My daughter was a super keen competitive swimmer - now does it just for exercise and to keep her head in a good place...she has bought some waterproof headphones (ear bud things). She can`t recommend them highly enough - helps her beat the tedium of length after length...
Aye I’ve seen people swimming with them mate. It’s definitely something I’ll consider moving forward but at the moment it’s not tedious gasping for every breath.
Anyone got any suggestions for some easy, staple meals if you don't have loads of time? I've lost almost 4st in the last year (plenty to lose), but I find that when I'm not actively "dieting", I find a routine of steady meals really difficult and end up putting a bit back on before trying to lose it again in an endless cycle.
Really depends what you want mate if it’s just total weight loss I’d really recommend using an app to track your calories like MyFitnessPal because its easy to think I’ve had about such and such and this much of such and such but you might be way off and not count little things that matter. I know when I’m going through a weight loss phase I have to track everything because I love my coffee so I’ll have around 250 calories a day in milk alone from coffee. I work from home so I’m really lucky I don’t have to meal prep as such and I normally cook breakfast and dinner. I eat my bodyweight in chicken for lunches it’s just so simple to make in the air fryer and it means I can continue going about my day. Throw some peri-peri seasoning on and get it in air fryer for 20 mins then wholemeal wrap with some lettuce, tomato, pepper etc. If I decide to have sweet potato fries with it I’ll chuck them in other side of air fryer for the same time and they’re done together. Or a sweet potato mash pack that’s already pre-made and you just microwave it. I’ll have chicken wraps a lot of days just because of how easy they are and they’re good for my macros. Lunches are really easy generally just pick a meat, a carb choice and some salad. Chicken, steak, tuna, salmon then potato, rice, bread or pasta. It does get boring mind but adding some sauces or side salads can help. Had some chicken breast with jasmine rice, pineapple, tomato and peanut butter on the rice today (not for everyone lol but needed fats) for lunch. Normally buy a pack of 5 frying steaks, just the cheaper stuff and I’ll have 3 (250g) for lunch one day with sweet potato mash that’s just straight out of a tub and then I’ll have the other 2 (150g) for breakfast the next day with some scrambled eggs and some siracha or Tabasco. Can’t go wrong with chicken, steak and eggs for protein. Bacon medallions are good too if you fancy a breakfast wrap with some scrambled egg, avocado, spinach etc but that’s a bit posh! And for teas my partner normally knocks something up out of a healthy cookbook she has called a Pinch of Nom so that’s my “enjoyable” food really which has spices, sauces etc but all quite low calorie. And always drink a protein shake a day it’s such an easy way to get protein in, if you’re dieting just add a little bit of water. I tend to have a double shake as I’m not watching my calories at the minute but I also make a “desert” which is cream of rice, frozen berries and then il add some protein powder to a cup and add a tiny bit of water to make it into a thick paste then drizzle that on top so it’s almost like I’m getting a sweet treat without actually getting on. Fair play if anyone lasted long enough to read all of that, sorry it was a bit boring!
I used to swim 3 miles a week in my mid 20's, sometimes I really struggled getting in to a flow, almost 20 lengths sometimes before I was 'in to it' Wish these had have been around then.
I'll join in. I've put weight on again due to poor mental health. I get down, stop exercising, eat crap, drink too much coffee and stay up late randomly surfing the internet. The next day I'm tired, so I'll binge eat crap, drink too much coffee, struggle to get to sleep and so it continues. I was on holiday recently and mainly only had coffee on a morning and the occasional afternoon one. I was more active and didn't snack as much. Been back to work this last week and I've fallen back into old habits I've got stuff like small weights and a kettlebell at home. At the moment, I have to put mats down in the sitting room to exercise and get the equipment out. I get too hot in the house though, plus the dog keeps coming in and jumping on me when I'm on the floor or he launches balls at me, so that puts me off as well. If I shut him out, he sits with his face pressed on the glass door looking sad The garage is full of crap. Mainly junk that needs throwing away and old toys that my bairns have long since outgrown and could be given away. I need to make the effort to clear the clutter out, then make the garage into a home gym as I think I'd be more motivated if the stuff was already there ready for me to use. Need to get the motivation to sort myself out really.
I’m after a decent walking/running machine I think I will get a better quality one second hand what s your thoughts
Thanks for the detailed response. Chicken wraps are actually a pretty solid lunch choice and I could prep them easily to take to work every day.
Trying to lose the tits and belly but struggling with my lower back and hip. Normally get myself up to 10k runs before the issues set in. Planning on going to see someone about it as it's doing my nut in. At present I'm doing about 6 to 9 miles a morning walking the dog at a fairly quick pace.
Snap. My issues is having a dodgy knee off an ACL replacement 16 years ago. I think all those years for overcompensating for the left knee have put too much pressure on my right side.
Save yourself the money on the machine and get yourself a dog. They even pull you along when you're struggling lol
I’m not disciplined on it right now because my work hours and staying away makes it mess but I highly recommend Noom for food and you can add your exercise in there. It provides you with knowledge as well as a way of measuring ins (food) and outs (exercise). If you sign up to join then don’t join you get loads of cheap deals then at you. Something I’m thinking through is biking in on match days. Good weather only. I live in Cullercoats and could ferry shields to shields. Worried about my bike being secure is one of the put offs, but it might not make a massive difference time wise from match day traffic or metros in and out of Newcastle. Any encouragement welcome at this crucial decision making time.
There’s some dedicated folk on here. Fair play to you. My step-dad was a bodybuilder and he used to do the shows, it looked far too much effort, for me. I’ve got mates who are like that and they start to obsess about it and it takes over their life. I don’t care about having a six-pack etc. I just make sure I have a good breakfast and supper, 3 meals in between and train hard at the gym. That does me. I sense most people have to fight off weight. I’m naturally lean, so I have the opposite problem. When my mental health is bad, my appetite goes and I barely eat, the weight drops off and my t-shirts hang down over my shoulders. I hate it and that’s what usually kick starts me to start the cycle of building up all over again. Sometimes I struggle with dedication and consistency at the gym. I get bored, so often I change between going to the gym and going out in the woods with my suspension ropes and find a place to work out there.
The bike thing has come up at the collective meetings. At the moment, there's a bike rack opposite the Hilton hotel. However it's not secure and bikes get stolen during the match as thieves know how long they'll be unattended. I've asked before for some sort of bike cage that could be locked on kickoff and unlocked at the final whistle. I'll push that again this season as I think more people would cycle if there was safe bike storage.
