The Optimise Health Blog

So I decided to enter the triathlon again this year. I was fundraising for York Foodbank - giving much needed food to people literally on the "breadline" in poverty. The Race didn't quite go to plan due to my bike being stolen 4 weeks beforehand, my 3 month old daughter spending a week in hospital with suspected meningitis 3 weeks before raceday and a consequently shortened training schedule of 6 weeks. I was pleasantly surprised when on a borrowed bike I completed the race almost a minute faster than last year! Thanks for all the support - we raised over £1500 for the foodbank. I have foolishly decided to go for a longer race next year - goals have to keep being pushed forward or we risk stagnation or worse regression... Dr Ben Sinclair Linked In Profile Twitter: Follow @menshealthtips  About Sinclair Health Ltd

I have a confession to make.  After telling people not to do crash diets, I lost a lot of weight in the few days after my initial weigh in! Actually I had only cut out the cheese excess so this was no crash diet!  The weight was fluid accumulated in my leg from swelling due to air travel.  Since the removal of lymph nodes in my groin through cancer surgery my left leg can swell during travel gaining up to 1kg/1L of fluid in the form of odema around the lower calf and ankle; this will recede after intense exercise or with a couple of  active days and a few  nights sleep.  So my weigh in this month shows 87.4kg. Skewed perhaps by an unknown weight of fluid, although I do know my clothes were tighter after the holiday so it was not all fluid gain!  I have another confession: I started lent late and gave up alcohol from yesterday onwards. Having suggested in the past that New Years resolutions can be unhelpful, I have found resolutions to be very helpful this year to assist as external mot

Just back from a restful holiday in the French Alps I jumped on the scales and realised that I have gained 5 kg since my triathlon last year and around 3kg of this is from eating too much and doing less exercise over Christmas or just eating too much on holiday! So I resolve now to get back to and better than my fitness of last summer ...by going back to basics. How did I get here?  1. My portion sizes have crept up while my activity levels fell before Xmas with a chest cold and a hip injury slowing me down.  2. I ate too much cheese and drank too much wine in France! As it was a family holiday I did less exercise overall and while lugging my 2 yr old daughter up the hills sledging and snowshoeing helped strengthen my back, thighs and upper body, it did not counteract my vast mountain appetite and high fat intake of Savoyard restaurant diet.  3. I have had little to aim for as tri season was over too soon - I hope do at least a couple of triathlons this year. 4. Bad weather and lack of