Category: Benchmarks

Welcome to Phuket Fit’s weight loss and fitness blog. I’m your host, Aaron Rowland. I’m a 27-year-old writer from Los Angeles, California. I’m at Phuket Fit to lose weight, improve my fitness and have the adventure of a lifetime. I’ve been here nine months so far and I’m staying indefinitely. My favorite exercises are the bicycle crunch and the medicine ball slam. Tire flips, suicide planks and burpees give me nightmares.

Cleaning Up

After a decent week of weight loss, I had to start preparing myself for the week to come. Instead of intense fitness classes and a high-protein diet, I would be relaxing all week surviving on just raw fruits and vegetables. The time had finally come to do a cleanse. With my cleanse set to start on Tuesday, I had to spend the next four days after the weigh in preparing my body. No more dairy. No more meat. Pretty much, no more fun.

For four days I needed to only eat raw fruits and vegetables. If I wanted something to drink, no more reaching for a Diet Coke. All water and juice, all the time. It wasn’t bad, but I think I relied on juice too much. I think I might have even gained a pound or two during the pre-cleanse from a huge increase in natural sugars. I wasn’t too concerned about that, though. I knew I’d be losing it quickly over the week to follow.

Getting Adjusted To A New Routine

It feels a bit weird to go from a hectic schedule of training to a relaxed flexible schedule. It almost takes a day or two just for the mind and body to slow down it’s pace. During the first few days of the detox at Atmanjjai, things went very smoothly. Doing the pre-cleanse helped me avoid many of the severe withdrawal symptoms people often associate with wellness detoxes. No headaches, no stomach cramps and I also didn’t suffer very strong cravings for salty and fatty foods.

That’s not to say certain things didn’t require some patience and dedication. As any dieter knows, it’s hard not to be able to eat the things you crave. Plus, while the colema is beneficial to your digestive health, it still isn’t the world’s most pleasant experience. That having been said, the first three days of the detox had gone well and I was excited to step on the scale.

The End Of Week Ten

I step on the scale and discover that I’m at 109.4 KG, which means I’ve lost 1.1 KGs (2.4 LBS). Not terrible, but not as much weight as I’d been hoping considering how cleanly I’d been eating. As I said above, I think I probably put on a pound or two during my pre-cleanse. So I’m not too disappointed in the results. Upward and onward.

What’s Up Next?

Tune in on Wednesday for an article summing up the rest of my experience detoxing at Atmanjai, and then check back next Monday for my Week 11 weigh-in to see how the second half of the detox affected my weight! We’ll also be presenting an interview with a current Phuket Fit guest on Friday, so be sure to check that out.

Have a great week of weight loss! If you set your mind on it, I know you can do it!

Welcome to Phuket Fit’s weight loss and fitness blog. I’m your host, Aaron Rowland. I’m a 27-year-old writer from Los Angeles, California. I’m at Phuket Fit to lose weight, improve my fitness and have the adventure of a lifetime. I’ve been here nine months so far and I’m staying indefinitely. My favorite exercises are the bicycle crunch and the medicine ball slam. Tire flips, suicide planks and burpees give me nightmares.

Pushing Through Adversity

It can be tough to come back and train hard after seeing a gain on the scale, even a small one. You think you’re doing everything right and can get concerned you aren’t seeing the results you might have hoped for. It’s important not to let one bad week slow down your progress or discourage you from pushing forward. Weight loss and healthy living isn’t something you accomplish and then forget, its something you need to maintain for a lifetime. In the greater scheme of things, one week is nothing. Keep working hard and you’ll get to where you want to be with the determination to make it last.

Training Without A Gym

Bright and early last Monday morning, I boarded two planes and a bus for Savannakhet, Laos. I needed to do a “visa run”, which is when you leave the country to get a new visa or extend your current visa. I needed to be there for a full four days (including travel time) to apply for a new visa and wait for it to get approved. Away from the safety and comfort of Phuket Fit classes, I had to improvise my workouts. Using the stairs in the hotel/casino as a makeshift stair climber and some dirt roads nearby as a running trail. You don’t always need access to fancy equipment or trainers to get a workout in. Once you learn the fundamentals, you can turn any location into an ideal fitness environment.

Gambling On The Buffett

Another challenge with being away from Phuket Fit was eating healthy. Included with my visa run, was three buffets a day. Breakfast, lunch and dinner. Anyone who’s tried to lose weight before knows that buffets can be both tricky and dangerous. You never know what specific ingredients they’ve used and what style of cooking has been used to prepare a dish. A seemingly healthy piece of fish could have been pan fried in unhealthy oils and covered in salt or butter. When eating at a buffet, its best to stick with safe options like salad or lean meat that has clearly been baked, broiled or grilled.

The End Of Week Seven

Stepping onto the scale, I felt an extra pressure to perform well after last week’s poor results. Needless to say, I felt a huge sense of both relief and accomplishment to see that I had lost 2.2 KGs (5 LBS) during the week I’d been away from camp. So even if I factor in the 0.6 KG gain from last week, I have still lost 0.8 KGs (2 LBS) a week for the last two weeks. That’s a reality of weight loss. As they say: Failure isn’t falling down, it’s refusing to get back up. It may sound corny, but its true. Never give up on yourself! If you dont believe in yourself, no one else will either.

What’s Up Next?

This last weekend was one of fun in the sun. I took another trip up to the wake-park on Saturday and now I’ve got a full week of training ahead of me. It feels great to be back at Phuket Fit and I’m thrilled to be back amongst friends. I really can’t overstate how much it pushes me in my training to be surrounded by a likeminded group of fitness enthusiasts who wake up each morning ready to train. It’s a perfect supportive environment for losing weight and building a healthier life.

Have a great week of weight loss! If you set your mind on it, I know you can do it!

Welcome to Phuket Fit’s weight loss and fitness blog. I’m your host, Aaron Rowland. I’m a 27-year-old writer from Los Angeles, California. I’m at Phuket Fit to lose weight, improve my fitness and have the adventure of a lifetime. I’ve been here seven months so far and I’m staying indefinitely. My favorite exercises are the bicycle crunch and the medicine ball slam. Tire flips, suicide planks and burpees give me nightmares.

Looking Forward

Two weeks of substantial losses behind me, I had to mentally prepare myself for another week. Fourteen days done and the persistent exhaustion hadn’t passed. I hope I would discover some hidden power or energy after a couple weeks, but it seemed I’d have to get by with slogging my way through workouts. I guess if it were easy to lose weight and live a healthy life, everyone would do it. It actually takes a lot of focus and determination to keep moving forward, day after day and week after week.

Phuket Health And Fitness Festival

Last Saturday, I made my way to the Phuket Health and Fitness Festival to attend Ocean Bloom’s boot camp fitness class. It was a tough three-part workout, which I most definitely wasn’t ready for. We started with a warm-up run up and down the beach and through the local beach resorts. After a series of sprints, we completed a timed workout consisting of kettle bell swings, thrusters and burpees. We still weren’t done after that; we still had a poolside circuit to complete with ten different stations of strength and cardio work. It was an exhausting workout, but a fantastic way to spend a Saturday morning.

Thursday Beach Training

Continuing with the beach theme, on Thursday, body fit took its weekly trip to the beach for an outdoor workout. Sprints across the beach, sit-ups in the surf, and even crawling around performing crab walks, left the group covered head to toe in sand. Half of the beach days take place at Nai Harn beach. The other half of Thursdays, we end up at Promthep Cape where an outdoor set of stone stairs presents its own challenges.

The End Of Week Three

I step on the scale, not sure what to expect. After two weeks with huge results, I’m just hopeful that the number doesn’t move up from last week. It doesn’t. The results are in. My weight is 116.9 KG. I lost 0.8 KG (1.7 LBS) and I couldn’t be happier. It’s a result like this that I hope to achieve on a weekly basis. I’m clearly taking the right steps toward a healthier lifestyle without falling for any gimmicks or fads. If I can continue on this path, then I know I’ll have a fighting chance to lose the weight and keep it off forever.

What’s Up Next?

This last weekend I attended the famous monthly BBQ Beatdown at Phuket Fit. It’s a fantastic night of amateur smoker fights, delicious food and (for some) a night of partying and fun. It’s a great way to let of steam and relax, but it can also present some challenges for those who are looking to lose weight. We’ll also explore just what Thailand’s wet season means for its fitness classes. Here’s a hint, be prepared to get wet!

Have a great week of weight loss! If you set your mind on it, I know you can do it!