So firstly, apologies for my absence.
Just before Christmas I ended up catching COVID, I didn’t really tell anyone about it except the people I had to. I didn’t really want to make a big song and dance about it. Everyone has either had it or will have it at some point. I do have some ongoing issues, which is why I currently sympathise with everyone suffering with long COVID.
But it’s a new year, and I’ve been wanting to jump on and talk to you all.
I’m a little late for this this, but the new year is when people make resolutions. The most popular of which normally has something to do with weight loss. What I’m not late for is that around this time of the month, some people start to lose their motivation. That thing that original drives them seems to disappear and they start falling back into bad habits and old routine.
It’s understandable though, weight loss it hard. Healthy food can be boring, especially if you lack inspiration and only know a handful of recipes and we don’t always find the time to workout. Maybe you don’t want to get up at 5am and hit the gym before work, and after work well, you’re just too tired.
However, the lifestyle will be hard to maintain if you’ve designed it that way.
There are so many “diets” (I prefer lifestyle choices because diet sounds taboo) to choose from and the key is finding the one that works for you.
The mistake is choosing a diet because maybe it’s been recommended by a friend or social media and you’ve jumped on board and it’s just not the right one for you.
Personally, if I was to suggest anything, it would be: Do your research and experiment. You don’t have to pick one out the hat and stick to your choice. If you’re a few weeks in and find it impossible to stick with, try again. Don’t give up, just try something new. Maybe that particular diet just wasn’t the right choice.
Personally, I have tried many diets over the years and it wasn’t until this year I found the one that seems to be working for me.
The lifestyle that found me was Intermitted Fasting. This is something I’ve dismissed in the past, mostly because 1) I thought it was some new diet fad and 2) the idea of restricting my eating time sounded like torture.
However, around December time I did find myself googling it, out of curiosity and then I threw it to the side. Naturally my phone decided to then take my search history and tailor my ads and an app subscriptions popped up on my Instagram feed.
Generally I dismiss these ads, every now and then I have bought the odd product. They do get me sometimes but the last couple have been awful and I swore them off. But this ad was particularly convincing and found myself researching this app.
I dismissed it again — but couldn’t stop thinking about it. So brought it up with my mum, and eventually bought the app and committed. What it came down to was either the app will be great and it will be £39.99 (for the year) well spent or it will be awful and I’m out £40.
My mum basically said: “That’s less than a yearly gym subscription” and I was like “point taken.”
So far, my experience has been very positive. They have hundreds of recipes to try, and I’ve been digging into some amazing food and meal prepping like a boss. It tracks your meals, calories, vitamins and nutrients, water intake, weight, measurements, mood. There are articles and tip guides. You can set up notifications to keep you motivated. It’s a really well rounded app. AND I’m losing weight. I’ve lost 1.1kg in 2 weeks. This may not sounds like a lot to people, but with MC4r, I’m normally lucky if I lose that in a month with normally diet and exercise (and then hope I don’t put it back on the next month and have to start all over again). I do also exercise, three times a week with a PT and 10-15 minutes workouts before work on the none session days.
One thing you may have noticed, I’ve not named the app. That’s because I don’t want this to turn into an ad. That’s not what this is. I’m simply saying, sometimes it can take a while to find what works for you. Don’t give up at the first hurdle.
Try new things. Don’t be afraid to experiment. The right lifestyle for you is out there but you won’t find it, if you’re committing to the wrong one.
Sometimes people talk like food as a relationship. What do you do if you’re in a relationship with the wrong person? You break up with them.
So, you’ve committed to the wrong diet: What do you do?
MC4r and ME 