I’m so pleased with how far I’ve come since starting this challenge and I’m starting to see it all pay off, with friends and colleagues informing me that I’m looking bigger and bulkier. I can see the foundations of some abs making an appearance too which proves that the core workouts I do at the end of every session are working!

I went to a local food festival this weekend too and there was a stall there for a leisure centre running a competition for the quickest 300m on a rowing machine. Each of my training sessions starts with a 500m row as fast as I can do so, looking at the top times on their board, I was fairly confident I could beat it. After some egging-on from my brother I stepped up and did it, the quickest time of the day! My niece was pleased as punch so joined me in my obligatory celebration photograph.

My cravings are changing too, the thought of greasy food like a takeaway pizza or anything deep-fried actually turns my stomach and I never, EVER thought I’d say that! I also tried a non-alcoholic beer on Saturday which I discovered to be entirely pointless. One thing I do want, however, is sugar… the white stuff, refined sugar in the form of the richest, sickliest dessert you could possibly think of. I dream of Mississippi mud pies, banoffee sundaes and chocolate cheesecakes and although they would probably make me feel sick if I ate them I really wouldn’t care right now.

Shamefully, I’ve resorted to smelling stuff to get my hit (as I did with my housemate’s Ben and Jerry’s had the other day). Honestly, it works! So if you see me with my head in the cake aisle at the supermarket seeing if I can get the bouquet off a Victoria sponge, please don’t stare… I was normal once.