1: No more excuses

"There seem to be a lot of excuses in that sentence Derek."

This was the very frank response I received from my chum Simon, earlier this year when I was in Bristol, and we were chatting about why I hadn't been exercising.

He was right of course.

Fast forward to March and I read a post on LinkedIn from personal trainer Luke Bremner which informs his professional network that he's moving into his own gym in Edinburgh's New Town at the beginning of April.

I'd helped Luke with the branding for Luke Bremner Fitness a couple of years ago. He suggested then that I ought to get into the gym - but I'd quickly erected barriers and made more excuses.

For many of us there is a catch 22 situation regarding regular exercise. For me personally I've wanted to get into shape for a little while, but have never investigated any of the mainstream gyms. The thought of being in a room with people who are already "in-shape" is rather intimidating. On reflection this is just one more excuse.

After reading Luke's post I decided to that it was about time I invested in me i.e. in my fitness and well-being.

I've now taken the bull by the horns and signed-up for 2 one-hour sessions each week for the next 6 months. My thinking was this length time would demonstrate (i) my commitment and seriousness in what I want to achieve and (ii) enable Luke and me to work on toning-up my body gradually - so things aren't too much of a shock to the system.

On 01 April I met Luke at his new gym. It's a nice space. It feels private and relaxed - despite the array of gym equipment that's positioned around the room. At this initial meeting Luke explained his approach and we went through my goals and incentives - of which there are many. A nice gentle introduction.

The following day I was back in Jamaica Street and Luke was taking body measurements and photos of me. An important procedure, as we need them for comparisons in the future. This was followed by a full and detail analysis of my diet - which I thought was relatively healthy - but turns out to be loaded with sugar and carbohydrates.

Instead of overwhelming me with info, Luke has just focussed his attention on one aspect of my diet - breakfast. I need to get that right before moving on and looking at the other meals. However within the space of 24 hours I'd started making changes everywhere. Yes, I have been focussing on breakfast as Luke requested, but it's amazing how easy planning and structuring other meals of the day have suddenly become.

For my final visit of the week Luke assessed my flexibility and posture. I was rubbish - as expected! However some kind and motivational words from Mr Bremner kept me going. Despite being a driver and a motorcyclist I still have problems identifying left and right. So trying to sort out my front/back pelvic motion was a bit of a nightmare all round.

This is other thing that has happened in the last week. I've suddenly started to acquire a whole new language - gluts, quads, triceps, pecs. Yes, I did anatomy at art school - but we only drew skeletons we never learnt what bones or muscles were called.

Anyway Luke has set me excersies to do this week, which I've been endeavouring to do to the best of my ability. In summary, I've made a start and there are now no more excuses. That in itself already makes me happy.