In the past three months I've lost 16 kilograms in weight, dropped 4 dress sizes and I now measure an average of 20 centimeters less in all of my body measurements. I know you are full of questions. Who cooked my food? How many hours did I spend in a gym? Is this a joke? How much did it cost? Well, this is not a joke. I cooked my own food, didn't need to use the gym and cost me almost nothing. I just made a few changes to my lifestyle, and now I'm a much healthier person.
It was August 2006 that I decided to take the steps towards becoming a better person. In total it has taken me five months before reaching my initial goal, but it has been an incredible journey. My goal to begin with wasn't to lose weight, it was to be fit enough to be healthy and join the police force. There was no point in aiming to lose weight, because that is a goal that doesn't have enough motivation. Rather a challenging goal should be picked such as running a 20km marathon, participating in a triathalon, completing 500 situps, trekking up a mountain, any of which require a high fitness level to attain.
I knew I was overweight, depressed, unhappy and in a place of my life where nothing was going forward. I hated my life, my job and my body. I couldn't even run down the road without stopping and struggling for breath. It was impacting on my relationship with my partner, my family and my friends as well as my goals for achieving my dream job. As soon as I realised that I needed to change my life I snapped into action.
I didn't start my journey like most people would. The first thing that I did was quit my job. I knew that I needed to focus 500% on all areas of my life and I wanted to devote the majority of my time to it. Instead I was poor, had no ideas and not a clue what would be my next step. I took the shortcut and signed up for a two month program at the gym believing my weight was just going to fall off. I worked hard 5-6 days a week, sometimes multiple sessions a day. At first I struggled, but I continued and slowly it became easier. I could run a little further and I could pick up stronger weights, but I wasn't losing weight or dress sizes. At the rate I was moving I knew I would be at the gym for many months before more dramatic changes would happen so I left.
I looked at my diet. For two weeks I cut out all soft drinks, fruit juices, sugar, alcohol, chocolate and hot drinks such as tea and coffee. The first few days were unbearable as my body went through withdrawals and I constantly suffered migraines. After the third day my body was cleansed, and my health returned. Then for my meals I reduced my serving sizes to side plates and increased my vegetable intake. I had always been a healthy eater as my mum was a vegetarian, but I was also a comfort eater and ate three times as much as I needed so I decided to cut back. I increased my water intake to 2 litres daily and limited snacking to specific times and portions. At the end of each week I would review my food diary and learn when I needed to battle cravings. After the initial two weeks I allowed myself one day a week to treat myself with one naughty item such as a piece of chocolate. As each week passed it became easier as my body stopped craving certain foods.
I set up an exercise routine. I would only exercise three days a weeks, and those session would last from 1 hour to 2 hours long. Physically, these sessions were demanding and I would need a few hours to recover. I started early in the morning, and kept to a routine. My sessions were planned by a good friend of the family who happened to be a military fitness instructor. They involved two things... stairs and sand. My main run was running up and down 40 steps, around a carpark, then up and down another 40 steps. Whatever I did, I couldn't stop and had to maintain an equal level whether it had been jogging or sprinting. It was fine to move at my own pace, as long as I kept going. The best workout was running 1 kilometre down a beach in the soft sand, and then crawling up sand dunes. My legs ached, and my shoulders burned, but I was determined that I wasn't going to give up. I didn't want to do it... I needed to do it.
After 2 weeks the weight loss was significantly noticed - not by me, but rather those that were around me. At the end of three months from starting the exercise routine I had officially reached my goal of being fit, and now I'm striving to greater heights to achieve my physical peak. I run an average of 35km a week, and I lose an average of 1 kilogram a week or more. I've passed my physical fitness test for entry into the police academy, and now I'm just waiting to find out if I have passed the remaining medical, psychological and entry exams. Whatever this year has in store for me, one thing is for sure. I'm the fittest, smallest and happiest I have ever been in 15 years and that alone is worth the hard work. I will soon have my dream job, my relationships are better, I'm confident and I attract stares from everyone who passes as my skin and hair glow.
My path to becoming fit has been a struggle, but well worth it. Good luck with yours.
