Exercise

At the moment I'm on a diet, which seems to be working as well as it could be without doing anything totally drastic, and without doing any exercise. I'm replacing 2 meals a day with a meal replacement shake and a piece of fruit, and eating a nice yummy third meal (usually lunch because I feel it is better to spread the calorie load throughout the day, and I don't want to go through the whole day feeling deprived of tasty food - that would make me overeat when I do get to eat proper food). I'm eating a small healthy snack in the day if I feel the need, but that has only happened twice so far as most of the time I am feeling full. I've also cut down on alcohol consumption and have cut out fizzy drinks altogether.

Dolly at work gave me some brand of meal replacement shake that also comes with tablets that you take half an hour before the shake, supposedly so that you burn more fat/calories. In actuality it seems to be an appetite suppressant so that I feel full after my shakes. Unfortunately the shake itself tastes a bit nasty but it is not inedible and seems to contain a lot better stuff than your average Slimfast kind of shake. Also unfortunately, the shake and pills only seem to be offered as some kind of pyramid home marketing scheme, so when the powder runs out I won't be able to get any more because I'm not signing up to something like that thank you very much! I've bought a couple of different brands of shakey stuff to mix it up a little for now. They taste better, which is a good thing as they'll be the brands I'm using exclusively after Dolly's freebies have gone.

Although I know I've lost at least a couple of pounds, I've done practically no exercise since starting the diet last week, apart from a couple of hours of kayaking at the weekend. I need to start getting back into a daily routine so I can lose weight a little faster, be healthier and more toned and get rid of my aches. I'm going to start doing my long walks in the morning and/or evening again (might even make it a little jog in the morning) and hopefully go kayaking at least once a week. I also intend to throw in some cycling and maybe some badminton or skipping on the aerobic side of things.

On the stretching/toning side of things I've decided to give pilates a go as it seems to offer an all-over body workout which targets the right muscles and also helps with flexibility, coordination, posture and balance - the areas I most need help in! I've bought a big ball and a stretchy thing and a short DVD to start me off - I shall start that tomorrow morning and do it on the days I don't go out for my morning walk.

I'm aiming for 3-4 days a week doing 30 mins of basic, gentle pilates and 4-5 days a week getting in at least 45 solid minutes of aerobic exercise.