Halfway there...

Update on the fitness/weight loss front!

I did the weekly weigh-in today, and the scales tell me I'm halfway towards my goal of getting within the healthy range for my height. I have lost 16 lbs so far.

Now, I'm told BMI isn't everything (and I totally agree: think of all the 'skinny-fat' people you know - those thin people with no muscle tone or fitness) but I haven't yet changed my goal: I'd like to see if I CAN get there.

So what have I been doing?

Well, I've been packing super-healthy lunches for work, for a start. I've cut down my portions generally, and I exercise between five and seven times a week.

My workouts vary from some floor exercises (crunches, press-ups and planks mainly, as my main gripes are my stomach and arms), through to my personal plan at the gym and a master's swimming session which I go to on a Monday night. I also did a spinning class the other week, which was excellent: I'd like to start doing that regularly.

At the gym I do a cardio warm up followed by weight-training. The cross-trainer, which I used to call 'the machine of death' I now love, and the most-hated spot has been replaced by the wave machine, which is deadly dull, and if I over-do it hurts my knee. Rubbish. I've always liked weight-training as I'm quite strong and muscular for my size, and easily lift the same weight as most of the men in the gym. (Not the 'muscle marys', obviously, but the average gym going guy.)

Unfortunately, I've had to keep the running on hold as everytime I go out my knee plays up. I haven't been out for a few weeks now but have been quite focussed on getting my swimming back. With the help of most members of Dai's family, I've re-learned how to do crawl! So I go to master's, which is a really good, social workout, and from that I've taken some routines which I do when I go to the pool another couple times a week. Dai's sister comes to master's too, and she's a great swimmer and has helped me so much with my technique: she's also lost half a stone already which is great news!

I've been logging the distances I swim to raise money to fight malaria: I saw a lot of people suffering with the disease when I was in the Gambia and think it's a great cause. If you'd like to help out, visit my page at www.worldswimagainstmalaria.com/charlie -all donations gratefully recieved.

I will start running again: I hope that having lost some weight there will be less stress on the joints and that the weight training I've been doing to support my knee will help too. I am aware that I have been challenged to do the Great Gorilla run next year in London by a certain group of Magslags, (thanks, guys) and have to admit, I am well up for it! What is it? You'll have to visit www.greatgorillas.org/london to find out!

So at the moment I'm getting back from work around seven and I go straight to the leisure centre to do a workout (apart from Monday: master's is a late class). I worry Dai is feeling like a gym widow as I don't get back until eight or half eight. However, I very rarely do anything sporty on a Saturday, and Sunday isn't so bad as I just pop out if I feel like it. My weekdays are busy! It's a good incentive not to work too late as I want to get home, and it really helps me unwind and switch off, so I think I'm a nicer person at home for it.

I'm still vegan (in case anyone wondered: it's unlikely to change, but you'd be surprised how often I am asked. I have been for seven years since September, by the way) so I've been upping my protein intake to support my exercise (almonds are currently very popular), and I have started taking a calcium supplement alongside the multivitamin with iron and evening primrose oil which I always take, just in case. I used to take a vitamin B supplement and a cranberry capsule as well: I might do so again but I always keep an eye on what I'm eating anyway.

So my plan for the next few weeks involve continuing this plan, but as my bike is finally up here I'll try to squeeze in some cycling as well at the weekend. Also: I will be going bikini shopping soon (had to buy new jeans last weekend: put it this way, I haven't worn this size for maybe ten years) for the holiday in November. We'll be taking the bikes on holiday too and I am SO looking forward to a relaxing week with cycling, swimming, badminton, something to do with high ropes and chilling in the spa.

So far, so good. I'll keep you posted on how it's going - and whether I find a bikini I'm actually happy in!

It's official, I'm shallow

Ok. I'm announcing this on my blog in the hope that I'll actually get on and do this. I want to have a healthy BMI. To do that, I need to lose 2 stone and 4 pounds, or 32 pounds.

That's a lot. More...than I thought. You'll probably know I'm vegan, and I'm not exactly adverse to exercise: in fact I'm quite keen on it. However, I also love food and I'm only five foot, which doesn't give me much room for manovre apart from, well, outwards.

My main problem with losing weight is not the dieting, or the exercise. It's the shallowness of it all. There's a voice in my head shouting, "Do you want to be taken seriously? Do you WANT to be like these orange people, obsessed with everything they ever eat? This is vainty!" And for me, vainty feel more sinful than anything I could ever eat. Yes I wear make up. Yes I do care how I look. However, serious weight loss is seriously VAIN in my eyes, which makes it a real battle.

The same voice shouts, "You've always been overweight! It's not going to change! You'll never do it!" Now. I've been heavier than this. I shed quite a few pounds a couple of years ago and at the time I was having a bit of a general change in my outlook on lots of things. I felt really guilty about it too. I'm lucky with Dai because I know he will support me. It feels different this time. I think I've realised that although cardio-vacsularly (is that a word?) speaking, I am probably as fit or fitter than I've ever been, due to the running, I am STILL too heavy. I'm 23. I need to conquer the voice NOW, and then deal with keeping it at bay before I give in and get bigger, or lose my fitness.

I don't even want to be thin. I suspect I will never be thin. But I can be healthy. Being healthy is far from being vain, so my goal is to lower my BMI from nearly 31 to under 25. I'm not asking for 20, or even 22. Under 25 - a healthy weight, will do me fine.

By November I hope to have lost enough to feel happier in a bikini when Dai and I go to CenterParcs - a stone, plus some toning would do it. I have no idea how long it will take for me to lose 32 lbs, but I hope to have a better idea soon and set myself a time goal to work towards. In the meantime, I'm joining the gym and going at least twice a week, plus keeping up the running a few times a week, walking in my lunch breaks and fitting in some regular swimming (which I love) too.

As to the diet I'm cutting down on the portions. My actual foods aren't too bad, although I'm cutting out the crisps (which were beginning to feature a bit too much) and ice cream (same) and down on the alcohol (two glasses of wine this week, not too bad) and sugar (not too much of a problem).

It needs to be something I can live with, but I have found that my health is increasingly important to me: I want to be as healthy as I can be. I'll try to blog my progress. This is the first step in ensuring I actually do it this time: keep your fingers crossed for me!