Move More – Post Run Yoga

Posted September 19, 2019

Filed under Fitness

I really enjoy yoga. It’s got so many great advantages: improving strength and flexibility, stretching out aching muscles and calming busy minds.

If, like me, you’re doing the C25K program or any kind of running, you could do worse that trying this post-run yoga session from Adriene Mishler. Adriene is a great instructor and has a load of fantastic, free yoga workouts on her YouTube channel. This was is great for stretching out your heavy, achey legs after a run leaving them fresh for your next one.

Thanks for reading,

FFF

*I am not a doctor. Please check with your doctor or other suitably qualified healthcare professional before beginning any exercise program.

Run Fat Fighter! Run! V.3

Posted September 12, 2019

Filed under Fitness

I’ve never been a lover of exercise. I spent most of my senior school PE lessons side-lined with an ingrown toenail with notes to excuse me written regularly by my mum*.

(*There’s a reason why our signatures are so alike. I’ll leave you to draw your own conclusions about what that reason is…)

But I do appreciate that exercise is a vital part of maintaining a healthy body and mind. With this in mind, I have, with varying levels of commitment and longevity, tried a reasonable range of activities to try and get into the exercise habit over the years.

One of the things I’ve tried is the Couch 2 5K Program (C25K). This is a free program developed by the NHS which promises to take you from sitting on the couch to running 5km in 9 weeks.

I’ve tried it a few times over the last few years. It’s always started well but I’d previously never gotten past about week 4 or 5.

This new year, rather than making ‘resolutions’ which are easy to break and then forget about, I decided to set myself some goals which you can keep working towards even if you have a bit of a set back. One of my goals was to finally complete the C25K program.

I downloaded the latest version of the app and actually went for my first run on Christmas Day last year. “Christmas?” I hear you ask, “I thought this was a ‘new year’ goal?” Well yes, but I’m a planner and I’d decided on Christmas Eve that this was going to be one of them so I thought I might as well strike while the iron was hot and try to balance some of the Christmas calories that I was about to consume.

The first week has you running for 60 seconds at a time with 90 seconds of running in between for a total of 20 minutes. Mr FFF came with me and encouraged me every step of the way. Despite the fact that it was only 60 seconds of running at a time, that only just felt manageable. It felt like I’d never get to a point where I’d be able to run for 30 minutes without stopping, but I knew that I could get to at least Week 4 (the running periods increase gradually each week) so I persevered and made it to Week 5.

Now, in Weeks 1-4, each of the 3 weekly runs is the same, ie in Week 1, you run for 60 seconds and walk for 90 seconds for a total of 20 mins and you do this 3 times in the week. But in Week 5, this pattern changes. I did not know this.

So the first run in Week 5 went: 5 minutes running, 3 minutes walking, 5 minutes running, 3 minutes walking, 5 minutes running. I coped well with this and was feeling pretty good. On my second run, I was feeling a but tired as I’d had a late night the night before and then a particularly busy day at work. But I tied my laces and headed out anyway, not really paying attention to the introduction that my chosen coach (you can choose from the NHS’s own coach or a couple of celebs. I chose Sarah Millican) was giving on how the run would be structured as I chatted to Mr FFF whilst completing our 5 minute warm-up walk. Sarah told me it was time to start running and I picked up the pace expecting to run for 5 minutes. As I was running and waiting for Sarah to tell me that it was time to walk, I was finding the going surprisingly hard. My legs felt heavy and it felt like much more of a struggle than run number 1 of the week had felt. When she finally told me to stop running, she congratulated me for managing to run for 8 whole minutes! No wonder it felt harder.

This was the hardest week as run 3 (which I looked at the schedule for after getting home from run 2!) increased again to running for 20 whole minutes!!! I suddenly remembered why I’d never made it past this point on my previous attempts.

At first I wasn’t sure that I’d be able to do it but I reasoned that the plan had been devised by people who know what they’re talking about. I also knew that I could always repeat this week or the previous week if I found it too hard.

But guess what? I did it! I managed to complete Week 5! Having passed the point at which I’d previously quit really spurred me on to complete the program and I carried on. Even when Mr FFF couldn’t come with me to cheer me on and provide that accountability that I need as an Obliger. Even when the weather turned really wintry and it was snowing. I kept on doing it and I COMPLETED THE PROGRAM!!!

I was so proud of myself for sticking with it and achieving my goal. Even thinking about it now, months later, I still feel really proud.

So, if you’re looking for a way to get moving more**, I’d highly recommend the C25K program. The app is great. It’s free,you can listen to your own music and your coach will tell you when to run, when to walk and will give you words of encouragement throughout each run. You also get a gold tick in the app for each run you complete and a virtual trophy at the end. The program builds up the running time gradually and each week feels like just the right level of challenge.

I’m still fighting the battle with getting into a regular exercise habit, but completing the C25K program has definitely helped me to alter my mindset and believe in my physical abilities.

What are your top tips for getting into an exercise routine? Let me know in the comments section.

Thanks for reading,

FFF

**I am not a doctor. Please check with a doctor or other suitably qualified healthcare professional before beginning any exercise program.

I’ve been seeing someone.

Posted September 5, 2019

Filed under Fitness

It’s been going on for weeks. Mr FFF knows and is all for it. The ‘someone’ I’ve been seeing is a personal trainer and so far, it’s going well.

I made the decision back at the beginning of the summer. I have a personal training session once a week and then I go independently another 2 times. My reasoning for paying more on top of my gym membership for PT sessions is that I’m an obliger* – I find it difficult to meet expections that I set for myself but easy(er) to meet someone else’s expections of me. I don’t want to turn up to my PT session on a Saturday and have to say to my trainer that I haven’t been since I last saw him.

I’ve also chosen to go with a gym program for a couple of reasons, despite the fact that I’ve previously always found the gym to be mind-numbingly boring. Historically, I’ve always preferred to attend group exercise classes such as Zumba, Step and Body Pump. I love the music and find that I push myself harder when there is an instructor watching me (there’s that obliger tendancy again). However, my busy schedule during term time means that meeting or training sessions sometimes cause me to miss a class. The problem is, rather than simply going again the following week, this can be enough of an excuse to kick me out of the habit. Going to the gym, however, means that although I’ll still have scheduled times for attending, if I can’t make it for some reason, I can simply go at another time that day or during the same week as I’m not relying on a class timetable.

I’ve been going since the second week in July and so far haven’t missed a session, even when I was on holiday. Before I went, I also booked a PT session for my usual time on the day I came back from holiday to get me straight back into the swing of my healthy lifestyle rather than letting any holiday laziness continue until the following Monday.

So far, it seems to be working and I’m seeing small steps of progress. I’m already lifting heavier weights than I was when I started and finding it easier to do so. The thing I am most proud of is that I can now do 3x 1 minute planks. Previously, I’d always struggled to get to 30 seconds when doing them in a group class, but when there’s someone sitting right next to you with a stopwatch in hand watching only you, (that obliger tendancy kicks in again) you dig that bit deeper.

The real test is going to come now that I’m back at work and have to exercise afterwards rather than getting it done out of the way first thing in the morning. I’ll update you in a few weeks and let you know how I’m getting on.

Thanks for reading,

FFF

What are your top tips for keeping to your exercise routine when you’re busy with work? Let me know in the comments section.

(*For more information on obligers and to find out whether you are an obliger, upholder, questions or rebel, visit Gretchen Rubin’s website to find out about her Four Tendencies Framework.)

Let’s Get This Party Started!

Posted January 3, 2017

Filed under All Things Weight Loss, My Progress

The results of my first weigh-in of 2017 and what I’m going to do about it.

Start Weight: 13st 12.5lbs

Goal Weight: 10st 12.5lbs

Pounds to get rid of: 42

Mini-goal: Lose weight this week!

So I had the ‘dreaded’ first post-Christmas weigh-in. I say, dreaded, but actually, I was looking forward to it. As I explained in my earlier post, this year, I’ve been really excited to get back to focusing on where I want my body to be.

Despite that, I must admit I was still a bit apprehensive about stepping on to the scales to find out what I’m currently weighing in at. I can’t say I’m happy with my weight, but, importantly, I’ve decided not to give myself a hard time about it. There’s no point. What’s done is done. I can’t go back and change it. But what I can do, is change what I do from now on.

I’d like to lose about 3st. As it’s been a long time since I was down near this kind of weight, this is only a loose target at this stage. As I get closer to it, I’ll reassess my goal. I’ve decided to think about it in terms of ‘pounds to get rid of’ rather than ‘stones to lose’ for 2 reasons:

1) I don’t want to lose weight – psychologically, I might try to find it again! (as my good friend Darren at Team Achieve explained in one of his blogs some time ago)

2) I don’t know why but 3st seems to be a lot more unwieldy to me that its equivalent in pounds.

As I restart my weight loss journey, I’m going to be focusing on 3 main areas each week to help me lose weight: eating healthily, moving more and developing a positive mindset.

In the past, I’ve usually only focused on the eating and moving side of things but I’ve been ww-weekly-card-week-1 doing a lot of work around mindset during the past 8 months or so and I’ve come to realise just how important it is to take care of this aspect of ourselves. As I’d already decided to work on these three areas, I was pleased to find out at my meeting last night that Weight Watchers will also be focusing on all three of these areas during the coming months.

Eating Healthily

I know from my past successes that meal planning is a vital aspect of making healthy eating choices. As I’ve been off work for two and a half weeks for Christmas, I thought this would be the ideal time to get back in to planning my meals.

However, unexpected things came up and I found that every time I scheduled some time to plan my meals for week 1, something happened that meant it got pushed down the list of priorities. By 30^th December, I was starting to panic about this slightly. I’d decided that I wanted to shop on New Year’s Eve, so that I was ready to make healthier choices straightaway on January 1^st, and I still hadn’t had chance to sit down and plan my meals.

Then I noticed an email in my inbox telling me about the BBC Good Food Healthy Diet Plan for January. I had a quick look and, although I didn’t have time to sit and work out the Smart Points values for each of the meals, it was clearly all fresh, healthy food options with all recipes and even a shopping list provided. Winner, winner, healthy dinner! And breakfast and lunch too! So I printed the shopping list off and dragged Mr FFF round Asda feeling rather smug with my trolley full of curly kale as everyone else was stocking up with party food.

I didn’t fully stick to the plan on January 1^st or yesterday – that had never been my bbc-good-food-amended-planner intention – and I only got round to working out all the Smart Points values today. What I’ve done is to work out the Smart Points values for each meal. I then actually cut the meals out and rearranged them to better suit our schedule for the week. As I didn’t use the lunches on day 1 or 2, I’ve also ‘bumped’ them to next week, so I’m already ahead of the game there. Get in!

So far, all of the meals I’ve tried have been delicious. I’ll definitely be making them again. The only thing that tripped me up a bit is that I’ve had to work out the Smart Points using the recipe builder on the Weight Watchers website rather than using the nutritional information provided with the recipes. This is to take account of those foods which are ‘zero’ pointed (hence the scribbled out and re-written points values on my planner!).

Moving More

Now, I’m not the biggest fan of exercise. I know it’s really important and really good for you both physically and mentally. And I know that when I get into it, I do enjoy it. But I’m definitely not a natural gym bunny. I’ve had several periods in my life when the only contribution to my weight loss efforts that has been made by my gym membership is that I’ve had less money to spend on chocolate and wine! However, I’m determined to move more.

I’ve learnt from experience, and the words of others much wiser than I, that, if I say I’m going to exercise every day, or even every other day, it ain’t gonna happen. Not for much longer than the first week or so anyway! So instead, I’m making a much smaller, easier to achieve commitment: I’m going to exercise twice a week.

I’m going to go to a yoga class and I’m going to go swimming. I’ve chosen these activities because they are activities that I enjoy and I’m actually looking forward to going to. I haven’t arranged to go with anyone as I know that the first time they can’t make it, I’ll use that as an excuse not to go myself. I have mentioned my plans to a couple of friends who’ve said they want to exercise more but it’s a case of if they decide to tag along, great. I’ve treated myself to a gorgeous new swimming costume and a new hoodless zip-up top. Believe it or not, one of the things that has put me off going to yoga in the colder weather before is that all of my long-sleeved exercise tops had hoods which are extremely irritating when you’re trying to concentrate on your downward dog let me tell you! So now I’ve got no excuses.

Positive Mindset

I’m going to continue reading a book I’ve begun using to help me to develop a more positive attitude to my weight loss efforts. So far I’ve found it very enlightening but I’ll review it fully once I’ve finished it.

I’m also going to take time to interact with others on social media to share tips, experiences and motivation. If you want to join in, please like me on Facebook or follow me on Twitter using the links on the right.

I think I’ve rambled on more than enough for one post. Sorry if it has been a bit long-winded today, but I’m honestly brimming with enthusiasm for getting back on track.

Thanks for reading,

FFF

What are you planning on doing to help you on your weight loss journey this week?

Run, Fat Fighter, Run.

Posted February 16, 2014

Filed under All Things Weight Loss

Despite it being the first day of the half term holidays yesterday, I dragged my weary backside out of bed and went and took part in my first parkrun event in a bid to help me move more and boost my weight loss.

image courtesy of http://www.parkrun.org.uk

The weather had been shocking over the previous 24hours with howling wind and rain. I’d been half hoping that the rain was going to be torrential as there’s no way I was going to attempt it in that weather. But the other half of me really wanted to have a go and I found myself lying in bed yesterday morning, listening to the very strong winds and hoping that the rain held off. It did mainly: there were a couple of showers but I was already at the park by then.

My main aim for the run this week was to actually do it and not be bothered if I didn’t manage to run all the way around as I’ve not run properly in several years. However, when we got there, I decided that as I’m reasonably fit and can cope with 45min spinning classes, there was no reason why I shouldn’t be able to run all the way round if I paced myself. So I went for it and was delighted with my time of 33min 12sec.

What was even more surprising was that I really enjoyed it and I can’t wait for next week’s run!

Parkrun events are free and held all over the world. If you fancy taking part why not checkout http://www.parkrun.com/ or http://www.parkrun.org.uk/