3: Tipping the scales

Ask anyone who knows me and they'll tell you I've always been an early adopter of technology. I won't deny it - I simply love new gadgets.

Prior to starting my fitness training, Luke asked me to keep a record of everything I ate over a four day period. This was to help him analyse my diet, and provide recommendations to me on what I needed to change. On reflection I only did an adequate job of this task. Everything was sketchy and rather vague. A cup of this… a portion of that. 

After I'd submitted my half-hearted attempt, Luke then showed me an example of somebody else's diet sheet. Every item was weighed and all the information was formatted into regular meal slots - making it precise and easy for Luke to review and comment on. It was then that I realised a good physique is made in the kitchen as well as in the gym.

I needed to get my act together and up my game. My thinking was that if I'm serious about getting fit - which I am - I need to be able to present Luke with clear information about my diet so he can pass professional judgement on what I'm eating and drinking. 

I decided to take advantage of Apple's iCloud feature and created a diet sheet template in Pages. This enables me to fill in my diet sheet on my laptop, iPad or iPhone. As the form is always with me it's easy for me to note down when and what I eat or drink.

For the first week I religiously weighed food items and measured liquids. The main problem I encountered was the inaccuracy of my kitchen scales - which were themselves nearly twenty years old. It was time to invest in something more modern.

Without thinking I was on UK kitchen and homeware retailer Lakeland's website and discovered their Sensor Scale. The product description included terms like super-shiny, LED display, futuristic form and touch-panel. Every geek-button in my body had been pressed. Not wishing to wait for an online order, I was soon marching along Edinburgh's Princes Street to buy one from my local store.

The feature I like most about these scales is the tare function. I can continue to reset the scales back to 0 grams (or ounces if you prefer imperial weights) and add another item. This includes putting mixing bowls, salad boxes, and plates on the scales before you add the ingredients. Suddenly preparing food and recording what each item weighs became a whole lot easier. 

On Thursday Luke took my body measurements again to see how I'm progressing. To say I'm thrilled with the results would be an understatement. I've already lost 5cm (2 inches) from my waistline as well as my chest. My body fat is heading downward as is my weight - I'm 2.3kg (5 lbs) lighter than I was when I started exercising and eating correctly two weeks ago.

I'm aware that everything will probably plateau out soon - but for now I'll take the compliments that I've been receiving from my professional network and from family about "the slimmer" me.