For almost 2 years now I have had no problems to keep my weight under control. For many people, losing weight is the easy part, keeping that weight off is what they find difficult. In my view one reason for the weight coming back is that there was no lasting changes made. You often will see it said that abc weight loss plan is ” a lifestyle not a diet ” however in the majority of cases, this ” lifestyle ” usually means some food groups should be avoided, this was why diets like the Atkins diet, or the zone or the South Beach Diet, never worked for me long term.
When I became a retired dieter on January 1st 2009, even though I was not going to go on any more diets, I did make lifestyle changes, I realised I needed to eat less, and after reading eat stop eat, I made intermittent fasting part of weekly lifestyle, and it remains something I do on weekly basis. Intermittent fasting is my main tool for restricting calories, and now 2 and half years later,I know it is something that is a constant part of my normal lifestyle, and a highly effective method of weight control for me.
The other main change I made was to move more. Initially I did this by walking every day, and doing bodyweight exercises 3 times per week. I still enjoy walking, but in the last year I have also started running, and I find it a great stress reliever. So this has become my normal lifestyle, my regular routine if you like, and it was working just fine, then last month I picked up a sinus infection that effected my middle ear and made my head ache constantly. Trying to do any bodyweight exercises was impossible. The effect on my middle ear meant my balance was effected, so I could not walk easily, and running was impossible. All of a sudden my normal routine was disrupted. The only thing I was still able to do was intermittent fasting. The Sinus infection and problems with my middle ear stopped me doing any workouts for 3 weeks,not only that, but then trying to get back after a 3 week lay off, was tough, and only now I am I starting to feel I am getting back to normal. The last 6 weeks my usual lifestyle has not been possible,and I would say it’s been the most frustrating time I have had in over 2 years.
Weight Loss, Intermittent Fasting and Exercise.
There is regular debate about do you need to exercise to lose weight, well the simple answer is no. It is possible to lose weight without exercise, and certainly when you have a large amount of weight to lose, it is possible to lose it without doing any exercise at all. In my case since I started this weight loss blog in January 2009, exercise has always been something I have done, however I did the exercise for health and fitness benefits, not for weight loss, but certainly in my experience the exercise helps me with my weight. I do believe the focus has to be on diet to lose weight, but I do think exercise has played a major part in keeping my weight under control, and the recent lay off, has made that very clear.
For more than 12 months I have had my weight steady between 74 and 75 kilos., in the last 6 weeks, with little to no exercise, my end of month weigh in shows me at 77 kilos. This means in June for the first time in a number of months I will be fasting to lose weight, and as I am now over the Sinus infection will getting back to my normal exercise routine. I am looking to get back to 75 kilos by the end of the month.
I wanted to write this post to highlight that certain events can sometimes disrupt our lives, and it is then about how we react to those problems. In my case I know I just need to get back to my usual routine and with a little extra care in what I am eating over the next month, I will be back at where I want to be. I gained a few lbs because I didn’t change how I was eating while I was unable to exercise, and I know I also had a few more treats as a boost for feeling so bad with sinus and middle ear issues. The middle ear problem also meant I spent most of my time sitting down as walking anywhere was a problem, so my activity level has been unusually low for me. One thing that is clear to me is that I now view 75 kilos as my normal weight, even though 77 kilos is still less than October 2009 target weight , I do not feel comfortable at 77 kilos. Hopefully now I can get back to full fitness, and get my weight back at the level I am happy with.
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