Hard lessons relearnt, hard lessons to be acted upon…Again…

Moving into my third week of pedalling and weight loss, I recently made a bit of a re discovery. Maybe it was obvious all along and I was too close to it or too stupid to remember: this weight loss pedalling thing isn’t a battle with pedalling/exercise at all, it’s mainly a battle with food.

I can get up at early o’clock and pedal to work after a tiny argument with my inner wimp, no problems at all. But the harder fight is saying to my Gluttony Demon, “No! I won’t have that take out curry!” Or whatever bit of inappropriate grub is on my radar at the time. Sometimes to my shame (again) I lose, and hate myself afterwards, as my restarting this weight loss/pedalling program indicates. I’m under no illusion at all that my fight isn’t anywhere near over in regards to food.

It is really too simplistic to say, “You’re a greedy fat idiot who should know better!” As some people have said to me. Okay, I’m fat and maybe an idiot, but I hope you get my point. I think there’s a difference between being greedy and having a food addiction. I’m not trying to abdicate my responsibility here by the way, just trying via this blog (again) to get some understanding of what makes people like me tick.

I’m certainly not in the business of whinging either and saying, “It’s not my fault, I’m ill” or the classic, “I have a slow metabolism.” This is my problem, caused by me, and I believe that for some as yet unfathomable reason I brought it on myself. As I said, I was the one who got me like this. I am accepting full responsibility for ending up after a successful weight loss of 7 stones to yet again end up at 22 stones. I don’t recall being kidnapped and force fed doughnuts, no really, that never happened!

The big question is why? Can you help me with that one?

I’m a massive believer in prevention rather than cure. At what point did I stop being a normal eater and active person? Could I or someone else have spotted it? If it could have been identified what could have been done?

I’m no health professional so I haven’t got any answers; I’m kind of hoping someone reading this can come up with some useful suggestions. Maybe it’s just too complex a subject and there are as many reasons for ending up morbidly obese as there are meals on a curry house menu? I don’t know.

My answer (maybe not an ideal one) was pretty simple with no magic to it all. Eat less and pedal.

I’ll say that again just in case you’re morbidly obese and didn’t quite grasp the simplicity of it.

Eat less and pedal.

To everyday healthy folk that’s totally obvious. To morbidly obese people (well to me anyway) it’s an abstract concept that sounds good, but is not something do-able. Something for others to try.

Well here’s the thing, it is do-able, very do-able, I was proof and I will be again.

I didn’t have anyone else telling me what to do, advising me on what’s best or even encouraging me at the start. Wifey, God bless her, had seen it all before, and while she certainly didn’t discourage me and was supportive, she quite rightly took this plan with a pinch of salt as it was quite clearly another failure in the offing, like so many of my fitness diet forays before.

The only things I had going for me was the knowledge that pedalling, eating properly and blogging about it for motivation worked last time. Plus, a basic knowledge of diet and training plans from my old sporting/military life and a love of the bike.

Okay, there are obviously details involved with that, but the basic eat less pedal more concept isn’t abstract, it works. If you remove emotion and sit down and plan your week and your meals like I did, then it all becomes much easier when you see it in black and white.

There is so much room for manoeuvre in those four words of “eat less and pedal” that it’s untrue. I believe it really can be adapted to suit anyone. Maybe substitute pedal for exercise, but the bike is my exercise of choice, and in all fairness if you’re reading this you have an interest in the bike. So we’ll stick with bike, eh?

I’ve had a few email conversations with various folk over the years all telling me why they can’t do it but are impressed with what I had achieved before. They can’t do it because they’re still at the stage I was before I started this. At the stage of the wreckage of failed get-fit plans and seeking comfort in food when you fail. I know: been there, done that.

That’s the point at which I can’t help or understand, even having being there myself. I still can’t get why I didn’t act properly sooner or continue my good work!

That’s expert medical professional territory in my opinion. All I can say is you have to want to do it and take the first step yourself. I believe that’s all there is to it. But I do also know that it’s a really hard step to take. For some, quite clearly an impossible step.

Anyway, please feel free to contact me via this blog at if you think I may be of some use in assisting your fat to fit aspirations. This is a team game!

I certainly don’t profess to be the fount of all knowledge, but I’ll certainly be happy to use my past experiences to help you if you think it might be useful.

Happy pedalling!