The Evolution of a Fat Kid

Managing My Genetics and My Mind

As most of you know, I was a fat kid. Large-orama. And there have been times when I was a fat adult too. Being lean has never been my default setting or my natural state, so staying in shape has been an on-going challenge for me over the years. For the most part, these days I have it sorted. Which is not to say, you’ll never see me licking the window of the local cheesecake shop.

So much cake and so little time.

A Familiar Story

Over the years, I’ve been told by many people that they connect with my health and fitness philosophy because I’m not an elite athlete. Because I’m not a genetic freak. Because I’m not a walking six-pack. And because, on some level, they see a similarity between their story and mine.   

So, what does the ex-fat kid turned Exercise-Scientist typically eat and how does he train and manage his body these days? And why on earth is he talking in the third person?

Idiot.

What Do I Do?

I am constantly being asked about my own training, diet and personal approach to fitness and health. Not the theory, not the plan or the idea but the literal, practical reality of how I eat, how I exercise and how I manage my body day to day. I can tell you up front that it’s not a particularly fascinating or inspirational yarn but for those of you looking to transform your body in some way, you might find the following interesting and maybe even helpful.

Or not.

More than a few people have suggested that I should write an article giving some insight into this aspect of my life, so here it is.

DIET:

Historically, food has been a challenge for me. So, what works for me these days is to be pretty black and white about it all. Less emotion, more system and logic. I wouldn’t suggest this approach for everyone but it works well for me, so that’s what I do. Yes, I still enjoy eating (of course) but I never medicate or reward myself with food. I also don’t eat what I don’t need.  

I typically eat four or five meals each day. Today, it was five. I find that smaller, more frequent meals keep my metabolism ticking along nicely. Also, less-frequent bigger meals tend to make me feel crap. Tired. Lethargic. Almost grumpy. Interestingly, I feel physically and mentally at my sharpest when I’m a little hungry. FYI, I often speak at lunch and dinner functions where I’m offered a meal but I always politely decline because I find that anything bigger than a small snack (especially when it comes to cooked food) slows me down mentally and takes the edge off my energy. I struggle to stay totally switched on when my digestive system is working overtime (and is stealing all that blood and oxygen from my brain).

I’m pretty tuned in to my body so I pay attention and I will eat more or less depending on what I’m doing and how much energy I’m expending on a particular day. I almost never eat take-away food (take-out) and when I do eat at a restaurant, cafe or some kind of business or social function, I always make the best decision for that situation. Unlike times gone by, these days I never overeat. If I’m out and crap food is the only option, I will go hungry and eat something healthy when I get home. If that decision bothers people, I don’t care. I won’t put junk in my body to make somebody else feel okay or to fit in.

Here’s what I put in my gob today:

Breakfast (7.30am): 2 Oat Brits (40 grams), rolled oats (40 grams), unprocessed bran (20 grams), skim milk (250 ml). 1 cup of tea. Yes, I weigh my cereal.

Mid- morning (10.45am): Fruit salad (1 cup).

Lunch (1.45pm): Low-fat ricotta and vegetables in a wrap (toasted). 1 cappuccino (skim).

Mid-afternoon (4.00pm): Plain yoghurt (200 grams), 1 banana. 1 cup of tea.

Dinner (7.15pm): Chicken (breast), vegetables, basmati rice. It was all cooked in a wok without oil and I used a little low-salt soy. It was a moderate size serving – not tiny, not huge. I probably could have eaten two serves – I didn’t. I know that what I want and what I need (in terms of food) are often totally different. Usually, the desire for more food disappears within fifteen minutes or so.

Water: I drank 4.5 litres of water today. I usually drink from a 1.5 litre bottle, so it’s pretty easy to track my consumption.

Not exciting, I know.

While I still love eating and usually look forward to my meals, these days I tend to view food as tasty fuel rather than some kind of drug, solution, reward or motivational tool. That’s what works for me. 

EXERCISE:

Starting Early

I started working out daily at fourteen and, for the most part, I haven’t really stopped. While there were times when I had an unhealthy relationship with exercise (I was somewhat obsessive for a decade or so), in many ways it has saved my life. If I had not embraced exercise when I was young, I am positive I would now be a morbidly obese adult on numerous medications for my numerous obesity-related medical conditions. Either that or I’d be dead.

And Now?

So, fast-forward to 2011 and I still do something to raise a sweat nearly every day. That something could be a gut-busting workout in the gym or it could be a lazy stroll on the beach. These days, I usually do two or three short (15 minutes), hard-ish runs each week. My days of 20km (12 mile) runs are over. For now at least. Retaining muscle mass into your forties (okay, my forties) is something of a challenge, so I keep the longer runs to a minimum mainly for that reason. The short, hard runs give me a good cardio blowout without stripping any muscle or losing any strength.

My Weight Vest

I also do a lot of walking in my weight vest. Most weeks I walk about five days for thirty to sixty minutes carrying ninety pounds. Once or twice a week, I throw some soft sand walking and/or stairs and hills into the mix – which is a killer when your total weight (including the vest) is over three hundred pounds. What I like about using a weight vest is that it’s an easy and practical way to expend a shitload of energy and maintain a reasonable level of fitness. I put on my headphones, walk out the front door and I’m in my happy place. Sure, I look mildly terrifying in my black military-style vest full of metal with my shaved head and sunglasses – and strangely, nobody wants a hug – but it’s a habit that’s good for my head and good for my body. And here’s a little known fact: carrying that much weight around is also a great core workout.

Lifting Heavy Things

I lift weights four or five days each week. Most of my sessions last for around forty to sixty minutes and these days my focus is more on the functional stuff and less on the how-big-can-I-get-for-no-apparent-reason bodybuilding-type stuff. The only muscle group I don’t train specifically in the gym is my calves. They are already stupidly huge and strong. Although, they get a lot of incidental work through the other stuff I do. Along with my normal training, lately I’ve been paying more attention to my weaker body parts, namely, my neck and lower back.

Apart from owning a gym, I also have a substantial home-gym, so the dumbbells are never far away. Lifting weights is my default setting, so it really requires very little discipline or motivation for me to pump iron most days. These days, I’m more about keeping what I’ve got rather than trying to make any massive gains in strength or muscle mass. For a fossil, I’m reasonably strong.

Mr Flexo

Then there’s my flexibility. Or, is it inflexibility? As I’ve said many times on this site, I am the human ceramic tile. It’s fair to say you probably won’t be coming to my Bikram Yoga class any time soon. Because I have a serious attitude and commitment problem when it comes to stretching , I often get one of my staff at the gym to stretch my sorry arse (thanks Nat). Most weeks, I stretch five times for about fifteen seconds minutes each time.

Ish.

FYI, today I completed a 5km (3 mile) walk in my weight vest (with 90lbs) and I trained my upper body (including my weak pissy neck) in the gym for around an hour.

I could go on but I’ll call it quits here. I hope (some of) you found that interesting.

Feel free to ask me any questions or share your thoughts. Keep in mind that I can’t answer personal questions about your body, training or diet but I can talk about this article, I can give generic advice and I can answer general questions (time permitting).

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