My NEW body transformation commandments

So, with a hiatus from slow carbing for the time being...probably around 2 weeks and if it goes well, maybe more...I do need to sort out some sort of eating plan to keep me going towards my getting ripped goals!


I won't be counting calories (still!) but I will be monitoring my protein, carb and fat intake properly. I will be aiming for a ratio of protein:carbs:fat of 40:30:30 on training days and

Whoops....

Ok so I have been terrible at updating this blog.

To be honest I think I am going to take a short term (couple of weeks) break from the slow carb eating plan. This last week a couple of things have made me want to step back from it for a bit and maybe re-visit at another time.

First off it was just my results this week - 11lb in a week. I have gone from 162lb on Saturday morning last week to 173lb on Saturday morning this week. Now I know I am meant to go on inches rather than weight - but 11lb in a week! Puts me 4lb above my starting weight. And I still went ahead and did my cheat day so if I got on the scales now I would probably be another 3-4lb up on top of that.

I could accept that (somehow...) if it hadn't been for my 2nd reason for taking a break from it. I had horrible indigestion on Wednesday and Thursday and must have been in the bathroom on at least a dozen separate occasions. You would have thought I would have lost SOME weight through that anyway. But I felt so uncomfortable those couple of days that I kind of developed a stigma for the plan so need a couple of weeks or so to re-boot and re-assess.

I will still be eating healthy throughout my "break" and I will see how I feel. I'll post it up on here as well, and I think a lot of the basic principles of slow carb eating will still be applied - protein-rich, lots of veg, repeating meals....but I will make a few modifications which will probably bring me into the more conventional fat loss/muscle gain school of thought.

Let's do this!

Week 4, days 2 and 3

Not sure what happened to me all of a sudden but last couple of days I just haven't been into my slow carbing. I mean I have been following the plan but it has been in a very very lazy, approximate, half-@ssed sort of way.

I have had very little appetite these last couple of days and been sort of force feeding myself to get to around 1500 calories.

Don't know why my head just hasn't been "right"

Stevia??

If I remember reading correctly, Tim Ferriss generally advises against artificial sweeteners but mentions Stevia as being the one of choice for slow carbers if they are really that intent on taking it.

I didn't think anything of it - I figured you know, drop Splenda and get on to the Stevia and satisfy those sweet tooth cravings.

Week 4, day 1

Cheat day of course!!

I completely forgot to take any sort of supplementation which was a bit reckless of me but I think it made sense as I was allegedly supposed to be taking a break one day a week anyway and hadn't done that yet.

So how did cheat day go?

Breakfast:
- 3 egg whites and 1 whole egg cooked in a bit of ghee
- Rocket salad
- Can of hot & spicy beans

Bootcamp session

Breakfast 2:
- 80g porridge, 200ml semi skimmed milk, 2 scoops of whey protein powder
- 95g bag of chocolate covered

Week 3 results

I did do these first thing yesterday morning, before my cheat day started in earnest but forgot to post.

To be honest I had no real movement in inches - a lot of very small fluctuations on various parts of my body - probably just from discrepancies in taking my own measurements.

I did lose 1lb though, so total loss of 7lb. I certainly won't be complaining about that! Wish it was more of course, but a pound off is 2 pounds lower than a pound on!

I am thinking about switching over to doing geek to freak after a couple of weeks but I'm not 100% on that. I'm starting some out and out resistance work in the coming week and want to see how that impacts before I consider changing my nutrition again.

Week 3 macros

I tracked my calories for the last week, just to test how things have been going:

• Sat 15 Jan: 5399 cal, 269 protein, 547g carbs, 246g fat (Ultimate cheat day!)
• Sun 16 Jan: 2109 cal, 225g protein, 122g carbs, 84g fat (not enough legumes)
• Mon 17 Jan: 2053 cal, 179g protein, 194g carbs, 72g fat (just about right I think)
• Tue 18 Jan: 1985 cal, 191g protein, 179g carbs, 68g fat (think I got today spot on)
• Wed 19 Jan: 2268 cal, 208g protein, 87g carbs, 123g fat (not enough legumes I think)
• Thu 20 Jan: 2572 cal, 245g protein, 205g carbs, 104g fat (almond binge)
• Fri 21 Jan: 2128 cal, 240g protein, 82g carbs, 93g fat (too much protein, lack of legumes)

Average: 2645 cal, 222g protein, 202g carbs, 113g fat

So overall I am just about on course - my trainer wants me getting in around 2700 calories a day so I am averaging that fine at the minute. I am definitely getting enough protein and carbs over the course of the week. Fat should be a bit lower - this is due to high peanut butter and almond intake, which I need to cut back on.

But so far I think on balance, everything is working well. We will see what the results say tomorrow morning at my weigh in.

Week 3 review

3 weeks down.

In 2 weeks I had lost 6 pounds and around 7 inches although I thought I had done pretty badly last week - I felt a bit bloated. I don't feel bloated this week but I for some reason feel a bit sceptical about a loss in pounds or in inches. Can't explain why, call it instinct.

I have now finished the peanut butter so that won't be able to haunt me, but

Day 21

I didn't domino today like I had done with the almonds yesterday. So good news there. I think I had in total about 20 almonds. Thought I finished them until I saw another huge bag sitting there which I am going to do my best to ignore for obvious reasons.

After 12 consecutive days of hard training, I had a rest day today though. Definitely needed it and I will be waking up bright and early to train hard tomorrow. With the rest day I should be well prepared to up the intensity and annihilate myself :)

Day 20: Dominoooooo

Oops. Really understood the idea of domino foods for the first time today. I was a bit peckish and decided to treat myself to 10 almonds.

Unfortunately within an hour that 10 became something like 80. Don't know what came over me - I'm only 2 days from cheat day and its not even like I was that hungry or anything.

Aching!!

First proper personal training session in a couple of weeks and oh my goodness I am so sore! But I love this feeling - no pain no gain and all that.

Did this combination of rowing, lat pull downs, cable cross, squats, jump squats, lunges, bicep burls, biking, lat raises, push ups, and goodness knows what else.

Really worked me hard and I am still aching in several places right now. Love it!!!

Had a whey shake right after, been told to up the quantity by Mr Trainer Man though.

Goal re-assessment...

Been thinking long and hard about my goals. I have decided to change up a bit.

At first, I said I want a lean slim physique to be proud of. Then I realised that with clothes on I would look the same as any skinny guy - 6 pack or no 6 pack.

So I have decided I want to put on a bit more muscle and have a physique which looks great with my top on and even better without... ;)

Something like this, maybe a bit less on the arms:

What you think??

Day 19

Another straightforward day. I tell you cooking in bulk makes things soooo much easier. I had no temptations to go off plan, had minimal meal prep time, filled up and good, tasty, slow carb friendly food and really have no complaints.

I didn't think it would be this easy. I will see what the results say on Saturday, but assuming they are on course, I think I can get this thing getting me flying towards my goals.

Did another bootcamp - that's 11 in 11 days. I am deferring my rest day to Sunday as I now have 3 personal training sessions on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, but I am loving my training. On this plan I have so much more energy which is letting me train and push myself harder than before, which is reaping me rewards too.

My arms and legs are aching now - badly. Think I will need to rest up tonight so I can give tomorrow morning's PT my all!

Bring it on!!!

10 days 10 bootcamps

Some of you regular readers (and I believe there are a few of you??) know that I go for regular outdoor fitness bootcamp sessions at Strictly Bootcamp

Today I have completed an awesome 10 bootcamps in 10 days and I have honestly never felt fitter or stronger. Or leaner!

Amazing thing is that it has complemented the slow carb diet perfectly - the nutrition gives me enough energy to work hard in the sessions and recover quickly enough to go again the next day.

I am sensible and know it isn't sustainable and shouldn't be done regularly but I felt like setting myself a challenge to see if I could do it, and well I did. And did well.

I don't doubt it has helped me with getting the results I have had so far - well my week 2 results anyway.

My trainer is back from his holiday though so back on to some hardcore strength sessions with him to really build some muscle. Woohoo!

17 and 18

I dont know how or why I forgot to post an update yesterday. But in fairness there wasn't really a huge amount to say.

The main thing really is that since I started taking PAGG, food has been going through me more quickly. In a good way I mean. So I actually kind of feel like my insides are regularly getting cleaned out. This has kind of taken away the main downside I suffered during the first couple of weeks - bloating, feeling congested, etc.

I have seen huge benefits in cooking in bulk on Sundays - knowing that I always have something in the fridge which I can go to and eat guilt free really does help me keep on track.

Still tracking calories - had about 2100 yesterday and 2000 today so I am staying in the same sort of range. I am getting in about 180g of protein a day which is a bit more than what I need or am aiming for - which is 1g per lb of body weight - but I don't see a problem in this as I am getting in enough water and good fats to help me digest it comfortably. I need the protein anyway to start getting myself ripped....

Only thing is probably a bit too much whey and not enough real food sources of protein.

Day 16

Easy peasy day, really getting the hang of things.
First day of properly trying the PAGG supplementation and I find it really does help fill you up. No other major side effects or anything to report.

Decided against weighing myself post-binge day because I think that sort of thing will probably be counter productive - paranoia creeping in and all that.

But I spent 3 hours in the kitchen this morning getting my meals ready for at least the next week, maybe the next 2! Woohoo go me. The next week I will be cruising food-wise.

Came in at about 2100 calories today and completely stuffed so things are well and truly back on track after yesterday's indulgence.

Day 15: Now THIS is a binge!!

Man I didn't think I was capable of it, but I have somehow managed to get up to 5000 calories today. Enjoyed every second and very deliberately overdid it to minimise the chance of cravings bugging me by Tuesday like they did last week.

So how did I get to the dizzy heights of more than twice my normal daily calorie intake?

What will be different in week 3

I wanted to get these thoughts down as I was thinking fresh about them. I am writing this before I get my week 2 results sorted (although posting after), so it isn't dependant on what I did in the last 7 days, but just what I think could be changed up to help me on my way.

1. Cooking in bulk
I have realised (finally!) how much easier it is to make a huge batch of things and keep them in the fridge. It would help my discipline on this plan infinitely, as I have found over the couple of days. Definitely needs to be done I think. My Sunday morning at least is going to be spent cooking.

2. Stopping the peanut butter!

Week 2 results are in...

...and 3 more lb off. Really don't know how that happened because I was really "feeling heavy" all week.
But I am so pleased.

That is 6lb off since 1st Jan 2011. Woohoo.

Another 3 inches off as well, bring my total inch loss to 7 inches. Wicked!!

The two big shifters this week were an inch around my belly button and half an inch from the hips. The other 1.5 inches were pretty spread out. Only downside is my biceps seem to have shrunk slightly, but that could just be a bit of fat getting shifted - I don't really know.

Anyway 2 weeks in I think it is all going well. I am mid way through supplementation and cheat day, kicking off week 3. Head is spinning from a sugar rush, and I already feel pretty full but I am determined to make myself sick - last week by Tuesday I was getting cravings again which I want to avoid. Lets do this!

Day 14

I think I have really got the hang of things a lot more now.

Breakfast today was some left over pork roast (yeah I don't know how I could stomach it first thing in the morning either) and my broccoli, cauliflower and kidney bean concoction. Using ghee adds such a nice flavour, it is definitely going to be a regular in all my meals. In fact today it was.

Had another bootcamp session and my goodness I was aching afterwards. If you have a fitness boot camp near you, go try it! If its even half decent you won't regret it.

Lunch I had out at Nando's so really easy to slow carb it. Half a chicken, removed skin, plus a side of ratatouille and used my diet coke quota for the day as well.

Snack was some grilled prawns with

Slow carb: Cauliflower, broccoli and kidney bean curry

I experimented a bit and came out with this gem of a recipe. I like my cauliflower and broccoli a lot more mushy, so pre-boiled it, but you can use uncooked if you want to give it that texture.

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons ghee
• 5 cloves of garlic, chopped
• 1 green chilli, chopped
• 1 red onion, chopped
• few sprigs of cilantro/coriander, chopped
• an inch of ginger, chopped
• cumin seeds
• 3 tomatoes, chopped
• 2 drained cans of kidney beans
• 500g broccoli
• 500g cauliflower
• salt
• turmeric
• garam masala
• cumin powder

1. Heat ghee

2. Add garlic, ginger, onions, coriander, cumin, green chilli and allow to cook until fragrant

3. Add tomatoes and other spices and continue to cook until the oil starts to separate out

4. Add kidney beans, broccoli and cauliflower and stir well

5. Add water to the level of the vegetables in the pan and simmer

6. Increase heat to dry out water

7. Enjoy.

The ghee really does work wonders for the flavour. And it is slow carb friendly (see the section on macadamia oil in Tim's book).

Results day tomorrow

Got my week 2 weigh-in and measurements tomorrow morning. To be honest I really don't think I had much progress this week - call it gut instinct. Pretty sure I haven't lost much if any weight. Clothes don't feel any tighter, nor any looser to be fair.

Time will tell. I'll find out when I get up tomorrow morning I guess. Stay tuned!

BUT it is also CHEAT DAY tomorrow :D I got 2 pizzas and a load of cookies lined up and waiting - I hope my morning measurements don't put me off them...

Day 13 Part 2

I did manage to up my calories a bit.

My 2nd lunch was an echo of my first lunch - I have realised the advantage now of making things in HUGE batches. It is just so much easier and more convenient.

I did an intense bootcamp session again. Absolutely loved it. Was burned out and aching. Woohoo!

Dinner was same veg from lunch and lunch 2, with a whey shake. I have just had 30g of peanut butter pre-bed. I got to about 2050 calories today and this was probably the first day where I really enjoyed 3 out of the 4 meals - still need to work on sorting something out for breakfast regularly.

PAGGing

Finally got my full set of PAGG yesterday but it had been so long since I read the book that I didn't remember the protocol.

So here it is:

P - Policosanol - 20-25mg
A - Alpha lipoic acid - 100-300mg
G1- green tea flavanols - 325mg
G2 - garlic extract - 200mg

Before breakfast: A G1 G2
Before lunch: A G1 G2
Before dinner: A G1 G2
Before bed: P A G2**

**Tim Ferris tweeted recently that you shouldn't be taking the green tea (even if it is decaf) before bed.

I was tempted to start with these tomorrow, but for tracking purposes I think it would make sense to start with my next cheat day (this Saturday) when I also start with my cissus.

Day 13 part 1

Breakfast today was a whey shake immediately on waking, followed by a cup of left over lentils. Breakfast some days really does feel like a burden without my oatmeal! How I miss having it every day!

Lunch was a bit different. I downed about 100g of cottage cheese with a bit of salt and cumin powder. I think cumin powder was the missing link between cottage cheese and tasting good. Really savoured it. I am going to get some cottage cheese with chives though next week to mix it up. I followed that up with a kidney bean, broccoli and cauliflower curry - recipe being posted on Friday - and a few almonds. Ten almonds to be exact, like Tim recommends.

And I felt stuffed.

Its weird, this

Day 12

Really didnt feel hungry today. I felt really full after breakfast, so ended up with a late lunch and a late dinner. I just can't seem to get my hunger levels up any more.

Day 11

I swear Im still not getting enough calories in on this plan based on my physical activity and fitness level. I know we're not meant to be counting calories on this plan, but surely you need a certain minimum to put on muscle (following conventional science) which I don't really think I'm doing

Breakfast: 250g Quark cheese and 100g of lentils - for some reason can't stomach most vegetables at breakfast. 237 calories

Had a circuit workout, moderate intensity.

Day 10 - 2nd lunch and dinner

Got into a sticky situation with peanut butter. My 2nd lunch - more like a snack, was some lentils, and a protein shake. And I was feeling a bit hungry, so allowed myself 2 tsp of peanut butter.

Got to dinner time, had my stir fried veg, lentils and cottage cheese and felt pretty full. A bit later though I felt a tiny grumble in my stomach, forgot about my earlier indulgence and proceeded to have 2 more tsp of the gooey delicious stuff.

Complete withdrawal is the only way forward I think. D'oh!

Fat blasting workout

Obviously this is based massively on current fitness levels, but I really don't find Tim's four hour body suggested workout that challenging or invigorating so invented my own, based on interval training and tabatas, which are conventionally thought to be the best workouts for fat loss.

I think I will probably use a workout like this 2 days a week, to supplement my 3 times a week personal training and 1 run a week. I do want to do a bit more running than I have scheduled for, but don't want to overdo it.

Be warned that this is going to be pretty advanced, especially if you're new to using kettlebells so do be careful.

Day 10 - Breakfast and lunch

Still feeling a bit achey from my self-thrashing last night. Haven't worked that hard in a while. Workout to be posted later.

Had 2 scoops of whey upon waking up. I know some have advised against taking whey, but it is a quickly absorbed, easy way for me to keep my protein up, it is a lean protein, and I have seen some pretty good results from adding it into my eating habits. So it stays.

Day 9

I for no apparent reason decided to try tracking calories today, just to see how many I was getting in to my system out of my own curiousity. Before I started slow carbing, I was probably having 25-2600 calories a day MINIMUM, often still feeling hungry, with the intention of trying to put on some muscle. More on my findings shortly.

Mistakes made in Week 1

First part of my week 1 review was an update on my results - things looking good on that front so far. But I do also want to set myself up for a win and eliminate the mistakes I had been making during this last week, which I think are as follows. Just remember these are my own interpretation:

1. Day 1 was a cheat day
Tim obviously talked about a one day binge, a calorific spike to boost your fat loss results.

Day 8 review

Day 8 was a fantastically fun binge day for me. Didn't go as OTT as I had done on the last one and felt a lot better for it - I feel like I got my fill of things for the week, until next weekend!

I had a slow carb breakfast of course - turkey bacon, bit of cumin chicken, lentils and some spinach.

The rest of the day was a beautiful, sugar and chocolate induced blur! Woohoo!

Week 1 in review

The results are in! At the end of one week of slow carbing, here are my measurements:

Results as at 8 Jan 2011:

Weight: 166lb (was 169lb)

Right bicep: 12.5in (was 11.9in)

Days 6 & 7

I somehow completely forgot to update yesterday!! Whoops. Must give myself a slap on the wrist for this sort of slip or it will keep happening.

I think day 6 yesterday was ok, stuck to the plan as I was meant to and felt fine. I think I am still going a bit OTT with the whey protein, although I think it is important for keeping up protein intake. Also peanut butter - I keep craving it. I know it is meant to be ok in tiny quantities, but NOT 3 fairly generous teaspoons and certainly NOT everyday.

Day 5

I felt pretty good today. Stuck to the plan with absolutely no problem and didn't feel hungry.

Started the day with some leftover pork, lentils and green leafy salad.

I was then beasted around a personal training studio by my trainer - I really felt a difference in my own energy levels today and really could push myself more. Must be something in what I am eating taking effect. Plenty of work on strengthening my shoulders, cardio through rowing, some barefoot running and finished with some barbell squats. Loved it.

Lunch was a bit late - some leftover roast chicken, refried beans and a load of fresh spinach. Really filling. I also trialled a recipe for slow carb brownies, which I will share soon.

I was still stuffed by the time dinner came around so had a light meal of some cumin spiced chicken and salad - I didn't have the space for any legumes tonight.

Main thing today is that I really felt like my system was cleaner and a bit cleared out today - major difference from Monday and I am grateful for it.

Still not sure about weight/inch loss, but I will find out on Saturday - that combined with it being my cheat day is a big reason to look forward to it! :)

Slow carb chocolate pudding

Be careful with this one - we are allowed avocado but in limited quantities so don't overdo it with these.

This recipe makes...well the amount that was in the photo.

Day 4

Had one of 'those' days. Was out at work, and forgot to bring my slow carb lunch. Ended up with a baked potato and baked beans for lunch, and when I got home I was a bit demotivated because of my earlier lapse and snacked on some cheese. But I got over it by the evening and had a normal 4 Hour compatible dinner.

Not a great day, but not feeling too bad.

Also drank a lot more water than normal and felt a bit better for it - my insides were still feeling a bit bloated before and the water helped flush it right out of me. Good stuff.

Had a thought...

Read this from Tim Ferriss on Twitter the other day:


The path of least resistance is only paved for the first 200 yards


Makes complete sense. Don't expect things to come easy, put in the hard work and reap the rewards.


Get your mind right and go for your goals!

Day 3 in review

Had a pretty good day I think.

Breakfast at 7. Some refried beans (having WAY too much of the stuff at the minute, and I do plan on changing it up soon -its just too quick and easy to turn down until my next food shop), cottage cheese and some vegetables, but I can't for the life of me remember what they were - they were definitely 4HB compatible though.

Then I had a brutal personal training session 8-9, mixing up cable work, rowing and cycling with some boxercise. Arms were burning at the end! Followed it up immediately with a protein shake. I am holding off on having carbs post-workout until I really get stuck into some heavy strength and weights work.

Lunch was some pinto beans I had made last week with some cottage cheese and a green salad and lunch 2 was Indian style okra with refried beans and cottage cheese. Had a teaspoon of peanut butter (4HB compatible) some time after to sort of round off the meal.

In the afternoon I did trial a slow carb brownie recipe - leaving it in the fridge for now to cool and become fudge-y before giving it a try. I'll post up the recipe when I've tried it. Doesn't look quite as appetising as I had hoped though.

Dinner was a light meal of lentils, cauliflower and a small protein shake. Really didnt have much of an appetite though, so sort of forced it down.

Observations so far

• I think I do still feel a bit bloated from my binge on Saturday
• I don't know my results so far because I haven't checked but I think the bloated-ness from Saturday makes me feel like I haven't made any progress yet. I am only going to weight and measure myself once a week on Saturdays or I will let it make me paranoid
• Pardon this one but I haven't really been "regular" digestively, even though I think with the beans and veg my fibre increase has shot up. 

WAY too early to make any sort of judgement on this plan and its effectiveness for me, especially seeing as it has only been too proper days on it. Stay tuned to see how the rest of the week goes!

Training and the 4 Hour Body

One of the things Tim Ferriss emphasises is the importance of not overtraining. Does more harm than good.

I'm lucky enough to have one of the best, if not THE, best personal trainer in my area personally training me 3 times a week. That is 3 times a week of pushing myself to my limit, often ending up a sweaty wreck on the gym floor, too sore to move.

As painful as that sounds, I am looking forward to it - no pain, no gain after all.

In addition to that, I will be doing 2 bootcamp sessions a week, at Strictly Bootcamp, the best fitness boot camp in the area - also founded by my trainer.

And I will be keeping up my running, 2-3 times a week.

Sounds a lot, but I don't really run hard - it is more a hobby/recreation than exercise. I won't be burning myself out on running, that is for sure.

What are you guys doing exercise-wise to help shape your bodies?

Review of days 1 and 2

Day 1 - 1 Jan 2011


I for some reason unknown, decided to kick off my body transformation with a disgusting, uncontrolled, no holds-barred binge day.

I got up and had a slow carb meal of turkey bacon rashers, pinto beans and salad and didn't really indulge until 11-11.30 when I went in for a huge bowl of porridge oats made up with milk and a load of no cal sweetener. Savoured every spoonful.

What followed was a bit of blur,

Slow carb pancakes!! Yummy!!

Was browsing for recipes, and found a pancake recipe, which I adapted to fit in with the slow carb 4 hour plan.

Now adapting recipes is something I am sceptical about at the best of times, especially when you take into account my culinary skills!

But I was absolutely delighted! It came out with a nice bread-y texture, had a sort of French toast taste and satisfied any carb craving and sweet tooth desires completely. Awesome!

My recipe is as follows:

Makes 1 big pancake or 2-3 smaller ones.

Ingredients

• 3 egg whites
• 1.5 scoops whey protein powder (I used this one in Cookies & Cream flavour)
• Touch of ground cinammon
• Dash of vanilla extract (can also use almond extract)
• Small amount of olive oil or butter

Method

• Whisk egg whites
• Add protein powder and cinammon
• Whisk until fully blended
• Add extract
• Heat butter/oil in frying pan
• Once hot, add the eggy mixture
• Cook, flip, cook
• Enjoy!

Ok so mine didn't come out looking great or in any great shape, but that will come with practice I guess.

The only downside I can think of is the fact that because whey protein powder is prone to denaturing, it probably isn't wise to make these in big batches ahead of time. But otherwise, all good.

And personally I wouldn't use chocolate whey for this - cooked chocolate protein doesn't taste that great.

Coming soon: I am going to trial a slow carb chocolate mousse recipe soon!

(Proper) Beginning

Officially I started my slow carbing plan yesterday - with a cheat day....

So it is probably fair to say it REALLY starts today. Let's do this!

The first 3 days

Thursday 30 December and Friday 31 December I used as trial days to see how I would cope with the eating plan - it wasn't really a test of whether the eating plan works or not but just whether I would find it generally easy to cope with.

And based on my 2 test days, I think the answer is a pretty comfortable yes. I have a list of about 15-20 meals I like, if I make them up in big batches that sees me through for the week.

Personal favourites at the minute:

Goals

It's all well and good setting off on a new year, new start, new eating plan....but I haven't sat down and set out my final destination yet. When you get in the car and drive, you know or at least have some idea where you're planning on going - this should be no different.



Goal setting is a hugely powerful process for motivating yourself. Achieving them gives you that buzz and feels majorly rewarding. Working towards them - well that is motivation in itself. 


Some people go for easy goals so they can be confident of reaching them. I personally like to set myself a challenge. 


On this slow carb plan I could aim to:

• Lose 10lb of fat in 5 months or 
• I could aim to lose 30lb of fat, gain 15lb of muscle, and 3 inches off my waist in 5 months and take 6 minutes off of my 10k run time. 

(Yeah most people would set a 6 month goal but I have a 10k run in 5 months, on 30 May 2011 to be exact so it seems a good milestone to aim for.)

I can probably do the first one pretty comfortably by the end of February, think I have achieved something great and slack off for another 3 months. Or do the second one. 22 weeks to the end of May, meaning I need to lose more than 1lb of fat a week and gain about 0.7lb of muscle. 

You see that torso in the site banner? That is my real aim, to look like that!

What is yours?

The start: 1 Jan 2011

Happy new year!!


Welcome to the first day of the rest of my life!


This is where I really get going with my life relaunch. Things are changing from this day forward.


As you can probably guess, to know where you are going, it is also useful to know where you are coming from! So I have taken my measurements at the start (I did them on the morning of Friday 31 December) and have taken some before pictures (which I am not sharing until I reach my goal!).


But my measurements at the start:

Happy New Year!!

Just quickly:

HAPPY NEW YEAR EVERYONE!!

Here's to an awesome 2011 where we all get to our goals of where we really want to be!