Excellent Afternoon Workout

Far out, that was a tough session this afternoon.  She worked me hard, but for the first time I really held up well and was able to complete all of the exercises she set for me, in the number, and in the time that she set as well.  I felt really good afterwards, although I do have to admit that I nearly threw up at one stage – I tasted the bile in my mouth!  But rest assured, I stayed focused and did not make a mess!

I did the warm up regulation 10 minutes on the treadmill and met the trainer.  The first positive sign was that we went over to the weights area, near the bench press free weights which is an exercise that I am very strong in.  The first routine she had me do was stepping up onto the bench for 15 each leg holding 10 kg dumbbells in each hand.  This was followed by bench pressing a free weight bar 20 times, which was in turn followed by bent over rows, and finally I was made to do leg raises back on the bench that I had done the presses on.  It was tough, and I had to do this routine three times without a break during each routine, only being able to get a small break to take some water in at the end of each routine.  I was very pleased that I could do the tasks she set me, and I felt good at the end of it, nowhere near as physically shattered as previously.  I decided to make the most of it.

Next up I was made to do lunges again, which I hate.   They are hard, hurt, and attract a lot of attention in the gym.  To make it worse my front foot had to come down on the semi-circle ball which lies flat on the floor.  This made it hard to balance.  I also had to hold 10kg dumbbells for this exercise which increased the resistance a lot.  I was asked to do 12 on each leg and I managed to do this.  Immediately after the lunges I was then onto the Swiss Ball for flies using the same 10 kg weight for 20 reps.  This was apparently my rest set and I do have to admit that I did not find it difficult until the last couple of reps on the final set.  Once the flies were done I then had to move to the bench, getting on it in reverse – ie my head was down the end that your legs usually go and I was doing overhead rows – like a pull down with a 15kg dumbbell.  Again, this wasn’t eh most difficult exercise of the day, but coming at the end of everything, and having to do three sets of each exercise, it was tough when it came to the end.

However, I made it and then moved to the ab exercises which I did markedly better at than previously.  It was the usual ab exercise on the Swiss Ball sitting right up, and then extending down past level on the way down.  I set a regular pace and ground out 20 reps before she had me stop half way up and hold it, then move to the top and back down again.  I cannot recall how many of those I did but I kept going until she made me stop.  It felt good to have done well and I even managed to exchange a few jokes about the Rugby game at the weekend with the trainer.

My next session is on Thursday morning and she has told me that she will work me really hard.  She wants to see me down .75 of a kilo from last week so it will be interesting to see how I go.  I do not yet have the diet, she had not had a chance to check her e-mail so that will have to wait a bit longer yet.  I don’t think that it will matter that much at this point, I can tell that I am doing better and am already looking forward to getting in there tomorrow for the cardio session in the morning – let’s hope that this lasts!  I think that it will, and I am feeling good having broken the cycle of a sedentary lifestyle.  All I need to do now is stick with it so that the new lifestyle becomes a habit that I don’t want to break.

I'm Back Again!

Hi all, I had a nice birthday on Saturday and the trip out to Hunter Valley was great. I behaved myself and stuck largely within the rules of the new lifestyle plan. However, it was my birthday and it is important to have a good time. I did indulge in sampling some delicious wine and tasting a few pieces of chocolate at the boutique store that was part of our tour of the Valley. You only turn 35 once and I am pretty sure the small amount that I consumed, which is still drastically less chocolate than I used to eat, will not do me any long term harm.

There was a fair bit of walking involved in the tour, and I had to lug a half case of wine around for a fair amount of time too, so I guess you could say that there was some exercise while we were drinking. Certainly the biceps were worked out lifting the tasting glass to the mouth frequently. And no, I didn't spit any of it out no matter how bad it was (and there were some shockers)! The glasses were enough for a taste only, and I didn't really feel the wine at all during the trip so the consumption must have been minimal.

It was back to the usual routine for me on Sunday, however I didn't make it to the gym. Most of the activity I got on Sunday was cleaning the house and getting the shopping for the week in. I got back in there today, and have started well with a cardio session this morning. I did get sore shins during the treadmill stage of the workout this morning due to the fact that I was going faster as instructed, but I pushed through the pain and made it to the end of the 25 minute treadmill session. Perhaps the lay off of two days may have produced some of the painful sensations now that I am back into the exercise. I am certain it is nothing serious anyway.

I am meeting the trainer this afternoon at 3:00pm and will let you all know how that goes. I sent her my food diary on Sunday and so I am expecting that either today, or at the next appointment this week, she will deliver me a food plan. Once I have that, I will post it for you all to look at, and will let you know if I intend to follow it to the letter, or if I feel it needs work. I'm feeling good, positive about things, and better than I did in the lead up to 35!

You'll see that I have made some changes to the blog. Over on the right hand side of your screen I have posted my measurements, including my goal, start, and current measurements so that my progress can be tracked. I have also included a table of the weekly weigh in so that we can all see how I go, and I can monitor how well I am doing. I may work on keeping a better record of the measurements on some sort of data base to track my progress, and if I do so, this will be posted as well for you to track my progress, or possibly use for your own fight against fat. Thanks to all of you that have commented on this blog so far, keep them coming. It is nice to know that I am not in this alone, and to receive encouraging messages. Check back this afternoon and I'll let you know how the session went today.

A Hard Session

That was a hard session this afternoon, the hardest so far.  I arrived ahead of time and the trainer was ready to go.  The warm up walk to the gym that I took apparently didn’t count and I had to get on the treadmill for 5 minutes to warm up before we started.  That was fine and we spent some discussing the pace of my cardio session and I have been told that I need to up the tempo a bit more than the session I have been doing.  I will give that a shot next time I am at the gym.

We then launched into the rest of the session which revolved around the Swiss Ball, squats with dumbbells and shoulder press in the one exercise, dumbbell flys on the Swiss Ball, and lunges (again – these are fast becoming my least favourite exercise) with ab crunches.  I found it quite tough today, and don’t mind admitting it.  The increase in activity for me has been quite significant, and I think I am doing well so far.  I feel better now, and I can actually say that the cliché I have heard so often, seems to apply to me – I feel like I have more energy – all this and it has only been a couple of weeks.  Fantastic, and it makes me feel like continuing on.  These things have a way of gaining their own momentum.

I was very tired during the workout, but went about as hard as I could.  It wasn’t as hard as the trainer wanted, but I have her figured – no matter how hard I go, it will never be hard enough.  She is there to push me to the limit, and so far she has.  She built in some running for me today – short distance while holding dumbbells, and it worked well in lifting my heart rate I can tell you.

After the workout we talked about my fitness and physique.  She asked me to poke out my tongue, and using Chinese Medicine, determined that my insides are cold and damp, and that my spleen is weak.  Apparently all of this can be deduced from having a white tongue – and here I was thinking it meant I was a bit dehydrated.  In any event, I am sticking with it, and with her as so far it has been good.  I even had to pay today, and while AU$130 was a bit of hit that I could have done without, it did make me feel like I wanted to get a good return, and for the next two session I will be going as hard as I can.

Also, and some people have asked about this, the diet that I have been promised is coming.  I need to finish off my food diary tonight and e-mail it to the trainer.  She will then construct an eating plan for me, and put me on the special herbal tea when she feels that I am ready for it.  She told me not to drink green tea, but backtracked and said I should only refrain from having it around mealtimes.  I gather that the food diary will be an ongoing task, and I will be required to keep very specific records.  All in all a successful day and I am a bit tired now so I will sleep well tonight for sure.  

It’s my 35th tomorrow, and I have to be up and about early as my partner is taking me on a wine tour of the Hunter Valley.  As the trains are down on our line it has turned out that we have to take the bus into town, so we will have to leave at about 6:00 am – it will be a full on day and I am looking forward to it.  We return in time for the Rugby game tomorrow night and I will be watching that closely.  There probably won’t be a post tomorrow as I won’t be around home for much of the day, but I will be posting how I am getting on with the Fight Against Fat on Sunday for sure.  Until then, keep well and keep the messages of support coming in, they really help.

Some Good News - Progress!

Good start to the day today.  I was up on time and went to the gym as required under the new regime just after 8:00 this morning.  I went on the cross trainer and the treadmill again today.  I went a bit harder on the cross trainer today than yesterday, I think mainly because the machine’s resistance was manageable and so I was able to workout at a resistance level of 8 without too much trouble.  One of the two machines must not be working properly as on the same level of resistance one was good, and the other was like trying to squat 200 kilos.  I did 225 calories on the cross trainer today.

I went for the 15 minutes as hard as I good and felt good, sweaty, and puffing at the end of it.  From there it was straight on to the cross trainer where I did the speed increase and decrease system recommended by the trainer.  Today I went from 5.5-6.5 km/ph for the 25 minute period and ended up doing 277 calories at the end of 25 minutes.  I felt good, but as I have a workout this afternoon I called it quits so that I am able to make it through the workout this afternoon at 2:00p.m.

I walked to the gym again today, it is actually quite a good warm up and warm down.  I like the bike for speed, however the walk is great set up for the cross trainer.  I’ll probably walk down again this afternoon as I have to do some shopping on the way home and having the bike is a drag for that.

I took the opportunity to weigh myself and have decided that I will weigh myself weekly on the scale at the gym in my gym gear.  I will weigh myself in each Friday after the morning workout so it should be at the same time each week.  There was some good news, I weighed in at 142.5 kilos today, so that is 2.5kg down on my original start weight.  Now that I have a routine for weighing and the rules are established, I will publish the results on the blog in a table, just as soon as I have figured out how to do that!  

However, my first stats are that on 20 July 2006 I weighed in at 145 kgs.  Today, 28 July 2006 I weighed in at 142.5 kgs, a loss of 2.5 kgs and a % change of 1.7%  I am happy with this result, even if it has taken a little over a week to get rid of the first 2.5kg.  I am feeling quite positive about having made the start and I want to continue on with achieving the goals I set for myself.  At this point, my first goal is 130kg.  It is a little ways off yet, however I will get to it if I keep at it and stay focused.  

Well, I better dash I have to leave the house in about half an hour to head back to the gym for the second session with the trainer.  I think this will be tough as I have already worked out this morning, but as I make progress it will get better.  I will post the events of this afternoon’s session on the blog later today, and good to luck to all of you who are also Fighting the Fat.

First Morning Cardio Session

The first day on the new regime has gone well so far.  I got up with my partner and left the house at 8 this morning.  I made her breakfast before she took off for work, but didn’t have any breakfast myself as I am supposed to work out before eating.  So the first hurdle was crossed without any trouble.  I felt tired when I woke up, and a bit stiff and tight from the workout of the day before.  I had expected it, and it wasn’t as bad as it has been in the past so the muscles must be improving.

I arrived at the gym at about 8:15 after the walk from home.  The traffic is pretty bad at that time of the morning and there isn’t much room for bikes on the road.  Because it was a nice day I decided to I jet off on foot.  After the 10 minute walk to the gym I followed instructions and got on the cross trainer for the 15 minutes.  Initially I tried to follow the advice of the trainer to get the resistance level up to 10, however it was almost impossible to move the food pedals at that level.  I eased it back and went fast instead for the 15 minutes.  I felt good at the end of it and had worked up a real sweat.  My heart rate was also at the upper end of the cardio scale, which I gather is the point so I think I did well.  Next time I will try to have the resistance level higher.

The machine wasn’t that great, and definitely wasn’t the best cross trainer I have been on.  The display (unlike all the others at the gym) required weight to be entered in pounds (which I had to calculate roughly in my head) and it was difficult to figure out how to change the level of resistance.  However, now that I have broken the ice I should be okay on the cross trainer for the rest of the time that I am using it.

Next came 25 minutes on the treadmill.  I tried to keep up with the 6-7 km/ph split, however I was finding it very difficult to walk at 7.  I have been told not to run, and with my short legs 7 is too fast.  I was keeping at it, and then my trainer came over to have a chat.  I eased back and she suggested that I try walking at 6 and going to 6.5 instead.  I did that, and it was better.  She also let me know that if I struggle with that, I should increase the incline to make it more difficult and keep pushing myself that way.  Sounded good to me, and I rounded out the session well, and ended feeling good and walking home at the same pace that I was on the treadmill.

I scoffed breakfast when I got home, and after that I was well set up for the day.  I felt good about getting the cardio done and having the rest of the day to do the things that I need to do.  Right now I am updating my blog, with a nice pot of green tea to wash it all down!  I should be well and truly ready to take on the cardio tomorrow morning, and have my session with the PT tomorrow afternoon at 2:00 p.m.  I still have to do the cardio session in the morning, and I have been told to make sure that I have my lunch by 12:00 at the latest tomorrow.  I shall keep you informed as to how I get on.  There will probably be two blog entries tomorrow, so keep coming back to see how I’m getting on.

First Proper Training Session, and Some Good News

I met the personal trainer this morning for my first hour long session with her. As I have said, I had anticipated being weighed and having my body fat measured. The session commenced about 10 minutes late as she was finishing up with the client prior to me. I spent this time warming up on the treadmill until we got underway.

I was happy that we first went to the personal trainer room, however as it was occupied I was told that I would be weighed at the end of the session when the room should be free. After that we went into a work out that was similar to the ones I had done in the past, however this one featured some new exercises. I think that the plan is to keep the tempo of the work out quite quick so that my heart rate goes up, and most of the exercises use my body weight as the resistance. Suffice to say that it was very tough and I struggled through some parts of it. When I finished she complimented me on not throwing up or passing out like most of her clients do. I guess that is positive feedback, I did feel like spewing however!

After the main workout, we did some abdominal training and she also made me do some stretches as part of the warm down. As you may recall from my earlier posts, there were some things that I wanted to ask the Trainer, and I took this opportunity to do so. I won’t repeat all of the questions and answers, however I now have the following rules that I must follow from today on:

1. I must do cardio before I have my breakfast, every day, for 6 days a week. I have one day off. I can either get up early to do it, or get up later and have my breakfast later. The key is that it must be on an empty stomach. I will try to get up and have the workout done in time for me to be back at home to have breakfast with my partner.


2. For cardio I must start by doing 15 minutes on the cross trainer at a level between 8 and 12. I can go as fast as I like, however I am to be careful of my knees (I have never had knee trouble on the cross trainer before).


3. For cardio I must do 25 minutes on the treadmill. This week I should walk between 5 and 6 km/ph. Every three minutes I should increase the speed to 7 and walk for two minutes at that pace, before returning back to the 6 or 5 constant pace. This alternating should continue to the end of the workout.


4. I should try to eat between 5 and 6 times a day. I should not eat any fruit after 5:00p.m. I can drink coffee, and the green tea (the trainer will provide me with Chinese Tea that I have been warned is to be consumed near a toilet. An intestinal broom perhaps?!!).


5. I am not allowed to drink beer at all (due to the sugar content), and am allowed only an occasional wine. I have been given permission to go to the Hunter Valley for my birthday this Saturday.


6. I must record when I eat and what I eat and hand this to the trainer next week so she can then construct a diet for me.


7. My workouts with the trainer will be in the afternoons, the next to take place on Friday and she will advise me of the hour nearer the time.

So, there you have it folks. That is my plan for the next week (I gather that my regime will change every week to keep me on my toes and to keep me improving). A bit of a change of pace, however it isn’t too much change for me to cope with at one time I think. I am tired today after the workout, but I feel good that I made it, and I think that the work over the last few weeks has put me in good stead to take on the challenge. The trainer is purposefully changing things slowly so that my body doesn’t suddenly detect that it needs to retain calories, and start fighting me, trying to keep fat and hold on to calories. I think this is what Full Circle may have encountered in the past (see comments on previous posts), the plateau effect in weight loss when one routine is followed, and too much change is introduced at one time. We’ll see how I go.

I got the impression that some of you were wanting to know how my weight is going. I took the opportunity to weigh myself today after the workout. As I said, I was expecting to be weighed in the personal trainer room, however the scales there were not accurate enough for someone of my size, and they were not able to read my body fat percentage. Not good, and has produced the first ‘goal’ for me. Getting small enough for the scales to be able to read me (about 20 kilos off I think).

As such, my weight from the scales in the main gym area is being used as the starting point. The trainer settled on the 145 I took the other day and will start from that. I took the opportunity after a lengthy warm down on the treadmill to weigh myself and the best balance I could get on the scales was 144.5kg, so I have lost half a kilo in just under a week. I feel pretty good about that as it represents a start, and a tangible result for me that came as a result of making changes gradually. I should expect that this rate of weight loss will increase from now as my activity levels start to increase as I follow the above rules.

I’ll work on putting a table together that can go on the blog which will be updated each week with my weight. Most importantly, I am feeling good, and reckoning that I will be getting an early night tonight so I can hit the gym tomorrow morning and get the first cardio session done. Bring it on! I shall report to you again after that. Fight the Fat!

A Day Off

My partner has taken ill today so I am looking after her and wont be hitting the gym today. I had planned not to go to the gym today as I wanted to be well rested for tomorrow's session as I want to put in a good showing. I have been making sure that the diet is continued, and have felt pretty good today. No cheating, and no hunger urges that couldn't be controlled. Having the green tea makes things a bit easier, and gives me something to have which wont hurt me in any way diet wise. I ususally have the tea if I am feeling hungry, and alternate it with water to keep me off the food and from giving in to wanting chocolate and so on.

I will be fully rested for tomorrow's session with the personal trainer at 9:30 a.m. I am looking forward to it, and am hopeful that after tomorrow I will have a much better idea about what to do. I am going to sit down tonight and make a few notes of things to discuss with the trainer, so that I can ensure I have a good idea of what is to happen going forward. I plan to take notes of what I am supposed to be doing at the gym when she is not there to train me so that I can make some good progress. I am also going to take with me a list of what I have been eating over the last few days as she will need this to construct my nutrition plan - apparently she wants to know what I have been eating so that she knows what I like to eat and can leave some of that in the plan she makes for me.

Looking forward to posting a full report tomorrow about the session, with some future plans. At the moment I am putting of weighing myself again until after the session tomorrow.

First Contact

I have made contact with the personal trainer today and organised my first training session for Wednesday 26 July 2006 at 9:30. I am really looking forward to it, and our conversation was positive. The trainer advised me to be ready for a longer session as we would be doing stuff other than working out, like talking about goals and what have you in more detail. She said that she wants to talk with me more about where I am at, and the level that I should expect to get to, as well as just going through some of the expectations I shoud have about what will be provided. I think that this is a good idea, and the workout should also be good. I can update her on the new equipment that I have at home. It appears that some measurements will be taken which should really assist me going forward, and assessing progress. All of those measurements will be published and will be the starting point against which I will be assessed.

I did ask how much money I needed to bring, however she suggested that I don't bring any money with me and she will get me to pay at the end of the session after the one on Wednesday. I gather that this is because the session will be longer than the regular one hour and so some additional fees will need to be added on. I don't mind that, just so long as we get it all sorted and I can tear into doing things under her guidance, and I can start measuring progress.

So, after that success this morning I took off to the gym for my regular work out on the treadmill. This time I built in some additional ab exercises and also took the opportunity to do some rows and some leg press (high rep low weight) to put a bit more grunt to the whole thing. A good hour and fifteen minute work out, and of course I cycled there and back again. I consider that to be pretty good progress so far as I used to find it hard going to the gym, and the workouts used to test me.

I am now happily seated at the pc posting this update to the blog, sipping on my first attempt to make green tea. I went light on the tea leaves and it seems to be the best idea, this actually tastes pretty good! It looks the same as the stuff I used to quaff at yum char, however it tastes a bit stonger. Very nice, and a good alternative to chocolate I am sure you will agree!

All in all a good day, on the back of the weekend which also went well. Still feeling postive, and still feeling good about things. Really looking forward to making a proper start and I will be keeping you all posted on developments with the Trainer.

A Good Day

I think that I have done well today, and I am certainly feeling good. My partner and I went for our walk as part of our shopping expedition and were feeling every one of the kms on the return trip carrying our shopping. 10kms on the trot was about right for the day, and to cap it all off we got some of the items that we have been wanting for a while.

We purchased a Swiss Ball for home which we are hoping will allow both myself and my partner to put some additional work in on the abs, and some of the other resistance training that Swiss balls are so good for. The ball was ons pecial and comes with a foot pump which I shall have to put to work shortly! In addition, we were able to get a skipping rope and both items were on special.

I also managed to get a tea pot (very difficult in this part of town). None of the major stores carried tea pots as part of their arsenal of consumer goods. Tons of espresso machines, all the coffee plungers you could possibly want, to say nothing of the vast array of grilling machines, and toasted sandwhich makers. But a simple tea pot? I guess not, not enough profit can be added on apparently!

As luck would have it we ended up in a Chinese commercial neighbourhood and securing both a tea pot and some green tea became a realtively simple affair. In fact, I was spoilt for choice, at least on the green tea front. As you can probably guess, I am hoping that I can sip on green tea during the day and avoid falling into old patterns of eating the wrong foods at the wrong time. It helps that I do seem to like the stuff!

I have tried, and failed, to get in touch with the trainer today. Being Sunday I think that is fair enough and do not anticipate having ongoing trouble communicating my intention to continue with her in the training and nutrition areas. Foodwise things have been good, although with all of the fantastic Chinese food on display during our walk, my resolve was tested. I am pleased to report that I came up trumps and did not deviate from the plan.

I'm feeling good after the weekend and am set for another good week working hard at the gym, and am looking forward to making progress. I'll be posting my goals, nutrition plan, and workout plans as soon as they are finalised with the trainer. Keep checking in for those updates and also for regular posts from me.

Success

I managed to stick well within the rules of the diet tonight, in spite of going out. While I did have two beers, that was not bad considering that I was in the pub for two hours. Two beers shouldn't do me any harm that exercise cannot work off.

More importantly I did not partake of a massive bowl of chips placed on the table, and also managed to hang out until I got home to eat a corned beef sandwhich for my dinner. Feeling good about that, so thought that I had better post it on the site. Also, the team I was supporting managed to come away with the win in fairly good form too!

Looking forward to tomorrow. My partner and I have decided that anothr lengthy walk is in order to help us build up for the City to Surf in three weeks time. We are going to walk to a shopping mall that is a couple of suburbs away. Provided we don't shop too much we should be able to walk home as well making a round trip of about 10 kms (roughly 5 each way). Looking forward to it, and to getting in touch with the trainer tomorrow.

Small Post Today

Not much to report for my intrepid readers today. A quiet day here inSydney, good weather, but still a bit chilly. Unfortunately there was no time to get out for a bike ride today, so my partner and I went out for a walk of about 7 kms. It was good and we had the chance to see the area that we live in a bit more, something you don't often get from the car or train. We also got to have a good chat and spend some time together not talking about work or other things, just wandering around our home area.

A light day on the food, we are probably eating out tonight as there is a game of sport on tv shortly that we both want to watch and cannot do so at home. I am sure that I will be able to stick with the diet and not indulge in any unhealthy food and remain within the rules.

No chance to contact the trainer today, and that will have to wait until tomorrow. I will contact her and arrange for some time with her during next week. I did take some time to have a look at Swiss Balls at the sports store down the road. $110.00 for the size that would work best for me I think, and probably a good investment for around the house so that I can do some stretching at home, as well as ab work whenever I feel like it. I also saw some focus pads for boxing on special that I might get as my partner is keen to join me in some boxing for fitness as well.

Decision Made

I thought last night a lot about where I am at, and had a good discussion with my partner about where we are at and the events of yesterday. The decision I have made is that I will give the personal trainer a go for a month to see how things go. At the end of that I should have made some good progress and can assess whether or not I need to continue on with her, or if I can scale back the sessions with her (thus reducing the cost), or if it is a waste of money.

Having made a decision I felt a bit better about things, and I now know the extent of the problem and the large amounf of work that lies in front of me. After a breakfast of porridge, and a shower I took off on the bike to the gym and made it there in record time (thanks to catching all the lights). I then got on the treadmill for 50 minutes as per usual and managed to crank out 5 kms. Not too bad an effort after the gruelling session of the day before. Legs felt heavy, but I felt much better mentally after the workout.

I took the opportunity to then go and do some resistance training on the weight machines in the gym. It was pretty busy, so I did some tricep extensions, and a few bench press exercises (the lat pull down machine appeared to be broken unfortunately as I want to do some work on my back). I then followed these up with three sets of 20 situps on the swiss ball. Not a bad effort, and definitely the most that I have done so far in any one session so that counts as progress.

Now that the decision has been made I will try to make contact with the trainer over the weekend and settle on the first session time. My plans for the weekend are to get out on the bike again, and to possibly get a computer for it that will record how far I travel, how fast, and how many calories I burn and what have you. My partner also wants to go for a lengthy walk in preparation for the city to surf walk in a month, so we will work that in too. I'll let you know how that goes.

Final(?) PT Session & A Wake Up Call

I set out this morning for what was most likely going to be my last session with the Personal Trainer. I took off on the bike and arrived just before 9:00 and met the trainer at the reception area of the gym. She had been asked, again at short notice, to attend to some gym matters that conflicted with our workout. As I wasn't fully warmed up I took off and did 15 minutes on the treadmill while she took care of whatever it was she had to do. That was fine with me, but I was glad that I had plenty of time and was not rushed to get out of the gym at a particular time.

The workout began in a new area of the gym today. We moved over to where the main dumbell rack and weight lifting equipment is situated. I was a bit tentative as my strength is fine and doesn't really need that much work, however I need not have worried. First up were lunges again, and this time I started with 10 on each leg (alternating leading leg for each lunge) for a warm up. After that I was given a 9 kg medicine ball to hold while doing 15 lunges on each leg. As I went down into the lunge, the medicine ball was turned to the same side as the forward leg, turning my trunk on the way down. This was fairly tough, and I was puffing at the end of it.

Next up, and with no break, she handed me an e-z curl bar with about 10 kilos on each end and had me lean over with a straight back, and while bent down bring the bar up to my chest twice for two bent over rows, before returning to the upright position. There were 12 reps of this and while I felt a some pain in my lower back for most of the set, I toughed it out to the end. Again while there was pain, I could tell that it wasn't going to hurt me. The real issue that this has identified is how weak my abs are.

Next, and again without any rest break, I went straight into press ups on the Swiss Ball. I hadn't done these this way before, where my hands were on the ball which she held for stability (she had some difficulty due to my weight and the pressure I was exerting on the ball to perform the push up but she held it steady enough). I was doing sets of 15 which was quite tough. It really tested my trunk strength and I was surprised to find that I could do sets of 15.

Next up, and again without any rest, were sit ups. This time instead of using the Swiss Ball, we used a contraption that was like a half of a small Swiss Ball cut off, and flat on one side that was placed on the floor. The trainer stood on my feet for traction and I did sit ups as best I could. This was tough, not so much due to the muscle strain, but because I was by this stage very short of breath. I often had to break between reps so that I could puff in and out, three breaths so I could make it for the next rep. I stuck with it made it to the end.

Finally, thank goodness, was a tricep exercise off the side of a bench where I was lowering myself down, and then pushing back up against my weight for resistance. Again this was for 15 reps and I suprrised myself by being able to rep out 15 without stopping. I was half way expecting to be told to continue but she was true to her word and the stopped at 15. I was puffed, but felt good that I had managed to achieve doing the entire set.

I was huffing and puffing by this stage and did a few stretches at the end of the set. I also ran over to the water fountain and took the opportunity to suck down a few gulps of the precious liquid. After that, it was straight into a second set where everything was repeated as for the first set, for the same number of reps. I made it, and by the end of that I was nearly shattered! Felt good having made it through the session however.

At the suggestion of the Trainer we went to the seating area to discuss how I was feeling and where to from here. The Trainer was fairly complimentary about where I am at, saying that she felt the thing that was holding me back was mostly my own impression of where I am at physically, and how much I think that I can do. She suggested that I needed someone to push me to go harder. While this was, in one sense flattering, it was also a plug for her services.

We identified that the thing I needed most help with was not really motivation in the sense that I have motivation to do something about my weight, and have been attending the gym regularly recently, however she still maintained that I need someone to motivate me during the session to push myself as far as I can go. The thing that I lack, according to her, was the knowledge of what to do at the gym when exercising, and then what to eat. The assistance that she would provide would be in these two areas. She said that I needed to do cardio training that was more of a mix than what I was doing, and that I also need to mix it up with resistance training to raise my heart rate and burn more fat.

At last this was the opening to find out what I really needed to know, how much it would cost. So I asked point blank again about that, and this time I got a proper answer. She said that for most people she recommended that they have three sessions with her per week at $65 per session, as part of a deal she offers for people who use her services that often. Because I was ahead of most people she saw, particularly strength and fitness wise, she recommended that I take two sessions per week which she would offer to me at the discounted rate of $65 per session (or $130 per week). The session would be one hour long, as opposed to the half hour sessions I have been doing to this point.

This was a bit more than what I had thought it would be and so I said that I would need to discuss it with my partner and we would decide whether or not we could afford that kind of expense. She gave me my card and made a few comments about what price can you put on health and that sort of thing which I took to be part of the sales pitch, although I do accept that for health reasons I need to do something about my weight. She suggested that I do 25 minutes on the treadmill, so I took off to do that. I was feeling pretty good, this was definitely the best workout so far and I felt that I had done well. I went harder than usual on the treadmill and was pretty tired by the end of the session.

I figured that it was now or never in terms of getting weighed and took off to the scales, now that I know where they are. Bad news, my heaviest ever, and heavier than I thought I would ever get. 145 kgs even, although it took a while to get the scales (the balancing variety) to stop swaying. This was my weight in my gear and with shoes on, but was still heavier than I thought I was. I hate to think what I weighed before I got back into the exercise at all. The main thing that this has made me realise is how important it is that I get on top of my weight, and how far there is for me to go. The longer that I am at this weight the sooner I will have serious health consequences, and the further away my initial goal of 100 kgs is.

So, now I have a decision to make about what to do from here and whether or not I can afford to use the services of the trainer. While I was initially unimpressed, I must admit that now I am more impressed with the service she offers, and with her skills. I would like to continue with her as I think that overall it has been good to go through the work with her and I have learned some things. However, as with most financial decisions it will be based on whether or not I can afford it and this doesn't often allow for grey areas, or what you really want to do. Either you can afford it, or you can't.

I was thinking that perhaps I could got for a month using some of my savings and see how that goes. This way I can use the month period as a test to see if it is worth the money, and I will have the nutrition plan and exercise regime that I can use whether I continue with her or not. I guess that would cost in the vicinity of $50o and will show how much I can achieve within that time frame and be a good experiment.

I will let you know what decision I come to...

Onwards and Upwards

I managed to get to the gym this morning and do a session in spite of the cancellation. I didn't go too hard, a bit harder than usual, but I don't want to be sore or anything for the session tomorrow morning. So, the answer is to take it a bit easy and tomorrow all of my unanswered questions ought to be resolved and I will know what I am doing from here on in.

I walked to the gym as it was raining and with the traffic as it is around here I decided not to chance my arm and risk the bike today. Doubtless I will soon overcome that and it will be the bike all the time. I walked on the treadmill at the gym and also did some cross trainer work today. All told I was there for an hour and felt good at the end of it.

So, all is going well thus far, just have to keep at it. I look forward to updating you all tomorrow on my PT session and what comes of that. At that time I also hope to have a bit more of an idea of the specifics of what I will be doing. With any luck I will be able to post my diet and exercise regimes for everyone to take a look at. I also hope to be able to insert a table that will record my weight and the progress I make.

So, until tomorrow, keep at it everyone!

Slight Hitch

The personal trainer called this morning, about 20 minutes ago, and cancelled the 9:30 appointment. Apparently she has been called in to replace the supervisor at the gym and had to cancel all her morning sessions. So, my session has been postponed until 9:00 tomorrow. The matters I am waiting to resolve will have to wait until then.

However, I wont let this stop me from making progress on my own. I am all dressed up and ready to go! Not the best weather today, fine rain is drizzling down outside so I might wait and see if that lets up in the near future. I'll feel safer taking the bike if it isn't actually raining. If the rain continues then I might have to walk down instead - no great hardship, but I do like riding my new bike and running it in.

I'm feeling really good this morning, and I managed to stick to the diet yesterday. It was a bit trying at times, but I found that making sure I had a sizeable lunch and a decent afternoon tea kept the wolves at bay until dinner time with my partner. THe important thing was not giving into the craving for chocolate! Feeling good that I stuck with it through the first trial. As I am feeling good this morning I might try going a bit harder at the gym today. Will let you know how I get on.

Ongoing Pain!

Woke up this morning feeling incredibly sore and had a great deal of difficulty bending my legs and supporting myself. Walking is a bit of a problem due to muscle soreness. It doesn't feel like any lasting damage has been done, so I should be back into it tomorrow. I cetainly hope no damage has been done as that would set me back. Not being able to train for a couple of weeks while recovering from injury is exactly what I don't need right now while trying to build up my fitness level in conjunction with eating normally. I will take it easy today and get out for a walk or bike ride this afternoon to get the blood flowing through the legs and loosen things up a bit.

The personal trainer called me this morning to see how I was getting on. I told her I was a bit sore, but that I expect to be okay. We arranged my third session for tomorrow morning at 9:30. I am looking forward to it, hopeful that the pain will have gone by then. She suggested that I get to the gym a bit earlier so that I can do a good warm up before we start. I may try to work some stretching into the warm up before we start, but will make sure that I follow her instructions.

Mostly I am looking forward to hearing how much continuing with her is going to cost me. She has asked that I record the meals I have for the last two days and bring that to her which I will do and we'll see what comes of that. It may be that I will get some nutritional advice. I am working on developing my exercise plan and workout regime in case I do not continue working with her after tomorrow. I think this is the most likely outcome as the cost is likely to prevent me continuing, however I need some final answers so that I can start in earnest. Also having located the scales I find out where I am at, and if I am making any progress.

Have been feeling ravenous today. I will stick to the diet, and slightly increase the quantity of food so that I am not tempted to eat fast food, or have some chocolate or some such thing that I am trying to avoid. Fortunately I have plenty to do today so I should be able to avoid breaking the rules already! I'll let you know how I go...

Second Session with Personal Trainer

Well, the make or break session with the personal trainer took place today. I decided that to warm up I would take the bike down to the gym for the first time. It was a good decision as I now know that it takes only 3 minutes to cycle to the gym from my home! Pretty quick which is good to know, it is mostly downhill so there aren't that many benefits on the fitness front. Be that as it may, the return jouney is all up hill so that is a good way to end a session for me.

As I had arrived a bit earlier than intended due to the short nature of the trip and so I jumped on the treadmill to do some walking as the instructor had suggested to me prior to our appointment. I did about 12 minutes walking on the treadmill at 5.0 kms per hour to warm up and felt good by the time appointment rolled around.

I met the trainer at the reception area and we went to the swiss ball area of the gym. There was a bench and a couple of dumbells. My first exercise was to step on to and back down from the bench holding the dumbells which were 9kgs. I did 20 on one leg, and then changed to the other leg for another 20 reps. I felt pretty good, but had a bit of a puff going as at the moment the wrost thing for me is the cardio fitness, my strength is pretty good however.

Immediately after this exercise the trainer had me get into the lunges. She had me do 10 on each leg without any weight so she could inspect my form and she gave me the thumbs up. After this I was told to do 25 on each leg as a set. My legs were trembling from the warm up, and the set, however I knew that I needed to work hard to make progress so I got stuck in. At the end of this set I was trembling and my legs were tightening up. The trainer was offering me encouragement to keep going with the work, and as such I did not let up when given the dumbells from the warm up set and told to do another 25 on each leg.

During the set my hamstrings, glutes, and quads began to sieze up however I did make it to 25. The trainer called me to stop and took me over to the Swiss Ball. I was then asked to do tricep extensions with the handled medicine ball that weighed 9 kgs again. I did a complete set, during which my legs began to feel worse. My groin strained and my amstrings would not let up. I walked it off to the drinking fountain but was still in pain by the time I got back. Nevertheless, in the interests of giving it a good shot I continued with the remaining leg and the set that required completion. At the end of that both legs were playing up and I was in pain. I did complete the tricep extensions again however. The trainer suggested moving to squats, however I was in such pain that I suggested to her that would not be a good idea. Instead we moved on to the medicine ball where I did some chest expansion exercises and impressed the trainer with the weight that I could lift.

The session was rounded out with ab exercises on the Swiss Ball, during which my legs were shaking and I was really worried that some damage had been done. The session concluded with the two of us discussing what would be best for me and what the future could hold.

Unfortunately the trainer did not really tell me anything that I didn't already know. She said that I did not need to work on my strength, that was well in hand. I knew this. She said that I needed to work on cardio, probably twice daily using the treadmill mostly. She suggested that I exercise before breakfast, and then again in the afternoon or early evening. This had been my plan, for no more than an hour at each time, probably confining each session to 45 minutes, but gradually building up to that duration and increasing the intensity. I also planned to work in some classes once the cardio was in hand.

Of most concern though was what didn't happen again. I wasn't weighed and apparently I am not going to be. No nutritional advice will be given either. I asked point blank how much it would cost me to continue with the trainer, however she said "Don't worry about that. Don't even think about that." Of course, all this did was multiply my concern about the cost as now I have no idea and it seems like it is so expensive that she doesn't even want to tell me how much it will be. At this stage I am resigned to the fact that I will have to do this on my own and put in the effort. I have the motivation as I have started this thing and really was looking for some help. In any event I have one more session to do and decided to leave it to then, given that my legs were killing me.

I went to the treadmill and did 25 minutes at a realtively light pace to try and get the blood flowing. I felt better after that, and did manage to ride home. On the way out of the gym I spied the scales and will be making use of them when I feel confident I can make the step up onto them without doing myself an injury! One thing about pain is that it makes me not want to undo any of the good work, however it is also makes me a bit wary about going back to the gym. Am sure that I will be back in there tomorrow.

I have also decided to develop a exercise and diet regimen for myself as it seems unlikely that I will continue with the trainer. I will post both of these as soon as they are ready to go. Keep an eye out!

Afternoon Exercise

Well, I got out for the first bike ride today. My partner and I took off for a short ride around our neighbourhood. The ride is hopefully the first of many and we did enjoy it. The new bike went well and all equipment was functioning as it should. It was a bit of shock to the legs and right after the ride they felt a bit tight. We cycled on the road around our suburb for about half an hour at a light pace, but my partner felt she had had enough, and by the time we got home, I know I had.

It was just what I needed to blow out a few of the cobwebs. Set me up for the rest of the day and I have manged to maintain the diet. I'm really looking forward to hitting the gym tomorrow for the second training session.

My partner and I have also decided to take part in the City to Surf event in Sydney in four weeks time. We have discussed it and decided that this would be the first fitness goal. The distance is only 12 kms but apparently it is a fairly challenging course. If you'd like to check it out, click here. We're looking forward to it and at this stage have set ourselves the goal of walking the race course to Bondi Beach and making a day of it together. It should be fun, crowded, and a bit of a challenge. It will give us something to work towards, and hopefully provide me with even more motivation to keep up with the fitness. All is going well so far. Long may it last.

A Bit Sore Today

I woke up today feeling a bit tender from the first workout of yesterday. I decided that I needed to get the blood flowing through the legs to help get over the pain caused by the shock of old muscles long dormant being used for the first time again. I took off to the gym and spent two sets of 25 minutes walking on the treadmill. As walking was going to be the exercise today, I also decided to walk to the gym making the total workout duration about one hour.

I walked at 6km per hour for the entire time, in spite of a 5 minute warm down imposed by the treadmill. The machines seem to be limited to 20 minute workout periods, if you want longer you then have to start the machine again for another 20 minute maximum session. Each 20 minutes is followed up by a 5 minute warm down period, however you can adjust the speed upwards to continue at the same pace you had during the work out period. This is what I did to keep the 50 minutes work out period going. The walk to and from the gym was a total of 10 minutes to round out the hour.

I felt good when I'd finished, and although it wasn't the hardest workout ever, the key thing is that I have gone out and done something, rather than sitting around in pain at home. I have my second session with the personal trainer tomorrow and I am looking forward to making some progress. This will be the key session and I want to be in form for it to evaluate if I will continue with a personal trainer, and also to have some key questions asked.

I was still unable to locate the scales at the gym, they are not in the changing rooms and so it would appear that if there are scales at the gym, my weight will include whatever clothes and shoes I happen to be wearing that day. As a consequence I will have to ensure that on weigh in days I am wearing the same shoes and clothes as the previous weigh in.

Might get out for a bike ride this afternoon as well. Will keep you posted if I do. Am feeling good and sticking to the new rules about eating normally. I believe that it was a good decision to ease into the diet side of things as my mood is good and I am postive about the process I have commenced.

First Gym Session

The ice is broken, I have taken the plunge and am fresh from my first workout with the personal trainer. Yesterday I arranged a ten o'clock appointment at the gym for the first of my three training sessions. I was told that I would be allocated a personal trainer that would be able to help me in my quest to lose weight. The trainer apparently specialises in assisting people in my situation. I was subsequently contacted by the personal trainer and told to meet her at the gym.

I arrived before 10:00 and met my trainer who was waiting for me at reception. I deposited my gear in the changing room and met her at the seating area in the gym. We had a discussion about where I was at, my goals, and if she could assist me to reach them. I told her that I had set aside the next 6 months to focus solely on reaching a goal weight of 100 kilograms. She said that this would be possible, but would require a lot of work to achieve this by January 2007. This was encouraging.

I then asked if she would be designing a program for fitness training tailored to me. She told me that she wouldn't be doing this. I was a bit disappointed as the gym I have joined does not appear to have people that design training regimens for members. So, either I will have to do it myself, or I will have to continue to use the personal trainer. It is therefore imperative that she impress me with her skills if I am to pay what it will cost (which I have not been told because the first three session were part of joining up).

The personal trainer stressed how iumportant diet was. She said that it was about 80% of the battle that I was getting into. Exercise was the remaining 20%. I asked if she was going to assist me with my diet and she indicated that she would design a plan, however that would be after the three free sessions. She asked me to keep a record of the things that I am eating and stated that there was no point in changing diet at this stage as the increased exercise would be enough for my body to adjust to. Sounds like what I was thinking!

She also stressed that I needed to look after my joints as they would likely have been stressed by carrying extra weight for a period of time. I asked if she was going to take my weight, however she said she wasn't. She instead asked me how much I weighed. I don't know and told her so. She then estimated my weight at 140 kilos. She indicated that the workout we would be doing would be tailored to indicate to her how fit, or unfit, I was. I had previously indicated on the gym forms, and to her when we were speaking, that my fitness level was zero.

After the discussion we then went to the workout area. She had me jogging on the spot, using the stairs to provide some resistance. After this warm up she had me walk back and forth as fast as I could over a 20m distance inside the gym. I was holding 8 kilo dumbells for this exercise. I did the 40m return trip about 6 times. After that I did some exercises on a bench holding a 9kg medicne ball out in front of me as I stepped up onto the bench and back down again for 20 reps on each leg. After this followed as many press ups as I could do and the workout was over. I finished by doing 25 minutes walking on the treadmill. The next training session is two days away.

I felt good when I finished, however I did feel that I wasn't really being told anything that I didn't know, and I was disappointed that I wasn't going to be provided with anything that might help me unless I signed up to continue going to the trainer. I felt like the assistance I was getting was really only to provide a taste so that they could land me as a client on an ongoing basis. I guess that the main assessment I will have to make is whether or not I think it is financially viable (difficult when I don't know what the cost will be - I will ask her point blank next time). I was also perplexed by the trainer not weighing me, or taking any other objective measurements that would help me determine what my starting point is and measure subsequent progress. It appears that I may have to do this myself, however I could not locate the scales at the gym but will keep an eye out for them next time.

I do feel good that the ice has been broken. I now have nothing to fear except fear itself.

The First Steps

I have taken the first steps in reducing my weight. I have joined a gym, began addressing a poor diet coupled with very bad eating habits, and purchased a bike. It feels good to have started, however I know that it wont be easy and will require a lot of hard work that will test my will power.

The gym I joined is in my local area, about 10 minutes walk from home. It is nice and close so I have no excuses for not being able to go. I have taken up a promotional offer that they had for personal trainers. I paid AU$60 for three half hour sessions with a personal trainer. I have had a personal trainer in the past who was very good, and am looking forward to seeing if I can get a personal trainer of similar quality this time.

The gym is well set out and equipped. It has all the features that I believe I will want. Cross trainers, tread mills, exercycles, fitness classess as well as an adequate weights area. I was initially disappointed that there was no boxing equipment available, however that is the only downside so far. There is one boxing class per week and I will see what that is like later on when I feel that I am ready for it. The other facilities, such as steam rooms, changing rooms, and the swimming pool are also very modern and well maintained.

In relation to my diet I have decided that while I am increasing my exercise, it would be a bad idea to also try and cut back significantly on food. This is likely to lead to the body simply holding on to as many calories as it can and will not assist the goal of losing as much fat as I can. As a result I am going to start by eliminating all fat rich fast food from my diet. I intend to do this for the first two weeks from today. After that period I will then start looking at the type of food I eat, when I eat it, and how much I am eating. For the first two weeks I will try to eat 'normally' when I am hungry and without any additional restrictions other than that. Having spent a lot of time recently sitting down and living a sedentary lifestyle, I figure that the exercise will be enough change for the body to cope with for starters.

I have also purchased a bike. This is for weekend rides around the area I live in with my partner. She has a bike and we are looking to make use of the many cycling trails around our neighbourhood, and in the city we live in (of which there are many). I am looking forward to getting out and about. I will try to post some pictures of the bike and the trips I take on it. Our first ride is supposed to be on Sunday. The idea is to try and spend time together which is fun, and also get a bit of exercise out of it without making it a chore.

My first weigh in will be determined by the gym and the pesonal trainer I expect and as such I will wait for that. The weigh in will determine the goals and time periods for reaching various goals that I set for myself. I'm already looking forward to starting properly and to getting things underway. I have seen many blogs such as this with between two to five posts and then they cut out. This blog will not go the same way, and I hope that a support network of sorts can perhaps come out of this blog.

See you again soon.