Paul Fennessy

AT THE TIME of writing, I am almost eight weeks into my fitness challenge.

It hasn’t felt that long, but I would be lying to suggest I wasn’t looking forward to crossing the finish line and indulging myself just a little.

It is, without doubt, the longest I have gone without a bar of chocolate, fizzy drinks or a packet of crisps since infancy.

Likewise, it is true as well of pasta and bread – probably the food I have eaten more than anything else in life – though I have admittedly had a few opportunities to avail myself of both thanks to the permitted weekly cheat meal.

Alcohol too has been ditched for the longest period since I was legally old enough to drink. I never saw my consumption as problematic. But I have been a sporadic binge drinker (albeit far less as I have grown older), at least according to the “five or more drinks” definition outlined by the Centres for Disease Control and Prevention, and I suspect that would be true of many Irish people of my generation.

For the first couple of weeks, I was allowed one Rice Krispies bar a day. But after a while, sugar too got almost completely eradicated from my diet, albeit a quick Google search informs me that Greek yoghurt, which I have once a week on rest days, has “some sugar on the nutritional label, anywhere between 6 and 12 grams”.

Occasionally, I miss some of the luxuries that I took for granted for much of my life.

For instance, attending the Ireland-Austria Nations League match on Thursday and games at the Aviva Stadium in general can be quite an exhilarating experience that invariably leaves you feeling overstimulated by the climax, even for relatively unremarkable fixtures.

There is a satisfaction in having a nice relaxing beer afterwards to wind down, as it is more of a challenge than usual to fall asleep after being part of a crowd of 45,000 people with loud music and other forms of noise inescapable for around two hours before the post-match rush to write up copy, interview players, etc.

But despite these fleeting thoughts and mild frustrations, sticking to a rigid diet has had more pros than cons.

Sleep has improved, feelings of lethargy are rarer, and stress and anxiety, though not eliminated, are less pronounced.

An upset stomach earlier this week (yes, they do happen even when you consciously eat healthily) was far from ideal, but not enough to throw me off course and away from the diet and exercise plan.

Social occasions without alcohol do feel different but not necessarily worse. They definitely seem to last longer, and the chat of less sober colleagues can grow a little tedious at times, but it’s still largely fun and not as awkward as people might assume.

On a related note, I have always been a big walker.

It wouldn’t be too unusual to spend an hour trekking home from a night out. Sometimes, it can help alleviate the buzz from drinking slightly too much.

Pasta is not permitted for the fitness challenge. Alamy Stock Photo Alamy Stock Photo

Often, I would undertake these late-night expeditions in a drowsy, half-drunken state, while badly needing to pee.

By contrast, an alcohol-free, lengthy walk in the dead of night more recently felt refreshing and peaceful – strolling around the city when there are virtually no cars or people around evokes a special feeling, particularly on cool, crystal-clear autumn evenings. Without wanting to sound pretentious, there is a beauty in the stillness best appreciated sober, especially for someone used to the rapid pace of modern life accentuated by a city as intense as Dublin can be during normal hours.

Exercising six out of seven days a week also makes everything feel a little easier.

From getting out of bed to writing an article to concentrating while reading or working on the garden, the exhaustion that would come more readily from drinking a few beers the night before or overindulging in takeaways is far less conspicuous.

The temptation and worry, of course, is that everything goes out the window once the 12 weeks are over.

Reverting to excessive bad habits is a choice, but one I feel capable of eschewing.

It would be foolish to promise never to drink alcohol or consume bad food again.

But a happy medium that balances regular exercise with better eating habits is achievable.

Much of it comes from self-motivation and is carried out alone.

Telling yourself to complete workouts that can last up to two hours, starting at 11pm, after a long shift at work, is tougher mentally than physically.

But I am also grateful for the guidance and advice from my trainer, Darren.

The Kahunas app requires a weekly check-in/progress update, and he always strikes the right encouraging tone.

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‘I was in my late 30s, and I had never really given serious thought to fitness or diet’

Last weekend, Darren reminded me that over seven weeks I had gone from 79.79kg to 74.3kg, meaning I had lost a little over 12 pounds since the beginning of this journey.

It shows the benefits of simply trusting the process and listening to experts’ advice.

The challenge is not over yet, though.

With the end in sight, the workout plan was suddenly radically altered and intensified.

Even though it is close, getting over the line feels tougher than ever now.

I’ll go into more detail on how I fared with this new routine in the next article, as my changing body braces itself for previously untested waters.