Eat, Drink ..... Gasp!!!!

Since the time I hooked up with the good folks at Thylio, I’ve meticulously followed instructions. One of these includes taking picture of everything I eat or drink and share it with them. My initial hypothesis was that this is to keep track of the calories I consume versus what I burn. But a few weeks down the line, I see this was a trick as well.

What I now have over the last few weeks is a pictorial representation of all that has gone into my system. Truth be told, I’m beginning to feel a bit overwhelmed. There’s a history to this.

I always imagined myself as a frugal eater. Not just that, I imagined myself as the kinds who takes small portions because he doesn’t waste food. But the mental models we build of ourselves often conflicts with reality. And with the benefit of hindsight, I now see the power of the exercise Thylio was pushing me into.

While the portions I eat my be small, I see they are calorifically rich. While that’s okay, what is not okay, is that these are not the right kinds of foods. The visual history built of what I have consumed over the last shows a clear tilt to protein and simple carbohydrates with very little greens, fibre, or complex carbs. It doesn't need a rocket scientist to decode why this is bad for the system in the longer term.

It's time to do a rethink about what I eat and how I eat along with the workout routine.

A pivot

So, it’s a Sunday and I just got back after a smooth 5k minute at a little over 60 minutes. Okay! 65 minutes to be precise. Was hoping to keep it under 60. Didn’t happen.

Started the day with two sets of pushups, sit-ups and crunches. While that was easy, it acted like a shot of dopamine, first thing in the morning despite being a little under 10 for each set. I must say, must do this more often. And make it a habit. I don’t know how and why do we forget the advantages such moves deliver?

Time you ask, whatever happened to the 8k plan I was on?

Well! Team Thylio asked me to reflect on how did the week go. I had to be honest and admit it didn’t go to plan for various reasons despite the best of intent.

That is why a pivot that makes it harder, than where we started from, but more manageable appears viable is what I was told. Which means, I wake up to some stretches and basic exercises. I wouldn’t have thought of moving my backside until I had got my mugs of chai when this set of instructions came in. After muttering a “what the hell”, got down to do it today. Like I said, could manage it while the chai was simmering (I like the tea leaves to boil a while until the flavours of the leaves come out). Rounded it off with the brisk 5k walk. Surprised myself with the timing because today is sweltering hot and all I wanted was to stay indoors. But glad I stepped out. At one point, honest to God, I thought I could break out into a run.

Life doesn't care

Unlike yesterday, the exigencies of life took over and it was pretty much impossible to step out in the morning. And I punted I’ll do an 8k after work.

I was in half a mind when I had a window, past noon to do a 3/4 k. But with the mercury breaching 36, I gave it pass and put my eggs in the evening basket.

Now, that’s the thing about life — it has a mind of its own. Just when I stepped out and barely 2k into the walk, and I hadn’t even picked pace, a call came in. There was work to be done and it had to be done: Now. There was no way I could duck it. So, back to the work desk it was.

Moral of the day: Start early.

Shared my disappointment with Team Thylio. They said they hear me. But can’t afford to break the streak. We worked the cals burnt today. I’m still in excess. But the deal as I write this is: No desserts tonight like I usually do.

Chunking works

Big story of the day — 8k done.

So, started today morning with a 3k walk. And this was right after waking up — without having my regular mug of chai that I need to get the mind and body going.

A warm day I thought, but logged on as I always do to the morning team call. I thought I’d do a 4k during the first half. But the heat was beginning to get to me and I needed the breakfast as well. Had worked up a sweat too and wanted to get indoors.

So what changed? A few things with the benefit of hindsight.

• Unlike other days when I need two and a half large mugs of tea to get started, 1 1/2 was good after the mug. But needed the breakfast earlier than usual.

• The time it took to begin focusing on what needed to be done shrunk dramatically. I thought I could stay focused for longer as well. Clearly, there are benefits to starting with a workout.

Cut to the evening when I did a 5k so I complete the 8k loop. This time around, it was a fast clip. Appeared faster than usual, or at least that’s what I thought. But my watch didn’t seem to catch it. The movements appeared more fluid, and I certainly think I covered a lot more distance than what my Apple Watch captured.

Sometimes, I get the snarky feeling that the data these contraptions capture are approximations and not the exact numbers. For the record, I’m using an Apple Series 2. That may sound dated to the gizmo crowd. But it does the job for me. And I like to juice my devices until it begs for mercy. But that’s another story!

Now, to fix my diet! Have to get more greens in. Team Thylio is watching and they’re beginning to give me those snarky looks and I can feel the stares come through the feedback.

The 8k challenge

So, I’m back. It’s been over a week since I wrote an update here. My bad!

First things first! There was an update from the good folks at Thyl.io. A week of monitoring my diet later, and after factoring in for the exercise I do (which right now is mostly walking), the math suggested I’m doing okay. I burn more calories than I consume. But I ought to do better.

So, the next challenge has been thrown at me. To do 8k every single day. And it’s non-negotiable. I’ve been doing between 4-5k every day. This is pretty much double what I do.

Did it for the time yesterday. I thought that would be easy as hell. It didn’t kill me. But the last 1k took the Mickey out of me. And boy oh boy! I got mad hungry and kept eating like a beast!

Thought I’d wake up today and do a 3k in the morning and a 5k later in the evening — break the walk up. But didn’t happen. I just slept it out and the body wanted to rest. So, that’s what I’ve been doing. Working and resting.

Life Hacks!

So, here’s the story so far!

Every day, each time I eat something, I take a picture, and send it to the team at Thylio. It’s interesting how this is turning out. And I have no idea if this is part of the plan. I get the feeling I’m being a little mindful of what I eat. This is happening since Sunday when I first ‘met’ Ammar Jagirdar and his wife, in person, at their place for brunch. We spoke about much, including digital therapeutics, the ideas they’re at work on, and what has my interest. Heck! I just turned 50 and it sounds scary. I’m supposed to sound all grown up and all that jazz! But in my head, I feel like a 30-year old or some such who should be pumping iron and weight-lifting. In fact, I have no idea why I haven’t done a triathlon until now.

When Ammar asked me “Why not?”, I didn’t have a darned answer.

So, here I am. Going back to First Principles. And Body Hacking to get back to shape. With some help. A plan has been kicked into motion where I share my smart watch share details of my diet and activity with the team at Thylio that Ammar is co-founder. Let’s see what they come up with. I’m following orders. .