I’m writing this post a bit later than I had hoped I would be, I had every intention of getting a blog post out on the 1st of December but it just didn’t quite work out that way. If I’m honest it’s been a bit of a theme for this month…things just haven’t quite gone as I had expected. Now that isn’t to say that it’s been all bad…because it really hasn’t…but the my first month of this “health kick” has certainly not been what I expected.
Now we’ve all seen those videos online…the Instagram vs reality. If you haven’t then take a little look online and you wont have to search far. Essentially it’s a comparison of the ideal/visual which is often “perfect” and then the harsh reality…I have to admit many of them make me chuckle and if I had to sum up the first month that would be it.
Now I’m not kidding myself and was under the belief that I would suddenly after 4 weeks become super strong athletic Amy…I’m not that naive…but if I’m honest I did have a couple of things in the back of my mind that I expected to happen once I had started this journey.
- I would be super enthusiastic and motivated all of the time – I would say that in all honesty this lasted for about a week and then after this point it was intermittent. There were some days where I would really look forward to my workout and I’d be really excited to leave work and get to the gym. The majority of the time though I really didn’t want to do it!! It’s been cold, dark, wet and work has been stressful..so why would I go and push myself physically and mentally for 45mins-1hr? The reason…I always feel 100% better after my workout. I could go on about all of the science of endorphins ect (more on that another day) but by exercising after work it acts as a really good pressure release. On the days I don’t feel like going are often the days I work the hardest…not because I’m punishing myself but because I know that it’s on those days I make the most progress mentally.
- Exercise would get easier the more I do it – PAH!! If anything the exercises feel harder now than when I started a month ago! Don’t get me wrong, the main reason for this is because my fitness is getting better so therefore I’m able to push myself more. In the space of 1 month I’ve gone from not being able to swim a length to swimming 10 lengths of the pool. My strength training has improved and I’m now adding burn out finishers to my cardio days! I’m faster and stronger than I was a month ago, and that fuels me to want to push myself more…I now chase the uncomfortable because it is making me stronger…even if doing 15 minutes of interval training on the air bike makes me want to vomit!
- I would loose loads of weight because I’m exercising more – Now I know this one is an unrealistic goal…and it’s rooted in some old programming which thinks that the more you exercise the more you will loose. It’s just not a simple as that. In order to loose weight you need to focus quite heavily on your diet and making sure your input is less than the output. I’ve made a good start on this and I have lost weight this month which is a bonus, but there is still some tweaking I can do. No diets – just looking at portion control, the types of food I’m eating and ensuring that the exercises I’m doing are maximising fat burn.
Weigh in time
So when I came to weigh in this month I think it was fair to say I had high expectations. Little did I expect that the reality of that would be far from that. Thursday (1st December) I got up and stood on the scales, eagerly awaiting to see how much I had lost. I had started at 16st 4lbs in the beginning of November and I was secretly hoping that I would fall under 16st. The dial moved and it hit 16st 1lb – of course I tried it another two times just to make sure – and the number stayed the same. To say I was gutted was an understatement – I shouldn’t have been – as it was still a loss and in terms of my fitness I have made really significant improvements this month. A part of me was still a bit gutted, but I carried on my day and put it all into context.
When I came home that evening I was talking to my boyfriend and he was asking about where I did my weigh in…as per usual in the spare room on the carpet. I hadn’t even thought about moving room until he took me to the bathroom to test it out on the hard floor – this time 15st 7lbs (and yes I did check it another two times). Turns out the resistance of the carpet was impacting my results. Initially I was really happy, until I realised that in fact I was probably lighter on 1st November than I thought I was. So we’re sticking with the 3lbs loss – but starting again with the weight loss log so that I can keep more accurate and consistent results. So we’re starting this month with 15st 7lbs and will take another look at the start of 2023
Whilst 3lbs doesn’t sound like a lot – did you know that works out to roughly 5 tins of baked beans!! When you hold that in your hand you get a real appreciation of the weight you’re no longer carrying around and 3lbs I wont be carrying up mountains next year!
If you follow me on Facebook or Instagram I’d like to think that you know I show both the good and the not so good. With my posts and my blog I want to show a transparent and honest view of my journey, not to put people off but to show that if you work through the tough times it will make you stronger. This month has been harder than I expected but at the same time I have had some really positive moments too and I definitely feel like I have made a good start in setting the foundation for success.
My thoughts for the month ahead
- Keep consistent and apply this to all areas of life
- Manage your expectations – make them more realistic
- Focus on working hard in the moment – don’t worry about the long term impact just yet as the results will come.