2023 - my tenth year in numbers

On New Year's Day 2014 I realised I was getting a bit fat around the middle and I should really be taking better care of myself physically. So I decided to keep a daily record of my exercise and diet in a spreadsheet. Today marks the tenth anniversary of doing this, which some might say smacks of being along the autism spectrum disorder - but so what? It works. Or at least - it has done until now (I don't wish to tempt fate by being complacent. Who knows what the future might bring?).

Walking

I was nicely on target to crack 2019's record when Covid confined me indoors for eleven days. So - better luck next year. Moderate-to-high intensity walking, according to my Huawei health app (the only thing I use my oldest phone for - disconnected now from the GSM network), is up to 50 minutes a day, double where it was in 2019. Nordic walking poles help here! Over the past ten years, I have walked over 20,200 miles (32,550 km) in total, averaging over 11,150 paces a day, every day, since 1 January 2014. According to Samsung's health app (connected to the network), I'm in the top 4% of all users.

Drinking

I have massively reduced by alcohol intake - in 2014, the first year of measuring, it was 33.4 units per week, so it must have been more than that in the days before I began to measure. This year, like last year, I managed to get below the NHS guideline limit of 14 units per week (2 units = 50ml of vodka at 40%, or 150ml of wine at 13.5%, or half a litre of beer at 4%). I achieved this by only drinking socially (family Zoom calls included). Zero alcohol for over two-thirds of year, which of course includes Lent. Two consecutive days a week with no alcohol, another rule.

Physical exercise

Sadly, the four days during which I was laid low with Covid meant that I'd not beat last year's record of nine days with no physical training. Illnesses excepted, these are often the result of business trips where early starts and late finishes precluded the possibility of any sets of exercises across the day. Still, in most categories, 2023 was the strongest-performing year to date. [Numbers highlighted in gold = record year.]

Measurable and manageable
	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023
Paces (daily average)	11.0k	11.4k	12.0k	11.1k	11.2k	11.6k	11.9k
Moderate to high  intensity (mins)	N/A	N/A	24	30	35	44	50
Alcohol drunk (units/week)	20.8	19.7	18.5	15.5	14.1	13.7	13.6
Dry days over course of year	186	196	198	208	231	234	249
Days with zero physical training	83	27	17	11	22	9	10
Press-ups/day	25	60	90	83	20	23	26
Pull-ups/day	2	7	5	11	11	12	6
Sit-ups/day	N/A	N/A	N/A	16	19	25	33
Sets of weights exercises/day	2.1	2.2	2.3	2.4	1.1	1.6	2.5
Squats/day	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	28	40	45
Sets of back extensions/day	N/A	N/A	N/A	N/A	0.3	1.3	2.8
Plank time (min: sec/day average)	N/A	N/A	3:40	4:11	4:21	4:58	5:55
Portions fresh fruit & veg/day	5.0	5.2	5.3	5.4	6.1	6.3	6.7

Exercises, described

Press-ups: focus on quality over quantity (hence much lower numbers than in earlier years). To qualify, the body must go down to the floor so the nose touches it; then up with arms fully locked at the elbows.

Pull-ups: again, proper sort, so fewer. From 'full-dangle' position, up to chin touching the bar, then down to full-dangle, then repeat. My record (only achieved twice this year) is eight in one go.

Sit-ups: feet wedged under the sink, knees bent, back flat on floor, then sit up, right elbow touching left knee, then down, back flat on floor, then sit up, with left elbow touching right knee.

Weights: with two x 5kg dumbbells, one set of each: 10 x lateral raises, 10 x internal rotator cuff, 10 x external rotator cuff, repeat that lot two or three times, plus 30 back-bends with dumbbells in hand. 

Squats: standing upright, heels raised, squat right down, stand up straight again, repeat (typically do this while kettle boils).

Back extensions: lying stomach-down on my ZemBord™; legs rise up behind back like a scorpion's sting, moving centre of gravity, causing me to rock forward until my nose touches the ground. Hands behind head. (More here about the apparatus and the exercise) One set = eight forwards and backwards.

Plank: holding myself up by forearms, toes on the ground, back absolutely straight. Record time eight minutes and 15 seconds; more usually, two lots of three minutes with a short break in between.

Portions of fresh fruit and veg: self explanatory. One portion = 80g. Daily staples: apple (or fresh-pressed apple juice); banana, cherry tomatoes, berries, spinach, beetroot, chickpeas or lentils or beans, parsnip, grapefruit and/or orange/tangerines.

So - tomorrow starts another year, and having set myself the goal of beating last year, and being a stronger and fitter man aged 67 than I was at 66, off we go, getting on with it… May it remain thus for a long time to come.


This time last year:
2022: A year in numbers

This time two years ago:
2021: A year in numbers

This time three years ago:

2020 - a year in numbers

This time four years ago
2019 - a year in numbers

This time five years ago:
2018- a year in numbers

This time six years ago:
2017 - a year in numbers

This time seven years ago:
2016 - a year in numbers

This time eight years ago:
2015 - a year in numbers

This time nine years ago:
Economic forecasts for 2014 - and 2015?

This time ten years ago:
Economic predictions for 2014

This time 11 years ago:
Economic predictions for 2013

This time 12 years ago:
Economic predictions for 2012

This time 13 years ago:
Classic cars, West Ealing

This time 14 years ago:
Jeziorki 2009, another view

This time 15 years ago:
Jeziorki 2008, another view

This time 16 years ago:
Final thoughts for 2007