My Exercise saga

I have been engaging in some form of exercise (jogging, walking, cycling) from 1997. However, I was never really consistent in my exercise.

This changed towards the end of 2004. The trigger was a complete health check up that I underwent. The message was clear, shape up or else… I started out in earnest as soon as I came back to Bangalore in March 2005 to join my new job. I would get on to the exercise cycle for around 15-20 minutes everyday. I did this regularly for 4-5 months. But, due to my work schedule, my diet went totally haywire. I was returning home late and having my dinner at around 10:30 or 11:00 pm, just before I went to sleep. Add to this, the frequent dinners with my team where we would totally freak out on tandoori chicken and the like, the net result was no real change in my fitness or weight through to the end of 2005.

My statistics at the end of 2005:

Weight : 86-87 kg

Clearly, I had to do something. My resolution for 2006 was to lose 10% of my weight and make changes to my lifestyle, both in terms of exercise and also in my diet, so that I can keep my weight at that level.

I’m very happy to report that I achieved most of these goals. I started keeping track of when I exercised. At the end of the year, I found that I had worked out on 237 days out of 365. That’s around 4 days every single week. Actually, if you take out March, where due to an extended holiday and some pressures at work, I barely managed 10 days at the gym, it almost comes down to 5 days a week. My weight now hovers between 78-79 kg. I am easily able to run at around 8 to 9 km/h for 30 minutes without a break. I now run around 23-25 km per week and have been doing that for the past 7-8 weeks. I can feel my fitness levels on the rise, I am able to climb up the 6 floors to my house or at the office without even breaking a sweat. The biggest change is in my mindset. Earlier, I was looking for a way to get out of working out. Nowadays, I feel lousy on days that I don’t do any exercise.

I still haven’t been able to make the changes to my diet as I had hoped. For a brief period in May, I gave up non-vegetarian food. I stuck to that for around 3 months, but then started again, though in moderation. This year, I hope to cut back even on my diet and switch to healthier diet. I want to do this gradually, as I think any sudden change is going to be difficult to maintain.

My goals are also modest. My target is the low 70s (70-72 kg) by the end of 2007. I want to increase my running to 30-35 km a week. Once the weather warms up, I want to run on the road and do a 10-12 km run atleast once a week. My aim is to compete in the half marathon at the Bangalore Marathon in 2007. I also want to participate in the Chennai and Pune half Marathon in 2007.