This is fact. The way you dress when you turn up for a job interview sets the tone for the conversation to follow. The way you dress when you go on a first date determines the attitude of the person across the table from you. How tight your jeans are at the skate park determines your place in the hierachy.

Delving deeper, the way your present your body speaks volumes about your lifestyle.

At school I was pretty fit. I used to walk to and from the station with a school bag, a sports bag and my sweet saxophone most days. Wearing knee high socks and a straw boater no less. I would have some form of sports training most afternoons and a match on the weekend.

But then came middle of Year 12, the introduction of alcohol and the end of sport, I began to soften up a little. Farewell hard stomach. The university days did nothing to help this. Running ski clubs and organising parties meant I spent a lot of time ‘entertaining’. This was followed by the real blow out. 2 seasons of ski instructing in Colorado. I used to get on the drink every day after teaching and would eat poorly. Despite mediocre efforts, I would eat crap. Ski resorts don’t have the best food going around. Even the ham and cheese sambos at lunch were bad.

By the end of my time as a ski instructor I had kegged up big time. And this lead to a change in my attitude. I had become used to the way I now looked. It crept up on me under my 3 jumpers and jacket, and I just accepted it.

I woke up one day in 2008 and I had cracked the 120kg mark. I was 121kgs and my heaviest ever. I had reached a point where I no longer wanted to go to the beach because I was embarrassed.

That day in February I decided to do something about it. I paid my money to do March boot camp so I was locked in. Then I started running. It was pretty tough as I was big. Over the following 2 weeks I managed to drop about 3kgs. Pretty good start. I then started on my bootcamp campaign. I did 3 months of early mornings and pain.

My crusade was aided by a stint of 80 days off alcohol. The reward, come July: I was 110kgs. I had managed to shift 11kgs and I felt great. I was fit, I was toning up and my body was singing. I had been putting in only good fuel and no toxins.

As sure as night follows day, after the 90 days I was back drinking and back to my old ways. I got a leg injury and the running was put on hold. But I managed to keep the weight off. Last year I went 90 days off the drink and got myself down to 105kgs. Then I got injured again and the running stopped. 

For the first time over this last Christmas, I put back on some weight. Only a few kgs, but still, this is the first time in nearly 2 years the scales had gone up. And I feel shit again. I wake up tired and my mind races whilst I’m asleep.

It has made me realise, this cannot be a fad. It needs to be a choice for life. I need to keep exercising and I need to keep monitoring what goes in my face.

We read articles constantly pointing out that as a population we are overweight. Everyone has a theory or a reason for it. Mine is pretty simple:

If you burn more than you eat, you win.

I don’t want people to look at me and think that I am over weight. I need to get myself back in to ‘wife finding shape’. When I am healthy and fit, I carry myself better. I am more confident. I am happier and I am healthier.

And I get a much more positive response from others.

Because, after all, they are judging the book by the cover.