Frequently Asked Questions

I've attempted to collate your most frequently asked questions into one handy spot.

1. Do you have loose skin after losing your lard?
   I wrote a grand old entry about loose skin after weight loss here that covers the state of my skin and all my experiences and research on the topic.


2. Where can I find the weight tracker spreadsheet that you mention in the Dietgirl book?
   You can find this masterpiece of number crunching on my Resources page. This page contains all of my favourite diet, health and fitness bits and pieces.


3. Can you suggest a beginners exercise program/ give weight training advice/ recommend a workout DVD?
   I am by no means a fitness professional so I'm really not the best person to advise you! If you're just starting out and have not exercised in a while, that old cliche of Consulting Your Physician First really holds true. I personally started out with walking as a cheap and easy form of exercise. Since then I've tried many kinds of exercise over the years.
   
   To get started you might like to check out the huge list of all my favourite exercise DVDs, tools and websites over on my Diet, Health & Fitness Resources page.


4. Can you give me the 5K training program that Mistress Julia wrote for you?
   Since this was four years ago now I have no idea where the big bunch of Post-It notes are with my workouts! Also she tailored it to my particular lard and fitness level at the time. Many people have wholeheartedly recommended the free Cool Running Couch to 5K program which can be adapted to all fitness levels and combines walking and jogging, gradually building up to the five kilometres.


5. Could you send me the recipe for the curry you made Gareth in the Dietgirl book?
   My pleasure - here it is! There are lots of other recipes scattered throughout the blog archives too - check out the Recipes category page.


6. You've mentioned a List of Dinners from which you plan your weekly shopping. Gimme gimme.
   The list is here, but please bear in mind it is literally just a list of meals to jog my memory.


7. Do you have any weight loss tips?
   You can read my Top 20 Weight Loss Tips right here!


8. How do you deal with food cravings? How do you resist goodies in the office?
   One day at a time, baby! I wrote an entry about this recently with a few strategies and ideas - How do you fight cravings?


9. Why did you blog about your weight loss? How did it help you? How can I start a blog?
   Check out my entry Why Blog? for my take on this.


10. What's the name of the company that you did your New York City cycling tour with?
    They are called Bike the Big Apple and they are ace!


11. I'm going on trip to Edinburgh - where's good to eat and what's good to do?
    I've not lived in Edinburgh for over four years now so sadly I am out of touch as where's good to go in the capital. But here's some of my favourites!
    
    • For old-fashioned high teas and the best pie and mash ever, try The Bakehouse Company in Broughton Street
    • Gobsmackingly good bread and cakes at Falko on Bruntsfield Place
    • Great tea at Tea Tree Tea on Bread Street. Try the Honeymoon Slice!
    • My old favourite cheap and cheerful haunts include: ChopChop in Haymarket, Monster Mash in Forrest Road and Wannaburger on the Royal Mile or West End. 
    • My favourite hot chocolates are at the Cameo Cinema Bar on Home Street or Spoon on Blackfriars Street, just off the Royal Mile.
    • For a posh treat, try afternoon tea at The Balmoral hotel.
    • Places close to Waverley Station for when you've just arrived and hank marvin': The Doric pub does a great burger and I like the Malt Shovel on Cockburn Street mostly because it was the first pub I went to when I arrived in Edinburgh. The Guildford Arms is beautiful pub with nice food and ales a'plenty.
    • Fancier meals: Oloroso or The Witchery.
    • Vegetarian food: You can't go wrong at the salad bar at Hendersons on Hanover Street, Black Bo's or David Bann.
    • The List is a great guide to finding things to eat, see and do in Edinburgh. I also like Edinburgh Love and The Edinburgh Blog for local news and reviews.
    In terms of things to do, you can't go wrong with the Hop On Hop Off bus tour to get you orientated - buses leave from opposite Waverly Station. I also like Mary Kings Close, a walk up Arthur's Seat, the Saturday farmers market in Castle Terrace, and/or a visit to any of Edinburgh's fab galleries.
    
    Also don't forget the rest of the country - it rules! Undiscovered Scotland is my favourite site for finding places to go and things to see.

If you don't find the answer you need, please leave a comment below. I can't respond personally to every message, however I like to be helpful so if a question keeps coming up I will address it in a future blog entry.