31. Ctrl Alt Delete

Photo: Terrance Emerson / RF123 Stock Photo

I'm currently taking a much needed rest week and allowing my body a little time to recover from a rather intense period of exercise. It feels a little odd. As though something important is missing. It's a similar sensation to the one you get when you leave home without your phone or credit cards. You know you've forgotten something, but can't identify precisely what it is. 

I'd actually take this a little further and say that this morning a wave of guilt hit me. This was probably due to my meet with Luke at Luke Bremner Fitness yesterday, when he took my body measurements. Unfortunately I've let things drift in the wrong direction slightly. But as Luke said, "We've focussed so much on my strength and lifting abilities this year, that we've perhaps neglected my nutrition and body composition a little."

There were some definite positives about my numbers though. Luke having to remeasure my biceps, to double-check their increase in size, gave the old ego a much needed boast. That certainly made all the tough workouts I've done this year feel worth it. And as I told Luke at the beginning of our meet yesterday, "I'm having the best time doing what I do each week, with his team's excellent guideance."

For me, this week also feels like it’s the end of “extra time” - see my blogpost of 01 July 2015 entitled Extra Time to get a full match report! Which, in essence, means the first game is now well and truly over. I'm certainly not upset at the final result. Far from it. I'm highly delighted with my performance and how well my body has coped with everything.

With Mr Bremner’s help, now feels an appropriate time to reboot what I’ve been trying to achieve over the past two years. The prospect of starting something new feels exciting, but I’m also realistic. I know this next phase, when we focus more on my body composition, isn't going to be easy. Firstly, I’m starting at a much higher level this time around. Secondly, for most men of my age, our midriffs have become problematic areas. Often years of neglect and inactivity need to be put right, but I'm up for that challenge. 

I have another meet with Luke schedule for later in the week, when we’re going to discuss my nutrition. This is to help me concentrate on both diet and calorie in-take. It's now May, and I’m determined to be beach-body ready by September. So enough from me. I'm off to select a prospective holiday destination right now…!

22. …and the dish ran away with the spoon.

It's rare for me to eat out these days. Instead I prefer to prepare and cook meals at home. This allows me to monitor what ingredients I use. It also enables me to record the calorie implications of dishes I make, as well as note the protein, carbohydrate and fat content per serving using the MyFitnessPal app. In addition I enjoy being a 'have-a-go home cook', so going into the kitchen is a pleasure not a chore. When I do dine out, often I'm away from home travelling for work or leisure, so have no other option.

A couple of Sundays ago my food and nutrition content started well at home - porridge with a scoop of chocolate whey protein powder topped with blueberries for breakfast. A Sunday morning workout was followed by a protein shake and a couple of bananas. Lunch consisted of a breast of roast chicken - marinated in lemon juice, honey, olive oil and cayenne pepper - with wholemeal basmati rice and mixed vegetables. The app on my phone told me I was on target for achieving my daily 40% protein, 40% carbohydrate and 20% fat intake.

Then the naughtiness crept in. In the afternoon I jumped into the car to drive down to Manchester. En-route I had to call into motorway services for petrol, so decided to make a quick pit-stop and grab a coffee. "Would you like anything else with that?" asked the barista. Without hesitation I ordered a piece of chocolate tiffin to accompany my beverage. But as I sat enjoying the late afternoon sunshine and Cumbrian landscape, I plugged my refreshment into MyFitnesPal. YIKES! This was calorific. 

On arrival in Manchester I checked into my hotel, but as there was no restaurant, I had to head out to find an evening meal. Fortunately there was a JD Weatherspoon next door. I wandered in, found a table and then looked at the menu. As it was Sunday, the pub was offering a traditional turkey roast. That'll do me! I thought. When I placed the order for my food I was asked "Is that the larger option?" Being a little tired from the drive down, I wasn't thinking clearly. "Yes!", I replied.

I returned to my table and then started to examine the menu again. I look at the calorie information of the meal that I'd ordered. As I couldn't believe the figures, I quickly totted them up again on my mobile phone calculator. I wasn't wrong. This meal contained over half the calories of my daily intake allowance.

It suddenly made me realise that "unconsciously" eating out is one reason why our population is becoming increasingly over-weight. I didn't need to order the large meal, but it was only an extra £1.50, so it would seem like a good deal to most people. In fact, the regular size meal was perfectly acceptable and would've kept me within my daily calorie allowance.

However, I must applaud JD Weatherspoon for actually providing calorie information on their menus. I'm sure that this will assist all their clients, me included, to make more informed decisions about the meals and the portion sizes they decide to order and eat. Let's hope that more pubs, cafés and restaurants follow this lead and include calorie information on their menus and labels too. I'm sure we'll all find that very useful indeed.