Life Changes. We have decided to move to the coast. Away from our children and grand-children. We got rid of everything and took just the things with us that we could fit in our Jeep and trailer and it included our two Rhodesian Ridgebacks. When you make a change like that, it brings you back to the essential things in life. What do I really need and what is just clutter. Some things just didn’t fit, no matter what I…
Your request has been granted. A BMI loading. When I applied for my last life assurance policy, I received a BMI loading om my premiums. After reducing my weight, I applied for a re-assessment based on my reduced weight and improved health. At the time that I took out the policy I had no choice but to go for the loaded premiums and at least get life cover, but my insurance representative advised me that I can apply for a…
A cold winter’s day of sunshine My weight loss journey changed my life and makes me do things that I never could’ve dreamt of. Recently I told you how I entered my first ever mountain bike race. I showed you the pictures that were taken during the event by professional photographers but somehow it felt so isolated from reality and almost like I’m not telling the full story. I needed to bring you a bit closer to my world and…
So you want to lose weight? I speak to a lot of people who want to lose weight. When it comes to doing something about it their story changes and the excuses start coming. The question is how badly do you want to lose weight and why do you want to lose weight? I can’t answer these questions for you because your reasons are very personal and vary greatly. Some people want to look pretty, while others are in pain…
Safety first. Unfortunately we don’t live in a perfect world and in recent years training outside has become increasingly dangerous, especially in a country like South Africa where I live. Many of the dangers we face in South Africa is a problem in other countries as well, therefore it is always wise to be careful and ensure that you take the necessary precautions to prevent any incidents that can affect your safety. Tips to make your training safer. Train in…
The benefits of a heart-rate monitor. Using a heart-rate monitor brings a whole new dimension to your training. The biggest benefit is that you get a continuous readout that you can use for interval training or pacing. It also tells you when you should back off and it can provide you with early warnings of health related issues. My brother for instance picks up that he’s got the flu coming on and then takes precautionary medicine that prevents the flu…
Interval training. The after burn effect. When you exercise you can do it the traditional way or you can be clever about it. Interval training to burn fat has been proven to be very effective in weight loss programs with an afterburn effect that will burn fat for between 10 and 72 hours after starting the exercise. Calculating your heart rate. The most accurate measure of your Maximum Heart Rate (MHR) is to have a stress test performed by a…
The rules for achieving success. It doesn’t matter what you aim to achieve, there are some simple rules that you must follow. For the purpose of this article, I will use weight-loss and cycling as examples. Choose your goal, plan it and document it. I want to lose 10 kilos, or I want to ride 50 kilometers regularly on a bicycle at an average speed of 21 kilometers/hour. Choose the tools that you need to achieve that goal. To lose…
The sweet smell of success. When we do anything in life, the one thing that drives us to continue and improve is the sweet smell of success. This morning I had feedback from a person that decided that he is motivated enough to start the weight loss journey, and he is starting to show amazing results. Measuring success. The way that we get our motivation boosted is to set some measurements in place where we can see the progress and…
How to use groups for motivation. My definition of a group. My definition of a group in the context of motivation is “A network of people that you build around yourself to help you achieve your goals and objectives through sharing and giving.” There are two kinds of groups – Virtual and physical. Virtual groups are where you don’t physically see the people and may never meet them in real life. Typically these groups live in the social network space….