My new diet and exercise regime.
This week, I took up membership of my local gym undeterred by many previous episodes of overwhelming enthusiasm followed by overwhelming apathy. It was a reaction to looking in the mirror one day without squinting my eyes or adjusting the angle of my pose, I actually frightened myself.
The problem with dieting is that we are trying to achieve something quite contrary to our internal wiring. We are hardwired to expect famine after periods of plenty and it is quite a job to convince yourself there is a famine when the larders are stocked full of food.
As you get past your twenties you earn the body you have. There is something odd about the fact that you have do so much to create less of yourself, after all, we are used to feeding our minds like gluttons with only benefits arising.
The only piece of good news I found was that weight loss best occurs in the lower ends of the training zone and people who are most overweight lose weight the quickest. This means that I should not tear at the static bicycles like a beetroot-faced maniac. I actually found that when I exercised in the correct training zone, my mood was enhanced and I felt well afterwards.
The World Health Organisation recommends thirty minutes of MODERATE exercise a day to help us 300 million obese people lose weight. It also recommends reduction in sugar and fat and an increase in fruit and vegetables.
I am avoiding sugar at the moment, I hope that’s enough but I expect it isn’t.
Inspiration is the best weapon against apathy and I am going to try and inspire myself with pictures of mountains I could climb if only I didn’t have to carry all this fat with me.
Good luck finding your own inspiration for the week.
