Weight loss accountability/support 2024 edition

The timber shifting has been going well, better than I dared hope, but unsurprisingly it has slowed.

However, a bit of a blow when I visited the GP. They decided to weigh me - knock yourself out - and reading was much to my liking. They then checked my height and I’ve shrunk by an inch. Now, even though I’ve disregarded the BMI, this was disheartening (although no doubt I’d be crowing if I’d grown an inch) but I’m placating myself that I’m less too heavy and more in need of additional height…

02/01 - 86
09/01 - 84.5
16/01 - 84.05
23/01 - 83.75
30/01 - 83.65
06/02 - 83.2
13/02 - 82.8

Bored now, can I have Pizza and booze?

Very interesting interview with Dr Giles Yeo, who is Professor at the University of Cambridge, with a focus on the genetics of obesity:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gy_vcL1cpP8

Some interesting tidbits in there:

Between 20-50 years old, the average weight gain is 15kg. 12.3 fat calories a day.

87.2>85>83.9

Ticking along at just under 500g lost per week. Very happy with increasing fitness and visible changes, totally fine with the eating/hunger aspect and not really curtailed my drinking that much. Worried I will plateau very soon and have to do the hard things...

1/1/23 69.9kg
8/1/23 70.5kg
15/1/23 70.9kg
22/1/23 70.1kg
29/1/23 70.9kg
5/2/23 70.6kg
12/2/23 69.75kg
19/2/23 69.85kg

2 days of Punjabi food

28/12/22 87.2kg
1/1/23 86kg
15/01/23 86.2kg
22/01/23. 84.2kg
29/01/23 83.6kg
05/02/23 83.8kg
12/02/23. 81.9kg
19/02/23 81.4kg

Covid. Still not recommended.

01/01: 88.9kg
08/01: 87.9kg
15/01: 87.7kg
22/01: 87.6kg
29/01: 87.6kg
05/02: 87.0kg
12/02: 87.6kg
19/02: 87.0kg

Rode to work 4 days this week and ran some errands by bike the other 3. Not enough to offset beers and "fuck this, need cake" days.

09/01 91.2
16/01 88.1
23/01 88.3
30/01 85.8
06/02 85.1
20/02 85

Been at just above 84 a couple of times then had some "time off" as I was away for a few days. Both times bounced back to around 86. Trying to stick to it now as it's a bit of a shitter to fuck up hard work by sitting in the pub for a few afternoons.

(27 Dec - 93.0 post-Christmas bloat)
2 Jan - 91.6
9 Jan - 89.5
16 Jan - 89.4
21 Jan - 87.7
27 Jan - 87.6
6 Feb - 86.7
13 Feb - 86.4
20 Feb - 85.6

Target 80

Pushing through the stall (which was just a week of paying less attention to eating really). 85 next week would be a nice target to hit.

Compared to last year, weight loss is a lot slower (~0.5kg per week, compared with ~1.25kg), but it is a lot easier, and with not even close to the same mental load.

Hopefully that translates to more successful habit forming and maintenance.

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81.1kg > 79.1kg > 78.9kg > 77.9kg > 78.9kg > 79.8kg

Going backwards. Illness + stress + half term holidays = not good. Going to give up booze for Lent (not that I am religious, but seems like a good excuse), and see if that helps.

Currently 75.5kg

Aiming for 72.0kg.

Trying to get there without cutting anything out because that won't be sustainable for me. I am hoping the key is finally feeling better (feels like one thing after another, after covid in October 22) and simply being able to train more.

16/1/23 - 80.6kg 21.7% BF. Trend - 0
24/1/23 - 79.9kg 21.4% BF. Trend - 0.7
31/1/23 - 79.6kg 20.3% BF. Trend - 1.0
07/2/23 - 79.6kg 20.2% BF. Trend - 1.0
14/2/23 - 78.6kg 19.5% BF. Trend - 2.0
20/2/23 - 78.1kg 20.1% BF. Trend - 2.5

Losing weight by just by training more isn't the best strategy and not sustainable in my opinion.
If you are at a specific food intake and you get down to a weight that can only be sustained by more training and exercise, as soon as something gets in the way, like holidays, injuries, work, lack of motivation, then you'll rebound back to a higher weight.

On the other hand, if you cut something out (beer, bread, snacks) while increasing training levels, then you'll see quick progress.

At the end of the day, if you want to be maintaining a lower weight, then you need to be eating less than you did when you were at a higher weight. And while you're losing weight, losing it at a faster rate than you gained it, because no-one is motivated by losing 100g a week.

The thing is, I haven't increased what I eat since going from 72kg to 75.5kg - the only lifestyle change has been that I haven't been able to train properly.

I'm an active person, and my typical level of activity and food intake has me hovering around 72kg. Holidays see me putting weight on, of course they do. And it drops off again within days.

I've set myself a target of end-March.

Had a shit year and ballooned, heavier than I ever remember being. Need to do something serious about it. Maybe this will help.

Start: 120kg
Goal: Back to my 2016 low of 87kg

Any lent related restrictions people are taking on? I'm not religious but my willpower seems to like an arbitrary target so I'm cutting out refined sugar as much as possible for lent / until my next race which is Brighton Marathon on the 2nd of April.

Always been very sweet toothed and lots of sugar high / crash behavior so maybe this will help me find a better balance. Anyone got any anecdotal comments?

1/1/23 69.9kg
8/1/23 70.5kg
15/1/23 70.9kg
22/1/23 70.1kg
29/1/23 70.9kg
5/2/23 70.6kg
12/2/23 69.75kg
19/2/23 69.85kg
26/2/23 69.35kg

I’ve mostly cut refined sugar, bread and booze out.

If I want something sweet I eat fruit
It seems to handle my sweet tooth
I do have some sugar in my coffee in the morning, some on the porridge and maybe some honey with yoghurt & nuts at night if I’m really craving something sweet. I find it easier to cut out all sweet things in packets than to decide what’s healthy and what isn’t.

In short fruit

I've just realised (on the toilet) that when people say muscle is heavier than fat they are talking out of their hoop. It's like saying rocks are heavier than feathers.

Density matters.

It definitely does when you are on the toilet

I think it’s implied that the same volume of muscle is heavier than the same volume of fat.
So a thinner muscular person might be the same weight as a chubbier person who looks physically larger.

E.g 5lb of fat vs 5lb of muscle:

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Also straining too hard if you’re pooping out muscle

Start: 120.0kg
27/02: 117.7kg

(27 Dec - 93.0 post-Christmas bloat)
2 Jan - 91.6
9 Jan - 89.5
16 Jan - 89.4
21 Jan - 87.7
27 Jan - 87.6
6 Feb - 86.7
13 Feb - 86.4
20 Feb - 85.6
27 Feb - 84.5

Target 80

I seem to be through what felt like a stall, and my trajectory is looking (and feeling) good.

Allowed myself a bit of a mirror gaze, and had that moment when I could see the difference.