Category: Health

Body stats, July 2018

Let me first say that the project of getting my body into summer shape is not going the way I planned. As you will see from my body stats, it’s all bad.

I know what I need to do to overcome this hurdle, but I suck at doing it. Luckily, I have some plans.

business commerce computer delivery — Measuring ALL the things!

Did I get enough exercise?

Short answer; No!

I’m fond of tables, and this is really quick to make, so here’s my grand total of exercises done this month.

Date	Time	Activity
June 6^th	1:45:43	Mowing the lawn
June 10^th	1:15:32	Orienteering
June 19^th	1:30.53	Mowing the lawn
June 26^th	32:05	Walking

So a grand total of 4 exercises are what my watch have picked up, and two of them are chores and not really exercise related. I must say though that I consider mowing the lawn a proper workout. It gets my heart going, and it takes a while. Usually, the time would be closer to 1 hour though, but the summer we’ve had in Norway this year has been extraordinary which leads to unusual patterns in gardening.

I have one week left of vacation now, and I plan to start getting that 30-minute walk in when I haven’t done any other workouts. I know I waste at least 30 minutes a day doing something stupid, so let me try to do something smart instead with that time.

Did I get enough sleep?

Short answer; No!

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As you can see from this graph, I get an average of about 6 hours of sleep every night. And that is not good, especially when you know that I have had vacation the last two weeks of June. I really need to get at least 7.5 hours, and maybe even 0.5 to 1 hour more on vacation.

It’s also not right that I have some peaks up to about 10 hours. It just shows that my body needs a lot more rest and sometimes it just crashes to try to cope.

What this graph probably also doesn’t pick up is that when I sit myself down to watch a movie or something, I more often than not quickly fall asleep for about an hour.

Slacking? Snacking? It’s all the same.

I’ve been slacking, and I don’t know why. It’s summer, and there are fruits everywhere. Why do I continue to eat chocolate??

At least I have now almost managed only to eat it on weekends, but my will still break from time to time. Hopefully, I will get better with this.

I’m trying to find a course to learn some techniques that will allow me to control my unhealthy urges better. If you have any tips about this, then please write in the comments below.

The grim reality

So, let me just put up the same list I gave in mid-May and see where we’re at.

Measurement	Imperial	Metric	Comment
Height	5 feet 10 inches	177cm	This probably won’t change much 😊
Weight	234lbs	106,1kg	+1.3kg / 3 lbs
Waist	46.85 inches	119cm	+3cm / 1 inch
BMI	33,9		+0.4
Fat percentage	33.7		+0.2

Red across the board there, so not very uplifting results when you just look at them like this and compare to last month. But you can’t really do that. You should always consider an extended period of time and try to remember if something unusual happened during that period.

I was ill for several weeks this winter and lost most of the weight during that period. And we all know that weight you lose when you are sick always comes back. I’ve only gained 3kg over a period of 2 months since I got well again, so I’m happy with that.

I was at my doctor in June, and she was delighted with what I have done.

And if you look back longer, I’m thrilled. Last September I was 117.5kg, so I’ve lost more than 10kgs since then. I just need to stop my slow upwards creep before it’s all back again, but hopefully, this blog and my new focus on this will help me with that.

July 2, 2018

My choice of fitness tracker

So, I’ve made my decision and chose one of the five trackers I wrote about in my previous post. As I wrote there, all those trackers are good trackers and will get the standard fitness tracker job done. The only reason to go for a more expensive tracker is to have more functions or because you like the design better.

And I chose to go with…

Garmin Vivoactive 3

The Garmin ended up being my choice of watch this time, for a few different reasons.

It looks like a watch. I didn’t want to have a square piece of plastic on my arm screaming tracker. I wanted something that could disguise itself like a watch and it does a pretty good job of it.

It gave me what I needed, and more. It tracks steps, heart rate and sleep. Which was the three most important things I looked for, which of course all of them does. But it also tracks all the sports I will probably try my hands on, both outdoors and indoors. It also has a built in GPS, so you don’t have to rely on your phone for that.

It also does a decent job as a smart watch in that it gives me notifications from the apps I choose. I can’t reply to them from the watch, but I can at a glance see if the event is something I need to see to right away or if it can wait. It can control music on my phone, start, stop, pause. I can also answer a phone call on the watch. This means that on trips I can mostly just tuck my phone away, control most of the features I need from the watch and listen to music and conversations via a headset.

I already have other Garmin hardware. I already have an Edge 820 cycle computer from Garmin. This means I’m already in their ecosystem, which I think works pretty OK. It doesn’t really matter though, since all apps talk to each other.

The only thing I might lack is the social interactions with other FitBit-users. But that’s nothing I really miss, as my only competitor now is myself. I want to become a better me, and for that I don’t need to know that I took fewer steps than my colleagues. Garmin has some challenges on it’s site, so you can get this with Garmin also if you really want it.

So my money went to the Garmin Vivoactive 3 this time.

What kind of trackers do you have and why?

May 15, 2018
My first bodystats post
I am planning to update some stats at least once a month maybe weekly, but as of right now the data is somewhat lacking. One of the few things I measure now is my weight and usually on Sunday mornings right after I wake up. When I get some more equipment I will get more and better data, but at least this is a start.

Equipment

What equipment I have now:
- A body scale
- A measuring tape
What equipment I need:
- A better kitchen scale
  For now, I just ballpark my food and that’s not good enough for real progress
- A fitness tracker
  For measuring those all important steps, calories burned, resting heart rate etc
When I get the last two pieces of hardware I can get more background info on some vital stats like sleep patterns, amount of sleep, better control over how much I eat etc.

Current status: Obese

Height: 177cm (5’10)
Weight: 104,8kg (231lbs)
BMI: 34
Fat percentage: 33,5%
Waist: 116cm (45.7 inches)

So as you can see I am currently obese, something I’ve been for a long, long time. But my weight has been pretty stable around 102-104 kilos in the last weeks, so I’m happy I’ve managed to stabilize it after my illness. Often you gain the weight, and more, back but I am pretty happy that hasn’t happened yet. And I won’t allow it to happen anyway!

Analysis and goals

My weight has gone up from 104,5kg last week, but I’m not worried about that as it’s more or less inside the natural variations.

My first weight goal is 99kg. That will be me breaking the 100kg barrier for the first time in many, many years. And since it’s now so close I feel it is more in reach than ever before.

BMI is at 34. I won’t really say too much about this as it’s dependant on a lot of stuff that can skew it. I have a goal of getting it below 30 though, so unless I start to gain a lot of muscles that is still a goal.

I don’t really know if I can trust the fat percentage my weight is giving me. Yesterday it was 31.7% at the same weight, so… But as a man, I should be under 25% so my goal is first to stabilize it at under 30% and then move closer to 25% after that. Gaining more muscle should help with this.

My waist is now at 116cm. Quite a bit over the 100cm my doctor wants it to be. So again I don’t go for the end goal at once since that is far away. My goal is first to get it stable under 110cm and then I’ll set a new goal when that is reached.

Final thoughts

I know why I haven’t dropped weight the last week and it simply comes down to two reasons:
- Too little sleep
- The wrong snacks in my cupboard
Sleep

I can’t give you exact numbers but I’m pretty sure that my average this week is less than 7 hours, maybe closer to 6. That is too little when trying to lose weight. One of the reasons I lost weight while I was ill was because I got enough sleep. So need to get that number up again.

Next week will be hell to do that though as I need to get up at around 4am to get to the early shift at work. Problem is that I also have some things I need to do in the evenings next week, so getting to bed at 9pm will be difficult. But I’ll give my best shot. And since the 17th is our national holiday I can regain some lost sleep on Thursday.

The wrong snacks

Last week my cupboard was lacking one food group and had too much of another one. I didn’t have any fruit in there, but I did have loads of candy. That is NOT a good thing when trying to lose the pounds.

But now I’ve bought myself some apples so my “problem” is now solved. I really don’t crave chocolate the same way I did before and I’ve gotten a renewed hunger for fruit, so it shouldn’t be a problem eating more healthy snacks again.

You might now say “Hey Frank, but the fruit is also full of sugars.” And yes, it is, but much less than candy, so you eat less because you get full earlier. And, for me at least, it takes longer to eat. I could finish a HUGE chocolate in not many minutes, but an apple takes me a while longer to eat. Fruit also contains much more fiber, vitamins etc that candy doesn’t. So even if it contains sugar, it’s just so much better for you.

And my “secret” to get an apple to last long is to cut it into pieces before you eat it and not eat it in it’s natural “apple shape.” 🙂 If I have a whole apple and start to eat it, it won’t take long to finish, maybe a couple of minutes, because who wants to walk around with a half-eaten apple for several minutes.

If you cut it into pieces and put it into a bowl it will usually last much longer. I will take a piece now and then and one or two apples could last me an hour. And when I’m done, I’m usually not hungry for anything anymore and the chocolate will safely rest in the cupboard. And if you don’t like that the fruit gets a little brown when lying in the bowl you can just squeeze some lemon juice on it. That prevents the browning.
May 13, 2018
Getting a fitness tracker
In my quest for better health and since I am a nerd/geek/whatever I need to have the numbers, the stats, the data so I can see that things are happening to my body. So I’m on a mission to get a fitness tracker and these are the five on my shortlist.

The five finalists in alphabetical order are
Fitbit Charge 2

This is the successor to the WILDLY popular Fitbit Charge HR. I think at some time EVERYONE I knew wore the Charge HR on their arm.

Many people still have the previous version, but many have also updated since the previous one had a bad habit of falling apart where the wristband delaminated from the watch. My Charge HR did the same but I have been to lazy to request a replacement. Perhaps I should try but the guarantee period has probably expired. And to take pictures of the fault I would need to find it…

Sadly it looks like there is a similar but different problem with the Charge 2. Looks like I need to do some more investigating around this to see if it’s a real problem or people just being stupid.

But it has what I’m looking for and tracks heart rate, some workouts, your sleep pattern and it can connect to the GPS of your mobile phone for that all important sharing of your runs and bicycle tours.

It is also more or less THE de-facto standard in fitness trackers, so you know it will work with every app, mobile and computer under the sun.

Fitbit Versa

Here Fitbit have strayed into the smart watch arena, very apparent in their blatant copying of the Apple iWatch design language.

It’s a better tracker than the Charge 2 in many ways. More tracking, more features, more everything.

The price have also of course gone up, but for what you get I think this is better value than the Charge 2. The biggest improvements is that this is swim-proof, it stores music on the watch and you can download apps for it.

It really only lacks one thing and that is a built in GPS. You can of course get that if you go for the Fitbit Ionic, but then we’re talking about a pretty substantial jump in prize.

Garmin Vivoactive 3

If you know Garmin you know that these people KNOW their sports watches and bicycle computers. You might also have their GPS in your car, boat or plane.

This is another crossover fitness tracker/sports watch, similar to the Fitbit Versa. But here we have an even bigger price jump than we had with the Fitbit Ionic. But if you want to splurge I think this is a better alternative than the Ionic.

And since this is a Garmin watch you will as with the Fitbit alternatives have no problems connecting to apps and mobiles. Garmin is huge in the sports world so you won’t find that your watch is suddenly not supported.

Personally I think this looks better than all the Fitbit alternatives, so if I find it for a good price I think this might end up being my choice. It also have solid reviews, so you know you won’t go wrong with this option.

Nokia Steel HR

This is not a Nokia product. This is a Withings-product that changed name to Nokia when Nokia bought the company. Now Nokia has sold the company back to the guy that started Withings, so good knows what it will be called now. Did he get back the rights to the Withings name? Who knows?

This option is sort of a joker wild card. It is the design I like the best of all my options. People that don’t know better will think this is just an ordinary watch. Only people in the know will be wise to your heartbeat tracking antics.

This is closer to the Fitbit Charge 2 in specifications, with the added bonus that this is also swim-proof. It is also fairly close in price to that model.

I like this option and I like it a LOT. The design is vastly better than any of the others and you don’t look like a nerd as it easily disguises itself as an ordinary watch.

The only drawback I can find here which makes me hesitate a little bit is the selling back and forth of the company. Withings was a fairly good known name and it’s products was of good quality so I think it should have an OK future, but it is somewhat of an outsider.

Suunto Spartan Trainer Wrist HR

Lastly we have an option from Suunto. This is a clock that have specifications somewhere between the Fitbit Versa and Garmin Vivoactive 3. Price wise it also smacks itself between these two alternatives, depending on what version you want of the different watches.

If you’re looking at the Fitbit Versa I would advice you to take a long look at this first. From what I can see from different reviews etc this watch gives you a LOT more than the Versa. At least two reviews mention that this watch is excellent value for money.

When I’ve finally made my decision I will let you know what I ended up with.
May 6, 2018