I've achieved a big weight loss goal

Back in 2008 I was 103kg (226lbs). It's the most I've ever weighed in my life. I didn't realise I'd let myself get fat until some friends at the time talked about how concerned they were for my health. I felt a bit indignant at the time, but I decided it might be a good idea to start losing weight.



Interestingly, in 2005, I weighed 86kg (I mentioned it in a blog post back then), so it had taken me 3 years to put on 17kg - almost 6 kg a year. Easy to do when you're not being aware.

I'm currently at 86kg again, but my goal with my weight loss desires was to reach 85kg. On Saturday (two days ago) I weighed myself and I'd reached 85kg. Yay!

I fluctuate up and down, sometimes by up to 2kg on a daily basis, depending on what I've eaten. It's weird, but the fluctuations have been steadily going downwards over the years.

This has also been without exercise. I've managed to lose 16-17kg in 4-5 years without any exercise whatsover. And no fancy diets either.

My secret? Just eat less than what I used to. And be more aware of what I'm eating and drinking. And be thankful for Fanfan's help along the way over the past couple of years.

[Tweet "Behind every great man is a great woman"]

Having a great woman supporting you is fantastic inspiration and motivation to keep on doing the right thing. I'm thankful for the support she's given me.

I just realised that I gained most of my weight during 2005 - 2008, which was coincidentally when I was in a relationship that was far more of a struggle than it was worthwhile. It obviously had a significant side effect with my weight. Signs of depression maybe?

But anyway, it's great that my weight is getting better for me now. I'm really happy about that.

So now that I've reached 85kg (I know, it's 86kg today, but I know it'll continue going downwards), my next goal is 80kg (176lbs). And then?

And then I'll start working on my fitness. Since I'll be carrying a lot less weight it'll be that much easier for me to do exercise.

I never had a deadline for my weight loss. I just had a desire, and I carried through on that desire. I've ended up losing about 3kg a year as a result. I think it'll be good to set a deadline for the next 5kg.

My deadline to be 80kg is Christmas this year. And then I'll enjoy Christmas Dinner!

Let the countdown begin.

Do you suffer from headaches?

I have a headache as I'm writing this, and I was thinking of what I can blog about when I thought - I know, I'll blog about headaches!

We all get headaches, some of us even get migraines. Lucky for me, I've never got a migraine.  knock wood  They can be pretty debilitating at times.

My headaches usually result from my back issues. The collapsed disc in my lower spine results in a spinal and muscular imbalance which causes muscle tension in the shoulders and neck, with the main effect being extremely tight muscles from the shoulders that go up the back of the neck and into (or connect with) the base of the skull.

This tension in that location results in some amazing tension headaches. And I don't mean good amazing either.

Over the years that I've had these headaces, aligned with the years I've had the back injury / disability, there have often been people who tell me to drink more water. Unfortunately, their tips have never worked for me.

Dehydration can often cause headaches too, and drinking lots of water can usually dispel such headaches. But water doesn't dispel tension headaches resulting from spinal imbalance.

Stretching hasn't helped me much, but it apparently should. I used to do lots of stretching, but I don't any more. This is because I've never noticed a 'cause and effect benefit' from stretching. I've done stretching over the years, morning and night, and it hasn't changed the effects of my disability. I still get tension headaches.

So I've stopped stretching.  Maybe it's simply because I never did enough stretching, I don't know. But too much stretching causes discomfort and pain to my back, and I just have no interest in pushing it to a point that might make it much, much worse. So I just don't do that much of it any more.

You know what works with my headaches? Drugs. Strong drugs. And avoiding work.

When I'm busy at work, I get more tension in my shoulders, which results in more headaches. When I'm not working, there's no tension, and no headaches.

I was VERY surprised over the holidays when I drove 5,000km over two weeks but didn't get any headaches or extreme back pain. That's a LOT of hours in the car, but my back was fine, I had no tension in my shoulders and neck, and I never got a headache while I was on holiday and driving around the country.

Only when I'm working.

Seems like a good reason to give up work, don't you think?

But what about you? Do you get headaches? Do you know why you get them? What do you do to make your headaches go away?