Any tips welcomed!

[Who_took_my_name]

So, long story short I started the year really well and lost 12lbs from beginning of Jan to late Mar, using running and my fitness pal. Since I've been back from a holiday I've struggled to get back into it. I was going running 3 or 4 times a week and seeing big improvements - taking my per km splits down by other 20 seconds on a 5k run. Since the holiday I've barely run at all and not got back into the swing of things.

 

I want to get back into the running and add in some weights (I have a small bench and bar and Dumbbells at home) plus ensure I'm eating more healthily but can't quite get the motivation going!

 

Also, with diet does anybody have any alternatives for bread? I'm a fussy eater in that I don't like salad so tend to just take a sandwich and low fat yogurt to work for lunch. Is bread a problem in a diet to lose weight?

[RecentChange]

Just do it

 

For me, and many people - it just takes settling into a routine to keep exercising. I find, after MAKING myself stick to a schedule (for me right now its running 5-6 days a week) - and after a week or two, its as if I crave it. I HAVE to go out for my daily run, otherwise I feel antsy.

 

Also - focus on how good you feel post exercise.... Just yesterday I was talking with the DH, how I was happy to be running again (had a knee on lay up), but how each day goes like this:

 

I start out - eh, this sucks, I don't like this much.

 

Getting close to mid way point - maybe I will just turn around here today... no no, you made it to pier 39 yesterday, it wasn't bad, just do it.....

 

Get to my mid way - hey, I feel pretty good, see that wasn't that bad - hardly even breathing....

 

Heading back - see, not bad at all, I was being silly.

 

Back to the office - Ahhh see! I feel great!

So

relaxed now.

 

As for bread.... bread itself isn't a big problem - but here are some things to consider. A sandwich roll can have 300 calories (thats running a few miles!) while the turkey in the sandwich has just 150 or so calories.

 

For ME - processed carbs like this digest fast, and leave me quite hungry, plus, its a fair amount of calories. Also, not all bread is equal, some have more or less sugar, more or less fiber etc.

 

Personally, I skip the bread, and usually have a protein and an apple for lunch (actually I eat the apple before my run - then have the rest of my lunch after).

 

Also - take a hard look at the low fat yogurt. Many are PACKED with sugar. Choose a high protein greek yogurt that is lower in sugar (or get plain, and add a little honey and fresh berries!). The fat in yogurt isn't all bad - it will help you feel satisfied and is "slow burning" unlike the sugar.

[saturn333]

Well done on what you achieved ? A short break isn't bad so don't worry too much about it. Just try to commit to a schedule, and after the first few you'll be sailing again (the feeling you get after you complete exercise you tried to talk yourself out of is amazing). Keep it fun, and remember even if you don't feel like going for a run/gym/typical exercise, a nice walk is better than nothing

[saturn333]

In terms of bread, if you want alternatives you can use:

 

Lettuce, collard leaves or soft corn tortillas if you're making wraps/sandwiches

Gluten free flatbreads (either buy or make your own)

You can bake sugar free muffins and cupcakes

[T-16bullseyeWompRat]

The best thing I did was find something I love that is also exercise. I got a gym membership and actually never even set foot in the place. My wife convinced me that if I pay for it, it would make me want to go. Didn't happen. I don't want to work out. I really have gym anxiety or something cause I couldn't bring myself to ever walk into that place.

 

But I love the outdoors. So I took up backpacking. I can go every month now, and it cost very little once I had my gear. I lost 5 pounds on my first trip. I'm not overweight at all, but was out of shape and could stand to lose 10 lbs or so. But it's more about staying fit. Hiking 20+ miles in two days with a 30lbs pack on your back will definitely whip your butt into shape! Plus as an added bonus I get to enjoy beautiful scenery and wildlife and the outdoors. And you get to get away from the stresses of daily life. Somewhere outside of cell phone service, you are forced to just get the hell away from it all. So therapeutic! Find some passion of yours and turn it into your workout routine. And for some, that is the gym. Or it could be sports, or dance, or rowing.... could be a number of different things.

 

That's what it took for me anyway. Use my passion to stay fit, instead of trying to force myself to do something I don't really want to do. You can eat whatever you want on the trail btw. You are burning so many calories, you can eat snickers all day and still burn more than you are taking in. Can't beat that!