One Month of Amy vs. Amy

I've kissed goodbye to the first 4 weeks, and am now into my fifth week of training and weight loss. My week starts on a Wednesday, which was just the first day I started going to the gym, but conveniently turned out to not have the perceived pressure that Monday does. If I slightly overindulge on the weekend I've got a couple of days to correct the balance before I weigh myself.

I devised a few guidelines at the beginning to help me stay on track:

Cardio exercise at least 5 times a week for a minimum of 30mins at 65% of maximum heart rate (fat burning zone)
Weight loss is 90% nutrition, but I want to be fit too, and I am really enjoying getting back into exercise. There has not been one occasion yet where it has felt like a complete chore to get to the gym, and I have exceeded my own expectations with this guideline.

I realised in the first workout that working at 65% of my maximum heart rate felt very boring, so I upped it to between 70-80% which is more in line with a cardio training zone - and makes the most out of the minimum of 30mins that I've set.

My main weapon of choice is the Cross Trainer, as it engages all muscles groups and has zero impact on my joints. I have a tendency towards getting shin splints, so a treadmill is not going to work for me at the moment, and I don't really enjoy running that much yet. If I have more than 30mins up my sleeve I throw in some rowing.

In the past two weeks I've introduced weights, and am doing those sessions twice a week for around 15-30min followed by at least 30min of cardio.

A big concern of mine in joining the gym was that I'd be bored, but that hasn't been an issue at all, to my surprise. Each cardio machine has its own screen, which I can plug my iPod into, select a playlist and then watch a visual representation of distance travelled; 400m track, mountain, trail or the like - along with keeping an eye on pace, heart rate and resistance level.

In only a month my fitness has improved significantly. I did my best workout last night, but my silly phone didn't save the photo. So here's a comparison from another session this week that still shows the difference in what I can achieve with an average heart rate of 160bpm.

Week 1 - Resistance Level 4


Week 4 - Resistance Level 9


The music is truly propelling me along, I don't think I could do it in silence! Try exercising in time to this song...killer.


Try to bring food to work from home every day
I have succeeded on this front 100% when it comes to bringing a couple of pieces of fruit for snacks, but have lagged on the actual lunch part in weeks 3 and 4. That's when I implemented another rule; if I don't bring lunch I can only eat a single serving of sushi (with a piece of fruit from home). One time the sushi was sold out, so I had a sandwich. Soon I'll get sick of sushi and will be forced to get more organised for lunch - but I'm making better decisions more of time, so I'm not worried.

After the first couple of weeks, work started to get busy again and I am now leaving later consistently - which is when the desire for a packet of chips on the way home kicked in. Hit this straight on the head with single serve packets of air popped corn kept in my filing cabinet at work. I grab a packet before I leave to get the train if I feel like it.

Be vigilant about what I eat for dinner
When I'm tired I have a tendency to make poor food decisions, and as I live at home, dinner is probably the most challenging meal of the day. I get home too late to prepare a meal for everyone, and it's more social, not to mention easier to eat whatever is prepared. There's not really any concern on my part about the type of meals, but I just have to watch portion sizes. Dinner is where the most calories seem to be consumed in my day, which is not ideal - but this is a lifestyle change, not a fad diet, so everything in moderation and I have to allow flexibility to a certain extent.

I'm slightly over my target weight loss goal of a kilo a week, having lost a total of 5kg. I've noticed positive changes in energy, motivation, and even concentration levels. My body shape is changing (thank goodness), I'm toning up and am fitting into the next size down of clothing that I've wisely held onto for a couple of years!

It's only three weeks till I go overseas for a month - so I've got to devise some kind of plan, but I'm not worried that I'm going to go off the rails - I won't let myself do that.