It’s a new month, what better time to start a new healthy diet and exercise plan?

Since I left Weightwatchers at the start of the summer I’ve gained almost half a stone. Not ideal. That said I’m not completely gutted about it, I had a fabulous summer and food featured highly. It’s not like I’m sitting here scratching my head wondering how on earth it happened

I want the weight off now though, summer is officially over. So how am I going to do it? Well…. I’m re-joining Weighwatchers on Wednesday morning, it works well for me, and I like the support of other dieters.

I’ve also joined a group on Twitter that are aiming to lose a stone (14lbs) in the month of September. We’ll be posting our progress under the hashtag #Septemberstone . Join us!!

Finally and most exciting of all for me…. I’ve taken up running. I am a complete novice and had literally never ever ever ran for exercise until Sunday night past. I’m using an application on my iPhone called Get Running. I can’t recommend it highly enough. It’s a nine week fitness plan based on Josh Clark’s famous couch to 5K plan. A professionally recorded voice prompts you at regular intervals, letting you know when to start running and when to walk (it’s a mixture of both to start with), all the while allowing you to listen to the bangin’ tunes on your iPod!

The first leg of training is eight 1 minute runs broken up with eight 1.5 minute walks. Sound easy? Think again. I boked after the third minute. Classy…..

The last two 1 minute runs were more like crawls but I didn’t stop and the feeling of achievement once I heard the voice in my ear saying “Congratulations you just completed your first run” was absolutely amazing! I can’t wait to get back out tonight!

One thing I will say is to make sure you’re well equipped trainer and bra wise if you’re of the female sex. I was totally unaware that every time you pound the pavement 3 times your body weight it absorbed through your feet. Yesterday I had a noticeably sore spine, and my jugs felt like they’d had weights hanging off them (and I’m not a big busted gal). So it’s Sports bra and proper running shoes from here on in.

Current Weight: 11 Stone 11lbs

Dress Size: UK 14

Height: 5ft 6″

Wish me luck   xox

Shoot me now

I have been really good this week, eating within my points, plenty of exercise and figure wise its paid off. My jeans are looser and my husband can see it off me.

Why on earth did Weightwatchers just tell me that I gained 1lb then?????!!!!!

I feel completely deflated and demotivated. I wanted to grab the WW scales and hurl them across the room. No…. but really… I did… I kinda wanted to drop kick the leader too…

I felt good this morning, liked the shape I saw in the mirror, but according to WW I’m still 11lbs overweight and now I feel like a fat cow.

Gutted

You may have noticed that I didn’t go to Weightwatchers last week….. well to be completely honest I was very fed up with the whole thing. I guess I was on a bit of a weight loss downer.

I spoke to my WW buddy Kelly and basically explained how I was feeling (I’d have been lost without you this week bird)…. very much like I was on a diet & deprived.

This wasn’t WW fault, it was purely mine. I wasn’t following the programme properly, I was being lax about it. So I’ve had a week off, wallowed a bit, felt sorry for my fat ass and I’m over it now.

I took myself to todays meeting with the attitude of, I can fix this and pull it back…

No need. I lost 1lb

Now you could literally have knocked me down with a feather, I was utterly convinced (partly because I’d weighed myself in the house this morning) I had gained at least 1.5- 2lbs.

Uh-uh.

I’ve learnt 2 major things from this episode.

• The scales in the house aren’t accurate and they need to be binned if I’m to stop torturing myself and dreading weigh ins.

• My weight problem is 60% in my mind, 40% in my body. I have a bad body image and I need to work on that. I’m going to start by booking myself into the college beauty salon for some pampering treatments

I also purchased a Pedometer today to try and up my exercise again. Pretty nifty little device that bascially calculates your steps and tells you what wine activity points you earn, if any.

It can seem a bit arduous clocking up activity points as before you earn any you need to reach do what is classed as a “normal” amount of healthy exercise, namely 10,000 steps per day. Thats the hard point, once you break that barrier though, the points clock up quite quickly! Already today just walking a short distance from WW and collecting youngest from nursery I’ve done over 3,000 steps.

Hope everyone else has done ok this week too, special mention to the gorgeous @lizzclare who lost 5.75lbs this week. Her secret? No meals after 5pm!! Well done Elizabeth xxxx

If you follow me on Twitter you’ve probably already heard the unexciting news that I stayed the bloody same again this week!! Ugh! Frustrating!!

3 weeks = no loss, no gain either which I know I should be pleased about, and I am, but at the same time this plateau is annoying/ boring the life out of me!

A few people have recommended that I perhaps need to vary my meals more, to kick start weight loss again and so I’m definitely going to do that. I’m also going to remove alcohol out of the equation COMPLETELY this week, as I’ve noticed with this stunning weather, my beer in take has increased again, and lets face it, beer is NOT waist line friendly!

How is everyone else getting on? Is the good weather having any positive/ negative effects on your weight loss?

xox

Stayed the same!

Nothing on, nothing off!!

I’m happy enough with that, as I enjoyed my time in London, eating pretty much what I liked

I think I haven’t gained because although I didn’t eat particularly well in my own eyes last week, I was still eating MUCH BETTER than I used to!

Proves that sometimes you can have your cake and eat it too, everything in moderation really is key

How did everyone else get on??

xox

I’ve said this before, but I’m going to say it again because I truly believe its helpful.

If you’re about to embark, or are already on a weightloss journey you should remember to document it in photos. I realise that initially that might feel like the last thing you want to do, but please trust me when I say its the most invaluable thing I have done.

Without photographic proof I’d still be arguing with myself that theres not really a noticeable difference in my shape etc. The brain is a powerful thing and let me tell you, on “fat days” I feel I’ve made no progress at all, even though my clothes say I have. So I get the photos out and thats when rationale wins. I can see the difference, there is no disputing it.

I’d recommend taking pictures every 6-8 weeks.

The picture below is me almost 5 months ago at Christmas Time. Just look at my thighs! Yikes! I’m a UK Size 16 here.

*Click on pictures to enlarge (at your peril )

This is me last week. 16 weeks after joining Weightwatchers. I’ve dropped 2 dress sizes and I’m a UK Size 12!!!! Weirdly my feet are also smaller by half a size!

I hope I don’t sound like I’m blowing my own trumpet too much, but I guess thats what I am doing to a certain extent. With purpose though, I think its important to take time to stand back, look, and appreciate how far you’ve come. There are times when I’ve just wanted to give up and revert back to my diet of junk food, but when I see the picture above I’m so glad I haven’t. I still realistically have around a stone left to lose, but I’m getting there

Not only do I think I look better, I feel better inside. I’ve always been a smiley happy go lucky person but my weight gain did leave me feeling very insecure and unattractive.With each pound off those insecurities have faded away.

If you’re on a weight loss journey I’d love to hear from you, have you taken progress pics along the way? Do you think its helped?

xoxox

Get In!!!!!!!!!! 2lbs off!!!!!

Total Loss so far = 17.5lbs

This is just the boost I needed. I’ve been yo-yoing the past few weeks and it was frankly doing my head in. So back to basics I went this week, cooking from scratch, smaller portions, dinner before 7pm, and lots more activity.

I have power hosed, gardened, walked the dog etc….. and none of it has been a chore. Exercise really does make you feel good, and it proves you don’t need to be sweating it out at a gym. Gyms aren’t for everyone, and they certainly aren’t for me.

Plans for this week are more of the same coupled with a little bit of power walking. I’ve always wanted to try this but didn’t want to look like a knob on my own. Thankfully my chum at Weightwatchers has agreed to join me in being pointed at & laughed at 2 nights a week. I’ll let you know how it goes

How is everyone else doing? xox

Ugh. Hating myself. I gained a half pound.
I realise it could have been worse, but I still feel like an elephant

I don’t want to go backwards, I want to go forwards!!!! I’ve had a look over my tracker for the week and I honestly was very good. The only thing different was later breakfasts due to the kids being off school and no major morning rushing (love that), and also later dinners, between about 7-8pm, rather than my normal 5-6pm. I’m thinking in there somewhere lies the problem.

So I’m thankful for a change that the school routine returns this week. I seem to need the routine to keep me on the straight and narrow. This means a return to earlier breakfast and I’m going to make sure I eat with the kids at around 5pm each evening and see how I get on.
Fingers Crossed!

Special thanks to my friend Kelly this week, she helps me to keep it all in perspective!!

How’s everyone else doing?!

xoxox

Unlucky for some…..

Not for me it seems, as I lost 0.5lbs today. Weight Loss so far 16lbs.
Not a huge amount I realise but pretty damn impressive considering the absolute diet hell that was the Easter Holidays.

It was a living chocolatey nightmare, yummy eggs everywhere, and I’m not sure whether my paranoia just reached new heady heights, or if its simply a coincidence that all the eggs the children received were my favourites. Mini Eggs, Creme Eggs, Maltesers, Buttons *drool*.

Then there was the ice-cream, copious amounts of the stuff, daily. I didn’t want to be a spoilsport, so of course to make others feel better I forced several 99′s down my neck……. (thats my excuse and I’m sticking to it).
My eldest also couldn’t finish half his Candy Floss and there wasn’t a bin in sight. So with litter dropping carrying a hefty penalty and Candy Floss not being something you can fold into your pocket for later it was down to me to dispose of it……. nom

The weight loss disaster hit a peak at my mother’s house, and the feast that was Easter Sunday Dinner. At some point (many years ago) it appears my mother must have taken a blow to the head, its the only logical reason I can think to explain why she cooks army sized portions for a family of 4.
Out the plate came, if it was patterned it was impossible to tell, potatoes, gravy, stuffing, veg, chicken simply covered every available mm.

Totally impossible to actually point a meal like that, but you can guess it ain’t pretty. It’s quite laughable then that for afters she had bought in specially a little Weightwatchers dessert for me. Bless her. She didn’t realise that the dinner had completely negated the need for a “diet” dessert, as I had already consumed my daily quota of points for the entire week in the previous 20 minutes. Sigh.

At this point I was feeling more than a little ill, and wanted to slope off to the privacy of my home where I could down half a bottle of Gaviscon or all else failing stick a pin in myself, but no, the tea came out, and in Northern Ireland tea is never served alone. Its tea and a “wee” bun, or tea and a “wee biscuit”. Nightmare.

So here I am 3 days later, still feeling full and never wanting to see a potato again, ever. I also have a raft of spots thanks to the small amount of chocolate I did comsume.
Thank god, literally, that Easter only comes once a year. Don’t get me wrong, the time with family and the break from routine is brilliant but the sheer over-indulgence and general pigging out I can happily forgo!
Today is a fresh start!

How’s everyone else getting on?

xoxox