Overseas again - In Jogjakarta

I’m in Jogjakarta now. I’ve never imagined that I would say this… but I’m kinda disappointed that my hotel doesn’t have a gym… LOL! This has NEVER been a requirement for me when choosing hotels but now it seems that I’m actually looking out for it.

I think I am mildly addicted to the adrenaline of exercising. Although I couldn’t find a gym, I actually took the effort to do a brisk walk for about 30mins around the hotel grounds. I’m only here for 4 days but I certainly don’t want to go back to Singapore to find that my weight has remained the same or worse still.. increased! It’s the Christmas season so it’s kinda scary coz there’s a tendency to overeat. I’ve already given in a little to temptation today. Although I’d fought off the temptation to have a nice plate of FRIED RICE, I ended up giving in to the dessert which I thought I had to try. It was an awfully sinful banana with chocolate syrup in the middle and topped off with some grated cheese and condensed milk. Yes, I felt awful eating it, but how could I give up trying s local specialty..

I’m off to visit Borobudur tomorrow and I’m told that it will be a bit of a climb. I hope to hit about 15000 steps tomorrow so that I won’t have to go to a gym in another hotel. I’m actually toying with taking a 15min taxi ride to a nearby hotel and paying about 30,000 rupiahs (abt 5 singapore dollars) to use the gym. Let’s see how things go tomorrow.

Ellipticals & Treadmills

I was introduced to the Elliptical Machine and the Treadmill on Thursday. I've been on any of those so it was quite an interesting new experience.

The Elliptical Machine was pretty tiring. I only went about 15mins on it and my knees were starting to feel wobbly. The Treadmill was a slightly more interesting experience. I was on it for about 20mins, walking at about 4.5kph and when I stopped, my feet felt like it was floating! I don't think I was lightheaded, but it was a strange sensation of weightlessness.

I did kinda enjoy the two machines coz I am better able to know my speed and duration as well as the approximate number of calories burnt. The only problem is that it can get kinda dull walking 20+mins on a treadmill. I'm gonna think about how to keep myself occupied. Maybe I can finally make use of my portable DVD player. The PSP screen is a little small...

The next machine I am thinking of trying out will be the rowing machine. But that's a story/adventure for another time. :)

13 kg in 8 weeks!

Yepz... i'm pretty psyched. Went to see my doctor today and I've lost about 13kg since I joined the programme. It's been exactly 2 months since I joined the programme so that makes it about 1.5kg lost per week. I started off weighing about 147kg and today, it's about 134. Frankly, I'm quite pleased with my progress. I've definitely begun feeling the weight loss. My pants are now getting pretty loose and I'm beginning to be able to wear some of my used-to-be-tight shirts.

Of course, the concern now is whether I can keep this up. I must admit to feeling somewhat satisfied although I know I am far from my ideal weight. Personally, I would love to go from a triple digit to a double digit weight. I think I really need to remind myself to take it one step at a time. My goal for now is to go below 130kg.

As far as exercise is concerned, I've been trying to up my walking and I've also taken up swimming as well as some simple arm exercises to build up my biceps and triceps. I cannot believe how weak they are. Not surprising I guess, considering that I have done zero exercises on them for the past dunno-how-many years.

Anyway, here's a record of my walking for the last few days:

11 Dec - 15720 (33mins)
12 Dec - 13547 (26mins)
13 Dec - 14903 (33mins)
14 Dec - 6751 (forgot to bring stepmeter out) (50mins)
15 Dec - 13697 (41mins)
16 Dec - 15607 (46mins)

Time in brackets show the time I took on my brisk walking.

On top of that, I've managed to clock in some swimming time.

11 Dec - Swimming (20 laps/37mins)
16 Dec - Swimming (20 laps/40mins)

I'm gonna be meeting up with the sports therapist for the first time on thursday so I'm looking forward to doing some other different exercises.

13kg gone. \O/

Back in Singapore again.. not too proud of Vietnam

I'm back after about 8 days in Vietnam. I hate to say it, but as far as exercising & food control went, Vietnam didn't fare too well. I think the problem was that most sights in Ho Chi Minh City were accessible only by bus so walking was fairly minimal. Add to that, the traffic conditions in HCMC are really not pedestrian friendly. Anyone who has been to HCMC can attest to it. Not only are the roads/crossings almost non-existent, the air quality doesn't really inspire anyone to venture into the streets for a healthy walk. Add to that, there was quite a bit of food to be had in Vietnam and I confess I gave in and tried some of the special local desserts like the coconut ice cream in a fresh coconut. It was one big SINFUL indulgence. I think it's the first ice cream I've had in months.

So the point is, I weighed myself when I got back and I 'm sad to say there wasn't much difference from the 137kg when I came back from Japan.

4 Dec - 7785
5 Dec - 7086
6 Dec - 13926
7 Dec - 1523
8 Dec - 7282
9 Dec - 13187
10 Dec - 15857

Actually, 7 Dec was much much higher than 1523 steps. I think it would probably be closer to 10000. Simple reason was I forgot to bring my stepmeter with me when I went out. :P

Since I'm back in Singapore, I decided to continue with my daily exercise instead of the incidental walking when I was on tour. I was pretty happy with myself that I finally succeded in going for my first exercise swim in many years. While the swim was fairly tiring, I found that my heartrate after the laps were not very high. But I was pretty tired out. Not sure how to understand that result. If I went any faster, I don't think I would have been able to complete 20 laps. So anyway, as far as serious exercise timing went, I've done two days since I returned:

9 Dec
Activity: Swimming (20 laps)
Duration: 37min
Heart Rate after: Not too sure... but seemed pretty normal
Step Count for the day: 13187 steps

10 Dec
Activity: Brisk Walk
Duration: 33min
Heart Rate after: 128 bpm
Step Count for the day: 15857 steps

I was quite surprised with a few things:
(1) I was not really as winded as I normally felt after my walks before my long period overseas. In fact, I felt surprisingly 'fitter.
(2) When I put on my work pants after this past 6 weeks away, I was surprised to find that they were pretty loose! I think I might have dropped at least an inch or two!

It's quite encouraging to see these changes. Now, the question is whether I can keep it up and not get too happy. I'm still a loooooooooooooong way off from my target but I must admit it's starting to feel good (and look a little better too!).

From Japan to Singapore to Vietnam

I've left Japan and I'm now in Vietnam.

Step count has been decent except for 29 and 30 Nov when I had returned to Singapore. Was really too tired out to walk and just wanted to sleep. I had to also pack for my Vietnam trip.

24 Nov - ??
25 Nov - 13781
26 Nov - 16313
27 Nov - 10541
28 Nov - 19872
29 Nov - 6481
30 Nov - 6804
1 Dec - 15498

I weighed myself back in Singapore and I was tremendously proud that I'd acheived my goal for the Japan trip.. My weight went below the 140kg mark to about 137kg! I'm pretty pleased with myself. However, on my first day in Vietnam, I hate to say it but I think I've been pigging out on the three meals. Starting from tomorrow, I will reign myself in and go back to more nominal meals. No way I'm gonna waste all the hard work I'd put in while I was in Japan! Vietnam's food is delicious but I guess I have to remind myself of my goal!