I think that I am beginning to love walking a lot. I have managed to see more of the area I have lived in over the last eight weeks than I have in the four years I have lived in the area. I have discovered hitherto undiscovered housing estates and a range of houses that are pretty modern all the way down to bungalows that have all the marking of having been around for centuries. There are gardens with hedges around and a green and flowers, there are mud holes, there are paths and concrete, there are small, overcrowded gardens...the list is endless. There are also a number of different front facias with different style windows and door, some of which my wife has noted down and is making a list of things we are having once the lockdown is gone.
I have walked for miles and miles along the edges of green fields, through fences, over bridges and into farmland I didn't know existed. I have walked different trails through forests and woodland and taken back alleyways to areas I didn't even know existed. All this in search, each day, of those elusive 14,000 steps. Sometimes the sun is out and I can bask in the sun as I walk, sometimes the wind is pulling and pushing me in several directions at the same time. Whatever the weather, I am enjoying walking and seeing other families out and about.
But back to my virtual day.
Breakfast: Macdonalds breakfast wrap.
Mid-morning snack: crisps and 6 chocolate bourbons.
Lunch: Cheese toastie. Crisps. Chocolate
Mid afternoon snack: crisps x 2
Dinner: Curry with poppadoms, naan bread and rice. 2 x beers
Pudding: Cream cake
Evening snack: Twirl bites
Total Calories: 3925
Excess calories: 1425
Now when you read this, some might think that I exaggerate the amount but, if anything, I'm cutting studs out because in-between each of those things I would be nibbling and sometimes changing the cooked meal (curry) to a takeaway because I am so tired I can't be bothered to cook. It certainly is eye opening when I am thinking, "I'd normally eat that now'" and then writing it down. noting how many times I would normally just grab something and put it into my mouth without even thinking about it. Some of the stuff I'd eat I am positive I'd forget I'd even eaten it.
It's also the same with the drinking. I am putting 2 x beer today and Monday, but normally I'd polish off a four pack in an evening and also a double whisky when I drank. I didn't drink all the time but, because I love the taste, I drink a lot. I even went through a phase of buying Becks Blue, as it was alcohol free, but even that has quite a few calories in it.
Reality.
Breakfast: Strawberry Yoghurt with 2 strawberries and 12 black grapes.
Mid-morning snack: an apple ( it was lovely)
Lunch: Mackerel in a teriyaki sauce, salad and coleslaw, with a packet of crisps and a round of seeded bread with butter.
Dinner: (note - no mid afternoon snack) Chicken and mushroom curry, with salad, rice, 1.5 poppadoms and a 3rd of a small naan bread.
Pudding: Nothing.
Drink: whisky (as I am treating myself tonight).
Exercise: 14,000 steps and 25 minutes cardio and 25 push-ups.
Calories: 1699 (a little over but I am ok with that, as it's only 19 calories).
So my reality day is a lot better than my virtual day and this is certainly still an eye opener. Each day I do this I look at my stomach and wonder why I didn't put on more weight than I actually did. I think that I must have been doing a lot of exercise without even knowing it in order to keep my weight to where it was. Although I was still going in the wrong direction. I have been abusing my body for far too long and I am very glad that I am now no longer doing that. I am enjoying feeling fitter and more energised and a lot less bloated.
I am not going to have a well earned rest, sitting in the front room reading, drinking my whisky and relaxing before I start again tomorrow. I love the feeling of being excited about each new day and the fact that I am beginning to see a difference in my energy levels and the size of my body compared to 132 days ago. So today I am definitely grateful for walking and discovering new places in the area I live. I am grateful for the continued drive and motivation I have and also the fact that I am in a much better place mentally because of all the hard work and dedication I am putting into this. Three more days until weigh day!
I hope your journey is as wonderful and full of positivity and wonder as mine is.
Until tomorrow, stay strong and stay safe.
Thanks for reading.
Sean.
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