Tag Archives: weightloss

9-day push update, slightly obsessive scale usage and boiled eggs

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Super-quick post tonight.

I’m so pleased that I have digital scales. They measure increments of a quarter of a pound or 200 grammes.

Yes, I am getting on every day, and so far the scales are going in the right direction, even if is a quarter of a pound down a day. I fear I may be slightly obsessed though, as I took the scales to an overnight hotel stay with my other half earlier in the week. Sorry, Wayne!

So sticking to the diet IS tough, but seeing the scales go down is great motivation to stay on track. And also knowing it’s only for a short while, then I can stablise again.

There are 3 of us in the team at work trying to lose a little weight, so that definitely helps that there is not so much ‘naughty’ food around to tempt us.

And finally, thinking forward to next week, for our birthdays, we normally bring in cakes, donuts or other goodies to work. I think I’m going to have to bring some healthy snacks in as well next week! Healthy suggestions welcomed, as I don’t expect anyone will welcome a hard-boiled egg as a snack!

2 days down, 7 to go … and the outlook is sunny!

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Outlook is sunny

I am focused. The light is officially on. It’s 2 days into the final 9-day push and all is well. I have curbed my eating, restricted my calories, am drinking more water and have been to the gym.

The ‘X’ stone 11 goal is definitely achievable now with 7 days to go until my birthday – and I might even get into a new dress that is hanging up at home that has never been worn 🙂 (Deliberately bought in a smaller size as a goal to get into!) I’ll be trying it on every day to see if there is any progress – and – I know you shouldn’t really get on the scales every day, but dear friends, I may not be able to resist to ensure progress is continuing! Just got to keep up the good work and not be distracted. Focus, focus, focus!

P.S. Am still addicted to watching the US Biggest Loser on Sky on Monday evenings. Bob and Gillian are still trainers in this series – and they are pretty awesome when it comes to motivating weight-loss. The contestants are heading towards the final few weeks and it’s definitely helping me stay motivated – they are doing their final pushes too. This is my favourite part of the series, where you see the before and after shots – the transformations can be amazing! It helps me, anyway!

A wobble on the 4-week push … refocus, refocus, refocus!

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Well, unless I chop a leg off, I don’t think I’m going to make my 4-week goal. I’ve had an enjoyable week and I DID resist the egg-buttie-breakfast-run on Friday, but then it went a bit downhill from there. I had my Mum round for the evening on Friday – dinner-and-a-movie-night. I was all determined to have a healthy dinner. She was a bit later than planned, so I convinced myself I needed a glass of Sancerre while I waited… and this simple decision began a weekend off the diet.

What’s encouraging, though, is that I can view a weekend off the diet in perspective. It simply is a wobble, not the end of the world. It’s true, I haven’t lost weight in the last few days, so no progress made to the 4-week push since last week – but the important thing is not to continue in this vein. In previous years, I’d have just carried on – eating and drinking what I fancied, regardless of the consequences. In fact, let’s be honest, that’s how I used to eat every day! So I must have learnt something this past 10 months or so!

Time to refocus: So now it’s the 9-day push! I recognise there is only so much I can do in 9 days. It’ll probably take me 2 days to get back to where I was on before the wobble. I think the very best I’ll be able to achieve in 9 days is to get to ‘X’ stone 11 lbs – above where I wanted to be, but still would be an acceptable loss across the 4 weeks and – importantly – it means I am still going in the right direction. (And no, I’m not publishing my actual weight to the world – even I have my limits as to what I’ll share across to the world!)

So, it’s back to reducing the calories. Later this afternoon, Wayne and I are off to the gym – I’m going for that ‘X’ stone 11 goal!

 

Friday cooked breakfast run? Just say no!

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So… 2 weeks left to go in my self-imposed ‘4-week push’. After a good start, the sunshine (hello, Spring – you are most welcome!) has made me feel great about life and the universe, but hankering after social nights out with good friends and loved ones, and for a chilled glass or two of something sparkling … and I don’t mean San Pellegrino … so I’ll have watch it, or else I’ll be stabilising at a too high weight. Go to re-focus! And do it now.

I guess if I desperately fancy a drink-drink, maybe I can add some sparkling water to the wine. At the very least, that will help me not get too tipsy (what a great word!) as I appear to have lost my ability to drink since being on this ‘mission’.

Tomorrow, I’ll resist the ‘cooked breakfast delivered to your desk’ that is our usual Friday treat at work. If anyone from the office is reading this, you have my full permission to confiscate my egg buttie (fried egg sandwich) if I weaken my resolve overnight!

Finally, I need to remember that I’ve a couple of slightly-too-tight dresses to fit into this summer (bought as goals to get into) … and I’d really like to wear one of them on my birthday.

I can do it! Two weeks to go!

Yippity do-dah; Zara and size 12 Jeans!

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Time to report in on the previously documented four-week push. So far, so good. A little wobble (involving a certain Mr Pinot Grigio, scrummy bar food and some 10-year old Port last week) but still managed to lose weight in the week overall. So just under 3 weeks to go now for the final push!

Super-busy at work with multiple deadlines. In the denial* days, I would have come home from a long day and hit the wine (I deserve it) and food (I deserve it) as some kind of instant gratification and my reward for getting through a long day, long week, blah blah blah! This time, I decided that I would just have some healthy food (which was on-hand luckily – the secret is in the planning) and that I didn’t need the wine – so I could stay true to my four-week final push. And – yippee! – I managed it.

I felt a little wardrobe update was called for, as I was last at this weight in 1995. So shopping, we went. Pre-‘project-Andrea’ I couldn’t shop in places like H&M and Zara. So I ventured in. Cautiously, I tried a couple of things on. Happy days – they fitted! I can’t tell you how nice it is to be free to shop where you like, because you are not restricted by your size. It’s extremely motivating. So a rather summery peach-coloured jacket was acquired and worn to work this week.

I also did some online shopping as I wanted some new jeans. Size 14s arrived (Size 10 USA). I tried them on straight away. They were too big. What? Surely I can’t be a UK 12?  Re-order online. Size 12s arrive. OMG. They fit! They fit! Cue singing around the house! Now, I am not naive enough to think that all size 12s are created equal, some are obviously bigger than others, but I am so happy, happy, happy about this.

It’s funny, I obviously know I have lost weight, but my brain hasn’t quite kept pace with my physical appearance – it’s like it needs some time to adjust to the new me. I have had some lovely comments from my friends and colleagues this week. I don’t know why in particular this week, maybe it’s the new jeans and jacket in the right size? Who knows? What I can say is that it does help that other people are noticing – and it makes me even more determined to keep getting closer to my goal and ultimately keep it off. Thank you to everyone who commented – it really does help! 

And finally, gym this morning to kick-off the weekend in a good way – which, shock-horror, I really enjoyed. So, it’s definitely been a good week overall, and I have a few key ‘lessons learnt’ from it:

  1. If you have a goal – document it, set a timescale and take the first step to achieving what you want.
  2. Pay someone a genuine compliment – maybe they are looking good or maybe they have been good to you – so thank them for being so nice – it really can make a difference to them.
  3. Recognise the small successes you are making towards your goal – if it your goal seems a long way off, one step towards it is better than one step away from it.
  4. And lastly, If you have a wobble, it’s okay, we’re all human and it’s just a wobble – just get back on track as soon as you can.

Have a fab few days and be good to yourself!

*denial = denial that there was a problem

Get this thing done – giving myself a 4-week deadline!

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It’s London Marathon day and a few people I know are running. They have been preparing for months and months with today’s deadline in mind. I truly admire their determination and also their efforts to raise money for some amazing causes.

I am not and have never been a runner,  so I’m not planning to sign-up for a marathon anytime soon, but I am giving myself a deadline to ‘sign-up’ to commit  to shifting the final few pounds. I just need to stop messing around and do what I know is right for me. This will put me firmly in the healthy BMI range and a weight I was last at 20 years ago. I won’t be skinny, but I will be at a healthy weight.

I am doing a four-week push – given myself a four-week deadline. This will take me to one day before my birthday. I have a goal weight in mind. A good goal and a good date, I think – challenging, but achievable. I have already started. Once done, I’ll get on with the business of stabilsing.

So that’s me, getting it off, keeping it off. And stop messing around!

Beware stretchy clothes – for they are the enemy!

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So I wrote in a previous post about staying aware and staying changed. This morning, I had the perfect wake-up call for this.

Yes, I went to the gym on Saturday, but yes, I also enjoyed a little break from healthy eating over the weekend.  Apart from the gym, I was not very active and lolled around for most of the weekend in my stretchy gym gear or PJs. So far, so comfy!

Pasta was my friend again this weekend, and so was a very pleasant dry, white wine and other things that have been absent for a while! Now, usually this would be okay, under the good old 80/20 rule. In reality, it was more like 50/50 over this past week, 50% ‘good’, 50% not. And amazingly, this morning it showed in how my clothes fit. Or didn’t.

Yes, dear friends, the skirt I put on for work this morning was too tight. Now, I know this is hardly world headline breaking news, but I really was a little shocked.  And disappointed. It was my wake-up call! Enough is enough. Time to reverse the trend.

So, beware stretchy clothes, everyone – for they are the enemy! They let you put on weight and carry on in blissful ignorance, happily in denial, until you need to wear something fitted.

But, stretchy clothes will not win! I am changed. I am not in denial. I am aware. I will not buy larger clothes! I started to address it today.

So that’s me, still making the change and staying changed.

Stable. Stuck. So should I stick, or stick with it?

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Greetings to you all, this fine day. Had a very busy, but productive week at work with not much space for ‘me’ time.  Went to the gym in Sunday, but didn’t manage to get there again until this morning. But that’s just about twice in a week, so not too bad.

Now here’s the thing. I’ve lost a fair bit of body weight – and 3 dress sizes – (yay!) – since June last year. I was last stable at my current weight about 18-20 years ago (wow, that’s scarier written down, than in my head!) It’s still not quite where I want to be and I am definitely not beach-ready, if you know what I mean. I’ve been stable to within about 5lbs at this weight for the last two months. I know this is a good thing and it proves that I can maintain my weight.
But I’d really, really like to get a little bit more off. I wondering if psychologically I am taking into account other people’s comments:
“Don’t go too far – we don’t want you to be a lollipop head”
“Don’t get too skinny, you’ll be a beanpole!”
I think it might be because I like my food, and it is nice to eat a bit more – to be stablising, not dieting. I can ‘live’ at the weight I am – you definitely would not describe me as skinny and according to my BMI, I am right on the borderline of healthy weight and overweight.
This week, I thought, right, this is it, stop messing around, I’ll stick at it, give it a four-week focus, get to where I am happy (and firmly in the healthy BMI range) and then stabilise. But for some reason I have struggled. Maybe I just don’t want it enough. Maybe I am diet-weary.
Maybe I should stabilise for a bit, and gradually, gradually try to get to a lower weight – carry on with the gym, tone up and keep a track on my weight. Am not sure. As a minimum, I’ll be working at sticking where I am – making sure the belt stays on the same notch and that my clothes don’t get tighter than they should be.
And maybe tomorrow evening, after a nice weekend, I’ll have the motivation to do that four-week push for the last few pounds.
As you can see, I am undecided. If you’ve experienced something similar, I’d love to hear what you did about it! Looking for some inspiration and advice!

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March 2012
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May 2012
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April 2013
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March 2013

Too many Easter Eggs? Time to get back on the diet pony!

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Well, the Easter break in the UK was 4 days long and a very welcome break from work. Met up with family, celebrated my Godson’s 16th birthday and generally ate and drank what I wanted to.

When I woke up yesterday (day 4) I felt more sluggish than normal – almost like a hangover. It seems my body has become used to eating more healthily – and it was not too keen on the carb-laden treats of the weekend.

Stepping on the scales was none too pleasant this morning either, but no more denial for me, the Easter weight needs to come off. So, today I jumped back on the diet pony and even went to the gym after work with Wayne (Fiance). Neither of us really wanted to go, but somehow we cajoled ourselves into going. Once there, I did a good job of impersonating someone who was enjoying themselves 🙂 except for the burpees with this weird pipe thing and doing the plank on a powerplate! Ouch.

If you’re reading this and you’ve over-indulged… don’t worry, just start being healthier tomorrow. Oh yes, and try to get some decent sleep – apparently it helps with weight-loss.

Night, night, my friends!

Wow. ‘Normal sized’ people diet too?

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Who knew? Well, I probably did, but I was clearly not taking any notice of it! Why this didn’t sink in before, I have no idea.

Of course slim people watch what they eat too. They cut down those calories before a holiday or a weekend away… and then again when they get back. I accept that there will always be exceptions – the person that can seemingly eat anything they want and never gain weight – but ultimately if you increase your calorie intake vs your calorie expendure, you will gain weight – and vice versa.

But back to the slim-jims … they might eat less Monday to Friday, so they can relax a bit over the weekend. Or maybe they’ll do some extra exercise to compensate.

Wow. That sounds simple. Although it’s taken me most of my adult life to realise this, I’m trying to be one of ‘those’ people. The ones that conciously eat … and the ones that enjoy their splurges, but stop the food party afterwards!

PS Off to the gym this afternoon to try out a new, personlised programme – got a feeling I’m going to feel it later on!