Happy Halloween – 2011

I Love this video, Please note it isn’t mine.

Uses for ” cycling plus” Buff !

First up- of course – is as a cyclist

Next we need to make sure the bike is ok in all this so we have a seat warmer

Next up, cycling in Manchester is tough, you gotta be ‘ard as nails , so you gotta look intimidating

And finally ( for now)

You gotta look ” cool-as-a-cat” and thanks to cycling plus and their free buff now you can be cool like me 🙂

Bus vs Cyclist – Youtube Flame War – Helmet Camera Footage

This is my single most viewed video on YouTube, It has almost 20k hits.

The reason is that a fair few bus drivers and anti-cycling motorists have been sharing this around the web.

The result is some pretty nasty (and uneducated) comments against cyclists.

While I admit Tommo might have done well to ease off the “Gas”  it doesn’t excuse a “professional  driver”

So, the Bus drivers and anti cycling lot have shared it around the web, now its OUR Turn (this is not them vs us, as I might become a “Them” soon)

Please repost this EVERYWHERE, encourage comments and lets offer a reasoned debate on this.

Injury Forces Me Out Of A Charity Ride & A Week In Review.

I’m Out:

I have been REAL lucky with injures in the last 3 years, having not missed an organised ride in that time due to illness or injury.

Upto Friday just 2 days ago, things were fine, times were good, I was feeling strong etc and was ready to go.

The event was the “Return of the winter-sprinter”

However, on the commute on Friday I had a wee-accident.

I was FLYING, I  had drafted a Moped doing 30 Mph, dropped 2 cyclists on a hill and  hitting my 3rd red light I was still averaging over  20Mph, setting off from the lights, my leg wasnt clipped into my SPD’s and I slipped…HARD, I managed to not fall off but it left my left looking like I’d been jumped by a tiger.

My leg now being swollen and bloody sore, I took the HARD decision to not ride the 100km event today, I’ll come back stronger, but for now, I  am going to listen to my body and rest it.

Media:

This week had me do a couple more interviews, On Monday morning a photo shoot had been arranged with the Manchester Evening News, it was cold, wet and I had cycled into work in my  waterproofs, however, I still had my real kit on for the shoot, but I needed warmth while I waited.

However, the photographer must have had the wrong number as he didn’t call and it turns out he said my phone was off (it couldn’t have been as that’s what I used to take the about pic) so never mind, the article can be seen here:

The article mentions awards, Clive told me to get a cabinet, well, a shelf will do for now, though it will need to be bigger if I am to put an Olympic Torch on it :0)

Kinect Season

So as the summer cycling induced longer commutes comes to end due to the NASTY weather, Kinect-Season kicks off again, for anyone who wants to lose weight without “Real-workouts” this REALLY is the best way, I was buggered when I’d finished a couple of hours on it.

Let’s not forget in all of this that NOT QUITTING had made me who I am today !

For now,that’s me, stay strong, there should be an updated headed your way about the “Gary Brennan Foundation” this week too.

Sky Ride , a campaign to get one million more people onto their bikes by 2013

I’m Getting Old – Time To Look Back @ This Date Last Year

Yup, it’s my Birthday and I wanted to look back at what I posted last year, the results of what I have done are pretty shocking.

Starting Stats:

Waist 68-72″

Weight 39Stone 13Lbs .

Shirts 26″ Collar or 8XL

BMI over 70

Resting Hear Rate OVER 130Bmp

Miles Cycled over 12,000

I checked my weight loss by wrapping

Updated stats at 30:

Waist 38-40″

16 Stone And A Few Pounds !!!

17″ Collar or XL or even Large

BMI Under 29

Resting Heart Rate 41BPM

Cycled over 12.000 Miles

I now check my weight with scales

Where Am I now, at age 31:

Waist 30-32″

A little under 13 stone (182 pounds) !!!

15″ Collar or Medium/Large

BMI 22 (and thus NORMAL )

“Best” Resting Heart Rate 34 BPM

By the end of this year, I will hit 20, 000 miles cycled

I now check my weight with scales

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I think we can all agree that what I achieved by 30 was incredible but what I have done in the last 12 months, IMO, is even better, I could have sat back , congratulated myself on a job well done and enjoyed the plaudits….but I DIDN’T, I finished this job a few months ago and now my efforts are going into keeping the weight off, I feel AMAZING, I feel that life is not the same as it was , its much better and its ALL thanks to cycling !

If I can do it………….Anyone Can……now lets rise a (healthy) drink to cycling and livingstrong !!!!

Gaz (Suddenly I don’t feel so old after writing that)

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Sky Ride , a campaign to get one million more people onto their bikes by 2013

An Alternative 2011 – By Getting Here Via A Gastric Bypass

** Disclaimer **

*** I DIDN’T Have a Weight Loss Operation,

This article reflects on what MIGHT have been if I had

My Weight Loss has come from CYCLING and cutting calories ***

What If ? ? ? ? ! ! ! !

Why ?

I was desperate to save my life, I was 40 stone, I had type 2 diabetes , sleep apnoea, High blood pressure and the strain on my heart and lungs were killing me, with 2 young kids and a family at home to look out for, I was under pressure to fix this FAST.

Post Op

It’s been 3 years since I had my Gastric Bypass operation, it cost me £11500, its going to take me around 12 years to pay it off, the idea being, by the time I’d be almost 45 years old and I’d have a great “Mid-Life” to look forward to, with my weight being solved and the operation being paid off.

When I woke up in the hospital, the operation had been a ” Success” , however there were complications , caused by my size, of the operation from the off.

Because in my younger days I was a smoker, I was in the 16% of people that suffered from a Ulceration of the anastomosis, resulting in many episodes of “Temporary restriction of the consumption of solid foods”

Because of the lack of Vitamins my body now takes in I’m on a CRAZY amount of supplements just to make me function each morning.

I went out within a month of having the operation for a drink with friends, oh my lord, one drink  and I was “leg-less” 2 and I was passed out in the back of a taxi going home “I thought this was the start of a new, better life” ?

My social life went from poor to NONE after this operation.

There were many other “minor” issues that caused me to be ill/spend time in the care of doctors in the last 3 years too.

Weight Loss:

Well, I have achieved a 65% loss of my excess weight, putting me at a loss of 17 stone and at best  I weighed in @  “just” 23 stone, I had originally said if I could get to 20 stone then I would be over the moon.

I JUST missed that BUT thats where things started to go REALLY WRONG !

See, I was still 23 stone, a size 5xl and had more “mobility” issues than I used to because of the lack of goodness my body was getting, truth be told, because of my SED, I was MORE healthy before.

Weight Gain:

So the depression set in, I couldnt work-out like I had always wanted to because of the lack of nutrition and energy, I had planned to buy a bicycle and cycle to work, that was out of the window, because of the amount of time I’d had off work, I no longer had a job, so I couldn’t cycle to work , nor could I afford a bike & even if I could, there would have been no way, my pale, malnourished body would ever have been able to cope.

One day I read on-line that there are way to “Cheat” the operation, you can “Stretch” your new stomach , you can eat as much ice-cream as you like without “Dumping” , since I was depressed  and it had caused me more issues than I had before, I thought “Bugger it” and I went for it.

Sinking into tub after tub of ice-cream, it made me feel alive again, the scales quickly went back to how they were before “ERROR” meaning I was now over 30 stone again – so what, I was miserable before, it doesn’t matter, I can eat to forget about that £11k im paying off.

Death:

5 years after the operation I was 47 stone, having gained back all the weight plus just under 20%, I was malnourished, depressed and in severe debt, then one night my sleep apnea struck BADLY, my body fought by my heart was too weak and I died of “Obesity related complications” all before I was 40.

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The above, while functional, COULD well have been my reality  , sure people are free to chose what route there weight loss path takes BUT there needs to be more information out there for people who think that it CANT be done without an operation, for those of you who landed her from google, in 3 years, I LOST 27 stone (350 pounds) from cycling and calorie cutting, I found my demons and I beat them up – I realised my eating disorder would be next to attack me so I struck first and I am working though that now, MENTALLY and physically I am a much stronger person, im also more confident and fulfilled, a gastric bypass might have made me lose weight, but It wouldn’t have made me fix what was REALLY wrong…….MY HEAD…..

If after reading this you still want a bypass/band, then good luck BUT PLEASE Make sure you fix what’s broken MENTALLY first as obesity ISN’T a physical condition, its a mental one.

& If you want to follow me and chose the “hard work” way, then check out the following video  (you need sound) 

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Sky Ride , a campaign to get one million more people onto their bikes by 2013

Gaz makes the Sport pages – More Media lined up, Details of last weeks CRAZY rides.

Good Morning All, its been a CRAZY week here in 39 Stone Towers:

First up, British Cycling are lending all their amazing support to me in a bid to get me my “Olympic Dream”

Then the CTC followed on and did the same, the result was that I  have had around 7k hits in the 3 days !…..CRAZY….!

Driving:

Could this site become the “39 stone motorist” ? after debating about the cost of fuel vs the cost of public transport you might well think so, however, I dont have a driving License, in years gone by I didn’t have the confidence nor the ability to physically fit into a car to pass my test….While neither of them hold me back anymore, I think I enjoy my cycling and new life way too much :0)

Handing Over The Baton:

In an olympic themed update I want to wish Andy Hartley the VERY best of luck on his weight loss Journey , He is about to get on a bike in a bid to reduce his weight and follow in my foot-steps, I’ll let you know how he gets on.

The “Gary Brennan Foundation”

Like all slighly crazy people, I had an AMAZING Idea at about 2am today, keep an eye out on the tabs up top for more info.

BUT One of the reasons for my idea is that THIS photo has been clicked over 500 times in the last 3 days, that shows me that attitudes do need to be changed, from the top down.

I Was Too Fat For Even The Government To Compute !!!!

New Site Design:

Wadda think ? I love it :0)

Media

This week I was told there was a printed story about myself, this shocked me as I didn’t recall doing an interview, despite that, it turned out pretty well I’d say.

Keep an eye out on this weeks Manchester Evening News, I did a pretty EPIC interview with them on Friday and I suspect that will turn out to be one of the best and most inspirational pieces to date, I also have a few more lined up for this week and a photo shoot on Monday

Told you it was getting CRAZY round here.

New Personal Best:

Friday night, despite this stinking cold, I was WELL in the mood for cycling, by the time I’d reached devils hill, i was averaging 18  mph  (the way home is ALL uphill) , on the way down I passed a geared roadie on my SS and KILLED it on the way up, the result was a 48 second climb, taking 11 seconds out of my PB, on a Friday, with a cold, on a Single Speed :0) Chuffed ….much ????

New Shirts:

Last year I got a new “Soccer-Ball” kit as a reward for being able to fit, however that QUICKLY become WAY too big.

So I’ve waited & waited and now I am wearing a medium & it was time to buy another.

Dont worry, I have shaved since then LOL

I’ve also found a new jumper too, just in time for winter, its something I didn’t even know I had TBH

ahh the works kitchen

Sky Ride Local:

For anyone wanting to take up cycling, there is still time to Join a Sky Ride Local

Click the Image for more info.

Check out my thoughts on them HERE:

Sky Ride , a campaign to get one million more people onto their bikes by 2013

UK could introduce ‘Fat Tax’, says David Cameron

Europe’s fattest nation is Greece, where 70 per cent of people are overweight, and 30 per cent are obese. Britons come fifth, behind Germany, Finland and Ireland.

The government will consider introducing a “fat tax” to tackle Britain’s growing obesity levels, the prime minister, David Cameron, has said.

Cameron said drastic action was needed to prevent health costs soaring and life expectancy falling.

Under measures introduced in Denmark recently, a surcharge is being placed on foods that contain more than 2.3% saturated fat. The levy targets high-fat products such as butter, milk, cheese, pizza, meat, oil and processed food.

Danish consumers have criticised the move, which has left many retailers complaining of excessive bureaucracy.

However, Cameron said the introduction of a similar idea in the UK should not be ruled out.

Wrong:

Isn’t this coming at the problem from the entirely the wrong angle?

I bet most of the readers here are not obese. Why? Because they exercise regularly or, having found my blog looking for ideas, are starting to.

I also bet that most of us occasionally eat  food that ISNT fresh, drink sugar filled drinks, drink beer, have the odd take-away, packet of crisps,  cake etc…etc…etc… I know I do (Not all of them of course). I sit behind a desk all day , but I’m not fat because I ride my bike almost every day and pay attention to how much volume goes in VS how much goes out.

I’d rather see the government reward people for exercising, or perhaps remove VAT from exercise equipment, subsidise gym membership’s, give tax credits to families who get involved with local sports etc – there are many  of things they could do, without using the STICK Approach.

I’m fed up with government punishing people in the hope of forcing change. Stop using the stick and start using the carrot . Of course this would cost money, but how much does obesity cost the NHS every year ?
According to reports in 2010 Obesity cost the NHS £4.3 BILLION !
What about the costs to uk employers ? State benefits ?

Why should healthy people pay more if they fancy the odd take-away, its TOO short-sighted.

The NHS defines being overweight as having a body mass index – your weight to height ratio – of between 25 and 30. “Obese” is a figure higher than 30

The Face Of fitness:

What the Government also needs, is a face to a fitness campaign, someone who can stand in Government and say “I know what you are going though, with hard work, you life will be better and richer for no longer being obese, I know, I have been there”

Who might that be ? Well Davd Cameron, Alan Lansley & Nick Clegg, look no further than me, I have been there, I am spending my time trying to help others, so who better than I  to stand shoulder to shoulder with the people who make the polices ?

You guys know how to contact me, I’d be quite happy to work as a Government advisor on Obesity, it would be a match made in heaven.

My Summer as a SkyRide, Ride Leader

The Mission of Team Sky & British Cycling is a simple one.

By 2013 have one million more regular cyclists in the UK.

The strategy for this, amongst other things, was to create and promote Sky Ride and Sky Ride Local, it seems that the mission is being achieved as of August this year, the total UK cycle population has grown 1.3 Million up to 13 million.

In early 2010 I qualified as a Sky Ride, Ride leader .

While my work commitments held back the ultimate number of rides that I had wanted to do, I did, in the end, managed to do a few.

& it was an inspiring time for me, first off, there were blog readers of mine on some of the rides, who held me in high esteem, talk about humbling.

Then there was a young Girl of about 8 that we let “Lead Us Out” on the way back up the Middlewitch Way, I was at the back of the group, talking to & encouraging some of the slower riders.

Below is half of the ride as taken from my Garmin on the day.

I’m not sure why I didn’t get the return leg, but we covered the same track on the way back, You can see the average speed was a little under 7 Mph, now, for me, that’s a speed I wouldn’t EVER do, but Skyride isn’t about me, it’s about giving something back to the “Community” that saved my life. It’s about inspiring others to follow my lead & to get into cycling, the thing is, my first ride was up a path, like the Middlewood way, done at speeds around that Skyride, I guess what I am trying to say is that every great journey starts with a single, small step, mine was alone, then with the help of Tommo on the Single track, these people’s (for some anyway) was on that skyride, that I was a leader on, I simply can’t express how much that inspired ME !

The other ride that inspired me, for a different reason, was the Carrington Circular

The reason that ride inspired me, was there was a REALLY young rider on it, who struggled in the intense heat, I stuck with that youngster and there parents at the back, going forwards to the front only to ask the other leaders to either slow or stop for us, before dropping back. Despite the searing heat (honest, I know it’s the North of England but we do get the Sun from time to time) that youngster never ever gave up, kept going despite the gap keeping on opening up (until I headed forward to make sure we closed up) and the heat and the long distance (for someone so young) it really was awe-inspiring to see and be part of.

Skyride

So, while people call me inspirational, I think its fair to say, there are MANY more people out there that are just as inspiring as I am, if not even more so, I applaud sky and British Cycling for all there efforts in getting as many more people into cycling as they can, long may it continue.

While my 2011 Skyride season was cut short, I am making plans for the 2012 Skyride season because frankly I want to give as much back to cycling as i can , it did after all save my life, so if you are thinking about taking up cycling and want to do it in a safe, friendly environment with a group of others, enroll now for a better future & who knows who your ride leader might be :0)

Click the Logo below for more information: