Calling all mid-lifers! (With or without a crisis!)

nykdem
nykdem Posts: 119 Member
in Introduce Yourself
I'm going to be 45 on Friday and I finally woke up to myself at the beginning of January! I was 3 stone overweight, eating rubbish and bingeing, smoking 20-30 cigs a day, drinking too much caffeine and hadn't exercised seriously since my late teens. I had used EVERY excuse under the sun not to turn my life around but now had come the time to stop hiding behind all those lame excuses.

I started seriously calorie counting on 4th Jan. I'm on day 9 of no smoking. I've cut right down on my caffeine intake (from 8-10 cups of coffee and 2-4 ltrs of diet coke a day, down to 4 cups of coffee and just 2 glasses of diet coke. I started going to the gym 5 times a week from 4th Jan. And, do you know what? I don't know why I kept putting all these lifestyle changes off for so long .............. I feel GREAT! Hopefully, I'll start looking as good as I feel as time goes on. I know this is a long term mindset change but I can't wait to start seeing real results.

I know that there are lots of people who have their views regarding cardio vs weights, high reps/low weights vs low reps/ high weights, machines vs free weights etc but I have had to devise a plan that I know I will stick to and that will fit in with my role as a Carer for my disabled wife. My regime has been 20 mins of cardio every day followed by 30-45 minutes of either lower body or upper body weights using machines and dumb bells. On Monday 4th Feb it will be one month since going to the gym and I'm joining a new gym that is more catered towards strength lifting and muscle building and I'm going to start either Stronglifts 5x5 or Starting Strength. I just need to read up a bit more on both and make my final decision. Oh, and I need to build up the courage to enter the free weights section!!

I'm looking for friends who are on a similar journey, especially those who are gym novices or who fear the free weights section of the gym so that we can help each other with courage (lol) , help with diet plans, keep each other on track etc Feel free to add me but please include a line or two to introduce yourself. I'm also keen to gain friends who are experienced free weights lifters who can help guide me in the right direction.

Replies

  • farway
    farway Posts: 1,264 Member
    You should watch BBC 2 Horizon tonight, by Dr Michael Mosely, can 3 minutes of intense exercise a week make you fit?

    Dr MM is same bloke who did the 5.2 diet programme
  • nykdem
    nykdem Posts: 119 Member
    You should watch BBC 2 Horizon tonight, by Dr Michael Mosely, can 3 minutes of intense exercise a week make you fit?

    Dr MM is same bloke who did the 5.2 diet programme

    Thanks for that. I shall watch it with interest.

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