abunaimah's Journal

Time to regain some strength

Feb 02 2009 19:07

I went for my first weight training session on Saturday morning. I went with a friend who goes to this boxing gym. He works out regularly and so I thought he could show me the ropes.

I've never really done much weights, I used to keep fit in many other ways when in the Air Training Corps. I was definitely stronger in those days.

I'm still a little sore from the workout but its the good kind of sore. Just about recovering from it and it's monday night. I will go for another session soon. My muscles are complaining, its like they are protesting against the lack of usage in the past decade.

I am also trying to increase the exercise that I do. I am playing football (soccer (5-a-side)) once a week at the moment but want to increase that to twice a week. I also want to try and increase the weight training sessions to 3 times a week, if I can. Timing is the main issue really. I get back from work around 7.30pm and don't really want to do much after this point.

The thing is it feels good to give the muscles a good workout. My general fitness levels have improved. I haven't been on a treadmill in about 8 years and this time during a warm up I was chatting away with my friend as we ran. In the past I would have been very breathless and disappointed to see the time crawling along. Now the time flies by. It means my football sessions are working for me because I run around a lot during the hour we spend playing.

Back on my diet again ...

Jan 14 2009 15:05

... well I never was off it really, just relaxed a little and put a few pounds back on.

At my highest weight I was around 190lbs (13.5 stones approx). At the beginning of 2007 I decided (not for the first time I should add) that I would finally try to change my ways. Over the year I shed around 16lbs by simply changing some of my eating habits and getting involved in the weekly 5-a-side football (soccer) with my colleagues.

However it wasn't enough. I was till obese with a 40 inch waist. So in December 2007, I decided to on a proper diet and I managed to shift 38lbs more. By July I was a little tired of dieting constantly and started to ease up a bit. I put around 2lbs back on.

At the end of August I went to Paris with my family, on holiday rather then business (I work for a large French company and need to go out there occasionally). It was nice, the food was good and I loved the desserts etc. I put around 4lbs back on.

Then came Ramadhan, our month of fasting. First week was great, I reduced my weight back down by 3lbs or so. Then we got into the habit of indulging in some desserts in the evenings. The food intake was good. I blame these Buy One Get One Free offers in the supermarkets! General rule, don't go food shopping when fasting, you end up buying all sorts of stuff you either can't eat all of or shouldn't eat it at all.

Ramadhan was followed by Eid (our festival) where we eat a lot of lovely food. Unfortunately we had a heavy week (foodwise) following Ramadhan.

At this point I was extremely busy at work, working late nights and some weekends in order to get several applications I was developing (and responsible for as the technical lead) out the door. It was hectic and I stopped watching what I was eating as much. Too tired to care frankly.

Also my sports Badminton and Football stopped as well as I couldn't join my colleagues due to being busy.

However I started to control things again and halted the increase as I got less busy. I wasn't eating like in the old days but clearly enough to gain weight.

Now I am around 145lbs, my lowest was 135lbs. So a gain of 10lbs. I am back on my regime and I am happy to start feeling my clothes feeling looser. Scales aren't showing the change but that may mean I'm building muscle.

I played badminton today and I am playing football tomorrow with my colleagues. So the new year is looking good. I've changed my target and now I want to get down to 126lbs. So I'm looking to lose around 19lbs in total.

I'm glad I started this journey and that I am actively managing any weight gain. I am not going to give up!

Damage limitation

Oct 08 2008 09:46

The weight has gone up. This is due to a combination of things. Prior to September I started to eat closer to my maintenance level and sometimes exceeding it. It was almost as though I was kind of rebelling against the previous six months of constant dieting.

Easy to fall back to old ways of thinking and old habits if you let it. I didn't let myself go completely or the weight would have crept up faster. My lowest weight was 135lbs back in June 2008. Now its gone up to 141lbs again.

The reasons are:

1. A minor rebellion against the regime I had been following for a while (Although I was curious as to what would happen if I returned to eating at maintenance level)

2. A family trip to Paris and Disneyland Paris at the end of August. Ate without restriction there, although there was quite a lot of walking around to burn most of it off - gained about 2lbs.

3. Ramadan - normally this is a good period of weight loss for me as it is a month of fasting. And it started off that way by my losing weight the first week. Then the next 3 weeks we started buying some desserts to have in the evening and I let myself indulge a bit. I didn't eat much food otherwise.

Since Ramdan until last weekend, I have been eating far too much. But have now reined it in.

4. No exercise since before going away to France. During Ramadan I don't do any exercise as there is no time to fit it in and I don't want to jeopardise my fast during the day by exercising. So that is now approximately 2 months of being mostly sedentary.

It explains why the weight gain has occured. At least now I've had a bit of a break and despite picking up 7lbs, I'm now ready to tackle the weight again. I've been eating sensibly since Saturday and have now managed to drop a 1lb.

I'm playing 5-a-side soccer for the first time in 8 weeks and looking forward to it. I need to get to a gym and get this weight shifted and reach my current target weight of 133lbs. I would like to do this by the end of November 2008. That would mean that I would have lost all the weight I wanted in 1 year.

The target is achievable and I have 7 weeks to go - just have to be extra disciplined and get my backside moving :)

Need to get back on track

Aug 29 2008 12:10

Over the last 2 months and my trip to Paris last week I haven't been losing much weight. In fact it seems that I've put 3lbs back on in that time. So now I'm back in the overweight zone and for the first time the chart showing CC's prediction is lower then my actual weight.

I have to get back on track. In Paris I did a lot of walking and so the excess food eaten was burnt off. I took my family to Disneyland Paris as well and the kids loved it but it did leave them tired out. Food wise the choices weren't so great so it meant having junk food most of the time. But I was on holiday and it was cool.

The one thing that will help me get back on track is the month of Ramadan (Islamic month based on the lunar calender where muslims are required to fast). It means that I wont be eating or drinking anything during the hours of daylight, there will be long prayers during the night and I will be controlling the amount I eat more then I do every year.

I'm looking forward to Ramadan more for spiritual reasons as I've spent much of this year trying to lose weight. I have had a lot of success with that and I just want to make the final push and get down to my target weight. I am now 5lbs away but was only 2lbs away a month and a half ago.

The one thing during Ramadan is that I wont be able to do my sports - I play badminton and 5-a-side football (soccer) with my colleagues. It will be calorie control mainly. In any case during that month we are not supposed to reverse are eating habits by eating at night what we eat during the day. The idea is to have enough food to keep us going - or as it says in our traditions (hadith) that we should have enough to keep our backs straight.

I just want to get down to my target weight now and then I may set another target to lose a further 7lbs. One thing I'm determined not to do is let the weight creep back up. I haven't felt this good in years and I'm not about to get back to my old self.

People are still surprised by the amount of weight I have lost and how much younger I look. I still get great reactions from friends and family - especially those who have not seen me for a while. Of course mentally sometimes you think can't they see the extra pounds I've put back on! But I know I shouldn't dwell on that and get back to tackling the weight.

I am hoping that September is a good month for me and soon I can see the weight chart going south again!

Wooohoooo! No longer classed as overweight!

May 28 2008 16:33

Ok so this journal entry is belated as I weighed myself on Sunday morning and for the first time in over a decade I am no longer classed as overweight!

I now weigh in at 135.4lbs (61.5kg). This gives me a BMI of 24.8! I started this journey back in December 1st 2007. My BMI then was 31.6.

Of course the last few pounds lost meant that I had to invest in a new wardrobe. The vast majority of my clothing no longer fits. I used to wear large (in shirts) but now I fit into a small and it looks good on me too :) My clothing has gone to charity and hopefully will benefit the needy like those in Burma and China.

In the mean time its been expensive month, I've had to purchase new clothes so that I have things to wear. I've realised that even the shirts and underwear that I had in medium are now too big on me. They don't do a leather belt in mens size smaller then the one I have already. I've already made an extra hole and another is soon to follow. I'm looking for a belt that I can just cut and adjust, couldn't find one in small the other day. I don't want to get a large and snip so much off - too wasteful.

Well now I have about 2.4lbs to go to my target of 133lbs. I will see if I need to set a new target after that but at the moment my focus is on losing the last few pounds.

For some reason people see me and think that I've lost weight so quickly. Its been 6 months on healthy calorie controlled diet, albeit with the aid of Herbalife Shapeworks shakes via my friend mohib.

I used the shakes to help me set a routine and to benefit from the extra vitamins, protien and nutrition. As they are meal replacements, it helped me control my portions. I'm not using them much now, just controlling the calories. I think they are quite useful for those people who are overeaters like myself. Of course you don't have to use them at all, calorie control (with the help of this site) is enough.

I exercise twice a week, mainly playing badminton and 5-a-side football (soccer). Other then that I simply run and around and just mess about with my kids. I am more willing to go for a walk and don't mind any kind of activity now. Gone is the lazy me :)

I want to do some strength training now to help strengthen my body as the years of neglect meant that I'm not as strong as I used to be. Problem is though I find that stuff boring (but now I am very much motivated) and Gym membership can be expensive here in London.

People out there, if I can do it anyone can!

before, interim and almost there pics :)

May 15 2008 17:28

I thought since I'm 5lbs away from my current target (133lbs), I would post some pics on this site. My Profile pic is that of my daughter Naimah (9) and son Ibrahim (3).

Daddy's not so fat anymore so he can run around with these energised kids. I have a lot more energy and they just love it.

I can't believe that belly, it sticks out so much! Now people who used to look okay to me are now looking overweight in my eyes. I guess you tend to compare people with yourself.

Once I reach my goal, I will probably adjust it so that I drop to 9st (126lbs), which would give me a BMI of 23. It will also give me some room to expand if necessary without getting overweight again.

Played 5-a-side football (soccer) with my colleagues today. I was running up and down and managed to score a few goals. One of my colleagues hasn't played with us for a while. He commented on how much better I was getting at it. Well now I can move around and not get so tired. You forget how much mobility you lose when you get fat.

Yay me! (My daughter watches a lot of Zack & Cody!)

The finish line is in sight

Apr 21 2008 14:06

I can see it in the distance - the finish line. It has been a journey and though I am not at the end I have nearly reached my goal. Since Dec 1st 2007, I have lost 33lbs. I came from 173lbs - 140lbs. My target is 133lbs - for now. I may want to lose a further 7lbs after that.

If you are wondering why 7lbs, then you are probably not from the UK. We use stones and pounds over here. 14 lbs make a stone. So I now weigh 10 stones. A weight I have not been in around 12 years now. I am still classed as overwieght with a BMI of 25.7.

Going down to 133lbs (9st 7lbs) would take my BMI to 24.3. This is still on the high side with someone like myself with a medium frame. If I lose a further 7lbs I would have a BMI of 23, which is kinda in the middle and so should be fine. I can then afford to put on a few pounds without a danger of going overweight again. It doesn't leave much room if I'm 133lbs as only 4lbs would put me back in the overweight category.

Still we need these milestones in order to reach our ultimate goal. I am pleased to have got this far, I mean at one point I thought I would not reach 140lbs, let alone get down to my ideal weight.

So current target is 133lbs - 7lbs to go.

When I reach this point I will reassess and see if I need to go any further. Its good to be able to see the tape in the distance as I reach the finish line. It wasn't exactly a sprint, more a marathon. For each person this journey seems long - no matter how much weight you want to lose.

By the time I am done, I should have lost 4 stones (56lbs) overall. I know others have much more to lose and probably have lost more then this with the finish line still far away. I hope you persevere and get there.

Sometimes we hold ourselves back

Apr 02 2008 15:47

I've been wondering why it has taken me so long to tackle the issue of my weight. For around 10 years I have been overweight to the point of being classed as obese.

It all boils down to wanting to tackle it and having some very good reasons to do so as well. My father suffers from diabetes and its definitely in the family as his sister and mother also had it. By my being obese I increased the risk of getting it. Actually I was starting to feel some of the symptoms before I started my current diet.

The other reasons are down to quality of life. I used to suffer from sleep apnoea due to my weight.

Although I tried to diet a few times I wasn't serious about it and didn't continue for long on it. I guess wanted a quick fix, a silver bullet that would make it all go away. I even tried the Atkins diet and though I didn't like it much I did lose weight but didn't sustain it for long.

3 years ago when I started my current job I reached my top weight of 190lbs (86kg), which for a guy who is only 5feet 2inches means I was obese. Approximately about 1.5 years ago I decided to control my food and started to join in the football (soccer) games with my colleagues. I also did a bikeathon raising money for cancer research.

As I started to eat healthier my weight started to fall. I lost around 16lbs in total over that time. It kept going up and down but for once it remained fairly stable, I wasn't gaining significant amounts. So when my friend Mohib started doing the Herbalife diet, I was interested but cautious about it. He lost quite a lot of weight and after quite a few months of dragging my feet (and doing some research) I eventually decided to go on the same diet.

I'm happy to say that I've lost 31 pounds since 1st December 2007 and I have 9 pounds to go to my revised target of 133lbs. I may go even further to 126lbs - but let me get to my target first.

I find that its been fairly painless. The thing is I procrastinate. I have learned a lot about dieting and diets in general. I've been looking into it for quite some time now. I guess I was trying to convince myself that I really needed to lose weight. Just as I had done for giving up smoking (7 years ago).

Once I set my mind to it though I achieve my goals. Specially since I've had significant success. My BMI has gone from 34.7 to 26. When I lose the last 9lbs, it should be 24.3 - which is normal weight range.

Nothing was holding me back except me. I mean I don't even exercise significantly, playing badminton and football (soccer) over the week. I have a sedentary job (I am a software engineer) and get little activity otherwise. However even then I can lose weight. It all boils down to controlling the calories I'm eating and ensuring I'm burning it off (and more for weight loss).

So sometimes we hold ourselves back!

Nearly at my target - 10 pounds to go!

Mar 25 2008 15:00

I started my diet on December 1st 2007. Back then I weighed in at 173lbs (78.5kg). Coming up to the end of March 2008, I weigh 143lbs - I have lost 30lbs in total!

I have some pics on my blog: see Bobs weight-loss update with pics!

The best thing about it is that I feel and look a lot better. I am now able to play with my kids without tiring out easily and my wife (our 10th anniversary is coming up!) is pleased with the new me. She has never seen me at this size, I was heavier then this when we got married!

She has managed to lose some weight as well but did not need to as she was already a normal weight. However she is enjoying returning to what she deems her ideal weight (a mere 112lbs (50.8kg)). Though I suspect she wouldn't mind losing a few more pounds. We are both originally from Bangladesh and we tend to be small people :) So don't panic!

So far I have lost 30lbs but this is on top of the 16lbs I lost before I started my current diet. I lost that over 1.5 years by just changing some of my habits. So overall I've lost 46lbs to date. Which is good because I was Obese before and led a very sedentary life (I'm a software engineer).

You'll find more information on my blog regarding the diet I'm following. My personal view is that any sensible diet will work. As they always say everything in moderation. Although I decided to use Herbalife Shapeworks products to aid me in losing weight, it can be done by simply eating healthily and controlling the portion sizes (which is what my wife has done). There is no escaping the need to get more active. We should avoid fad diets, especially those that state quick weight loss. It is better to go on a diet where you expect to lose 0.5-2lbs a week through sensible eating and excercise. Anything else will likely end up in you losing the weight and regaining it again.

Its all about balance and we've lost that balance. We need to change our lifestyles permanently not just for a short few weeks! In life nothing is good at the extremes, stay to a middle path.

Unfortunately the majority of us lead sedentary lives and in terms of a nation (I'm from the UK) we are catching up fast on the Obesity scales with our American cousins.

I hope you all lose masses of weight, I'm certainly glad I lost this much so far and now have 10lbs to go to my target of 133lbs. I may lose more after that but at least I will have reached the upper end of what my BMI states as a healthy weight.

But I'm not thinking about that right now - just focusing on getting down to this weight. They say the last 10 pounds is the most difficult. I hope not! I'm hoping to lose it at the steady rate I have so far, roughly 1-1.5lbs a week.

I can't stress enough how useful the tools on CC plus have been. They have allowed me to see how many calories I'm taking in and burning. Its one of the best resources on the net and its free! (Thank you about.com!)

Lost 17 pounds since Dec 1st 2007!

Jan 11 2008 12:44

Firstly thanks to about.com for these free tools! A very well designed site. I also make use of their language resources. Excellent!

I started my new diet on the 1st of December 2007, wanted to beat the holiday overeating trend and lose much needed weight. A friend of mine is doing the Shapeworks Herbalife stuff (see: www.beslimnhealthy.com) and I thought I'd give it ago. I was classed in the Obese category with a BMI of 31.6.

I had started the year off at a much higher weight and decided to change my lifestyle and managed to lose weight. I just wanted to speed up the process a little. Basically the plan is 2 shakes a day and a healthy meal in the evening. Its a pity I didn't discover this site with its exellent logging tools earlier. That way I could have tracked how many calories I've had so far.

Currently I'm classed as overweight with a BMI of 28.9. I need to get down to at least 24.9 to be classed as normal.

The weight loss has slowed down over the last 2 weeks with only about 3 pounds lost. This is of course normal and as long as I keep losing like that I should meet my target by April 2008!

I hope that everyone starting a diet now has great success. Sadly Obesity is on the increase in so called developed countries. Here in the UK we are one of the fattest nations of Europe!