In this blog I want to document my journey to being a lot healthier and fitter than I currently am now. As we all age so our body metabolism slows down and it is easy to allow extra weight to creep upon our body resulting in "sagging abdomens" and "love handles". Don't get me wrong I don't ever anticipate getting back to the body of a twenty year old again with a well defined waist and abs but I would like to lose some weight, especially from my waist and "man boobs".

 

Excercise and diet doesn't come easy for me, I love my food and can't find any motivation to go to a gym so it has to be a more of a lifestyle change to bring about this weight loss and then being able to sustain the new levels, both in weight and fitness terms. Like several thousands of other people I do have an exercise bike, but it generally ends up being another table surface for me to hang my camera equipment!

 

I have a goal to achieve a weight loss of between 10 and 18 lbs to bring my weight back to bewteen 10st 01bs and 10st 8 lbs. I've been there before but have never been able to sustain it so this time it has to be achievable and permanent.

 

Why? There is enough scientific evidence to now support the fact that overweight people are more at risk of heart disease, diabetes and other weight related problems such as joint injury. There is also evidence that suggests that a healthier body, created through exercise goes some way to increasing ones lifespan and the delay the onset of mental illness like dementia.

 

It is this fact alone which drives me to want to get to a healthier lifestyle.

 

How? I love photography so getting out and about is good enough justification to be able to go out, explore new areas and document these trips in the form of "health walk videos"

By increasing my "walking mileage" especially taking in steeper hill ascents will increase cardiovascular strength and help with the weight loss regime.

 

Time Frame to Achieve  I have a personal goal to try and get to 10st 10lbs for my climb of the 3440 metre high Ben Nevis on October 12 2011 with my brother-in-law. Following this climb we will be walking the West Highland Way from North to South. This is the contraflow direction and includes much more uphill climbs than doing it the traditional South to North way which we did in 2009. It is over 95 miles and completed in 6 days and camping out means we will be carrying about 20Kg of backpack and tent for all this route. Ultimately by the end of October I would like to reach a 10st 7lb (66.7Kgs) which would in theory give me a BMI (body mass index) of 24.5 which is on the upper limit of the acceptable "healthy" limits for BMI. With a long term goal of getting to 10st (63.5Kg) which would give a BMI of 23.3 which is more acceptable. 

 

What is BMI  

BMI stands for body mass index which is a formula which relates Body Weight to Height This enables people to determine whether they are at a weight which is healthy for them.

 

The generally accepted range is:

Under 18.5*	Underweight
18.5* - 25	Healthy Weight
25 - 30	Overweight
30 - 40	Obese
Over 40	Severely obese

 

To calculate your own BMI  you can do so at this website:

http://www.weightlossresources.co.uk/body_weight/healthy_weight/bmi_calculator-new.htm

 

Other Calculations for a Healthy Lifestyle Index  There are other indicators which give so idea of how "fit" we are. For example we have the Body Fat % calculation which attempts to determine the percentage of our body weight which is FAT. Not all fat is unhealthy. We need some fat to just exist and offer protection to vital internal organs (visceral fat) so trying to achieve an unrealistically low body fat percentage, on a long term strategy, is just not healthy.

 

Where we accumulate excess fat is the key to understanding the harmfull effects of being "overweight". We tend to gain fat ( in males this is) around the belly, chest and neck areas.

Several calculations have been devised to measure the ratio of these regions as a way of showing the Body Fat % in an easy to understand way.

 

The most common meaurement is waist to hips ratio for women or waste to height ratio in men.   

You can get all these calculations and additional information at this website:

 

http://www.scientificpsychic.com/fitness/diet.html

 

in my case the calculations look like this:

Body Mass Index:	26.2  kg/m2
Waist-to-Height ratio:	0.54
Percent Body Fat:	20.6%
Lean Body Mass:	124.7 lb

 

Losing weight, safely Of course we all want a "miracle diet" that will quickly shed these excess pounds in the quickest time frame. Sadly the body has a remarkable defense mechanism when it comes to the reduction of food intake. To maintain a healthy body, at the same time as reducing weight is a desireable goal. To this end our diet has to still include the correct ratio of essential fats, carbohydrates and proteins as well as the vitamins and minerals. It is generally accepted that 1lb of fat is the equivalent of 3500 calories. Thus to achieve a 1lb a week weight loss we have to have a calorie deficit of 3500, or 500 calories per day. 1lb a week is also the generally suggested safe weight to lose if you intend to be able to maintain the weight after you have achieved your goal weight.

To determine your particular daily calorie need you need to know your Base Metabolic Rate BMR  This can be calculated by using the following web site:

 

http://www.bmi-calculator.net/bmr-calculator/

 

in my case this turns out to be 1498. For moderatly active people the daily calorie need is the BMR multiplied by 1.5.Sendentary, or people with a low level of activity should mulltiply by 1.3.

 In my case this is 2247 calories. In order to loose that 1lb a week goal I need to reduce this by 500 calories giving me a daily allowance of about 1750 calories.

 

 

  Gimmicks? to keep me focused I really do have a real motivational problem sticking to diets and exercise. The only thing that helps me get on the exercise bike is trying to see if I can find a scientific relationship between energy expended at different resistances to calories burned and how long I can pedal before collapsing! To this end I have bought myself the Polar 360x heart rate monitor and the docking pod to download all the stats from the watch to my PC ( or more specifically my page on the Polarfitness website) The watch also has a GPS device which can be attached to my belt or rucksack so I can now accurately determine the distances covered, the pace and the levels of intensity of the training by seeing the time spent in each of the 5 heart rate zones. It gives a good indication of aerobic versus anaerobic exercise levels. It is important to stay aerobic for exercising to increase stamina. Going into the highest heart rate zone and anaerobic forces the muscles to produce lactic acid far quicker than the body can metabolise it and you find that you tire much quicker. So with this new "toy" I am plotting my exercise and walks to keep within the suggested target zones.

 

I have also subscribed to a free website called http://www.myfitnesspal.com/ which has an iphone/ipod applet to log daily exercise and food consumed. It has a database of over 1.7 million foods and being added too on a daily basis. It even supports barcode scanning to simplify the data input. Once you enter your basic statistics on the site it then gives you a complete breakdown of your daily calorie requirement and the suggested carbohydrate, fat and protein percentages to aim for. The site also gives you lots of progress results in the forms of bar charts and pie charts. There are user blogs and forums together with lots of help and information regarding diets and healthier lifestyle

 

So far I have religiously filled in each mealtime, daily exercise and treats. I like it when it suggests that "if I carry one the way I am doing I will reach my goal by 30 September" We will see! 

 

 

 Visceral fat and why it's BAD

 

As we age it is not uncommon to fall into the category of "middle age spread",and  we might have accepted these changes as an inevitable fact of aging. But we’ve now been put on notice that as our waistlines grow, so do our health risks. Abdominal, or visceral, fat is of particular concern because it’s a key player in a variety of health problems — much more so than subcutaneous fat, the kind you can grasp with your hand. Visceral fat, on the other hand, lies out of reach, deep within the abdominal cavity, where it pads the spaces between our abdominal organs.

Visceral fat has been linked to metabolic disturbances and increased risk for cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.

Fat accumulated in the lower body (the pear shape) is subcutaneous, while fat in the abdominal area (the apple shape) is largely visceral. Where fat ends up is influenced by several factors, including heredity and hormones. As the evidence against abdominal fat mounts, researchers and clinicians are trying to measure it, correlate it with health risks, and monitor changes that occur with age and overall weight gain or loss. .

The good news is that visceral fat yields fairly easily to exercise and diet, with benefits ranging from lower blood pressure to more favorable cholesterol levels. Subcutaneous fat located at the waist — the pinchable stuff — can be frustratingly difficult to budge, but in normal-weight people, it’s generally not considered as much of a health threat as visceral fat is.

Research suggests that fat cells — particularly abdominal fat cells — are biologically active. It’s appropriate to think of fat as an endocrine organ or gland, producing hormones and other substances that can profoundly affect our health. Although scientists are still deciphering the roles of individual hormones, it’s becoming clear that excess body fat, especially abdominal fat, disrupts the normal balance and functioning of these hormones.

So what can we do about tubby tummies? A lot, it turns out. The starting point for bringing weight under control, in general, and combating abdominal fat, in particular, is regular moderate-intensity physical activity — at least 30 minutes per day (and perhaps up to 60 minutes per day) to control weight. Strength training (exercising with weights) may also help fight abdominal fat. Spot exercising, such as doing sit-ups, can tighten abdominal muscles, but it won’t get at visceral fat.

Diet is also important. Pay attention to portion size, and emphasize complex carbohydrates (fruits, vegetables, and whole grains) and lean protein over simple carbohydrates such as white bread, refined-grain pasta, and sugary drinks. Replacing saturated fats and trans fats with polyunsaturated fats can also help.