I have just had a couple of challenging days in succession where sticking to a healthy meal programme has been severely challenged. This all started on Friday, which is Little Nannas birthday. As is tradition the birthday celebrant gets to choose what meal is on the cards. Little Nanna chose a Chinese meal. Instantly any chance of maintaining my healthy eating ways was put on the back foot.

Today was also challenged by a road trip to Canberra. Whilst I chose a sandwich it did have brie cheese on it. On it’s own not a problem, however I compounded the problem with a flavoured milk and a milk tea. Dinner was also cleaning up some of the left overs from Friday, so doubly screwed.

Across both days I have burnt 1000+ calories to counteract, in part, the intake. Time will tell if that has been enough.

I never thought that I would, but today I joined a gym. I now have access to some serious workout gear, and in time spin classes. The gym is Just Move located at the Warilla Bowls and Recreation Club. The gym is a relatively small gym, but has enough equipment and classes to get me going.

I am expecting a call shortly to arrange the first of 3 personal training sessions to set me up with a workout program and eating guide. Looking forward to it as Bobbie has also joined. Will be good getting all hot and sweaty together!

I guess the benefit of having a gym at the bowl-o is I can get a beer post workout … just kidding.

I have now established a reasonable change and am going for daily walks and paying greater attention to what I am eating. This start to my lifestyle transformation has now expanded to some added activities and investments.

First of these is that I am participating in the 1 Million Kilo Challenge. This is a 10 week challenge that is aimed at promoting a healthier lifestyle. Basically on the challenge I will receive free advice on health, nutrition, and exercise through regular e-mail and a website. In reality I will be continuing to do what I have started. However, will look at the plan suggestions and where it makes sense adopt them into my routine.

The next expansion is in the investment in a range of exercise equipment. This investment is in our lives together, and it is time to get serious.

Fitness Investment 1

Fitness Investment 2

Fitness Investment 3

Now the trick will be to turn this small investment into a profitable lifestyle change.

I have been doing a bit of digging around MyFitnessPal and found “The Heart Calculator”. The facts it produces are pretty amazing. Take a look here.

Calorie Counter and Diet Tracker by MyFirnessPal.com

The first App I became aware of, thanks to Mr Dan Hughes from Lee and Dan’s Midnight Movie Club, was Calorie Counter & Diet Tracker by MyFitnessPal. MyFitnessPal is a site that has a large (and dynamically growing) database of foods and exercises and is a combination of website and iOS App. Basically after putting in a current weight, a goal weight, and a timeline to achieve the goal it works out a daily calorie goal. This goal is adjusted as cardiovascular exercises are added to your daily diary, strength exercises can be recorded, but have no bearing on your suggested intake.

The downside I find to the App is that the calorie’s burned for cardiovascular exercise is guesstimated based on user input. For example, for a walk you enter the amount of time you walked for and a rough speed estimate. The burn is then worked out according to an arbitrary formula and takes into no account the inclination and declination of the travel. Surely both of these are key factors in getting an accurate reading. As such the calories burnt can only be thought of as a guesstimate.

Technically the App is not needed as all can be done on the website, however having the App in my pocket gives me the ability to see at a glance my calorie intake and guesstimated calorie burn for the day. This helps me make smart decisions, and gives me a way to monitor what it is I am eating. The site does have a social aspect to it as well with a reasonably active forum of like minded people becoming more active.

It’s a good idea and could well be expanded upon and improved further. If you are in the market for something like this then give it a go.

Sydney Morning Herald Cole Classic and Sun Run 2012

Camp Quality creates an optimistic community for families with children suffering from all forms of cancers. Camp Quality facilitate families through fun therapy and education and believe that the glass is half full! By that they believe that if the children can be resilient a cure is around the corner due to respect for the medical profession and cancer research which saves lives every day. Camp Quality though believe that caring for sick children goes beyond medication and technology. Camp Quality offer unique and innovative programs to support the psyche of the children and their families. Camp Quality believe laughter is the best medicine.

Lynda In Action

The 2012 Sun Run will be held on Saturday, February 4 and is an IAAF certified course of 6.45km (4 miles) from Dee Why to Manly in Sydney. So she will be busting her guts out to get through it. Please support Lynda via her Everyday Hero Australia page at Everyday Hero Lynda Thompson. It really is a magnificent cause and well done to my sister, and anyone else brave enough, to enter.

PS: For more information on Camp Quality check it out here.
PS: If you are looking at the Sun Run and thinking about giving it a crack, then check it out at here.

Over recent weeks/months I have been extremely lax in my fitness routine. To the point that the routine is non-existent. Upon reflection this is disappointing as the routine was working. I was beginning to feel better about myself, was more relaxed, and was getting encouraging comments from others. Clearly the effects were obvious. Since falling off the fitness train I have noticed the bad habits and grumpiness return.

If I recall the fall from the fitness train occurred around Mothers Day when I had a terrible flu that had me bed-ridden for two days. After the main bug was gone I was left with a cough that would not quit and was keen to wait it out. I have then also had two trips to Melbourne. Whilst one of the trips was a personal trip and involved a lot of walking, it also involved a lot of drinking and eating out. The second trip was a business trip, and likewise involved eating out with little walking.

I have also been studying intensely in a vendor partners products at full steam and paid little attention to other endeavours, including my fitness. There is a need for this to ensure the company I work for is compliant with the partner agreement which requires four sales accreditations and two technical accreditations. The sales accreditations are done and dusted whereas the two technical accreditations are outstanding. The first technical exam though comes up in just under a week. I have also set myself an open-ended personal challenge to get a higher accreditation that requires 11 sub-accreditations split up into six sales and five technical. The six sales accreditations are done, they took a few hours each. One of the five technical accreditations is within the two for the partner agreement, the other four though will take longer and I have not set an end date for those.

All in all this threw me from the fitness train and smashed my motivation levels. Over recent weeks though I have heard the whistle in the distance. The motivations to get back on the fitness train has increased, as has the need to get out of the house. That drove me to the visit to the Killalea State Park last Saturday. I spent an hour walking in the fresh salty air and then a 500 metre x 60 degree hill climb to finish. Whilst the hill climb was short it was steep and after an hour of walking exposed my sad fitness state. Whilst I can’t go there daily I will be trying to make it regularly.

I will have to get back into the suburban walking on the days when I work from home. Tonight is the night to board the fitness train and get back into a routine.

Last evening I decided to go for a walk for the first time since the move. I decided to explore a new direction given the new location. The new house is on a hill, toward the crest. I headed up the street.

I ended up at Shipman’s Park, a park that I had often passed but never visited. I decided to have a brief rest whilst addind the site to Foursquare. The park is built on a significant slope, it is not a park that you would go for a kick of the football, but is a nice place to have a sit and smell the fresh air and look over the suburb toward the ocean.

After deciding to press on my calf muscles both complained with a contraction. Thankfully this lasted about one minute and then was fine. I continued in the same direction and then continued to the major shopping centre. It wasa very easy walk with a slight decline all the way.

I had to purchase some milk and some bread, so I headed to Woolworths. At this time I was talking to Bobbie who was on her way home from work. This is about 5 minutes walk from the main shopping centre. The walk again was relatively flat until the driveway and stairs. That said they were not a challenge. As I got to Woolworths it started drizzling. The kind of rain that you can stand in for hours and not truly get wet. Bobbie and I hung up so I could get through the shop, that we know has a significant dead spot in it.

I then went and got the supplies from Woolworths and headed out, the rain had stopped. I decided to go out the back way. As I was heading out I called Bobbie again and was chatti g to her.

The back way has a steep long hill. I saw this as a challenge that I wanted to conquer. About half way up I was double thinking my desire, but continued and eventually made it albeit huffing and puffing. I had to have a break and drink my water. Fortunately there was a park at the end.

After a 10 minute break I continued on. The next hill was only a minute down the road. This hill was not as long, but just as steep. Again it was conquered. About 50% of the way up this hill the rain returned. This time it was heavier and I was quite wet by the end. My headset then played up in the rain making our chat very frustrating. I though continued on looking like a drowned rat and was fortunate that Bobbie was heading home from work. I ended up in the car for the last kilometer.

All in all a 105 minute walk and today I had a very slight ache in the legs, but nothing to worry about.

Today I have begun paying the price of Friday evenings Seafood Gorge. I ballooned up 1.9kg. Not unexpected after the consumption. Tonight I decided to get back onto the wagon. 45 minutes on Kinect Sports before dinner, and then an hour on a walk around the area.

Walked past the potential new house, and then down the side street. The walk was progressing well until I was walking past the local workers club. I slipped on a hidden mud patch and practically did the splits. I joked on Facebook that I scraped my nuts on the pavement, whilst not hat bad I did hyper-extend my knee. I was relatively close to home and decided to continue on, I was also not feeling any ill effects.

I soon was experiencing pain though on a small rise near the cemetery. Almost simultaneously the heavens decided to open up. I was unable to walk quicker, and certainly not run, so I became a fat drowned rat. Within 5 metres from home the rain of course eased back to previous levels. The knee has been a constant recurring injury for me, so I am not concerned. Ice is on it and by morning I am confident that the pain will have subsided substantially.

I feel good for getting back on the wagon, now to stay there!

OK tomorrow I am definately not weighing in. I will though be doing a long walk. Why?

Today was ended with Mums 70th birthday dinner. We decided on Addisons Seafood Restaurant in Shellharbour Village. It is good food, but comes with a price. One of their dishes is called a Seafood Tanker. Basically this contains:

chilled market crab, bbq marinated baby octopus, grilled kingfish, grilled salmon, smoked Tassie salmon, grilled king prawns sea salt & Szechuan pepper calamari, Queensland chilled prawns, chilled Morton bay bugs Sydney rock oysters (4) natural, (2) mornay & (2) Kilpatrick, Hervey bay scallops, Asian style mussels, chips, tropical fruits, tartare, cocktail, chilli jam”

Given we had 5 people eating the meal we, or rather I, had doubts that 1 would be enough and decided to get a second. In hindsight 1 would have been enough, especially as we had entrees aswell.
Suffice to say that I am overstuffed and certain to have lost my gain. We also have a significant doggy bag of seafood and fruit.

Got to get back onto Fat Attack 2011 tomorrow.

As I wrote about earlier I am on a new fitness kick called Fat Attack 2011. As a part of this attempt I have decided to use my Wii and X-Box Kinect as exercise aids. My first session was on Sunday, since then I have had very sore shoulders, and after yesterday and todays sessions some sore legs.

After writing of this on FaceBook I was made aware of DOMS. Immediately I had visions of an Italian Gourmet Pizza Parlour, but alas DOMS is delayed onset muscle soreness. DOMS (as a geek I love acronyms) is as it suggests where you feel sore long after the exercise has ceased. DOMS is most frequently felt when you begin a new exercise program, change your exercise routine, or dramatically increase the duration or intensity of your exercise routine.

So in my case my body is not used to anything beyond walking and tenpin bowling. Essentially any exercise could be considered is an increase to what my lazy arse is used to. So yes even the exercises within Kinect Sports and Wii Fit. Unwittingly I have suffered this before from the Wii and previously called this feeling a Wiinjury.

Delayed onset muscle soreness is thought to be a result of microscopic tearing of the muscle fibers. The amount of tearing (and soreness) depends on how hard and how long you exercise and what type of exercise you do. Any movement you aren’t used to can lead to DOMS. So my Kinect Sports session with the boxing and bowling obviously was very effective in ripping tiny tears through my shoulders and arms, whilst the leg workout of yesterday and today has done similar things to my legs.

DOMS effects are worse within 24 and 72 hours and gradually will subside beyond that timeframe. There are many ways to treat DOMS, but no one way is definitively the best. In the past I have tried the “wait it out” approach. In this approach you do nothing but wait for the pain to go away. However, I am going to try an alternative approach of “active recovery”. Basically lower intensity activities until the DOMS effects are gone. The theory is that the continued use helps increase blood flow through the area. This blood flow assists with the muscle recovery and adaptation to more continued use.

So today I will be head back to the filthy Munmorrah Circuit Duck Pond for a morning walk before work. I will also be bowling in the evening. Depending on how I pull up after bowling I may squeeze in some Wii Fit with some of the yoga type work outs.

Having delved into DOMS, I guess I now know the true meaning of no pain, no gain! I also expect that I am going to be generally sore for a few weeks whilst my lard arse gets its groove back.

P.S.: A graphical track will be kept on progress in the sidebar to the right.

Today has been a rather challenging day. I have had to juggle work and family commitments at the last minute. Dad had to go to hospital and was planning to walk there. I felt that was simply a bad solution and decided to do a two part work day and get dad to the hospital in the middle.

At this point I have managed 3.5 hours of work and to get Dad to the hospital. Now waiting to call the hoapital then go see Dad before heading home. The procedure he is in for is his usual procedure, it is nothing major, so no need to worry.

I seriously suspct the 15 minutes on my sisters exercise machine will be the extent of my activity today for Fat Attack 2011. In terms of food I have had yoghurts and a chilli chicken wrap. So not too much crap going in. I did weigh myself this morning and Wii Fit had my BMI heading down and the weight down by 200 grams, though that means nearly nothing as I hadn’t eaten or drunk anything.

In terms of work it looks like I will be working late tonight to make up the remaining 4 hours. I have a couple of tasks in mind that sould fill that time nicely. Basically monitoring of update publications for a endpoint protection platform. Won’t say it will be fun, but it will be a kind of perverse pleasure.

After not doing anything yesterday I started today is officially day 1 of my latest fitness drive, I an calling this Fat Attack 2011. I logged in to Wii Fit today, it was my 1012th day beimg known to the application. My weight was 140kg flat. This is no shock, in this territory for years. I have set a easy goal for a month of losing 2kg, yes a small change, but a positive one and I do not want to get put off from not achieving a goal.

I decided to switch from Wii Fit to XBox Kinect Sports. I have spent an hour on that doing boxing, sprints, javelin, long jump, discus, hurdles and bowling. Basically cardio, which is what I think I need at this stage. Get the heart rate up and burn the fat.

On the bowling, it was not the standard game, it was a mini-game that sees you swing both arms at once constantly for a period of time (3 minutes from memory). Basically like a butterfly swimming action. Uses much more energy than a game of bowling. I can certainly feel that in my shoulders now.

Tonight I am cooking dinner. Going to do a wonton noodle soup and fried rice combination. I prepared rice yesterday and went a bit too generous cooking 6 cups. I suspect we will be having a few rice dishes this week as a result.

Over the past fortnight I have been to my local GP. My blood pressure was up and I need to go see him again in another fortnight. This is no real surprise given that I am a fatty and under constant pressure have been for a very long time. Since that visit to the GP I have been steadily being more selective in what, and how much I consume.

I am thus keen to manage this situation before drugs and/or surgical options (i.e. lap band/gastric bypass) is mentioned, even though I am close to two great examples of the success in that approach. However, I want to make this a true lifestyle change and focus. I have also seen that approach work with my sister, and it is she that has inspired me.

It is time to resurrect the fitness challenge that I was succeeding at previously. It is going to be difficult given the long commutes that were not present then, but it is something I just have to do. I intend beginning this new quest across the weekend with some casual strolls around the area. I will also be geeking the challenge up with at least 1 hour on Kinect Sports/Adventures and Wii Fit per night during the week, excepting Fridays when I bowl. I will use Wii Fit as my measuring stick at this point.

I am also hopeful that when I succeed the ill effects of my sleep apnoea will be lessened, and that I will actually be able to get a decent nights sleep, though some of the personal and professional stress will also need to go. I also hope that the joint aches that I get in my knees and ankles will also become a memory of the past.

Anyway, I promise not to become a Food Nazi or the like, and it will not be my sole blogging effort. After all I have 18 hours to kill on the train 3 days per week.

Today I finally braved the scales to weigh myself after the first week of the Go Smell the Flowers Weight Loss contest that has kick started my road to a healthier weight. I was expecting some loss, although I am sure I have gained some muscle mass. However, significant lifestyle changes have been implemented.

The first of these changes has been the elimination of a large percentage of the unhealthy beverages from my diet. In the first week I have seen a significant reduction in the amount of coffee I am consuming. I have replaced it, except the morning cob web cleaner, with an organically grown Rooibos tea. Rooibos is an African tea made from the Rooibos bush. It is great tasting tea and is much the same taste as you standard Lipton from the supermarket, but I enjoy it more. For those of us that drink Lipton Ice Tea it is the tea in the Red Tea variety.

On the Red Tea ice tea I am using that and water to replace the consumption of soft drinks and energy drinks. I still have to odd soft drink, but am choosing Coke Zero or Sprite Zero. I can not stomach the Diet varieties with the exception of good old Bundaberg Ginger Beer. The others taste like strained compost, but less healthy to consume.

On the diet front I have been eating much healthier. We have all been eatting healthier with much more cooking going on within the home, which is fantastic. When it was not practical for us to cook I have been opting for a healthier option in a six inch six grams of fat or less Subway sandwich with no dressing. I have also walked to the store to obtain my sandwich so am getting exercise just getting my bodies fuel.

As documented in the A Change is as Good as a Holiday post we have been looking, and found, some new digs. This lead to a celebration on Friday night of Chinese food at our favourite, soon not to be, local restaurant. I restrained myself rather well, certainly much more than I normally would.

I have also managed to introduce a regular walking regime into my routine. I went for a 20 minute walk which quickly stepped up to 30 minutes. Then all of a sudden I was walking for an hour or more. Since the last of those big walks it has rained pretty much solid and limited my regime. Tonight was the first night that it has not rained, and as luck would have it work got busy and confined me to home. Also, I had to pack and clean the house.

This week is going to be a bit of a loss in terms of organised exercise, however incidental exercise will increase. We will be moving a lot of our belongings from Thursday, hence I will be quite active moving boxes, fridges and couches for the weekend. I expect that will compensate for the loss of some of the organised exercise. I will be compensating from next week though I expect as I will be keen to explore the new area.

So now you no doubt want to know what all that has achieved. Well I have managed to increase muscle mass and stamina for sure. I have also dropped 7 kilos to 137.4 kilograms (302.915 pounds). So I am a stilly definately a fatty, however I believe I have made the crucial first steps in becoming a much leaner and meaner individual. Only time will tell.

Well today is the weigh in day for the Go Smell the Flowers weight loss contest I mentioned in my earlier post entitled Goodbye Store Bought Pizza It Is Time To Get Fit. So I stripped down and looked like a beached whale. I jumped on the scales and waited for the reading. The final readout was 144.4 kilograms (318.347 pounds).

I was not surprised I have been around this mark for ages. Briefly before Christmas I broke through 140 kgs, but Christmas being as it is I am now back above that mark. For some reason converting it to pounds has proven an eye opener and is a further driver for this old tub of lard to get up and do something about it.

The strategy begun at the beginning of the week with the reduction of coffee in my diet. It has been directly replace by copious amounts for cool fresh water. Courtesy of my 1.5 litre Grolsch bottle I can easily gauge my consumption. On the first day of implementing the strategy I drank 2 cups of coffee and 4 litres of water. Yesterday I drank 1 cup of coffee and 5 litres of water. Today, with 6 hours left I have consumed 1 cup of coffee and 2.5 litres of water. I expect that by days end I will be around 4.5 litres today. I am already feeling better about drinking water and have noticed that the cotton mouth I usually get is on the decline.

I also have cut back on the intake. Last night the meal was Spaghetti Bolognaise. Now I am not a fan of the dish, but would normally consume at least a second helping. Last night I consciously decided that i had eatten enough after one helping. Later in the night I did have a munch on a bread roll and some of the remnants of a Christmas cake, but I would have done that normally anyway. I am now reteaching myself that one portion is enough and that I do not have to consume it because it is there. That is primarily how I have gotten into the beach ball shape I am today.

Healthier and leaner alternatives have also been introduced to my diet. The first such alternative replaces butter and margarine from being spread on my bread. I never used to have it on the bread, however started to again in line with the rest of the family. So instead of butter or margarine I am going to be having nothing or avocado. Avocado is one thing I used to despise, but after being with socko and trying it I find I quite like it, so much so that I am going to try and grow my own.

I have never been a breakfast consumer, bad I know, and that is something that I will be endeavouring to change over the coming days. I am planning to go with Up and Go which has been recommended to us by a dietician in the past. It is a milk based drink that contains the equivalent of a serving of Weet Bix. So it is healthy and low in the GI scales. I was almost being good in its consumption last year, but have fallen back into old habits. It is now time to shatter those habits.

There has also been the conscious avoidance of naughty food that if consumed now will simply end this. For example, my niece is staying over night and went to Sugar Fix today. Sugar Fix is a candy store that gets a lot of overseas candy in, primarily from the US. My niece has literally been falling over herself to share her goodies, which does make me proud, however I have had to turn her down flat each time. I know that if I have one I will have a hundred, and thus defeat the purpose of this challenge.

Exercise has also begun. Last night I begun with a brisk 15 minute walk around the local streets with my iPod pumping the tunes. Whenever a slow tune came on it got skipped to keep me moving briskly. Yes I know that sounds corny but it worked. On the length of the walk I know it does not sound like much, but when I am used to do nothing at all it is an infinite improvement. In fact last night it was so late that I could have quite easily skipped it, but I didn’t. I also managed to score a nice garden pot and a perspex container to use as a mini hot house from the imminent council cleanup.

Today, I sacrificed my lunch break and went for a 30 minute walk around the streets in the next suburb. As it was 27 degrees C in Sydney today I managed to get the heart rate up. I actually intended to go for a 20 minute walk, but the route I took was untravelled previously and had a couple of long steady inclines. I thought that was great and will be going that way again for sure. Also, as a bounty on this run I collected about 6 pots that were being scrapped on the council cleanup. I intend going for another walk a bit later in the evening when it has cooled down a bit.

I will also be getting my bike out later and cleaning the spider webs off of it. I also need to fix the brakes on sockos’ push bike so that she has some. We will then begin riding around the neighbourhood aswell. Probably also with my sister tagging along and my Mum on her tricycle when its modified. It will be a pleasure going around as a family, although that will mean the iPod being left at home.

By no means am I on the complete road to gaining control over the blubber that is my belly, but I have made a promising start. I now need to maintain the momentum for a few months and ensure that the current activity is not in vain. Thanks again to the Go Smell The Flowers crew for giving me that final nudge to take action. Also, many thanks to all the kind commenters that have stopped by so far.

Well every year I seem to get this idea into my head to get fit. Last year I did manage to end the year in slightly better shape than at the start, but I am still far from fit. This year I am now determined to achieve the final frontier. As a result when I saw the The Flowers weight loss contest! I could not find a reason not to enter.

So I am in the contest to win a 7 nights stay for 2 in a hotel. Now whilst the prize is attractive it is my goal to use this contest as a crucible to make a true lifestyle change in much the same way that I have embraced gardening. I will be counting on my fiancee to support me in the quest to become fitter for life.

Last night I said goodbye to one of my favourite, but terribly unhealthy, convenience foods. The store bought pizza. I thus tonight consumed my last store bought pizza for the next few months. Even then I made a healthier decision in cooking my own rather than order from a plastic pizza parlour. I decided on a rather nice Papa Guiseppi’s Chicken and Corn. It was scrumptious, but will be the last one I consume for many months.

I assure you that I have a fair chunk of spare blubber to lose at the moment and as from tomorrow I shall be beginning a regular exercise campaign of a walk around the neighbourhood. I will indeed be out smelling the flowers and shedding the spare kilograms.

I am looking forward to the challenge!