False start

Hello and welcome back to Tobias Talks.

Today I have the unenviable task to tell you that I failed. I did not lose 2lbs, I did not even lose 1lb. I maintained, I am exactly the same weight as I was at this time last week. I am furious for letting myself down. So furious in fact that after I weighed myself this morning, I showered, got dressed and went straight into the office where I am currently writing this at 0745, about an hour earlier than I usually arrive.

Now before I start in earnest, I feel I should explain. Maintaining isn’t always a bad thing and if I had already lost 10lbs over a few weeks then it would be expected as my body adapts to the reduction in calories and increase in energy expenditure, but that is not the case this time.

I am using today's blog as a sort of “After Action Report''. An opportunity to look at what happened and why. The mission was to lose 2lb’s with a mixture of calorie restriction and increased walking. I can explain the issue just as simply, I didn’t restrict calories and/or I didn’t walk enough. The goal was clear but the actions to be taken were vague.

Today I will start again with the same goal but with a more specific set of actions needed. I will be following the principle of “calories in calories out” or “CICO” which I have covered in a different article but suffice to say that it is essentially eating less calories than you burn off. I will be tracking all my food intake using “MyFitnessPal”, if you also use this then please follow my account on there for more details on what I eat and when.

To increase the amount of energy I expend I will walk every day before or after work for at least 30 mins every day, to increase this even further I will carry a weight in a rucksack at the same time, for obvious reasons this is called “Rucking” and has innumerable health benefits when compared to normal walking.

Photo before my most recent Ruck

So that’s it, I will eat less and sweat more. The first domino to fall takes the most effort but soon they will all come tumbling down.

Your friend, Tobias