Beautiful pain

My well-used stability ball

There's only one pain I thoroughly enjoy: sore muscles after a good workout. As you know I'm on a journey to whip myself back into shape and losing three stones (roughly 20kg). Quite funny, when I tell people I'm overweight, they look at me with disbelief, saying I look 'normal'. Isn't it shocking that an overweight person looks 'normal' to others in a society with morbidly obese people? I tell you what, big is not beautiful. At all. And I don't believe anyone who says being fat is enjoyable.
Seriously? I call myself fat, although I'm far from waddling and having to stop every few steps to catch my breath. But even then I have (or better had) my difficulties tying my laces or wiping my arse. So, if I find it already difficult being 'only' overweight, I can't imagine that fat people do those tasks with ease. Personally, I don't know any fat person who's never tried to lose weight. Not one. I believe most fat people who say they like being fat are only saying it because they've tried every diet on the planet and failed either at keeping it up or gained their weight back. Not surprisingly, though, dieting is the worst thing you can do if you're overweight. Crash dieting to lose a pound or two, fine, if you're not doing it regularly and have a normal weight. 
Anyway, back to my plan: in order to not only shed the pounds, but also get into shape, I do regular workouts in addition to my daily 1-hour-power walk in the park. Anyone who has a stability ball (gym ball) and Internet can do it. There are vast amounts of videos with easy exercises for abs, upper and lower body. I used to go to physio when I was younger (back troubles) and recalled a few workouts I did back then, plus chose a few from the net and they seem to work just fine. If you're unsure, you should consult your GP beforehand. If those workouts are done wrongly, they can do more harm than good.
This one is an easy one that should work for beginners. It's much harder than it looks, believe you me.

Although I'm cycling a lot, walk quite a bit and take the steps rather than the lift, my abs and back weren't really trained. Only ten repetitions had me aching for a whole week. It didn't take long to adapt again and I've widened the range of exercises to target certain areas (thighs, back, arms). Cardio alone will not tone all areas and I really don't want to be slim and wobbly. I hate wobbly bits.

Home made vegetable curry with couscous

Of course I'm watching what I'm eating, too, but it's not that big a difference to before as my diet has always been healthy. I cut out biscuits (mostly) and eat smaller portions, or replace one meal with a freshly made fruit salad. I use sugar and milk in my tea and still eat chocolate and cake. In general I eat between 1500 to 2000 calories a day. 
Since I started end of January, I've lost about two inches (7cm) around my tummy, which is my main area of concern. I also lost around my arse and legs, which I'm quite pleased with. It's painfully slow, but it's healthier that way. Not sure how many pounds I've dropped; I estimate it must be around twelve to sixteen pounds (6 to 8kg), but gained on muscle, which weighs more than fat. For all I know is that I comfortably fit into my favourite jeans again, which is a start. My aim is 20 pounds (10kg) till May, then further 20 pounds till end of this year. It's doable. I want to say goodbye to my fat arse and wobbly tummy for good and go back to my sexy slim, but still curvy body. Can't wait!