Threads with Connection

It's been a little while since my last weight-loss update. There's a good reason for that. I've been on holiday. I've celebrated a fairly significant birthday. I've turned 50. And somewhere amongst the travelling, celebrations, meals out and inevitable disruption to my normal routine, something rather important happened. I finally broke through the  100 kg barrier . Today I weigh  98.79 kg . When I started properly recording this journey on 16 April, I weighed  108.88 kg . That means I've now lost: 10.09 kg. For me, that's a significant milestone. But perhaps the most important part of this update isn't the weight I've lost. It's what happened when normal life got in the way. The Journey So Far My recent weigh-ins tell an interesting story: Date Weight 16 April 108.88 kg 26 June 101.39 kg 3 July 100.49 kg 10 July 100.00 kg 2 August 100.08 kg 7 August 99.70 kg 18 August 98.79 kg There are two numbers on that table that particularly matter to me. T...

There are moments on any journey that feel significant. This week was one of them. When I stepped onto the scales on Friday morning, they displayed a number I hadn't seen for a long time: 100.0 kg While I'm not quite below the 100 kg mark yet, reaching it feels like a genuine milestone. Since beginning this journey in April, I've now lost  8.88 kg  through a combination of better nutrition, regular activity and making healthier choices that feel sustainable rather than restrictive. More importantly, this week reminded me that the journey isn't just about weight. It's about becoming healthier. Health Snapshot The weekly weight loss is a little smaller than previous weeks, but it's still steady progress—and that's exactly what I'm aiming for. VR Fitness This week I completed two games of  VR Badminton  using my Meta Quest. Although it was only two sessions, they were both longer than last week. 2 sessions 69 minutes of activity 443 calories burned That...

 When I started this health journey, the number on the scales naturally became my focus. Every Friday I'd step on, record my weight and hope to see it moving in the right direction. But over the past few weeks I've begun to realise that perhaps the scales aren't telling the most interesting story. This week my Apple Health app highlighted something I'd almost overlooked. My average resting heart rate has fallen from 68 beats per minute to 61 beats per minute over the last six weeks. That simple notification stopped me in my tracks. Looking Beyond Weight Since April I've lost more than  8 kg . I've also: Started exercising regularly through VR badminton. Become more aware of my nutrition using MyFitnessPal. Begun monitoring my blood pressure using the LifeLight app. Walked more, both through work and leisure. Built healthier routines that feel sustainable. Perhaps my body is beginning to reflect those changes in ways that go beyond weight. Why Resting Heart Rate ...

 One of the things I've learned over the past few months is that progress isn't always about dramatic changes. More often, it's the result of small, consistent habits that quietly add up over time. This week I reached  100.49 kg , meaning I've lost  0.90 kg  since last Friday and  8.39 kg  since beginning this journey in April. Perhaps the biggest milestone isn't the number itself—it's the fact that  I'm now less than half a kilogram away from reaching under 100 kg . A few months ago that seemed a long way off. Today it feels genuinely achievable. Health Snapshot Measure This Week Weight 100.49 kg Weekly Change -0.90 kg Total Weight Lost 8.39 kg VR Exercise 44 minutes Calories Burned 276 kcal Average Blood Pressure 134 / 84 mmHg Activity This week included two sessions of  VR Badminton  on the Meta Quest. Although it was a quieter exercise week than the last, I still completed: 2 VR Badminton sessions 44 minutes of activity 276 calories burne...

 Another week, another reminder that lasting progress is built through consistency rather than perfection. This week I reached  101.39 kg , bringing my total weight loss since beginning this journey in April to  7.49 kg . That's another  0.73 kg  lost this week and means I'm getting ever closer to two important milestones: losing  10 kg  overall and reaching double figures on the scales for the first time in a while. What continues to encourage me most isn't simply the weight I've lost—it's the healthier habits I'm building along the way. Health Snapshot Measure This Week Weight 101.39 kg Weekly Change -0.73 kg Total Weight Lost 7.49 kg Exercise 80 minutes Calories Burned 533 kcal Average Blood Pressure 135 / 85 mmHg Activity This week I completed  three VR Badminton sessions , totalling  80 minutes  of activity and burning an estimated  533 calories . VR continues to be my preferred way of exercising. It combines movement, competit...

 This week's weigh-in came in at  102.12kg . That's a loss of  6.76kg  since I started this journey at  108.88kg  in April. On paper, that means I've lost just 0.08kg since last week's update. If I looked only at the scales, I might be tempted to describe this as a slow week. But context matters. And this week was a reminder that real progress isn't measured solely by what happens on the scales. A Week of Celebration One thing worth acknowledging is that this wasn't a typical week. It was a week filled with social activities, celebrations, opportunities to eat out, and the sort of occasions that can make tracking food and maintaining moderation much more difficult. In previous weight loss attempts, weeks like this often felt like obstacles. This time felt different. Not because I was perfect. Far from it. There were moments where tracking wasn't straightforward and where moderation required conscious effort. But perhaps that's the point. Real life doesn...

 Last Saturday, I spent some time walking around Ashby Ville Nature Reserve. The walk itself wasn't particularly long — 2.36 kilometres and 35 minutes according to my Apple Watch — but it turned out to be one of the highlights of the week. As I followed the paths around the reserve, I found myself appreciating something that is often overlooked in weight loss journeys: movement doesn't always have to feel like exercise. The reserve offered space to walk, think, observe the wildlife, and simply enjoy being outdoors for a while. I took photographs along the route and later turned them into a short video. Looking back through those images reminded me that progress isn't always measured purely in kilograms lost or calories burned. Sometimes progress is taking time for yourself. Sometimes progress is choosing activity over inactivity. Sometimes progress is simply getting outside and moving. That walk burned 158 active calories, but it also provided something less measurable — a ...

When your day involves long hours and constant change, it can sometimes be surprisingly difficult to properly switch off. The laptop may be closed and the meetings may be finished, but that doesn't necessarily mean your mind has stopped working. Sometimes you need something that creates a deliberate transition from the demands of the day to the opportunity to rest and recharge. Recently, I've found an unexpected tool helping me do exactly that: Golf Clash, a free-to-play mobile golf game. Now this isn't really a review of the game. It's more a reflection on why it has become part of my evening routine. What Is Golf Clash? For those who haven't come across it before, Golf Clash is a free-to-play mobile golf game available on both iPhone and Android devices. Players compete in quick golf matches against opponents from around the world, earning coins, unlocking clubs, and progressing through increasingly challenging tours and tournaments. What initially appears to be a...

 One of the things I'm discovering on my weight loss journey is that exercise doesn't always have to feel like exercise. Today, I spent some time walking around Ashby Ville Nature Reserve. The walk covered 2.36 kilometres and, according to my Apple Watch, burned 158 active kilocalories. In the grand scheme of things, those numbers might not seem particularly significant. There are people running marathons, climbing mountains, and completing intense gym workouts every day. But that's not really the point. What mattered today was getting outside, moving, and enjoying the environment around me. Ashby Ville Nature Reserve is one of those places that can easily be overlooked when you're busy. Yet it offers something increasingly valuable: space. Space to walk. Space to think. Space to slow down for a while. As I followed the paths around the reserve, I found myself noticing things that are easy to miss when life is moving at full speed. The wildlife, the changing colours of ...

Seven weeks ago I stepped on the scales and weighed 108.88kg. Today I weighed in at 102.79kg. That's a loss of 6.09kg so far — just over 5.5% of my starting weight. The journey hasn't been perfectly linear. There was even a week where the scales appeared to go backwards. But looking at the overall trend rather than individual weigh-ins tells a very different story. Progress isn't about perfection. It's about consistency. One meal doesn't make a diet. One workout doesn't make a lifestyle. And one difficult week doesn't define the journey. One thing that has helped me significantly is technology. As someone who spends much of their professional life talking about how digital can support better outcomes, I've found myself applying many of the same principles to my own health journey. The scales provide data. My Apple Watch helps me track activity levels, exercise, movement, and overall trends. It provides a constant reminder that every walk, workout, and ac...