It's walking and it's working - II

Getting it done early

Just over a week ago, I decided to start putting in a lunchtime walk exercise to take the burden off trying to meet my 10,000 steps in the evening into the night. At first, I was satisfied with getting about 6,000 steps in, so that whatever I did later filled up the quota easier and the extra was just a boost on my activity.

However, on Sunday morning before church, I had done over 10,000 steps that when the day was over, I was just 231 steps short of 30,000 steps, it should not have taken much more exertion to beat the most steps of 31,687 steps that I set on the 13^th of September.

Useful results to celebrate

Four weeks ago, I wrote about the fact that all my exercise was just walking and it was working, I am losing weight which has fallen from 88.2 kg to 80.9 kg today, I am sure the girth around my belly button has reduced too, the prominent and ironically named love handles are literally non-existent and I am breaking other personal records in the process.

Blog - It's walking and it's working

For instance, on Monday and Tuesday, I got my 10,000 steps during my lunchtime walk, then yesterday, I did 7 kilometres in 56’47”, this morning, having walked 11.76 kilometres by the time it was a few minutes past 8:00 AM, the first 7 kilometres were done in 58’33”, until yesterday, I had not been able to fit 7 kilometres into an hour.

The other amazing thing was I also broke the 4,000 steps in 30 minutes barrier, I stepped out at 4081. All this I did in the pouring rain and with much gusto. My goal is to bring my weight below 80 kg, though, I can’t convince Brian of taking it down to 75 kg.

 

It's walking and it's working - I

A bit on the side of rotund

I would be the first to say that it has not been the easiest activity I have undertaken in a long while. As pandemic restrictions eased at the end of last month, I booked an hour a day at our apartment village gym, but I just did not enjoy going there walking on a treadmill and doing abdominal exercises.

Within a week, I was quite off the idea but I found that walking felt better, walking streets, roads and parks for up to 3 hours without stopping, keeping my heart rate at a level that was more in the aerobic range than just the fat-burning range seems to be doing something, but there is a lot more to do.

It was 20 days ago that I stretched a tape measure around my midriff over my navel and the reading was more a shock than I was ready to register, a whole 39 inches of Mr Michelin girth sturdily creating the misnamed love handles of flab that could cook fast food for a hungry city. I had to address it.

Blog - The 39 steps from looking fit

Just a little bit off

I did not concern myself much with it until I saw the dreaded tape measure this morning. Temptation got the better of me and the news is I have shed 2 inches and I can probably shed a lot more if I do not relent. I am glad there is some progress and improvement. It shows what I am doing is having some effect and results are part of the encouragement one needs where all you have is self-motivation.

I am losing the visceral fat, the lot that clings to internal organs that I cannot see, it is likely that I am beginning to lose weight too, but that is a long term thing, shedding the pounds is a lot slower without essentially starving oneself in the process. I have never been a calorie counter, I have reduced both sugar and salt, drink more water, attempt to get more sleep and put in the walking exercise. I am even surprised that I have more strength in my stomach muscles to review Rebecca-Louise’s workout.

I am not celebrating much because the job is not only in shedding the excess, the real success is in keeping it off. This means there has to be some sort of structure and method to the activity, keeping at it without relenting. I am sure I have the resolve, but it is early days and each day is a day more.