A Long Way To The Top

October 2011:

I weighted myself, and to my shock I was coming in at 15st 2lbs(212lbs). According to the BMI calculate I was now obese.

With that shocking piece of news my world was a little rocked to say the least, I took it upon myself to get myself back into shape or at least start the process. So I did all the usual things, joined the gym, bought a bike and started to clean my diet. Things started off well, then Xmas came around and I drank and ate too much over the festive season. Despite a calorie packed  December, I had still lost weight since October. So as the new year approached I took the initiative to stop drinking.

So as January & February went by I hadn't touched a drop of drink, and I was going to the gym on a very regular basis. I was also cycling 150km-200km a week so life was great...Then March came around, and my birthday. I went out twice on the week of my birthday, now I had planned to head out at least once so heading out twice wasn't all that bad. But I came to the realisation that drinking is one of the most over rated things in Ireland.

But during April and May, there were a number of family events, one of which was a funeral. At the funeral I had a few drinks(pretty much against my will). But over these months, my diet started to get muddied but the crap foods that got me into the initial mess. I was still doing the gym, but the biking had kind of tailed off. The biking tail off was more of a combination of things, such as the bike needed some things replaced(which I can't afford at the moment) and laziness.

May 2012

So I have decided to get myself back on track as of today...

I'm going to start with my gym work. Over the months I had used different weight programs that focus on isolating different muscles and involved a lot of different exercises. At the beginning I found these programs effective and I was starting to lift heavier weights. But then I hit a plateau, this plateau affected my confidence. So with my confidence rocked my gym sessions weren't enjoyable any more.

So I have decided, to take a different approach, I am going to start doing the "Stronglifts 5x5" program. The idea of the program is to lift heavy weights and use compound exercises in order to work as many muscles as possible. The program is also designed for the increase of weight from day to day, which will be good for the motivation and confidence. If you've any interest in reading about the program, the site I got the program off can be found here. 

I am also planning to start getting back on the bike, but due to my financial standing this may be a week or two a way. I intend to start back on the bike with a few easier routes mainly flats just to help myself to get back into it and prevent any injuries.

So as of today I am weighing in at 12st 9lbs(177lbs). So since October I have managed to drop 2st 7lbs, which is a very good drop. But its even a better drop, when you consider my approach and progress has been very inconsistent.

So I decided to get myself into the blogging world, to track my progress and also as a motivational tool. I plan to keep the blog updated on a weekly basis, as I work through my weight program and as I get back onto the bike.