Happy International Women’s Day

How to say you don’t understand the concept of International Women’s Day without saying you don’t understand the concept of International Women’s Day? How many examples have you already seen that completely miss the point?

So why do we have a day for women you ask? And in the interest of equality, when’s International Men’s day? Well actually it’s on 19th November, but that’s beside the point. The point is the peak of internet searches asking this question is always International Women’s Day every year, interestingly there isn’t a spike of searches for International Women’s Day on 19th November. M

International Women’s Day is misinterpreted as a bit of a marketing opportunity for businesses, an easy way to look good, a slogan – Happy International Women’s Day, as if it’s Christmas. But it actually has a point to highlight what women have achieved, yes, but also the inequalities that still exist.

On the face of it women in the uk are equal in terms of right, but this is all still pretty new. We’ve had the vote for less than 100 years, it’s been less than 50 years that women have been able to take out a credit card, until the 1970s women were routinely unable to open bank accounts in their own name or get a mortgage.

Even with this so called equality women are routinely paid less than their male counterparts, expected to take on more of the household and family responsibilities alongside work and are less likely to hold senior roles. Despite making up close to half the workforce this is not reflected in most board rooms and in 2013 less than 22% of parliament was women, meaning we are consistently under represented in the decision making process at almost every level. It’s been estimated full equality at the current rate is likely to be some three centuries away.

And though in the UK we are one of the more equal societies, remember this is fragile. This progress is less than a century old and that sort of change can be changed again quite easily. Think about how abortion rights have been eroded in the USA, one of the most powerful countries in the world. Or Afghanistan, where women overnight were stopped from leaving the house alone, wearing what they want or going to school. Away from the UK, there are millions of women who do not have equality or anything close to what we have here.

This is why the day matters and why it shouldn’t be reduced to a slogan or quote or gimmick. It should be a day to ignite uncomfortable conversations, make people think, raise awareness, because for progress to continue to be made we need to know what is needed and why.

Starting again is hard

It’s really hard to start a fitness journey. Getting into good habits and going to the gym for the first time and changing your eating habits is hard. You can be anxious about walking into a class or gym, unsure about how people will react and feel self doubt about whether your doing things right.

What I’m finding out is that starting AGAIN feels even harder and there’s a few reasons for that.

Comparison against what I used to be able to do. Before I gained weight, when I was conditioned to train more often and lift heavier, before my knees made running really hard. Comparing where I am now against where I was pre Covid is demotivating and makes me feel bad about myself.
Other people’s comments. I know I’m starting pretty much from scratch again. Don’t get me wrong, this time I have the knowledge but I know I need to adjust my own expectations of myself. When other people around you refer to what you used to be able to do and judge what your doing now against that it’s hard to not let it get to you. Yes I know my run was slower than it used to be, I don’t need you to point that out in a surprised voice thank you very much! It’s not meant in a bad way and people are just taking an interest but when you feel sensitive about something it’s hard to let things wash over you.
When you first start a fitness journey people can be encouraging, it’s impressive you’ve just done that class or well done for trying that. When you’ve taught classes for years starting a new class as a participant or when you’ve run lots of races in the past signing up for a run doesn’t seem like it should be a good deal so you should just take it in your stride, but it’s actually pretty scary. You want these new achievements to be seen as achievements not in comparison to past achievements.
Wanting to do things differently this time. Some of the things that got me to be as fit as I was were a bit excessive. I was too strict with food and over trained. I want to get fitter but I want to do it in a way that’s kinder to myself. That’s hard though when you know what could work achieve results quicker or you feel like you’re not a disciplined as you used to be.

It’s not all doom and gloom. I’ve found some classes where I can work hard at the level I’m currently at and I feel good for it and there are people out there who will remind you that you are still fit even if it’s not in the same way that you sued to be. I also know that a lot of the above can be ignored and is about how I perceive the situation.

My point is that this is also the case when you start a fitness journey but whereas we acknowledge how hard that can be, we don’t always think about the dips in our long term journeys once we are established in fitness.

Mood

Do you find your mood affects your fitness?

I think this is what I’ve really struggled with this week. I’m definitely a comfort eater, I struggle with binge eating, I’m definitely an emotional eater and I find it harder to commit to exercise when I’m stressed too, so this week I just haven’t done that well.

The difficult thing when that happens it’s putting it in the past and just moving on rather than letting it spiral on any longer. Last night I went and did a step and cycle class and felt so much better for it, and I’m trying to just eat better from today.

Motivation isn’t something you just have, it something you have to build from doing things and building momentum so I really need to start just doing things and rebuilding habits until I start to see results and that will be which fires that feeling of being motivated.

Some weeks are tougher than others

The last couple of weeks have been busy at work so I knew I’d struggle to do loads during this time.

I’ve managed to run a few times though and as soon as I was quieter at work I got myself back to classes and did a step and cycle class on Wednesday. Generally I’ve felt pretty lacking in motivation though so I’ve also skipped workouts I could have got myself to.

I’ve been eating a lot too, I really find the food side so much harder than exercising! I’ve also struggled to regularly stick to healthy habits which is something I need to be more consistent with.

It’s starting to get a bit lighter though now so I’m hoping that will lift my spirits a bit so I can get outside more. Not looking forward to this week much but hoping that I can at least get to the gym and eat a bit better so I can look back on the week and be happy with my progress.

Small Steps

So since my last blog post I’ve been to Malta.

One of my non fitness goals was to travel more so that was my first trip of the year. I stayed in St Paul’s Bay and visited Valletta, the Island of Gozo and the uninhabited Island of Comino. Whilst I was there I ate what I wanted but did do a fair number of steps and I used the hotel gym twice.

So I feel in terms of exercise I’m getting back on track, I can’t run as far or lift as heavy as I used to but I’m feeling goo about the positive habits. I even did my first Park Run of the year this weekend, a 39 minute 5km at Fletcher Moss in Didsbury (first time doing that one and it’s pretty), then I went a did a gym class after that!

I’m a bit gutted because I didn’t manage to get a place on the challenge I wanted at the end of the year but I’m going to keep aiming for it an it might have to be a start of 2025 completion for that.

I’m still struggling with my diet though, I’m eating better since I got back from Malta but still not quite in a calorie deficit. I have about 6 weeks until my next adventure so I need to see if I can sort this before then.

Have you ever considered sitting?

Bloganuary writing prompt

What do you enjoy doing most in your leisure time?

View all responses

So, I came on to write a blog post and saw this question and felt compelled to answer.

Now I’d always say something fitness related here. My hobbies tend to revolve around running, the gym, classes. If I’m not there I’d normally say spending time with people. Whether it’s drinks or food or a walk. Or maybe even travelling, in the last year I’ve really caught the bug.

But do you know what I really value now, time with nothing planned. Those days where you aren’t booked up or working through a huge jobs list. Those days where you can just chill, watch rubbish TV, read, nap, essentially just be.

It’s like there’s a stigma to answering the ‘what are you doing this weekend’ with ‘no plans’. Yes, if every weekends like that you’ll get a bit down, but life is pretty full on so the odd ‘nothing’ day isn’t a bad way of spending your time.

January is almost over

Wow, January is almost done and I’ve not written a blog post this year yet (or even since the start of the December). How have you found January? Have you managed to get started with resolutions for 2024 or has the month just slipped away? In my head I’ve been thinking well we’ve just got started with the year and I’ve loads of time then all of a sudden one month is almost over and I feel like I haven’t really achieved much yet. If I’m fair to myself I have though, but I think to realise that I need to properly reflect on what I have actually done.

My goals this year are:

Lose some weight – ideally 10kg
Regain strength (deadlift 120kg, Hip thrust 200kg, unassisted pull up, press up on toes as basic markers to aim for)
Improve mobility so I don’t become the actual tin man
Get better and more consistent at running – aiming to get closer to a 30 min 5k, 60 min 10k, 2.5 hour half
One (staying secret for now) physical challenge
Grow this blog and business
Travel more
Try new things and tick things off my bucket list

So at the stat of the year I worked out what I needed to do to reach these targets,

I have a rough, subject to change, plan of my strength and running training for the year. Focusing on different aspects of strength training at different points in the year and building up running with my first target being a half in May.
Getting to Park Run consistently.
Stretching weekly.
Attending classes as a participant.
Sticking to a calorie deficit.
Writing blogs regularly.
Plan and book some trips for across the year and look to book things oon my bucket list and other things to do that are new.

January hasn’t been perfect. I have been going to the gym, although I feel like I’m not in a habit with this. I’m starting from scratch – light an getting back into the habit so I can start to rebuild the weight. I have been getting to classes though, I’ve found two I really enjoy- a step class and a strength class that I’ve been pretty consistent with. Running has been harder, the weather (ice and wind) is a challenge and I’ve not made a Park Run yet. I also haven’t really stretch much (mentally I have such a block here as I don’t enjoy it). I’ve also really struggled with my food intake, I’ve over eaten most weeks. So in those terms I’ve made a start with moving more but need to turn my attention to my diet now and just be more sensible because my weight won’t shift without doing this. At the same time I need to remember that I’m never going to be perfect and instead of pressing the f**k it button when I slip I just need to be better than I have been at these things even when it’s not ideal.

As well as trying step, which was new to me (in the past when I’ve tried I’ve never kept up) I’ve started a beginners Sala course and it’s fun! I’ve also got my first trip of the year coming up, I’m off to Malta on Monday for an exploring holiday (and a bit of sun) and I’m umming and ahhhng about where else I want to go. I’m weighing up an epic trip that I think would be amazing but would be scary to do on my own.

How have you done in month one of 2024? I think the thing to remember is that we can’t do everything straight away and as much as I’d like to say oooh I can already see results and like I’ve made loads of progress the fact of the matter is that January is cold and miserable and that makes things harder, so I’m taking January as laying the foundations and February will be where I want to actually feel things starting to take shape.

When do you train?

Are you more of a night or morning person?

When do you prefer training – morning or night time?

I always preferred mornings, I hate waking up but once you up and moving it feels genuinely great to be done before most people’s alarms have gone off. Knowing you don’t still have to train later is nice if your day gets busy and stressful and it gives you a boxer kind of energy (once you get past the first few weeks when you might experience a mid morning slump!).

But getting up is hard and I have to admit that now I don’t have to to teach I struggle so evening sessions happen more often. They are good for clearing the stress from the day and giving you a chance to shake off anything that’s maybe put you in a bad mood. It eats into your evening though so I’m not totally keen. I’m not really a night owl.

I also really like training at lunch time. I’m lucky I have access to a gym in my building at work, so I can pop down, train and get back up to the office in my lunch break. That breaks up the day and gets me away from my desk, although it’s really hard to get it done when you’re having a busy day and it becomes easy to put it off.

When’s your favourite time to train?

Nutrition Pyramid Base

The Energy Balance Equation (Calories in v out) is the one aspect of your diet to master before you look at anything else. It is effectively the base of the pyramid that is your diet.

Calories in v. Calories out: You want these two things to be equal (to maintain your current weight) or for Energy Out to exceed Energy In (to lose weight).

Whether you eat nothing but crisps or nothing but vegetables if you eat more calories than you burn you will gain weight – regardless of what you eat, when you eat it or how you eat it.

Your Objective:

Understand how many calories you should be eating, how to work that out and why that’s important.

To workout how many calories to eat you need to know your TDEE (Total Daily Energy Expenditure). This gives you an idea of roughly how many calories you burn in a day INCLUDING your normal activity… this means that you don’t need to add on exercise calories to this number. That’s important because who has time to work out a different daily calorie expenditure? You want an overall figure you can use every day.

The equation is

M24/F22 X Bodyweight in KG = BMR

e.g.

24 X 90kg = 2160 calories per day.

This is the BMR – Base Metabolic Rate. The absolute minimum calories the body needs to wake up, do nothing all day except for breathe.

To find how many calories you should eat for your activity levels multiply this figure by 1.1/1.2/1.3/1.4

1.1 – lightly active – moderate exercise but sedentary job

1.2 – moderately – active intense exercise but sedentary job

1.3 – Very Active – Moderate exercise and active job

1.4 – Extra Active – intense exercise and active job

e.g.

2160 X 1.3 = 2808 calories per day

Now…If you are here for fat loss you need to get in a calorie deficit by around 10- 20% the sweet spot!

e.g.

2800 calories X 7 = 19,600 calories per week!

80% of this is 15,680 calories per week OR 2,240 calories per day.

If you want to lose weight this is the absolute foundation of doing so. Without this, anything else you do is a bit pointless as the foundations just aren’t there to support it.

Now it’s important to understand here that the figures above are rough numbers. Of course everyone’s bodies and metabolisms are different and this figure isn’t claiming to be exact. It does however provide a guide that you can use and adjust slightly as you go, and for the purposes of the average human provides a pretty good base to start with.

Calories in 1 minute

The Energy Balance Equation = Calories in V Calories Out
You burn a certain amount of calories just existing (Your BMR)
You burn some calories depending on your activity levels through the day
This combined is your Total Daily Energy Expenditure (TDEE)
This is your Calories Out
Everything you eat has a calorific value, everything you eat in a day gives you Calories In.
If Calories In and Calories Out are equal consistently you will maintain your current weight
If Calories In is more than Calories Out consistently (creating a surplus) you will gain weight
If Calories In is less than Calories Out consistently you will lose weight
Calories In being less than Calories out is the definition of a Calories Deficit
Consistently is the key word, one day in surplus or deficit will not make a difference
If you want to lose weight and are not you need to review Calories In
You could keep Calories In the same and look at increasing Calories Out but this may be difficult to do depending on your current activity levels
It may be ideal to look at both reducing Calories In a little and increasing Calories Out a little
Calories are calories regardless of whether they come from fat, carbs or protein. Different amounts of calories make up different foods but when it comes to being in a calorie deficit how those calories are made up is not relevant.
The type of foods you eat will affect how you feel, and some foods have more nutritional benefits than others but until you master consistently hitting the right number of calories a day for you looking at other things is like learning to run before you can walk.