My current measure of success is weight loss, and exercise performance.

March(ish) last year I went and got measured for a suit for our wedding planned in July. I had managed to keep my summer svelte physique due to doing cyclocross over winter.

The the pandemic hit, and the made to measure suit arrived. No problems keeping the weigh off during summer, but as soon as the night drew in, and lockdown boredom set in, it became the suit of a much thinner gentleman. On occasions that I did get out on my bike, much more than 30 miles was an effort.

So, I'm aiming to get back into that suit, and also have a 105 mile cycle sportive to train for in May (Wedding is July again, but as its been postponed and rescheduled 3 times already, I'm not getting my hopes up on that one!)

Do you find the 2 work together?

Yes, like you, I find they go hand in hand. I run / cycle more to help the calorie burn, thus I get fitter, thus I can run / cycle further more comfortably / thus I loose more weight

How far d you have to go?

About a stone and a half, going by previous experience, but its about getting the right level of fitness / clothes size rather than absolute target weight for me. I'm 6ft, and wear a 32'' waist trouser / Medium size clothes. These are a bit of a tight squeeze on me at the moment, and while I'm well within a safe BMI, 34'' / Large clothes just don't look good on me. I put all my weight on my *kitten*, stomach and, interestingly, chin / cheeks. The rest of me stays really thin so larger clothes just hang off me and make me look like a scruffy tramp, even if the fit better around the waist. I add some weights into the mix, but I am a really slow gainer and aren't looking to bulk up really. Plus, most of the latest research suggest that the fat you put on around your waist is the most dangerous place in terms of health conditions, so that's my main focus. However, my body seems to settle at around 10st 7 - 10st 10 and I can then basically eat normally, as long as I stay off the junk snacks / food, and excess beer - which is where I have been going wrong (thanks lockdown!). I've got two girls, so I want them to see that you don't have to obsess about your diet / weight, and that its about keeping fit and healthy and enjoying life rather than obsessing about what the scales say. I I can get that suit to fit, and be able to complete a 105 miles cycle sportive, I don't really care if my resulting weight is 700 st. I'm probably not explaining myself very well and rambling a bit. So, the suit - its a classic 1960's Italian cut (i.e. very fitted) suit made to measure, so it's not very forgiving. I will need to be bang on 32''

I'll keep everything crossed!

Thanks. I'm desperate to get married before I'm 50, which is in December. I've no idea why, but I am.