i was on a zig zag diet without knowing it!!
To get my metabolism going I need to keep exercising, that I know. And one routine that stands out is kettlebells. I think the key with them is they give you a cardiovascular workout while building muscle. Building muscle is going to be key, as this will also increase the metabolism. I want to burn fat, and only fat.
i also need to understand my diet better. when i started this I hoped to keep my diet healthy, without having to make too many changes. This approach was wrong, I need a complete overhaul. The hearty meals is great, but I need to split that into 5 or 6 small healthy meals to get my metabolism going. I am researching how best to do this.
The final thing I am looking at is improving my sensory acuity when it comes to my body. I am going to chart this, and measuring will help, but if i can improve how I understand my own body, and what works and doesn't work for me, then i will have a better chance of succeeding.