HappyFitHealthy

Just a quick post. I weighed myself at Boots and the results are looking good - 12st 8 but this was mid morning not first thing. Body fat 35.8%. Apparently I should weigh between 7st 9 and 10st 4. I know I keep on about it, but that's a bloody stupid target.

I've eaten well most of the day, except for having some thorntons chocolate tonight. I'd bought some for hubby and then decided he could share with me! It wasn't as nice as I'd expected but I kept eating. Well, it's the weekend. Tomorrow is gonna be stressful so I must prepare snacks and a packed lunch so I have no excuses. Hopefully in the evening I might get to the gym.

We had 4 rounds of Swingball which I lost. But its a bit of an arm workout. Won't take long to set up now though. Did a lot of walking around town too, but nothing at my proper intensity - my mums diddy and I woulda left her behind, plus town was busy so there were too many people in the way.

Had emails from a few people from fitfarms yesterday. Everyone is doing differently. Good to catch up though. Now, another week of remaining at my 12st 6.5 weight and then hopefully I will kick up my exercise sessions and lose some more weight.

Hopefully.

Fitfarms diary seems a bit jaded right now, I hope I'll come back and finish them at some point but I can't guarantee it. Anyway, long and the short is that I've had my kickstart, I've had my two weeks of piddling about doing bits and bobs, now I have to buckle down and really try.

fingers crossed.

g'night

Hmmm,
I hate the BMI index. It is the worlds biggest lie. It pays no attention to the muscle:fat ratio on an indivdual and as everyone knows: muscle weighs more than fat.

Apparently I should weigh between 8st 7 and 9st 11. What codswollop. No wonder people worry if this is used as an expert guideline. If I went down to even the higher of those margins I'd be skin and bones as I was aged 15. Why would I want a childs body again?

Even my doctor has told me not to get too hung up on BMI. My only concern is losing my bingo wings and chubby thighs and getting my tummy toned. The lowest I want to weigh is 10st. And besides, breasts go before belly when you exercise/lose weight, and I happen to like them just the way they are!

My reason for wanting to lose weight is because at present I get back ache which is aggravated by carrying too much. I want to have kids soon and the thought of putting on more weight makes me worry that I will be unable to move. When I have kids I want to have the energy to run about with them. This is my key reason to lose weight. Otherwise, toning my tummy would be all I'd care about.

So there!

Rant over

x

Today? mmm. no exercise. grilled bacon and mushrooms with a dry brown toast for brekkie (fancied summat salty). It was someone's birthday at work, I tried so hard to resist, but then I got my cal quality card round. I'd scored 91% so to celebrate I cut myself a slice of choccie cake - only a small square though, and had one baby choc cornflake cake.

Lunchtime I had a pickle and salad sandwich on two slices of granary bread. Yum. Surprised, never really had sarnies sans meat/cheese. Salad isn't a filling it's an accompaniment, but this was tasty!

I had another bit of choccie cake mid afternoon, and a banana - it's Friday after all! Hubby has made a yummy and spicy pork stirfry tonight, with noodles. And I had 5 squares of luxury white chocolate. Must go the gym tomorrow. Also had half a bottle of Jacques fruit cider. Yum.

Still a lot less than pre-fitfarms so I'm happy.

Oh, and last night I had pizza from Dominoes. It was de-licious! It was a treat. And I enjoyed every last morsel. So there!

Yippee! I made it to the gym this morning. Didn't get in til about 7.15 though. I used the resistance machines for a bit - little weights but just crunching til I felt the burn. Then I went on the treadmill, 25 minutes and 2.4km later I got bored.

As I left the gym I felt very light-headed and had to sit down for a minute or two and take gulps of water. Think I'll have to have more than a small glass of OJ before gym. Gonna email the trainer from fitfarms and see what she'd recommend...

I've been pretty good food wise, chicken salad sarnies again, chickens all gone now and there's only enough ham for him tomorrow, so depending on the weather I'll either nip into town to choose a sandwich (too much temptation?) or come home and raid the cupboards, mind I could have beans on toast then...

I'm going to have pizza tonight. From the takeaway. Just because I can, and at least I have now got exercise going on so it won't sit on my hips forever.

Really getting broody, so more incentive to exercise. Ho hum...

Well, I wasted two salmon steaks today. Griddled them and then broke the flesh into a bowl of pasta, tomatos and vegetables, but it was pretty bland. I needed to use more spices I guess, but coz I used a dry chilly to season sesame oil I thought that would be enough.

Need to experiment with amounts of spices - I've got them all now, cumin, turmeric, chilli powder, ginger and more, but I dunno how best to use them.

Well, I had a square or 3 of cooking chocolate but the pasta has filled me up. I had a long walk at lunch time and had to jog a bit as I was running out of hour. Didn't make it to the gym tonight either, I've been a couch potato. Hope to get back down the gym tomorrow.

Cheerio.

Hmmm,
today the weather has been shite, and so have I. Well, actually not that bad. I haven't done any exercise (unless you include the run around town at lunch time...) and I don't intend to. Last night I had a small packet of Maltesers too.

I had chicken salad sandwiches for lunch today - 2 slices granary bread, cucumber, tomato. No mayo or dressing. I had some flapjack in the morning and a banana for a snack. I'm eating so much better than ever before, but I'm finding it hard to stay focused on healthy food.

I bought the BBC Good Food Magazine yesterday and I'm hoping to find inspiration to adapt recipes for my own healthy purposes. The only problem is I look like I'm drooling as I salivate!

Must put the Maltesers away now and cook dinner. Might make some kinda tasty dessert too, sneak some fruit in maybe...

As my sleeping pattern is screwed I woke at 6am again! I was at the gym at 7am as it opened. I was alone for the first 20 minutes! I only managed 3kms today which was disappointing, but I got bored and fidgety. I figure if I can go little and often its better than nothing.

Took me 25 minutes. Not bad I guess.

I had cereal, milk, a banana and some chopped cashews for breakkie. Some cashews and apricots for mid morning snack, a left over tortilla from last nights dinner for lunch. Such control with all sorts of goodies to tempt me... and two ryvitas with peanut butter mid afternoon. I am having burgers and chips for tea, but I made the burgers myself with lean mince, mushroom, onion and spices and my burgers are smaller than his. I figure if I have baked beans with this then I am getting protein and I'll probably have a salad too.

Gotta go cook now.

And for those of you wondering - I didn't have chocolate last night, I had a big fruit smoothie which was yummmy!

Really must move now as my belly is rumbling.

x

ps - dinner was two home made burgers, a few chips, baked beans, grilled mushroom and tomato. not so healthy but a nice treat and easy to cook. We've got salmon and pasta tomorrow night.

A banana, one white slice of peanut butter toast, one oat/choc cookie, 1 granary roll with chicken and a teensy bit of cheese with salad garnish. And that's it so far. Managed to do 3 minutes of boxing against hubby holding the pads. Tired.

Should do more but am too lazy.

I'm planning to make a stirfry tonight with chicken, possibly rice, and lots of veg and maybe a dried chilli. Depends how brave I'm feeling! Dessert will not be large, maybe some fruit or a fruit smoothie.

Day 6 - Wednesday 14th May am

(I apologise, these seem to be getting longer!)

Today the whistle went even earlier - 5.20am as we were starting stretch at 5.45am! I was already awake so I took my temperature and plotted my temperature. It was above the guidelines on the chart paper which concerned me some. Then I checked the other girls were awake and got myself dressed.

When we went downstairs I was surprisingly chirpy - I wished Sian a cheery 'good mornin' before she even spoke to me, when previously my eyes would need peeling open! Stretch & Move seemed to pass very quickly. Could it be that my body is getting used to this torture? Am I getting fitter? Only my thighs ached, and only dully despite all the exercise. Maybe the swimming session helped take my aches away? Today is the day of the NINE mile walk. I actually didn't feel any enthusiasm for it, my MP3 player is virtually dead so I will not have music. This means I have to focus myself. I will do my utmost to finish this walk as this is the furthest they will push us now. Tomorrow is the fitness assement again so only 3 miles!

One of the larger ladies who had struggled with some of the walks had yesterday come to dinner triumphant after completing the 7 miler. It took her 4 hours but she was elated that she had done it. Then in our team games last night she took a tumble, spraining her ankle, yet she was still cheerful. That gave me courage and strength. Actually, seeing the range of other women who had not quit made me even more determined to finish the week.

Isn't it strange though, how no matter what your shape every woman has body hangups? Some ladies looked perfectly proportioned, but obviously didn't feel it, I hope I do reach a weight/shape I am comfortable with, not just continue to diet for the sake of it.

Breakfast time. Oh boy, it was delicious. Scrambled but watery eggs, grilled tomatoes and a slice of homemade wholemeal bread. I didn't think I'd like grilled tomato, and I initally missed the tomato sauce I would normally have with a breakfast, but obviously I don't actually need it. I'm thinking I could use sliced tomato in my bacon sarnies at home and more pepper. Especially with how much sugar is in ketchup.

We got into the mini bus and drove forever. Well, to Exmoor in Somerset. It felt like forever anyway. We started walking at about 8.45am, it was still freezing cold and very misty and we all felt uncomfortable. The scenery was amazing from the point we were dropped off to the moment we finished. However it was knackering and the first mile seemed to go on forever.

I got talking to a girl who had strained her groin muscle earlier in the week, then twisted her ankle a day or two later, but nevertheless was determined she would finish. So, I drew on her strength, walking slowly and intending to pick my pace up later. She kept telling me to go on ahead, but I needed her as much, if not more than she needed me. If she could manage this b*stard of a walk then so could I!

The start of the walk was over the moors, across broken stones and dodgy footpaths, so I spotted for my friend and kept pointing out the flattest places to walk whilst our teeth chattered away. I don't think I've ever been so cold before

After a while we went down into a more sheltered woody area. We'd been told the first and last two miles were through the moors, and the middle section was on-road walking so we were desperate to see the road to know we'd at least covered two miles. Step by step we boosted each others spirits, until we hit the road. Then we carried on walking.

So, we plodded along, admiring the woods along the way. Some of the roads were steep with drop away sides, and the scary part was looking down. Part way around my buddy felt faint and blacked out for a split second, luckily I was close enough to stop her going down. Yet still she wanted to carry on. At times I wanted to cry for her, I could see how much pain she was in, but through it all she kept going, and so did I.

Gradually we began to overtake the slower group who had started ahead of us, which was cheery. As I was starting to feel really bored we caught up with Sian and walked with her for a bit. It was nice to have someone else to chat to, and she chatted with my friend, checking her symptoms to ensure there was no lasting damage.

We then caught up with two ladies we'd started walking with and we were all singing whatever we could think of to take our minds off the pain and the distance left. Someone pointed out the cairn we had to get to for the last mile, and it seemed SO far away. We kept walking upwards and finally turned back off the road and onto the moor. We started talking to a couple who were out walking, who said the cairn was just one mile away, not the two we'd expected, which gave us both an extra shot of energy. We pushed on.

We approached the top, thinking we were done, as the fast walkers were sitting relaxing in the sun. But no, in the distance we could see the mini buses and still had a mile to go. I stopped to get my photo taken at the Dunkery Beacon,

and to take a photo of the view, before carrying on back down the hill to the minibus.

(not sure what's going on with my trousers? )

By this time I was busting for the loo (I had been from the start - possibly nerves?) and I'm sorry to say that Exmoor made a wonderful public toilet. Thank god, as I had to wait for everyone to finish before the second minibus left. And, everyone DID finish the walk. There was less than half an hour between me arriving and the last walker. Because the wind picked up some of the last walkers had missed out on the cairn finish, apparently there needed to be someone at the top to ensure we were alright. I think they were disappointed, but still 9 miles is 9 miles! Other than my feet aching, I felt fine. The ride back home made me feel very queasy though. I can't believe I did this on my wedding anniversary!

To be continued...

Day 5 - Tuesday 13th May

So, where was I? I didn't get a chance to write anything down today until 6.30pm as the day was soo hectic. Woken again by the whistle. No surprise there. I sat bolt upright immediately and my roomies joked that hubby could use a whistle to get me up back in real life (I'm so not a morning person) but right now we could happily shove that whistle into a darkened orifice.

Stretch & Move was laid out differently today, a small circuit at one end of the room, boxing gloves and pads at the other. Thankfully there were no Spotty Dogs on the circuit (spotty dogs are heinously hard and we all loathe them. they are a bit like star jumps but instead of moving both arms & legs together out to the side, you do alternate arms and legs, to the front and back, so not really like starjumps at all!) so we were cheered by this.

The stretch seemed achievable because it was broken into two sections, although we did have to do each section twice. Once to box and once to hold the pads. The lady I was paired up with was really encouraging, but the gloves were disgusting - all hot and sweaty inside, and when you took your hands out they stank. Ewwwwww. I think today was the first day we used resistance bands, boy are they hard work? but good for toning your arms. Maybe I'll get some when I get home.

Breakfast was a bowl of muesli which I wolfed down, too hungry to complain or care. I've not had any coffee since I arrived, and to be honest I'm not missing it as I thought I would. We had two midmorning snacks - a handful of dried fruit & nuts AND an apple. We were in heaven! Today was our third 7 mile walk (to a swimming pool) followed by a 20 length swim. The thought of swimming had us all in raptures of delight.

But, when breakfast was over there was a shock in store for us all. The second trainer, Julie, had been out to check our route for Health & Safety purposes. She came in and asked "ok, which of you brought a saw with you?" Everyone looked confused. Then she explained that a tree had fallen across the route we were due to walk, and that she was sorry to announce we could not go on that walk. Cue a chorus of cheers from us. "But" Julie continued, "there is another walk, a 5 mile walk" more cheers, "but you would have to pull together as a team. If you want to go swimming you will all have to complete it in 1.5 hours". We weren't sure about this. 1.5hrs doesn't seem like very long at all.

We were told that this walk was around a reservoir and that there was no road so the support/pick up car would not be available. This meant everyone that started would have to finish. Not such good news for everyone then, several people had been going as far as they could with the knowledge that if they really couldn't go further they would be picked up. Two ladies refused to do the walk, on the grounds that they didn't want to stop the rest of us from completing with enough time to go swimming.

So, we all piled into the mini buses, high spirited knowing it was only an achievable 5 miles. My, how our outlook had changed - from not believing we could complete a 3 mile walk to thinking 5 miles would be easy, all in the space of 4 days! The view from the start line was amazing. The lake was huge. It had about a million bends around it. Anyway, we all set off together this time and I chatted with people on my way around. It was a lovely walk, you could only really see a little bit of the lake at a time, bits were in sun and other bits in shade and it wasn't very steep, just small inclines, so it was really enjoyable.

As the end drew into sight we saw a couple of familiar faces sitting on a bench. The two ladies who refused the 5 mile walk had been set a shorter walk - 3 miles - from the end, part way around and then back again. Then we went back to the minibus, to be driven to the swimming pool.

When we got to the pool it was very bizarre. The first time we had mixed with other people in ages, and the temptation from vending machines was there in front of us. Chocolate, crisps, fizzy drinks. All only a few footsteps away. Yet nobody stopped. The cool of the water was absolutely lovely. It felt like a holiday for the first time since we'd arrived at Fitfarms. I swam one length before I got cramp in my shoulder and upper arm. I've never had cramp in a swimming pool so I was pretty worried. Took it easy after that, until I realised lots of my colleagues were out, dressed and sitting at the side of the pool. I was going to get out, but Julie asked if I'd done my 20 lengths, so i stayed in. I must've done about 8 more lengths before I decided I'd had enough. Got dressed and was ready in time for the first bus back home. And a snooze before lunch.

First thing in the afternoon we had a cookery workshop, we all piled into Mikaels kitchen. The first thing he did was show us a photo of himself 12 months earlier. He is literally half the size he was then. He hadn't been on a fitfarm week, but if this wasn't inspirational nothing would be. Mikael explained that he had taken an extreme approach to his lifestyle, cutting out beer, cigarettes, drastic portion cuts and lots of exercise, but I don't want to be as thin as he is now, so I know I don't need to be so extreme.

Then he asked one of the girls to go into the pantry and back any 5 items. We were to have our very own 'Ready Steady Cook'. In the meantime we were given lots of useful food information. Did you know that a product only needs to have one organic ingredient to be classified as an organic product? The same with free range products. The logic in the cookery workshop was amazing. Mikael pointed out that for example an 'organic' quiche may cost £3, but if you went around to purchase all the ingredients with £3 you would not be able to get many organic ingredients. Likewise, he explained supermarkets use the cheapest ingredients they can.

A wet egg was a new concept to me. Nobody else knew what it meant either. Mikael took an egg from the fridge, then cracked it "et voila, a wet egg" and slopped it into a bowl. Now, obviously these can't be sold to customers like us, but apparently in the trade these cracked eggs are collected and then used to make things like the nice cheap quiches.

So, next Mikael held up the ingredients we had picked out - an aubergine, a tomato, an onion, green beans and a mushroom. In true cookery show style he managed to prepare 3 different meals in about 15 minutes. Onion & tomato salad, aubergine stuffed with poached egg and mushroom, stirfried vegetables. And, according to the others they all tasted really good. Strangely enough I've only really eaten cherry tomatoes so to see a whole dish with just tomato and onion was pretty cool. And it looked pretty too.

After this workshop we had Ultimate Burn muscle toning exercises which really did burn. But you could feel your tummy muscles tightening as you went. Next we had another exercise session, using the boxing gloves and gym balls. And then a break before dinner. In the evening we had a boxercise aerobic session.

Not long left til I go home! But the hardest day is yet to come - my wedding anniversary tomorrow and I'm miles from hubby. Boo hoo.

PS - I didn't remember to make notes on this afternoon, so that's why there is so little detail.

Day 4 - Monday 12th May

We were woken by the whistle again, although all three of us were up and about pretty sharpish. Mind you, I didn't feel as achy as yesterday morning. Time to grab an OJ before heading off to the barn for Stretch & Move, which was Circuit training again. Nobody had any energy or enthusiasm, we walked round during our warm up all mumbling and cursing, but it was not as bad as I had expected. I was actually surprised by how alert (and full of breath/energy) I was. Then, just as we thought it was all over we had to do a third circuit!

I managed to get part way round the 3rd circuit before falling of the step whilst punching the air, and landing on my arse. Sian was by my side immediately checking I was alright, I wasn't sure what had happened and felt very silly, but sipped on my water and when we changed I carried on. Discussing it with my roomie afterwards, we figure I must've blacked out as she saw it from across the room, and I didn't think I'd slipped off the step. I managed to complete the 3rd circuit but was filled with apprehension for tomorrow in case we had to do 4 sets of repetitions. Other than my fall? I survived.

I felt a bit queasy afterwards, maybe that was the thought of porridge and prunes for breakfast? I thought it was only served in OAP homes and hospitals! We also had an orange for our mid-morning snack. My tummy hurt - letting me know it was hungry perhaps? - but there was no exercise straight after breakfast - instead a nutrition workshop, ahhh the relief of being able to sit down for a while. Porridge and prunes were surprisingly nice although I'm not sure I'd use prunes if I was to make it at home. I couldn't stomach black and sugarless coffee so settled for hot water instead.

The nutrition lady was running late so we sat and gossiped for ten minutes. We were all tempted to run back to our rooms to kip, but as I was about to go and complain she arrived. Darn

The nutritionist was actually really interesting, but she did tend to wander off into other areas. It was a 2 hour session and we all tried to delay her as long as we could. She had a loud but husky voice which reminded me of a friend, and that thought made me chuckle.

I was shocked to find out how much fat is in Cheddar cheese, and she identified how easy it is to take the block out and nibble on it whilst grating it for other dishes. I'd thought I was alone in doing that, but obviously not! We also got some handy cooking tips, which I will implement when I get home. Sadly we also got homework from this session! Nothing strenuous thank goodness. We were given disposable thermometers and asked to take our armpit temperature for the next 3 mornings and to plot our temperature on graphs in our folders.

After the nutrition workshop we had a Muscle Cutter session - circuits using gym balls, resistance bands and weights, but designed to tone different muscle groups rather than just be cardio.

I discovered that sit-ups are much easier with a gym ball than normally (shame I don't have space for one) but other exercises were a nightmare, and you had to keep going until told to change. Such agony, I don't think I was aware of all my muscle groups before this point. I was pushing myself fairly hard, but also believed that I could push myself harder. Surely I should have ached more if I was working myself to the right levels?

I think at this point I could see bicep muscles developing, but I wasn't sure if my imagination was on overdrive or not. I realised I really do want to lose a substantial weight, and would've been pretty annoyed to only lose 4lbs. I think I would've cried or demanded a refund! However, all the exercises and tips I've been shown will be invaluable (if I choose to carry them on), especially being aware of the portion control - I have been eating way to much! No wonder I feel sluggish after eating! Best thing is that there are so many little bits I can get hubby to do as well!

Again we were asked why we wanted to lose weight. I'm to use this as my carrot when I'm flagging. The problem I have is that there are a million small reasons rather than any one big motivator. I looked down and felt like I was just one big belly, I don't know how it got so big. I remembered again how two stone felt, carried in a rucksack. If I can lose that much over the next year how fit will I be? I must keep remembering that two stone bag!

Lunchtime at last. It was quite nice; spicy soup in a mug and salad with feta cheese. There wasn't much feta, just a few cubes, but it was enough to flavour all the leaves on my plate. Already sick of bloody lettuce leaves, and there was no carrot or tomato to liven it up. By this point we were comparing who had the most red pepper in their plates and nearly arguing over it.

Todays walk was 20 minutes after we all finished eating. It was hillier than the last one, I think this is when I went through the village of Stoodleigh, but a lot of this walk was through forest and so very cool. I managed to stop and get a few snaps along the way, and to finish in 2hrs 20 minutes. It was quite motivating for me to be overtaking the first group, but I imagine it would've been demoralising for them seeing us. I kept myself cheery by thinking how determined one of the larger ladies was. She had gone from doing no exercise at all to this crazy, crazy week! And yet she was always cheerful and smiling as we walked by.

Afterwards my feet and thighs ached, I soaked my feet and they were alright, but my thighs were still sore. Other than that I was alright. I guess my body is getting used to this exercise malarkey. My batteries were running low on both my mobile and my MP3 which had me worried. How would I call for extraction or keep walking without them? I can't believe I told hubby Not to pack my chargers!

Dinner was smoked mackerel, probably with salad, and if not with overcooked vegetables. I was surprised to find I like it, and will have to retry both mackerel and salmon on my return. I think I'll try salmon on the BBQ though as I don't know how to cook it. We had a fruit salad with dinner, but I saved the fruit to eat later. It was in liquid which someone dubbed 'dishwater' which looked and tasted pretty foul. I ate the fruit til about 9pm but felt hungry afterwards - the first time I'd really been hungry! We had an exercise workshop before bed, which only touched on how/what exercises we could do at home, but we busted all our excuses for not being able to exercise too!

No time? 5 minute ad breaks are perfect for some situps, take the family out to play football, jog to the shops instead of walking.
Gym no good/can't afford the gym walk somewhere, do the exercises from this week, get a DVD, get off the bus earlier.

Basically, no corners or stones were left unturned for our excuses to hide behind.

Sleep, sweet sleep came quickly.

So. Fitfarms they discussed something called the Borg Scale of Perceived Exertion - working at the right intensity to burn off the most fat. So, today after much mooching and moaning I finally went to the gym. I'm paying £29 a month, so I guess I might as well use it!

I did 4.5kms in 35 minutes, varying the incline and the speed from a fast walk to a fast jog. I was knackered and so sweaty. Then I did a few stretches, before attempting the chest press resistance machine. Managed 20 reps of 5lb weights before giving up.

Then I did 10 lengths in the pool before coming home. I felt full of energy, and very hungry. I got in and had a granary roll with sliced banana and peanut butter. I haven't had it for years and wasn't sure it'd be nice, but I figured the mix of carbs/protein and fruit could do no harm. It was tasty and very filling.

Since then I've had a pint of squash, turned down a homeade oat biscuit and now am about to enjoy a cup of herbal tea. We've got roast chicken tonight which I'm looking forward to. And I might be able to persuade hubby to come for a walk if the sunshine holds out.

I spent £800+ just to go to Fitfarms, I'll be damned if I'll let that money go to waste! I will reach my targets. I hope!

Cheerio

For those of you who don't already know me from my other blogs, and those of you who do, I'd like to say a big WELCOME to you all.

As you can see in my profile I am 29 years old. In fact today I am 29 years, 6 months, 9 days and 9 hours old, or thereabouts. And this is the reason for this blog.

In September 2007 I took redundancy from a job I enjoyed but could see no future in. In January I started a new job, in a better sector, with better hours and wondered why the hell? hadn't I made the move sooner.

This got me to thinking of all the things I still want to do, and to the fact that my body isn't getting any younger. I want children one day soon, but at present I only qualify for the most basic of maternity rights, so I intend to spend the next 6-12 months getting myself in the best possible situation I can, conducive to a happy life and a healthy body.

A few facts about me-
My height: 5ft 4 (almost)
My heaviest weight: 13st 9lbs
My waist measurement: 41 inches.
My target weight (in an ideal world): 11st
My target weight for the next 6 months: 12st or less.
My BMI scores' obese and my bodyfat percentage was recently 40%.

So, this blog will discuss my health, exercise, eating and weight triumphs. To this end, and as many of you may know, the week before last I took pretty drastic action. I spent a week at Fitfarms down in Devon, doing 6 hours a day of medium to high intensity exercise, eating portion and calorie controlled meals and learning about how to have a healthier lifestyle.

Above is the only link I will post to Fitfarms, but needless to say, although an expensive break it was succesful. I spent every day full of energy, I met some lovely people AND I lost 6.5lbs and 2 inches from my waist and hips. Fitfarms is only a kickstart, and then you are encouraged to continue the principals in a way that fits your lifestyle. This was exactly what I needed, as without this guidance I would have slowly eaten myself to the 14st mark, and all the health risks this entailed.

Now, my job is sedentary, but this is no longer my excuse. I will get fitter, lose some weight and feel better before I reach 30!

So, cheer me on if you will, or just pass this blog by. If I can do it, I am sure others can too. Sit back and enjoy the ride that this blog will become.

Huge hugs

Happy
x