Four inches in one-and-a-half years
Until I met Hong Kong, I was a skinny bugger. Soon after arriving here from Canada (I’m a Kiwi, but I studied in Ontario for year), I had a suit made in Bangkok. After a year of a mostly vegetarian diet, everyday walking, loads of sunflower seeds, and drinking according to Canadian standards, I didn’t have much blubber to show. That wasn’t very good thinking, because if there’s anywhere one could use a bit of extra insulation, it’s Canada in winter. My waist was 31 inches, according to my Bangkok tailor.
And then I came to Hong Kong, where temperatures regularly shoot above 30 degrees Celsius and humidity levels creep close to 100 percent. Not an ideal place to carry around some extra tyres. In Hong Kong, I started drinking, stopped walking so much, and indulged in regular curries and irresistable braised pork. Eighteen months later, I’ve gone from a 31-inch waist to 35 inches. With change.
I blame most of that on beer. I’m now at the age where the beer blubber just ain’t gonna disappear without a bit of work. I’m also at a point in my life where I can’t be bothered doing that work… If only there were a way to lose weight while reading the internet.
So, I have to compromise. I’m going to start eating healthier — you know, oat bars, fruit, and shit like that — and I’m going to take the stairs whenever possible. I can’t stop drinking just yet, because of the season (which has an unfortunate tendency to drag on all year in Hong Kong), but I’ll tone it down. Early next year, I’ll do another month off the turps, just to get me heading in the right direction.
You see, I think these things work in cycles that sometimes become to set-in to reverse. At the moment I’m clearly in a enjoy-fatty-foods/exercise-lite cycle. I need to turn that round and get in the habit of eating well again, and perhaps even doing something active.
Yeah, I know you all care.
6 comments November 22, 2007
