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Wednesday 27th May 2009 Add / view commentsMy first serious lapse.
The unthinkable happened. Today I ate something. I feel really disappointed in myself, and the physical reaction my body had was to fall into a deep carb coma. My girlfriend was out of the house and she left a plate of roast new potatoes with rosemary in the kitchen. I don't know what came over me, but I popped one my my mouth and the taste was simply divine. Before I knew it I had eaten the rest.
So... what to do now. Well, previously I would have probably dealt with this turn of events by throwing my hands in the air and declaring myself beaten. I'm determined not to do this. I need to draw a line under it and get back into a positive mental state. Tomorrow is another day, and I can do this.
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Tuesday 26th May 2009 Add / view commentsWhooooomp there it is!
Well, I just got back from my official meeting. This is the second one I have had. The first one was simply a introduction, so this is the first time my actual progress is examined. The results? 13lb loss in 7 days. BOOM!
The latter part of last week was tough, but this has given me a serious boost. Something I needed to be honest. I had a ketosis check and the colour of the result indicated I am in the optimum range and I am hydrated correctly.
I picked up this coming weeks food packs. I made the mistake of not choosing enough shakes last week so today I had to have soup for breakfast which wasn't ideal. This time around I have enough shakes for breakfasts and a few bars to save for special occasions (although these do count as meals). Most importantly I also picked up some "fruits of the forest" water flavouring. This powder is dissolved into water to create a sweet Ribena like drink. This stuff is seriously tasty and will help me drink 3 litres of water a day, or even more.
So, there we go. 1 week. 28 food packs. 1 bottle of Tobasco sauce. 13lbs in weight loss. I have some fun social engagements at the end of the week, including a gig at fabric. With any luck the loss will continue and I might even be able to wear some new clothes for the occasion. More updates soon!
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Monday 25th May 2009 Add / view commentsKittens & Ketosis. My hardest day so far.
First the good news. The weight loss total is currently hovering at just under 11 lbs. Looking at the graph you can see the overall loss has been smooth and steady. I am pleased with that, although I was secretly hoping for at least a 1 stone loss by my next meeting which is tomorrow evening. I'm heading to the gym later to try and give things a helping hand.
Yesterday was agony. The sun was out and everybody seemed to have that summer Sunday feeling. Everywhere I looked people were enjoying a cold beers under the sun's warm rays and the entire apartment was filled with the sweet smell of nearby barbecues. If you know me, you'll know my deep love for barbecues, and the thought of not being able to enjoy even the odd sausage really knocked my positivity. For the first time since I started, I began to seriously think about eating something, however small. Even the idea of gobbling up the avocado that's been sitting unloved in the fruit bowl for over a week had me salivating. Like a Tom & Jerry cartoon everything I looked at made me hungry. Our new kitten spontaneously turned into a small succulent roast chicken. But, I am pleased to tell you dear reader that I was strong and after what seemed liked an eternity the day ended with my abstinence intact, and the kitten uneaten.
Tomorrow evening is my second meeting. I will have an official weigh in and a ketosis check. That involves peeing on a stick to check my liver is properly converting fat into energy. But that's still a while off yet. In the meantime I am off to apologise to the cat...
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Sunday 24th May 2009 Add / view commentsNo booze, no fun? Seems not.
What a glorious weekend. The sun has been out in London and the diet is going swimmingly. Last night I had a fantastic gig in West London and played the entire 5 hours with no booze at all. That is a huge accomplishment considering I would normally burn through an average of 6 coronas, 4 very strong vodka cranberries and at least 4 sambuca shots during a gig of that length. It was quite nice to finish feeling fresh, but standing up in the DJ booth for 5 hours did start to get painful. Back pain is something I hope will improve with the more pounds I shed.
With the sun out and I would love to go and lurk in the shady corner of a local beer garden, but I'm going to get on with some work instead. I may go and laze in the park for a bit, bottle of water in hand. Not a bad consolation prize.
In other news I have added the ability to comment on my updates via the site. Just click the link on the left. If you are already a member of facebook you can login with a few clicks and I can put a face to the comment. I would love to hear your feedback. I need all the support I can get during this little undertaking!
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Friday 22nd May 2009 Add / view commentsThe week comes to a close, and I'm feeling good.
After feeling nervous about my first booze free DJ gig it was actually cancelled at the last minute. I don't know what is harder... playing records in a bar and refusing free drinks, or sitting at home bored, trying to ignore the call of the fridge. Luckily, I am feeling strong. I'm getting on with some work and trying to forget the fact I haven't eaten solid food for 3 days.
It's actually crazy to me that I haven't felt properly hungry at any point so far. I don't know if that is the water filling me up, or the nutritional value of the food packs keeping my body ticking over, but something is stopping my stomach from rumbling. When I look back at how little has passed my lips this week, it properly puts into perspective how much of the crap I was eating was totally worthless, nutritionally.
It's the bank holiday weekend so I have a long gig ahead of me, as well as a lot of partying to do. My big plan is to replace booze with sparkling water... how rock and roll is that?? It will be VERY unusual to finish late at night with a clear head. I just hope it doesn't effect my performance when I am the one playing the records.
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Thursday 21st May 2009 Add / view commentsDay two, still going strong.
Not much to report, which is a good thing! At the end of day two my hunger is still non existent. No solid food has passed my lips in 48 hours and I feel fine. I am enjoying the food packs, and I even managed to do a 30 minute cardio session at the gym. I wish I had more to report, but it really is a case of "no news is good news". The fact that things are going so well is making me even more excited at possibility of reaching my objective. Whoop!
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Wednesday 20th May 2009 Add / view commentsOne day down... plenty more to go!
Well day one is drawing to a close, and it really wasn't as hard as I had feared. I have had my 4 food packs and impressively they have indeed managed to sustain me. The combination of those, and the recommended 3 litres of water have managed to fill me up. Even crazier, I have actually found them quite tasty. The strawberry flavour pack I had for my afternoon snack was delicious. Not Burger King double whopper with cheese and bacon delicious, but nice in it's own right.
An interesting side effect. My mind is more focussed and I haven't suffered from any of the carb crashes I would normally have when eating 'normal' food. With so much work on at the moment that is very welcome! My positive state of mind is even more impressive when you consider I have also given up a serious Diet Coke habit too.
Although this positive state of mind is very welcome, I expect the next couple of days to the hardest. Once the first week is over I imagine my body will start to adjust to it's new (lighter) life. How exciting :)
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Wednesday 20th May 2009 Add / view commentsMy first meeting.
After a really hectic day I managed to get to my first meeting on time. I was one of the first to turn up, and I got some basic paperwork sorted as well as my first official weigh in and a photo. I sat down and chose the flavour packs for the week. To be honest they all sound pretty awful, but I suppose that's to be expected.
After everybody was settled the existing members discussed the past week. Most of them had the same issues, like keeping away from booze, especially as the weather begins to get better. I hear that brother!!
I get the feeling the session side of things is less intense for mens sessions. I know we can be a cynical bunch. I have to admit I found it pretty uncomfortable, but only because I am a pretty internal person. It was just a little outside my comfort zone. However, when I was leaving the building after the session finished I got a rush of accomplishment for doing something so new and out of character.
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Tuesday 19th May 2009 Add / view commentsPanic stations!
I was planning on easing gently into Lighter Life. My first meeting is tonight and I was planning on spending the couple of days leading up to it eating healthy... that hasn't happened. As the meeting loomed I began to panic. No alcohol? No food? This is serious. After several Stellas and an epic Chinese take-away I am feeling better. I feel more like I have given food a proper goodbye.
Now that its out of my system, I promise I won't mention food again for the sake of other Lighter Lifers. I'll update again tonight after my first session.
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Sunday 17th May 2009 Add / view commentsThe calm before the storm.
Hello all. It’s Just past midnight on Sunday night/Monday morning. In the last few days I have been eating like a condemned man. Like a guy awaiting execution I have indulged in some of my favourite things. A big bag of crisps and hummus. A pizza. Curly fries. Cheese. Pastries. A take-away curry. I would have done more but work commitments have stopped me from going out, and seriously overeating always causes me to fall asleep, so the last few day’s of consumption have been purely casual.
I have experienced a strange change in my mental state. Once I decided to actually do this, I suddenly started seeing myself differently. Looking at myself in the mirror I suddenly began to see how badly I had let myself go in the last few months. It’s amazing how your mind can block things out, even when looking straight at them in a mirror, but all of a sudden I began to see things as they really are. Of course, this has caused me some mental discomfort. I suddenly don’t want anyone to see me as I am. I just want to start Lighter Life and get going. I just can’t help but think forward two weeks. If I manage to stick to the programme that should be the point I start noticing some subtle changes. As it happens I have a big social engagement around then, so it will also be a good test to see if anyone else notices.
My first session is on Tuesday evening. I will be calling the doctor first thing tomorrow to try and get an appointment for my basic health check. That is the only obstacle in the way at the moment. Fingers crossed I can get that sorted in time and I can get this thing moving. Between now and then I’ll be eating a reduced calorie diet to wean myself off real food (especially carbs) and prepare my body for Lighter Life’s very low calorie count.
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Sunday 17th May 2009 Add / view commentsFor whom the bell tolls...
I’m going to jump straight into things… Yesterday was my birthday and I turned the ripe old age of 29. I’m really not bothered about turning 30, after all it’s simply a number. However, I do have a strange fascination with order, almost to the degree of obsession as my girlfriend will no doubt tell you. Next year is THREE ZERO, and I feel the need to use this obvious milestone in my life to do a bit of self improvement, so I started by looking back at my life...
The history.
In the 10 years I have lived in London I have achieved almost all the goals I set out to, adding more along the way and reaching levels in my chosen profession that I didn’t dare dream of when I was younger. During this time I would say I have always given my own personal health and well-being a undeserved back seat. I really should thank my lucky stars that in my living memory I haven’t had to endure any extended period of illness, and the old bout of man-flu aside I have always enjoyed a decent level of health. In light of this I really have treated my body badly, a punishment it really doesn’t deserve after giving me all these years of good service. It’s always been there, fighting infection, repairing grazes, growing new hair, all the amazing things the human body does in its thankless task of keeping us going. And how have I repaid it?
I’ve eaten. But worse than that, I have eaten — a lot, and then refused to exercise. And that life of eating, and tapping away at keys on a keyboard has left me flabby, unfit and currently rocking a BMI of 38.1. As Ricky Gervais would be only too quick to point out, I have the same approximate fat content as your average pork scratching.
About 3 years ago things got really bad. I was tipping the scales at 290lbs and something clicked inside me. I went on eBay and bought myself a cross-trainer. I cut out virtually all food, save a basic 2 meal a day diet of salads and lean meats and within a year I was down to 230lbs. I would like to say it was easy, but it wasn’t, but some how I managed it and for a while I managed to keep off the weight. My life was immediately improved with my new found confidence and the new people I met then are now some of my closest friends. I met an amazing girl and we are still together now. She is amazingly supportive, and says all the right things when I quiz her about my weight, but the simple fact is that I am about 3 stone heavier now than I was the day I met her a year ago. And so, as I stare ahead at the big THREE ZERO, I have set myself the goal of hitting a healthy BMI by the time my next birthday comes around.
Lighter Life.
While pulling another all night work session I was trawling the BBC iPlayer for something to put on in the background. I stumbled across a one off programme by a journalist who was looking to lose weight. During the course of the show she mentioned something called Lighter Life. I did a bit of googling, half out of interest and half out of the need to distract myself from doing some proper work. I wont go into detail about what Lighter Life is, you can take a look at their website for more information, but it’s basically a VLCD (very low calorie diet), backed up with weekly meeting and basic group based cognitive behavioural therapy. 100% of your normal diet is replaced with a pretty unappetising selection of soups and smoothies to accompany the 3 litres of water its recommended you drink each day. As you can see, this diet is not for the feint hearted! But fuck it, what’s the worst that can happen. Besides… I love challenges.
Nothing ventured nothing gained.
My first meeting is on Tuesday evening which I will be attending as long as I can get a doctors signature before hand. I’ll be slapping down my £66 and starting out on a roller-coaster journey that will probably last until September. If I can stick to the regime its estimated I can lose up to 8 stone in that timeframe, bringing me into a healthy BMI range of 20 – 24. I’ll be posting to this blog during this time as a record of my progress, and hopefully success. Wish me luck!
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