Goals and Setbacks, and the Future

It is important to set a Goal, but more important is to set interim Goals: this helps when there are set backs in your regime; this happened to me this past November;

In September I began walking again, after a long hot, humid summer; my son-in-law Paul works as a contract employee, as an IT consultant, and his latest contract had ended without another to take it's place; rather unusual in his experience, and indicative of the economic uncertainty we are all facing; so we began walking the dog, from 1 am to 2:45, on a regular route, but on occasions when Paul was off on interviews, I would vary the walk, and take longer; but as we walked I built up stamina, though I didn't loose weight, and the time at best was whittled down to 1 1/4 hours; at the same time I was also varying the weight I was carrying; it is a known fact that heavy people loose weight faster than people who weigh less; this is due to the work needed to carry the weight increasing the use of excess calories / fat; so I began at a comfortable 14 lbs and worked up to 30 lbs withing 5 weeks; this had the added benefit of putting stress on my legs and building up the stamina; however what I didn't realize, was that it was also putting a strain on the knees; and the good knee at that;

and that is where the setback has occurred; on November 4 after over 2 months of walking practically every day, in all weathers, I was taking out some compost to the bin, and when stepping off the driveway, onto the grass, and twisted the left knee; this it was a sprain, not a major break or muscle damage, so I set about dealing with it independent of the medical profession; I had noticed before this, that the knee was giving me some pain, arthritic I am suspecting, so it was did not come as a complete surprise; Rest, for 3 weeks and gentle usage for a week, and by the end of the month I was feeling at 90% with the odd ache; strength wise it is now even with the right leg for getting up the stairs; not perfect, but it brings me to the next step in my progress;

The Mini-Gym; this I have been working on for 11 months now, a bit at a time as I can find money and space; it sits in a corner of the kitchen and I do have a few pictures, incidental, not intentional, of it, as a by-product of taking pictures of other stuff; this January, I am hoping to have the funds to get it at a early stage of usability; with a 75% stage of usability by the end of Winter, March 28th; with first stage dealing with the leg, and progressing through to upper body and stomach; as I get different apparatus, I will photograph and post the progress, with explanations;

Some of these posts will be ongoing developments, as time and events warrant, which I will update and bump to the top of the list as I go along; so for now will end this one and get on with Chrimbo ;-) Cheers

BMI, WHR, or WHtR

Since the advent of the use of Body Fat Measurement Index, Waist to Hip and Waist to Hight Ratio have been utilized;

from my reading BMI was only intended as a statistical tool in large numbers of people, not for specific diagnostic treatments; as well, it is not a very good indicator if the person is active physically as in athletics and weight training, as the muscle mass masquerades as body fat;
as well, these are the ranges of measurement results:

BMI Weight Status
Below 18.5 Underweight
18.5 -24.9 Normal
25 - 29.9 Overweight
30 & Above Obese

Waist to Hip is useful mostly in women, as their hip to waist displacement is usually greater than in men;

there fore I am sticking with the Waist to Height Ratio as the most sensible one;

however the ratio indicators that they list as being appropriate for individual age groups don't make a lot of sense, so I have decided to stick to a lower ratio number of .5 and a BMI of 25; if I reach an equilibrium between the two I will be happy; that means a waist measurement of between 34-36 and a weight of about 165-67, give or take a few lbs; this would place me at the upper limit for Normal weight on the BMI scale; we'll see how it looks when I get there;

My present height varies between 68 and 69, depending on how active I have been; mornings I am taller than evenings ;-) so I split the difference; 68.5 inches

I am hoping to become more active and exercise oriented over the winter, with the Mini-Gym, and therefore my Muscle Mass (MM) should increase; but of course this will require constant exercise, as stopping will only allow that muscle to return to fat ;(

at present my WHtR is thus;
Waist 40 inches
Height 68.5 inches
Ratio 0.584 or 58.4 %
Goal 0.5 or 50%

BMI uses this formula
BMI = (weight in pounds * 703 ) / (height in inches²)

that's why a BMI Calculator is useful ;-) Google BMI Calculator and there are MANY on line; This one on Fuse.net looks to be a good one: http://home.fuse.net/clymer/bmi/ as it covers all the popular ratio indicators;

For my own Calculations,

the BMI is this:
Weight 192 lbs x 703
Height 68.5 squared
or (192 lbs x 703) / (68.5 x 68.5)
Ratio 0.288 or 28.8 %
Goal 0.25 or 25 %

While it would appear that I have only a short way to go, realistically, I won't enter the safe zones (non obese), until I get down to 175 lbs and about 36 inches, which at the rate I have lost the last 20 lbs (September to December)about 3 1/2 months, with Christmas before me and a long winter indoors, means that at best I can expect to be there by March/April; about time for my first check up, and stress test, which is with the Cardiologist; my GP has me booked for June Physical at which I am hoping to be within range of my goals;

but as I indicated above, the goals are not written in stone; a lot depends on how healthy I feel and look; looking and feeling like a prison camp survivor is not my idea of being healthy and the Doctors will be less than impressed ;)

Progress on the Weight Front

I have been eating with an eye to keeping a limit on the intake by using set bowls for meals; that way, if I have more than one bowl at a meal, I know I have eaten more than a given amount; this keeps me accountable for my intake; and if I do indulge in a pastry or cookie, I balance it with a corresponding decrease in intake elsewhere; this has lead me to drop down to 191 lbs as of today, with the prospect that within the next week before Christmas, I should be below 190;

though I am sure, given the minimal eating I have been doing, Christmas will be a temporary set back; but with a bit of restraint, 2 cookies instead of a dozen ;-) I should be able to keep the damage to a minimum, and recoup those gains as losses in a short time;

one thing that I had noticed in November, which I wasn't ready for, was swelling in my feet and legs; after a week or so I asked Thomas, and he said that it is most likely Toxins leaching out of the fat, into the blood stream and I should increase my water intake, and perhaps go onto Cranberry Juice; well I did the water, and it worked the trick, and for the last 2 - 3 weeks I have been moderately better; not completely, as I don't think that is possible until I reach my ideal weight and the fat is reduced to 1 or 2 %;

My friend Trysha sent me a book by Nigel Lawson, on dieting; it had a chart for BMI, and with some searching and finding another chart on Waist/weight, I have come to the conclusion that I am probably heading for a range between 160 and 168 pounds; with exercise, developing muscle, I should not be as emaciated a figure as that weight would suggest;

The Mini-Gym is coming along slowly; put on hold until after Christmas; I have the supports for the weights ready, and plans for a folding bench with a 15 inch width; various ideas are peculating in my brain for cabling and weights interactions; one being a bar at just below full extension of arms, so that as I bend my knees into a crouch, I have support to help raise myself up; hoping that and a few other ideas will help raise the muscle tone in the thighs;

that is it for now; will post again after Christmas; I might have a surprise or two for this blog ;) cheers