I have had this health and fitness blog for a number of years until it got infected by malicious file. This was due to the lack of maintenance. Any website should be maintained for good performance – not unlike our mind and body.
Anyway, I decided to delete the blog and start a new one instead of fixing it. After all, the end of 2015 is upon us so I may as well start fresh and with something new, ready for 2016. BUT because I am awesome, I was able to save some of my original articles. Yay!
My weight has always been up and down. When the weight of the world was coming down upon me, at the same time sucking up my vital life juices, I stopped caring about looking after myself. To make matters worse, I love my croissants and donuts so those combination did not work out well for me.
After breaking up with the person I thought would be the love of my life, I took it hard and was really depressed. I woke up one day and decided to get back on track. I was in London at the time and living five minutes away from Hyde Park. I decided to use it to my advantage. I began my exercise routine. And it worked well! So well that my roommate noticed my weight loss and urged me to buy new clothes as clothes were now baggy and literally falling off my waist. So we set out to go shopping.
I hate shopping. Especially shopping for clothes! But I was glad my friend took me out and made me try clothes I would never have tried on and bought. Since it is never too hot in London, I was still shy and wearing my new mini skirt hidden by my long coat… Now I wish I had not done that. But then again I also wished I had enjoyed my body when I was a teen… Today I can no longer fit into that mini skirt.
Coming back to Australia from London was mentally challenging and melancholy hit me again. All the weight I had lost slowly came back. And I found out the hard way that once you hit 40 it is harder to lose weight. But not impossible.
Since I own a treadmill, I set out to watch some of my favourite TV shows while walking on it. I lived 500 meters away from the beach so walking in the great outdoors should not have been an issue. But I was not ready to step out of the house to face the world just yet. Until one of my friends had to drop off her daughter for singing lessons right in front of my house, we decided to use those thirty minutes to go for a walk. Thirty minutes once a week was not going to be enough to lose weight, but at least I was getting some fresh air.
How much did I need to lose? I had no clue because I hate the scale and the only time I find out about my weight is at the doctor’s. Lucky for me, it only happens once a year at most. In my mind, my weight will be just right the day I can fit into that mini skirt again.
What bothered me though was the fact that I was not inactive. I did not have a car for one year so I had to walk all the time – even if it was to take the bus or to get to the grocery store. And even though I like my cakes, I am not a big eater. Water and coffee are my two drinks of choice. I will indulge with a glass of wine most nights. I do not eat junk food nor do I have takeaways although from time to time, I’ll happily snack on McDonald’s French fries when I am out with my kids. Luckily, that happens once every blue moon.
Since what I was doing did not seem to have any effect on my weight, I decided to join a gym. My health insurance is also paying $150/year towards my gym membership and I thought it was a good incentive as well.
On my first day at the gym, I was assigned to a personal trainer to assess my fitness. After 40 minutes of watching me sweat, his verdict was – “I did not expect you to be that fit.” I am not obese, I’m an active person and on and off I’ve always exercised. His comment was out of line. I thought that personal trainer was rather rude and that was enough to put me off the gym. But I still went, because it was costing me money. I was using the machines only, nothing exciting and I knew I was not pushing myself.
When I told a friend of mine about what I was doing at the gym, he just laughed at my face saying it was a pure waste of time. Working out on the machines only was not going to do much. Instead of getting him to explain to me the how and why, I stopped going to the gym. Until he got ten days off and decided we should go the gym and trained me for seven days in a row. It was tough. I was in so much pain. But I loved every minute of it. And after that I understood why he said I was wasting my time on the machines.
“The minute you start caring about what other people think, is the minute you stop being yourself. – Meryl Streep”
Another problem I had with the gym was that I was also self-conscious. I thought everybody would be looking at me and making fun of me. It sounds silly but even though I am more confident nowadays, I still like going to the gym when I know there won’t be too many people. But at least I now enjoy my time at the gym, I push myself and I rarely use the machines.
I was going to the gym five days a week. Then I had to move. My routine got broken. I had to re-adjust my life. And it was another six months of struggling with the ups and downs of life. I’ll exercise regularly for a few weeks, then I’ll do nothing for a few weeks. And this is where I am at the moment, doing nothing.
So I am bringing back this blog to life to share with you my journey to being – and staying – fit and healthy. I hope you will share your experiences too.
Enjoy!