Not getting results? Kick it up a notch! I had no idea how.
So it has been an interesting weekend for me. I have had my wifes birthday, and we did some very indulgent things with food and a touch of wine. Its hard, and I accept that it is just part of the risk that for today I was willing to take.
I am not getting progress on the weight loss
So I reched this plateau where I shed over fourteen pounds/1 Stone from the cardio programme that I have been doing over the past few months.
So what do you do when you go a month and you notice that you are working as hard and not getting the same results? Well, I guess it is called a plateau. You can only adjust your metoabolsim in stages. So the only thing left was to take it up a notch. For people like me, intelligent though I am, I had no idea how to go about doing that.
Boxing has earned my new respect as a truly hard art form and cardio
So I made an appointment for today at the gym with one og the trainers. We boxed for 20 minutes. A Jab, A uppercut, and kidney punch- and then combos. It is much more of a stenuous workout than I ever imagined. I was a bit winded at the end- but my trainer was hitting the one. “C’mon give me a few more” and counting them down. Fight through the new muscle use in a healthy and safe way. I always thought boxing a bit brutish, but in some ways I could feel my focus—if only in glimpses—and feel a bit of my own anger getting an outlet.
Then we moved to weight combos for better cardio. I was weak as a noodle to be honest- but kept at it. We started with 20K bench press- and then moved to a 8 kilo moving postures.
Then came using the Swiss Ball for balance and working on my core and lats through using the 8 kg weight in a combo set of reps. Breathing is so important for me- I need to get it right.
Then came the well deserved treat at the end of this hour that I was not sure that I would make it through. I could feel the self doubt creeping in. “Its too hard, its too much, my muscles are shaking”. I got treated to a ten minute assisted stretching session on my limbs to try and keep the lactic acid from building up. The good news for me was that I have good flexibility for someone my size.
We are now slated for a series of ten sessions with a goal of increasing the wright losss and muscle mass. The best thing I can hope for is 2 kilo/4 pounds a month with this new regimen at the start- three times a week for an hour. Okay- its not much- but with the calorie counting- it will add up- and it should be a bit more. It should get me off the plateau- I dont have the time. Its lose the weight of gain a lap-band gastro-surgery. That is my last resort.
Changing ideas about food
The simple tastes are now lingering longer, as I learn to live for a moment in each bite.
This is new for me. What happens when you think to yourself you can have as many beautiful and tasty morsels as you like? For me, I realise now that I did not pause to appreciate the taste long enough in my mouth. To appreciate the flavours. With wine, I became adept at carefully testing and tasting and taking note of all the nuances. With a butter biscuit I now find myself enjoying bite after bite carefully and slowly. Suddenly the butter biscuit seems so much more complicated than I had previously understood or knew.
Sure, for a fine meal and wine pairing, I could get orgasmic. The thing that is amazing me is suddenly the simple things- when I change my approach- seem to have complexities and simplicities that I am re-learning in almost a child like way.
