ACE 'Shape up' Weight loss program.

patman99

Welcome to my new diary outlining and diarising my weight loss through the ACE (Anglia Care Enterprise) 'Shape up' program.
Below is a list outlining the program by weekly subject.

Week 1 Preparing to shape-up.
Week 2 Keeping to a regular eating pattern
Week 3 Physical activity
Week 4 Eating a balanced diet
Week 5 Food serving sizes
Week 6 External triggers
Week 7 Internal triggers
Week 8 Food labelling

I guess I might struggle with implementing week 3 due to having a desk-bound job, but will try my best.

patman99

Info session today + chance to weigh myself. weighed in at 98.5Kg (over 15st. 6lbs).
Real work starts next week as we prepare to shape up.

Fmess

Hi patman

Thought I'd pop over and nosey at your amazing diet and your progress in the coming weeks.

Good luck

stewby

I agree with the good luck. Can't wait to see your progress.

patman99

Right, 'Shape-up' is not a diet. It is a 'food management scheme'. They teach you about how to choose the right food & eat properly.

It has been part of a study conducted by Essex University & beats all the commercial weight loss programs such as Weightwatchers & Slimming World.

darrensurrey

Week 7 sounds like the most useful week.

patman99

Weeks 6 & 7 are both equally important when you think about it.

'External triggers' include things such as TV/radio advertising, in-store promotions & out-store advertising (billboards/posters/sponsorship).

'Internal triggers' are likely to be things such as feeling low (triggers comfort eating).

We will be getting food diaries each week should we wish to use them (nothing they ask you to do is compulsory).

I will be attempting to put a plan of action in place with regards to week 3. I have a pair of (yet to be used) Nordic walking poles & I am lucky enough to live in Colchester which has been chosen for the first official Nordic pole walking park (Highwoods) in the country.

MrBloater

Shall be watching your progress with interest. As a (former) fellow Colchester resident I shall be cheering you on - I certainly need something to kickstart my fitness routine and hopefully this will be it. Good luck mate.

patman99

Thanks MrB.

Week 1 - Preparing to Shape Up.

This week concentrated on an overview of last week's info session before we started to discuss the effects of weight gain and their affect on our health.

Being overweight is now a bigger contributor to liver damage than alcohol abuse. It can also lead to high blood pressure, some cancers (breast, bowel & pancreatic) along with an increase in the risk of diabetes & heart disease.

Weight can also affect depression/low self esteem.

We discussed our hopes & fears (things like fear of heart attacks & hopes like not feeling so out of breath when running for the bus) & looked at maintaining a food diary.
One visual aid that we all found useful was the 'slab of fat'. Basically, this was a 1Lb textured rubber extrusion. The course facilitator had 5 of these in a pile along with a smaller 1oz block.

These allowed us to visualize (and feel) what losing 1Lb actually felt like as when you lose a lb in weight, you normally feel like you have actually achieved nothing as far as weight loss is concerned, when in fact you have achieved quite a lot.

Weight today - 98.9Kg (fully-clothed with hiking boots on).

elantan

Can I ask what is going to be the basis of your new way of eating ? I am very interested also

patman99

The way the program works, nothing is 'bad' for you. Indeed, they don't even frown upon snacking (as long as you snack at the same time each day).

It is more down to how much you eat & what it contains. For that reason, I think I will find weeks 2,4 & 8 the most useful.

If you want to follow along, then the whole program & info can be found at
www.weightconcern.org.uk

And you can order the manual for yourself at
http://www.shape-up.org/orders.asp

Obviously, if you go down the route of signing up to a 'Shape-up' course, you get the book for free.

As for my eating habits, I intend to start reducing the portion size as I do a sedimentary job with a lot of sitting around (hence going from 13st 6 to 15st 6 in 3 years).