A New Goal, a New Attempt.
Once again, I weigh 90 kilograms. It’s June 2025, and this is yet another time I’ve reached that weight. Not funny.
My excuse this time? Well, I had surgery last year. The surgery itself was successful, but afterward, I wasn’t allowed to exercise for a long time. Moreover, it turned out that the result wasn’t entirely satisfactory. I was given a heavy hormone injection. One of the side effects was that my body temporarily stopped producing testosterone. The result: discouragement, no energy, possible more belly fat, and other unpleasant things.
In other words: more than enough reasons not to exercise and to let myself go a bit. And since I’m someone who finds it hard to say no to sweets, it has left its mark. We are now a year later. The injection is almost worn off. The energy is back. But I still weigh 90 kilograms.
Traces of Excess
And that has its consequences. I don’t feel good in my skin. My nicest clothes have become too small. My jackets no longer fit. I only have a few pairs of pants that fit and even bought a few more. Sweatpants, because they stretch.
In short, I weigh too much.
But I’ve pulled myself together. I’ve gathered all my courage and energy and started again: intensive exercise and eating much less.
I Need a Trigger
I’m one of those people who need a clear goal to stay truly motivated. Not just saying “I want to lose weight”, but something bigger.
My goal is not the number on the scale. My goal is a reward: a sports car.
As you can read here, I’ve had some nice cars in my life. Not spectacular, but always with character.
My current car is a Mini Paceman. A nice car that I’m still satisfied with. But I’ve been talking with my wife for a long time about what I would do if that car ever breaks down. My answer was always: then I’ll buy a Jeep Wrangler. But she’s not a fan of that. Too big, too bulky, hard to park in the city center. She doesn’t think it’s a good idea.
An Old Love Rekindled
Two weeks ago, I had an inspiration. I’ve had a Wrangler Jeep in the past. But I also had a Z4 Coupé. And in my eyes, that was the most beautiful car I’ve ever had. Eventually, I sold it, along with the Jeep, for tax reasons.
And then I thought: why don’t I buy a Z4 Coupé again if I reach my target weight?
I cautiously proposed this idea to my wife. And, wonder of wonders, she said: “Okay, I can live with that.” A bit jokingly from me: “You already see yourself driving around in it, don’t you?”
It’s not a bulky car, but a stylish coupé. So now I have a goal: if I weigh 82 kilograms, I’ll buy myself a Z4 Coupé. That model hasn’t been made new for a long time, so it will definitely be a second-hand one. But that doesn’t matter. You buy such a car mainly to look at and enjoy.
All or Nothing
Anyone who knows me a little, or rather, I know myself by now, knows that I need such a trigger. And so I’m now fully engaged: intensive exercise, healthy and much less eating, and above all, moving, moving, moving.
And it’s working.
That also means that the hormone injection is almost worn off.
Talking about it Helps
One of my strategies to keep going is to talk about it. As much as possible. To friends, family, acquaintances. I’ve also told my daughters about it.
One said: “Dad, you’re crazy.”
The other: “Dad, cool idea.”
I also told my brother, whose opinion I greatly value. He just chuckled. Ten years ago, he probably would have scolded me, but not anymore.
And as I said before: if I want to do it again, it has to be now. I’ve been at it for two weeks now. Everything is going according to plan, even though I don’t really have a plan. But the numbers on the scale are steadily decreasing.
An Unexpected Ally
And this is not my first time. I know how it works: eat less, move more. Create a calorie deficit, persevere, and try again every day.
I got an extra boost when I told my plan to Linda, a cousin of my wife. She also wants to lose weight and immediately joined in. “Let’s make it a bet,” she said.
She also wants to lose eight kilos. We discussed the stakes of the bet. Who has to do what in case of a win or loss? But we couldn’t agree.
Eventually, we came up with a simple but powerful idea: at least once a week, we send each other a photo of ourselves on the scale via WhatsApp. Not a real bet, but a form of mutual motivation.
I’ve done this myself before: taking photos of my weight, keeping track, comparing. And I’ve started again now.
I mainly hope that she keeps it up too.
And that we can reach our goal together.
To be Continued
In the meantime, I’ve finished How Not to Diet (30 hours of audio), which sheds a different light on my journey. Exercising has less impact than most, almost everyone, thinks. Unless you really exercise a lot. So that’s what I’m doing.
Halfway
We are now halfway through my plan, and as you can see in the graph below, it’s working, but just barely.
