Soup Glorious Soup

Finding something to eat at lunchtime is always a bit tricky when dieting. When you're hard at work but skimping on the calories, you want to have a meal that satisfies your hunger, will get you through until dinner and not do too much damage to your waistline. A pretty difficult combo.

During the summertime I opt for a light salad but while the weather is cold, grey and miserable, such as today, my preferred option is soup. Firstly, when served hot it takes a while to eat which is always a bonus. Second, you get that warm comforting feeling in your tummy from a hot meal, without the bloating of a big dinner. And finally, it is fairly cheap and easy to do, whether you make your own or buy ready made.

Today I was lazy and went for the latter. My reward was a tin of Newgate Vegetable Soup, bought for not very much from Lidl. It claims on the packaging to be wholesome and tasty. I'm not completely convinced by either of those, but given it has been the best part of 4 hours since I ate and I've not felt hungry since, I can at least say it was effective.

Does not come supplied with Blue-Roll ears in supermarkets

If you are thinking that soup for lunch sounds like a good idea, here are a few pointers to help you along the way.

1. Soup only. Don't be tempted to have a bread roll with it. Yes it would be nice, but lets be honest, if you're dieting bread is not your friend.
2. Check the packaging before you buy. You'll be surprised at how many calories can be packed into a little tin of soup. Avoid the ones that have the word Cream in the title, and also be wary of some of the chunky varieties. My vegetable soup came in at a grand total of 164 calories, which translates as less than two slices of bread for a sandwich. More calorific options may prove counter productive.
3. Never think that a cup a soup will do the job. Water and granules is not lunch. You wouldn't consider instant coffee a meal would you? From a tin or carton will do, unless you've blitzed up your own.

Related articles

• Workplace Temptation

Wednesday Weigh-In - 5 March

Another quiet week for the blog, though this time due to circumstance rather than grand design. The little man was poorly at the end of last week and the earlier part of the weekend meaning I spent a lot of time with him and not a lot with the laptop. Rightly so.

Having had a big loss last week, spending time with an unwell munchkin did not bode particularly well for the waistline. The day and a half I took off work to care for him gave me a green light to feast and I didn't really hold back. Fortunately I gave myself some additional wriggle room last Wednesday night by running for just under 10 miles, my longest training session yet, which helped clear the way for medicinal toast and crisps. With a couple of shorter runs thrown in on Sunday morning and Tuesday night, and more controlled eating since the weekend, I struck a reasonable balance.

The net result of the last 7 days is a 1lb loss taking me down to 13st 12lbs.

I'll sound like a broken record, but this again is the lightest I've been. I see the irony in that being the case as my chair at work starting to disintegrate under my weight this week. It used to support me when I was 10 stone heavier, but the fabric started to pull apart on Monday and I could feel myself sinking into it. When I was a bigger man I used to break things with regularity, particularly toilet seats and wooden furniture (I was the nemesis of Ikea futons). It brought a wry smile to think that in my current size, my chair should start to give up the ghost.

I've got my industry awards to look forward to on Friday. To leave with the award for my category would be nice, though I'm already salivating at the thought of the Bento Box buffet and a couple of celebratory/commiseration drinks. Follow #NUEAwards on Friday from 2pm if you want to see how I get on.

Related articles

• Wednesday Weigh-In - 4 December
• Wednesday Weigh-In - 25 September
• Wednesday Weigh-In 26 June
• Wednesday Weigh-In 18 December
• Wednesday Weigh-In 13 November
• Weigh-In 20 November

Wednesday Weigh-In - 19 February

There was no need for atmospheric music building to a crescendo this morning. I knew the outcome of Wednesday Weigh In long before I jumped onto the scales. For the third straight week there is a gain and whereas there have been no alarm bells ringing out in previous weeks, my attention is now firmly been gripped. A tipping point was reached a couple of days ago, and now I’m consciously moving back into diet mode. There is no point in talking about maintenance if all I’m doing is piling on the pounds.

Not a giant leap for mankind, but an unwelcome upward trajectory

I stopped the rot on Monday night, putting an end to the feasting that has become daily ritual of late. While it was too late to reverse the effects of the preceding days, it felt good to call it quits. It is a very strange feeling knowing that you are hurting yourself with food, but when I’m on a downward spiral, I find it very difficult to stop. Although never formally identified, I tick most of the characteristics of a binge eater. Compulsive overeating is more than just seeking comfort from a box of chocolates or a tub of ice cream. I certainly never got to 24 stone through indulging in just an occasional treat. It is a constant need to eat, whether hungry or not, despite knowing that I don’t need to.

When I find myself rummaging through cupboards grabbing handfuls of breakfast cereal, I know there is a problem. Recognising it as an issue is the first step to addressing the situation. I’ve become adept at dieting through adopting a tight disciplinary approach to what I consume, thus suppressing compulsion. My attitude towards weight maintenance has probably hindered me. I was supposed to be keeping things steady at 14 stone rather than looking for further weightloss. Psychologically I think this was a green light for my defences to drop and with broken sleep thrown into the mix, I cooked up a nice big portion of dieting sabotage.

The good news is I feel I’ve emerged from the slump. Yesterday I didn’t deviate from my three meals, barring a couple of mouthfuls of my eldest son’s leftovers. I rejected biscuit and chocolate overtures from colleagues. I kept my grubby mitts away from the cupboards apart from when there was legitimate reason to do so. I feel like I’ve re-established control and pushing this dieting juggernaut back on track. Even the little man obliged last night giving me a whole night in my own bed for the first time in quite a while.

The last three weeks have seen me gain 4 pounds. I’m making demands of myself to have a loss next week. With good eating habits restored and intentions for some lengthy training runs in the coming days, that is a realistic target.

Related articles

• Wednesday Weigh-In - 5 February
• Wednesday Weigh-In - 24 July

364 Days Later

I’m not quite sure where to begin with this article. Do I chasten myself for buying packs of biscuits at work last week and scoffing the lot? Shall I talk about experiencing 4 seasons in 5k on Saturday morning, when a mix of glorious sunshine, rain, hail and gusty winds made conditions testing for ParkRun? The 6 cans of cider on Saturday night? Going to my mother’s house on Sunday where I consumed fruitcake, chocolate cake, trifle, a huge dinner and biscuits, before setting off for an 8 mile run in the evening? Or how about managing to remove the skin from my heel this morning courtesy of an incident with a wheelie bin?

To be honest, while all of the above could fill a number of blog articles, the only thing I’m really interested in writing about today is reflective of where I was 12 months ago. On this day last year, my wife and I pootled off to hospital unsure of when we’d be home again. Full of nervous energy in anticipation of meeting our little boy and seeing how his surgery would go. The next morning we met him and our journey began. Tomorrow we celebrate his first birthday. In that context, all of my trivial diet/running ramblings are rightly put in their place.

The Kindness of Strangers

Since entering the bloggersphere some time ago, I've been pleasantly surprised by the level of support that exists. For all the talk of social media trolls, and lets be honest the abuse thrown at the likes of Stan Collymore goes beyond the pale, I've found the world of blogging and Twitter to be full of people who want me to do well.

In recent weeks, I've hooked up with a #WobblesWednesday collective of bloggers who are trying to do something about their weight. I love the encouragement that everybody gives to one another, leaving comments on blogs and interacting through twitter. The number of positive messages I receive for my weigh-in articles provide added incentive to do well. Until now I've very much dieted alone; now it feels like I've got a mini-community rooting for my success.

Away from the dieting, I've received kind words in support of my running exploits. Since exchanging tweets relating to parkrun, we've continued to interact, culminating in mutual sponsorship for our forthcoming runs. The fact that somebody I've never met wanted to help with my fundraising efforts is quite incredible. I wish them all the very best as they prepare to tackle the London marathon in April.

While I'm on the subject of sponsorship, I've been touched by the response to date. People who I've not seen for a very long time have shown immense kindness. My great aunt and uncle on my father's side who I have not spoken to for years got wind of my half marathon plans in a Christmas card from my mother, and put a cheque in the post. I've received donations from people connected to my time short time in Swansea some 12 years ago. A guy I knew from school added to the sponsorship pot, saying he found my blog inspiring, and he was trying out my spinach and chorizo salad for lunch. All relative strangers, all incredibly generous.

My blog has even found an unlikely source of support. Author and former Conservative Party MP Louise Mensch took an interest after I responded to some of the posts on her JoyHacks website which explores personal happiness and well being. A few tweets from Louise's account made a noticeable increase in traffic to my blog. I don't necessarily agree with or endorse her often outspoken political views, but we share a lot of common ground on fitness and health. Besides, anybody with close connections to Metallica is alright in my books.

Do read @bigfatrebel blog, http://t.co/TnRpCpxJd3 he left a comment on our latest http://t.co/kVe5amHcKT - showing difference therapy made
— Joyhacks (@joyhacks) January 15, 2014

Of course it not just strangers and people from my past whose support has helped my dieting and fitness kick in recent times. My loved ones, friends and colleagues have all played their part too, not least my wife who has taken charge of the boys on Saturday mornings since July, while I've been improving my performance over the 5k distance. I can't thank everybody individually, but would like to offer a collective Cheers.

Just under 7 weeks to go until I run 13 miles. With the kindness of strangers, as well as the support and love of my nearest and dearest, I've nothing to fear.

Related articles

• Stan Collymore urges Twitter action over racist abuse
• Stan Collymore returns to Twitter and hits out at the Sun
• Twitter's failure to tackle trolls is an insult to the likes of Stan Collymore

Wednesday Weigh-In - 29 January

After a two week hiatus, the weigh-in is back. Technical difficulties with the bathroom scales have been fixed so it is back to business as usual. It turns out the battery was fine, though I did buy some spares just in case. My best guess is some moisture got into the scales causing them to have a paddy. Now they're working again and so on with the show.

Two weeks ago the scales put me at 14st 3lbs. Today we're a little bit lighter.

On the money

Two weeks of Christmas took me up to 14st 11lbs. Four weeks of relative sensibility got me back down to where I was immediately prior to the festive season. 14st dead is the lightest I've been in my adult life and I vowed when I was here before not to actively diet to achieve further weightloss. I stand by that and now 2014 is all about maintenance.

Had the scales been functioning properly last week I think it would have been a very different reading. I'd been under the weather, not exercising and eating noticeably more. While this week I've not been a saint on the food front, I've had easily the most productive week of exercise in months. I've notched up more than 27km in training for the half marathon (17 miles in old change) which more than takes care of the take out last Thursday night and typical weekend snacking. Judging by the scales this morning, it did more than just that too.

As I ramp up my training to the next level, there is pretty realistic expectation of dipping under 14st. That won't be unwelcome, and will be the first time I've hit that territory since I was a child, but I won't get carried away with it. 14st is a healthy weight for my height. My physique is already starting to look a little silly, with skinny bits surrounded by excess skin from my 24st era. I'm never going to have a well chiselled bod, so no point putting myself through the wringer to try to achieve one. Running may help firm up some areas, but in my case it can't revert nature.

So with my Christmas gut dealt with before January is out, now is time to focus more narrowly on the half marathon. Keep on running and my weight will tick along with minimal intervention. That is the theory, let's see if I can put that into practice.

Related articles

• Wednesday Weigh-In 22 January
• Wednesday Weigh-In - 15 January
• Wednesday Weigh-In 8 January
• 2nd January - Let's Do This

Wednesday Weigh-In - 15 January

It appears that I didn't need to leap back in time to make amends for my weekend consumption. I just needed to get off my backside and go for a lengthy run. Last week the scales had me at 14st 4lb. This morning I'm weighing slightly less. Maybe it is time for me to become less hysterical after some bad days and focus instead on the majority of the week when I am a lot more disciplined.

Apparently I should feast on chocolate more often

Of course it could be considered cheating to go for a near 10k run the night before a weigh-in, but then my focus at the moment is more about fitness to ensure I'm ready for the half marathon in March. There will be a lot more midweek runs like this in the next couple of months so it stands to reason that I’ll need to upscale my fuel to ensure I've got the energy to do so. I guess I just need to find that balance of enjoying a little often, rather gorging a lot on occasion.

I expected to feel pretty dreadful today but my body has reacted well to last night’s exertions. A few simple stretches and a good night’s sleep seem to have done wonders. I’ll probably pay for it later on today but it is reassuring to know that not only can I go for longer runs, but that it isn't physically to my detriment.

This morning when I was getting ready for work, I could help but raise a smile when Spotify gave me ‘The Distance’ as the first song on a playlist. Either there is some very clever analytics work going on, or this was a complete coincidence.

With a colleague retiring today, I'm expecting to see quite a lot of cake in front of me. I'll enjoy some of that and will do so guilt free.

Related articles

• Wednesday Weigh-In 8 January

Me vs Statistics

Not surprisingly the start of the year brings about lots of talk about diets. I'm not the only voice evangelising about losing weight as part of a new year health kick. Newspapers have been talking about them, the bloggosphere is full of new year resolutions vowing that this will be the year that weight will be shed. Channel 5 dedicated two hours to a programme the other night in which they tried to debunk myths about dieting which made for very depressing viewing. Everything in that show was so negative that by the end of it I felt like saying 'sod it' and reaching for the Pringles.

Following a suggestion from my old school friend GourmetMum I recently signed up as a member of BritMums. I know, I know, what is a guy doing joining an online community of mums? Well, they take dads as well for a start, plus with no obviously comparable collective of male bloggers, it made sense to join this pre-existing network. In the forum section I posted a link to this site and suggested that if any other members were looking to slim down in 2014, they may want to have a look. My only reply to date read as follows

Not for me. Allegedly only 10% of diets work and most people end up fatter than they started

Hey, thanks for the encouragement! I don't expect everyone to want to sing from my hymnsheet, but really? Even if those statistics are true, that is no reason to buckle under unfavourable odds. Hell, if I made my choices purely on high percentages, I wouldn't have enjoyed the company of my gorgeous little boy this afternoon. (9 out of 10 diagnosed spina bifida pregnancies are aborted in the UK)

I'm not daft enough to think that dieting works for everybody, but then I know not everybody will work hard to make a diet work. It requires motivation, dedication and the ability to resist temptation, traits that served me well last year and I hope will continue to do so in 2014. I've written several times in the course of this blog about my motivation so won't go over old ground in this article. Resisting temptation is probably the most difficult to achieve. I've had my struggles with this at times, but being able to say no is fundamental for achieving weight loss. Just today, my eyes lit up at the mince pies and Christmas cake that was on display at my mother's house. They say the first taste is with they eye; in this instance that was the only taste I had.

As for dedication, this can take many forms. Sticking to your diet plan, abstaining from alcohol, settling for something nutritious on a Friday night rather than opting for take away. I demonstrated my dedication today by ignoring the weather, donning a ridiculous jacket and got my arse running. It would have been so easy to stay put in my warm lounge hearing the rain pounding the outside world, but instead I kept to my plan, ran my 5k and felt all the better for it.

Tango Man sighted near woods - Photo by John Tipping

I didn't lose more than 4 stone in 2013 because of luck. I made my diet work and having done so I'll be damned if I'm going to become just another statistic of someone that allowed themselves to become fatter than before. If the numbers aren't on your side, don't be afraid to the exception, rather than the rule. Somebody has to break the mould, and that somebody might as well be you.

Related articles

• Time for a Dryathlon
• More than half of UK tried to lose weight in 2013, staggering statistics reveal
• Dieting - Lose Weight Healthy
• Things You Should Know Before You Start Your New Year Diet
• New Year, New Me?

Selfie-Evolution

I was somewhat dismayed to read that 'Selfie' has been made Word of 2013 by the wonks at Oxford Dictionaries. Quite apart from the fact that people have been snapping poorly taken photographs of themselves ever since Kodak was first marketed in the late 19th century, surely #YearOfTheDiet has been the most important new addition to the English language over the last 12 months? Well, maybe not!

But just to prove my point, below is a selfie that a younger me took during the summer of 1992, a few days short of my 12th birthday. What information can we glean from this Bailey-esque image? Well, firstly it goes without saying I wasn't the prettiest kid in my class. Double chin and unkept hair were never a good look, nor indeed is the stupid face I've pulled for the camera. The other thing that can be established from this photo is that in my earlier years, I supported The Reds.

I was a hit with the girls. Not!

Like a huge number of children of my age, I was a glory-hunting supporter of Liverpool FC. Before my sadomasochistic tendencies came to the fore and I followed Slough Town through the depths of the non-league, I was a long-distance Kopite. Using money from my 11th birthday, I bought my first ever football jersey, the Liverpool home shirt in distinctive red with white Adidas stripes over the right shoulder. You tend not to see too many of these replicas these days, given they marked the start of the ill-fated Souness era. For some reason though, despite outgrowing the shirt within a couple of years and switching allegiance to my local club, I retained the shirt for nostalgia.

Having spent years gathering dust, I recently found myself reacquainted with that shirt. I did think about flogging it on ebay just as I did with a programme and ticket stub from my one and only Anfield visit (Liverpool lost 1-0 to Norwich, last game before the Kop was redeveloped), but couldn't see there was much demand for a 22 year old well worn replica shirt.

Instead, and for my own personal amusement, I though I would try the shirt on. Now bearing in mind I bought this as an 11 year old, wore it during after school football clubs at primary school and can be seen in the selfie above modelling it just shy of my 12th birthday, I didn't expect to get much more than my head to fit into it. On the contrary, my torso didn't need any help to squeeze in, as the next selfie below shows.

21 and a half years later, and I'm 11 years old again

Even factoring that I was a big child and probably bought a larger shirt than I needed for longevity, it seems crazy to me that I can comfortably wear something that I adorned in my pre-teenage days. When I boast about being in the best shape of my adult life, the claim probably holds true for most of my childhood too. Wonder how much longer before I start trading clothes with my 5 year old?

Related articles

• 'Selfie' beats 'twerk' as Word of the Year 2013
• 'Selfie' is named word of the year
• And the Oxford Dictionaries Word of the Year Is...'Selfie'

I want to be so skinny that I rot from view

On Friday I took a trip to Brighton for a meeting with a professional body that I am a Trustee of. It was the first time I had met with my industry colleagues since our annual conference in May. I turned up to the meeting three stone lighter than when they last saw me and it was nice to receive the compliments that were forthcoming. I've not been dieting to gain public approval, but it never hurts to hear people saying nice things about the way you look.

That said, I've started to notice a slight undercurrent of tension towards my weightloss, though not I should add from my PlaceNet colleagues. Nobody has been outright negative but whereas previously I may have been told that I'm doing amazingly well, more recently comments have been more along the lines of 'you don't have to lose any more.' They are right of course, I don't. It has been 2 months since I passed the target I set for myself at the start of the year, and I have subsequently gone on to lose quite a bit more. But if anybody has concern that I may be taking things a little too far, I'd like to quell those fears.

I do understand that dieting and weightloss can become an obsession. I'd go as far as saying that without a little bit of that, sustained effort would be difficult in the extreme, but I can assure anybody who requires reassurance that I'm very much in control of what I am doing. It was only very recently that I indicated I would not actively diet beyond the end of the year and instead attempt to maintain my weight. Not exactly the forward planning you may expect from somebody developing problems.

Over the past week, I've reacquainted myself with the acclaimed 'The Holy Bible' from Manic Street Preachers. In amongst the very dark lyrics that characterise the entire album, is a harrowing tale of anorexia in the song 4st 7lbs. Here is a taster

Karen says I've reached my target weight

Kate and Emma and Kristin know it's fake

Problem is diets not a big enough word

I wanna be so skinny that I rot from view

I want to walk in the snow

And not leave a footprint

I want to walk in the snow and not soil it's purity 

I choose, my choice, I starve to frenzy
Hunger soon passes and sickness soon tires
Legs bend, stockinged I am twiggy
And I don't mind the horror that surrounds me
Self-worth scatters, self-esteems a bore
I long since moved to a higher plateau
This disciplines so rare so please applaud
Just look at the fat scum who pamper me so

Pretty vivid stuff, but not me. Dieting has been a means to an end. I want to be healthy, happy and fit. If I was putting my body under undue strain, I wouldn't be surviving the sleep deprived nights that my teething, ear infected, snotty but delightful 9 month old has subjected me to over the last fortnight. I wouldn't be getting up on a cold Saturday morning and shaving another second off my personal best for a 5k ParkRun. 

Need further proof? Well, in the last 36 hours, I've had a couple of pints over lunch. Lunch was a hearty lamb hotpot rather than my usual skimpy salad. Last night was take out pizza. Lunch today was bacon sandwiches on crusty bread. Throw in a carvery plus one and half desserts tonight, and the can of beer I've been enjoying while typing away, and I think it is safe to say that I'm not obsessively counting calories! 

If you do know somebody who undergoes a dramatic weight change in a short space of time, by all means ask the question to ensure that they are okay and taking good care of themselves. If that person has been blogging on average every three days, documenting the detail behind their success and in the best shape of their life, you can probably give them the benefit of the doubt. 

Related articles

• Wednesday Weigh-In 13 November
• Guilt Free Lunch
• Cold, wet and far from miserable
• The Fantastic 4
• I would go out tonight but I haven't got a stitch to wear

Weigh-In 20 November

Junior has left me feeling rather weary after a series of night times that have been very patchy on sleep. With that in mind I'll keep this entry short, but sweet. Two pounds lost since last Wednesday, meaning I'm now the lightest I've ever been as an adult, and can probably go back several years into my childhood too.

Like this!

Back in the days before I started blogging, I used to track my weight on a spreadsheet. On 18 November 2009 and for one week only, I got down to 14st 4lbs. Well, fast forward virtually 4 years to the day and I've gone one better. If you can forgive a break from the convention of the Wednesday article, I'm also including a snap of the scales when set to display pounds. For the first time, this starts with a 1, rather than a 2 or even a 3 as I've been accustomed to in the past. Very much like this.

Like this more!

Wild celebrations followed the weigh-in this morning, in the form of a trip to CostCutter where I treated myself to a Nature Valley Crunch oat thing and a bottle of Ribena Light. I certainly know how to rock the diet boat these days.

Hopefully I'll be rewarded with a bit more sleep tonight from Junior. If not, he may find himself being subjected to The Ashes.

Related articles

• Wednesday Weigh-In 13 November
• Wednesday Weigh-In 6 November
• Wednesday Weigh-In 30 October
• Wednesday Weigh-In 23 October
• Wednesday Weigh-In 16 October
• Wednesday Weigh-In 9 October