masterwordsmith-unplugged

On December 3rd, I blogged about "The Reason for My Silence" where I explained how and why I gained 30 pounds since I started blogging. I launched my "I must get back my figure" project on November 5th and by Christmas Eve, I had lost 20 pounds. Between December 24th to December 31st, I regained 3 pounds and by January 20th, I lost 4 pounds and shed another pound by January 24th making it a total loss of 22 pounds.

I am writing this post not to boast about my achievements. Far from it. I intend to lose 40 pounds and am barely halfway there. I hope to lose 30 pounds by April and 40 pounds by August.

This post has a two-fold purpose. Firstly, this will publicly document my progress so that I will not fall back and regain what I have lost. Losing weight is fairly easy. It is maintaining the weight loss that is a real struggle.

Secondly, I hope to encourage other readers/friends to join me in my endeavour to keep fit by maintaining a healthy body weight. Health is the most precious gift we can give ourselves. We only have one life and we have to be really responsible for our health, lifestyle and fitness level lest we pay the price in our old age. By then, it would be a tragedy to use whatever savings/wealth to maintain our health!

Believe me - it is NOT easy. The temptation to eat and to enjoy food or drinks not forgetting desserts is there. There is also laziness that we have to cope with - especially with regards to discipline in maintaining a reasonable level of fitness in our workout which means we need to workout till our heartbeats reach fat-burning levels.

I do not starve myself. All I have been doing is to cut out carbs in my diet and to maintain a pescatarian lifestyle. No oil and only 1 cup of coffee a day with little milk. However, I eat lots of fruits, vegetables, salads (with very little dressing), very little salt and hardly any sauces.

Now, I do not sit for hours on end in front of the computer reading almost every single article from MT, TMI, MK, FMT, WSJ, NYT, The Star and other online portals. When I decided to take charge of my life and to develop a healthy lifestyle, I found a life beyond the laptop again :-) and exercised and did more housework in an attempt to burn more calories. I figured that whilst idealism for a better country is commendable, it cannot be at the expense of my waistline and health! My stand remains the same although I do confess I have been quite rattled by certain developments which left a horrible taste in my mouth hence my silence since my last socio-political post in early January. Of course I will write again on issues that are close to my heart but for now, while trying to lose more weight, I am observing the current developments which seem to have too many sub-plots and smokescreens. When things seem clearer, I will certainly voice my concerns again.

It has been very gratifying to be able to wear the clothes which USED to fit me in the 1990's. Yup - I kept most of my stuff. I am no trendsetter or fashion follower hence my wardrobe is evergreen :-) and will seldom be out of fashion. One cannot go wrong with simplicity.

So if you are like me, let's persevere and reach our set targets not just for aesthetics but more importantly for our well-being.

This is my photo taken at a reunion with some schoolmates at an English afternoon tea on Sunday, 29th January 2012 at Suffolk House (former home of Sir Francis Light).


Here's my photo taken before I started my weight-loss project - fat, double-chinned and dull looking.


The following photo was taken just a week after I started my project after I lost 3 pounds - still big and bulky then.


This one is of me after I lost ten pounds:


I still have a long way to go because I barely crossed the halfway mark with a loss of 22 pounds. However, I will not give up and will push aside the temptation to give myself little treats. One thing is for sure - I do NOT ever want to be fat again and to have tyres around my waistline!!!! To all my friends and loved ones who have been encouraging me, thank you. I could not have done it if not for your positive input!

Take care, dear readers. Do share of your experiences by leaving a comment.