February has been a great month. My challenge for the month was to incorporate some form of exercise into every day, and I’ve again largely achieved the goal. Significant exercise has been in the form of going to the Gym, working outside on the hedging in the field, cycling, and a daily morning routine to strengthen the legs for the skiing holiday, coming shortly.
I think I probably failed to do anything on only 2 days of the month, but those incorporated at least some Alexander Technique, so count towards personal well-being.
I also introduced the Paleo Diet into the routine, and have just come to the end of the second week. This has also worked well for me. It would be hard to separate the effects of regular exercise and diet on my physiology, but I do know that last year when I was just doing the gym work I didn’t loose weight overall. At the end of week 2 of the diet, I have lost about 5 pounds, but that’s remained static for about the last 4 days. That might in part be down to the initial water loss accounting for weight, or that I’m now building more muscle given that the gym routine has built in intensity. I’m now back to lifting the same weight as last year, 3 weeks in rather than after 3 months. I’m going to miss the gym work when I’m on holiday, but have a couple of mini challenges lined up to help out there.
Everyone I meet has commented on how well I look or that I appeared to have lost weight, so it all must be having a positive effect. It’s now part of the routine, so should be no problem to keep up through March, although no doubt the lure of a après-ski beer is going to have an effect. January’s challenge of no smoking has also held, although I nearly gave in after curry and beers, only saved by the fact the pub was no longer selling cigars. The following day, I was very glad to have been saved from myself.
For the Paleo watchers out there, I’ve only had two low energy days, both of which have been associated with alcohol consumption and/or lack of sleep. I’ve made no attempt to cut down on alcohol consumption, and interestingly I’ve had a couple of ‘more than usual’ sessions which have left me with absolutely no hangover. The amount consumed would normally have got me in trouble, but vie felt perfect the following day. The low energy days came after 2 successive nights and late bedtimes, and may have been more to do with disruption to the diet also on those preceding days (I.e. Higher carb/fat intake due to partying).
News of the March challenge will follow shortly…
