Counting down the days...

...until I stop exercising. I'm on some new medicine, and my doctor told me that it would initially make me tired. I didn't realise how tired, that long drawn out tiredness you feel hour after hour and day after day. It's not just the medicine, it's the exercise making it a lot worse. However, I'm just hanging on, trying to stay calm and keep to my routine. In the supermarket today I had awful cravings to buy some bakery (thankfully I didn't relent and buy them) due to tiredness. I also had difficulty remembering what to buy, surprising since I eat the same thing most days.

I really don't know how long I'll be exercising for, I'd guess from 55 to 75 days. That's exercise most days. I guess I can tolerate that. What will probably happen is that the medicine related tiredness will go away in the next week or two (I've only been on it 4 days so far) and things will get back to normal. Fingers crossed.

On the scale front, things are going great. I weighed in today at 76.6kg. Goal weight is just around the corner, I can see it in the distance.

Lowest weight in 5 years

Five years ago I was my current weight: 77.7kg. Back then, I was trying to lose weight, on and off, not particularly successfully I might add. Studying at university, and looking for a job. Seeing Becky, but not living together. Not yet using the magic of wi-fi broadband, but on dialup. As it happens, I'd just been burgled, which caused quite a bit of stress for me. Guess what else it caused? You guessed right.

As I go back in time, the memories start getting fuzzier. That's great! Yes, the last 5 years have been a waste in terms of trying to lose weight, but I haven't been trying the whole time (as the graph shows!). 18 months ago, at my heaviest, something changed. I had my theory as to what produced successful weight loss. As it happens, that theory was wrong. But hey, I learnt things along the way. I learnt some things about myself.

What I learnt about losing weight was: the most important thing related to successful weight loss is the belief that you'll get there. If you don't have that, the odds are too stacked against you. For the last 5 years, I've always had this belief. Actually, since I first started losing weight, back in 1993 I've had a belief that I could do it. I've been at goal 3 times. I don't know why I have been blessed with this belief. There have been times in the last 5 years when I went to Muffin Break for a coffee and slice 4 times in a week. Yet still, I thought I could do it. Slightly delusional, I accept, but I'm still here. Not yet at goal, but it's within my sights.

What I learnt about myself and losing weight, unfortunately, was that you have to be at least slightly obsessed about losing weight. Exercise every day is difficult. My metabolism has slowed down due to a restricted intake, so if I want to get to goal this year, I need to exercise. I have less time to do things. I get tired due to the exercise. I need an extra sleep due to it often. Yet I carry on. I'm a numbers guy. What do I think of when I close my eyes at night, ready to fall asleep? That's right. My weight. I've done so for the last 610 nights. Every night, without exception. That's obsession, and I truely believe it's required to lose weight. But I'm not there yet.

I'm really pleased about achieving this. Of course, I've got in my sights the next milestone. 3-4 weeks away probably.