Many slimmers would have noticed that the festive season tends to add a couple of extra pounds to the middle, but for some, such as myself, the pounds pile on every day, week and month. I’m usually not one to volunteer for a diet or to go to the gym to get fit, but when I was approached with a proposal and a promise I would lose weight and also change my body shape, I was intrigued enough to sign up.
The Styku 3D body scan measures hundreds of data points across the body (waist, hips, thighs etc.) and creates a chart of all results and compares them to other data.
Styku is a body scanning technology that maps the shape, composition, and health of the physical body using the latest in computer vision and artificial intelligence.
Styku’s intuitive, multi-platform software gives professionals the ability to perform a full-body scan, view 3D models, extract body circumferences, predict body composition, estimate health risks, track changes in body shape, set fitness goals, and much more.
This allowed a team of professionals to create a diet and fitness plan tailored to my weight loss goals, which will also later allow them to accurately track my progress by comparing the initial scan with my final Styku scan to give me my overall total weight loss.
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The Styku 3D body scan took an accurate picture of my body which highlighted several problematic areas. It revealed that I was 25 percent more likely to be at risk of health complications compared to others my age.
Once the data had been collected by Styku, it was distributed to fitness and dieting professionals for them to create a 12-week diet and fitness plan.
Martin Hamer, a health and fitness tutor at The Training Room, was assigned to me as my brilliant personal trainer for the fitness part of the challenge.
The dramatic change from my usual routine was a massive concern for me as, although I was determined to lose weight and improve my health, I was scared that I would find it too hard and quit the programme early.
However, Martin listened to my concerns and created a fitness plan that would help ease me into getting in shape for the initial six weeks of the programme, he incorporated home workouts as well as gym ones and encouraged me to exercise three times a week.
Here is the six-week workout plan.
Session 1 – Gym
• Treadmill Incline walk – 1 set -10 minutes- 0s rest
• Dumbbell Chest Press (Flat Bench) – 3 sets -10 reps – 45s rest
• Dumbbell Lunge (Alternate Legs) – 3 sets -12 reps (six on each leg) – 45s rest
• Dumbbell Shoulder Press – 3 sets -10 reps – 45s rest
• Dumbbell Goblet Squat – 3 sets -10 reps – 45s rest
• Straight arm plank hold – 3 sets -30s hold – 45s rest
• Treadmill Incline walk – 1 set -10 minutes- 0s rest
Session 2 – Gym
• Rowing Machine – 1 set -10 minutes- 0s rest
• Dumbbell Shoulder Press – 3 sets -10 reps – 45s rest
• Dumbbell Reverse Lunge (Alternate Legs) – 3 sets -12 reps (six on each leg) – 45s rest
• Dumbbell Thrusters – 3 sets -10 reps – 0s rest
• Dumbell Goblet Squat – 3 sets -10 reps – 45s rest
• Side Plank (Right and Left) – 2 sets – 30s R 30s L – 45s rest
• Rowing Machine – 1 set -10 minutes- 0s rest
Session 3 – Home Workout
• 5 Squats/5 Lunges/5 Walkouts – 3 sets – 5 reps – 0s rest
• Squats – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Press Ups – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Burpees – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Lunges – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Walkouts – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Straight arm plank hold – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Mountain Climbers – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Leg Raises – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Lower and Upper body Stretches -1 set – 30-60s reps – 0s rest
Session 4 – Home Workout
• 5 Squats/5 Lunges/5 Walkouts – 3 sets – 5 reps – 0s rest
• Plank up and downs – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• High Knee Jog – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Glute Bridge – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Reverse Lunge – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Squat and Reach – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Shoulder Taps – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Squat Thrusts – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Flutter Kicks – 2 sets – 60s reps – 30s rest
• Lower and Upper body Stretches -1 set – 30-60s reps – 0s rest
Martin encouraged me to stick to three sessions per week but use a combination of the above (e.g. 2 Gym and 1 home or 2 home and 1 gym).
It wasn’t always easy sticking to the fitness programme but after a couple of weeks sessions it became easier and easier, and although I am still far from being a gym expert, at least I can now do few more press-ups than before.
Diet plan
My diet plan was created by Dr Tom Little, a leading expert in the field of nutrition and the founder of colour fit.
From the Styku scan, Dr Little was able to determine how many calories I should be having a day in order to reach my weight loss goal at 12 weeks.
To lose weight, he explained I had to go into a calorie deficit, in other words, reduce the number of calories consumed relative to the number of calories required for maintaining current body weight.
He pointed me in the direction of herowellbeing.com, where I was able to use the colour-fit plates to determine the type of meals I should be eating. I then prepared my meals for the week and aimed to keep my calorie count bellow 1300 calories a day.
As I have irregular working hours, I tend to eat at different times. But one of the first things Dr. Little recommended I do was create a meal plan with set eating times to boost my weight loss.
I decided that since most days by day begins at 5am I would eat my first meal at 9am, my lunch at 1:30pm and my final meal of the day before 7pm – this was initially hard because my body was used to eating at different times so come early evening I started getting hungry, but I overcame this by incorporating healthy snacks like nuts and fruit into my day.
My normal week would look something like this;
Monday
Breakfast: Poached eggs on wholemeal toast
Lunch: Salmon and sweet potato mash
Dinner: Steak and asparagus
Snack: Grapes
Tuesday
Breakfast: Granola & Vanilla Yoghurt
Lunch: Houmous and falafel wrap
Dinner: Butternut steak and quinoa
Snack: Almonds
Wednesday
Breakfast: Blueberry overnight oats
Lunch: Salmon bagel
Dinner: Chicken and Mexican rice with green veg
Snack: Blueberries
Thursday
Breakfast: Tomato, ham and vegan cheese omelette
Lunch: Salmon and brown pasta with green veg
Dinner: Chicken stir-fry with a mixture of vegetables
Snack: Mixed nuts
Friday
Breakfast: Scrambled eggs and smoked salmon
Lunch: Chicken stir-fry with a mixture of vegetables
Dinner: Sweet potato fries and salmon fillet
Snack: Carrot sticks with houmous
During the first couple of weeks I planned my meals out over the weekend also, but as my motivation was dropping off I decided to reward my healthy eating with “treats” on the weekend.