Gym checklist

Here is a checklist for the gym

Pack as soon as used

1. Large towel
2. Small towel
3. Underwear
4. Gym socks
5. Gym shorts
6. Gym T-shirt
7. Toiletries bag (shower gel, shampoo, moisturiser, hair putty/wax/gel)
8. Deodorant
9. Earphones
10. Gym pass
11. Watch / Stopwatch
12. Trainers

And pack before going

1. Water bottle
2. Banana / snack bar / etc
3. Plan for the gym session

Weigh-in 1

So over Christmas I've put on 3-4 kg! What was weight slowly creeping up has turned into a rapid sprint so I need to do something urgent; both keeping to my weight watchers points and more important start a exercise regime for the new year.

So weigh-in 1; I'm 90.5 kg (14 stone 3.5 lb) on December 30th 2012, and with a waist of 95 cm (37.4 inches).

My long term target is to get down to 80 kg (12 stone 9 lb). I'm hoping that it won't take me the whole of 2013 to achieve this - but for now the target is 10 kg by the end of 2013. That is a loss of 0.83 kg per month, or 0.2 - 0.3 kg per week. That doesn't sound too difficult - it's less than 1/2 lb per week.

However at the point of doing no exercise and eating too much that doesn't look likely. I've taken the first step by doing some exercise today, the other main focus is on the food and drink I have, so the aim is to keep within my weight watchers points every day for the next week.

Figuring out what's stopping me exercising

I've spent some time today and over Christmas trying to figure out what is stopping me doing exercise. So one of them is not having the right kit, and another is not having the kit prepared (and forgetting something, which is a pain in the arse).

So I went through all my sports gear and chucked what I don't like anymore or doesn't fit me, and that left me with sports gear for running, gym, cycling and swimming. I've done out a drawer for the stuff and kept them separated in the drawer. This has made me feel much better about doing exercise, at least I'll like what I'm wearing and so will feel better doing it.

It has also given me a list of sports gear that I want to buy, as I am running low on running tops, gym shorts, cycling shorts, etc. So I will arrange a shopping expedition sometime soon to get all those items, including a new heavy duty bicycle pump to stop me making the excuse that my bicycle tires are flat.

I also prepared my bag for the gym, I thought about this long and hard, and really tried to make sure I had everything in there. Turns out I forgot a small towel for putting down on the equipment, but thankfully I remembered everything else. After I returned from the gym I emptied the bag of things that need cleaning, and refilled it. I now have a bag ready for the gym (minus the water bottle and snack). I might publish my checklist on this blog.

I think it is important for me to have a sports bag prepped to stop me using that excuse for not doing the sport. So I'm going to setup and bag and checklist for running, and also swimming. Because I tend to cycle from home or have changed at home I don't need to do a bag for cycling, but it's certainly worth having a checklist for that also.

After first gym visit

I feel amazing, why is it so easy to forget how great exercising can make you feel. You forget all your worries, and it lifts your mood, and gives you a great deal of energy to enable you tackle all the things you want/need to tackle in your life. Yes exercise is great. Why do I keep forgetting that.

It's so easy not to do it, I kept trying to come up with excuses for not doing it this afternoon, but I managed to commit to doing it, and now I'm really please that I did it. I got the mid-session wobble again, where I feel like that is enough and I want to leave, but instead of leaving I powered through and did a full hour.

The reason for being able to commit to a full hour was that I prepared a plan for what I was going to do for the hour. Basically I split it into 5 minute segments;

5 minutes (05) - Warm up (cross trainer) and stretching
5 minutes (10) - Walk fast
5 minutes (15) - Run between 8 - 11 kph
5 minutes (20) - Walk fast
5 minutes (25) - Rowing
5 minutes (30) - Cross trainer level 1-3
5 minutes (35) - Cross trainer level 3+
5 minutes (40) - Cross trainer level 1-3
5 minutes (45) - Cycling
5 minutes (50) - Cycling - fast
5 minutes (55) - Cycling slow
5 minutes (60) - Cool down (running machine) and stretching

And I made it through it. I'm so proud of myself, and I feel right now that I would like to do it again. I'm intending on doing exercise once per week in January, so this is a candidate for doing each Sat/Sun unless I find other activities to do.

It felt amazing, I should make this my new number one hobby - doing exercise.

First gym visit for 2 months

I've gotten up the courage - after scheduling 3 hours to plan exercise, to go to the gym. I'm thinking of all ways to avoid going. I'm telling myself my grand plan to do exercise 4 times during January means I should leave it until January.

However I've packed my bag and I'm all set. I think I've remembered everything. So I'm going, I'm actually going to go the gym for the first time in 2 months. I feel fat, unfit, and look like I've put on a few pounds. Everything is telling me not to go, but I know that it is the right thing to do, I'd planned to do exercise planning until 16.00 so I've got a big window in my calendar. It's just coming up to 14.00. So I'm going to go.

In the interests in making it through 1 hour of gym I have done myself a little plan which I intend to follow that schedules the exercise into 5 minute chunks, lets see if I achieve it, wish me luck!