Changing my thinking about food

I see its been a month since my last post. I am terrible at keeping a "diary". But I will keep trying as I really believe that this can help in many aspects of life.

The weight is still moving which is great! Ignoring my gain in my birthday week :-)~ I have decided that I need to change some of the things I eat. i.e. "naughty" snacks. Up until now I have been following weight watchers and its been brilliant. However I started to become obsessed with points. I am not good at planning ahead because I never know what I will be in the mood for from meal to meal. Not planning has not hurt my weight loss but I am constantly looking at my tracker and trying to make sure I will have enough points come the evening (my snacky time)so I wont have to go to bed feeling hungry. In doing this I often have lots of points left come evening and dont always eat the right things because I have the points for something "naughty". This thinking has to change!

This (eating healthier) has to be a lifetime change and I really don't want to obsess over points every day for the rest of my life! So I joined slimming world (very little counting) and although I am still counting my points the ww way as well to make sure I have proper portion control, I feel better about things already. This week I am doing both side by side as I go along. Next week my plan is to still write everything down but not point it till the evening so I can see if I am able to stay within points using my own self control. If I manage this then I will stop counting points altogether as long as I continue to lose.

It has only been 3 days since I started my new plan of action but already I have noticed that food is not on my mind constantly. I am eating more fruit (free on sw) and less rubbish snacks and I know if I am hungry late at night I can still having something healthy to eat. I know I should be able to do the same with ww but I simply don't. I think the freedom to eat what you want within points doesn't give me the discipline I need cut down on unhealthy snacks.

I have joined slimming world for 3 months online and after that I am hoping that my new changes will just be natural and I can live my life without obsessing over food. I feel really positive about this now which is a great feeling :-) I just want to eat normally like everyone else without having to figure out points or syns and feel comfortable that I can do this on my own. So thats my plan! *fingers crossed*

Finally got my mojo back!

Have no idea why I have struggle so much the last few weeks. I have noticed however that I only ever blog when I am feeling good about things. I have decided this is neither helpful to me or to anyone else looking for motivation. Life is not always happy happy! Fortunately it is for the most part but I must get better at writing when life isnt so peachy! Maybe this will help me out of my slumps quicker than just waiting them out. On a brighter note I now feel much more motivated and even took a 3 st loss pic which actually amazed me. I know my clothes are getting looser but I really couldnt see any difference when I looked in the mirror. Until I saw my fist pic against the new pic. Wow. What a difference a few months has made. This has certainly made me more determined to stick with it and get to goal! I also took a sneaky peek at my measurements the other day (not officially due till this Friday as I take them once every 4 weeks) and the inches are dropping off. Its all so exciting really :-)

Interesting..........

Feeling a bit odd today. No idea why. I lost 2lb this morning which I am thrilled about since had a bad weekend last weekend. Did loads of exercise and pulled back points and it obviously paid off. However, I don't have that "yayyyyy" or motivated feeling today. Just feeling kinda blah! Our June holiday plans have been put on hold because of hubby's work commitments. This isn't getting me down though as some positive things will happen because of this. My sister will now be able to stay a bit longer and be able to see the new baby (due any day now) and I can keep to my original quit smoking day of June 1st. *fingers crossed for that one* The sun is trying to peek its head out but most of this morning it has been raining. That certainly doesnt help my mood! Hoping it gets nicer out today as want to take the dogs to the park for a good walk. Maybe I just need a bit of exercise to perk me up. So off I go to do a fitness dvd. Hope my mood improves soon! On a slightly brighter note I am now 1/4 of the way to my goal :-)

Down, down, down!

Last week I lost another 3 1/2lb after a weekend away in Wales visiting my daughter. I am obviously getting better at making healthy choices when not able to point. Or I am getting better at damage limitation lol. WI again tomorrow and after a sneaky peak on the scales this morning its certainly not looking as good for this week! Hopefully will lose a lb *fingers crossed*. I suppose after losing 8lb in two weeks its time for a slow down. Doesnt help that a small bag of chocolate jumped into my mouth on Saturday night! (13pts..ouch!). And I have to say I didnt enjoy it at all. Silly girl.

My sis is still here vising from Vegas but due to go home next week. Thinking about it today has really got me down. As my daughter is due any day to have her baby, I was hoping my sister would be here for the birth. Besides that I have really enjoyed her being here and will miss her terribly. Its been really nice to have someone to pal around with every day. *sighs*

Oh well, life is good in general and I am thankful for that :-)

Nothing tastes this good!!

Today I lost 4.5 lbs which takes me to over 2st off and puts me in the 20's! There is no food in the world that can make you feel this good! I am over the moon! Obviously I am on a motivational high this morning!

My sit-ups yesterday (which I was so proud of) did more for my back muscles than my tummy muscles lol. My back is still aching a bit today but its a good ache. Sit-ups will take the back seat for a few days though until it feels better. I had intended to get up early this morning and go swimming but after wi I forgot all about it lol. So instead I will do an exercise dvd this morning.
We are away Sat & Sun to visit my daughter in Wales and the weather is supposed to be bad so very little walking I am sure. Must get my exercise in today!

A day of NSV's (non-scale victories)

This morning I was doing sit-ups with my resistance band as I have no stomach muscles (or so I thought). As I was doing them I realised I was hardly using the band at all and thought.. hmmm.. could I really do a sit-up on my own? Well I can! I did 15 in total today using just me! and no resistance band, on top of the 25 I had done with it. I am well impressed :-)

Then later in the day I was sitting outside in the garden and I realised I was sitting at the back of the chair. Normally I would sit towards the front of the chair because after a few minutes the arms of the chair would start to hurt my thighs. Well no more :-)

Next I was picking up dog poo (sorry lol) and the gloves I use, which are disposable food handling gloves were falling off my hand. Never did that before!

So today has been filled with NSV's which only heightens my motivation to continue my journey!

All in all I have a had a great week. My sister is here visiting from Las Vegas and I have really enjoyed it so far. Am looking forward to the next two weeks with her! When I go visit my family in Vegas I spend very little time with her as she works and I am usually running around with my husband. So having her here with few distractions and actually spending time with her has been lovely! Today she is off spending the day/night with my daughters and granddaughter which is really cool too! One of my daughters hasnt seen her in about 7 years! and my granddaughter had never met her.

Some days just feel especially good :-)

Back on track!

After my Easter week blow out I am well and truly back on track! A sneaky peak on the scales this morning show that I have lost my gain and an additional 1/2lb so far! Roll on Friday! Did lots of walking while at the caravan and even managed to keep to points in the midst of a bbq and loads of munchies around for the kids. Its days like that 1.) irk me for being so overweight when I find it easy to resist rubbish and 2.) make me proud of myself for being able to change the way I look at food. So it was a good weekend spent with my kids, granddaughter and my sister.

This week will be easy as I am home until Saturday morning. Then off to see my daughter in Bangor for the weekend. Eating out all weekend since long drive and staying in a hotel but will try and make good choices. I must not stop living! WW must work around me, not the other way around. I think this is one lesson I learned from last time. There must be balance as this is for life now :-)

Ups & Downs!

Well I did manage to lose that 2lbs last week.. 2.5 in fact. But this week (after Easter) I gained 1.5lbs. Not unhappy really as it could have been a lot worse! Feeling a bit blah about letting my team down in the Drop-A-Johnny challenge, but I will try my best to make up for it with a vengence this week!

All in all I had a great week. Camping with family Fri-Sun then we stayed on an extra day and just relaxed. Then home for a day and then off to AC/DC in London on Tues which was fantastic! Wed morning we picked my sister up from London who is visiting from Vegas for a few weeks. Saw my dad for a few minutes (as he had brought my sis out then turned around to go back to Cali) and he looked really good! He has been having some health issues and I was worried about him, but he says all is well now and he really did look great! So I am a bit less stressed about him!

Off camping again today but I am in charge of the food for the weekend so not worried about WW. Taking my sis up with us tonight and then my kids/grandkid are coming up Sat for the night. Weather is supposed to be good so should be a great weekend!

Here's to a great week!!

Trial and Error

I mentioned yesterday that I was struggling this week to eat healthy; fruit and veg being almost non-existant from my diet this week as well as water. So yesterday I tackled this. Managed 3 fruit (2 apples and a banana) and 4 veg (stirfry(3) and tomato and basil soup (1)). However, (there always seems to be an however lately), I made teriyaki stirfry which is 0pt but also loaded with salt. The soup too I imagine was heavily laden saltwise! On top of that I made homemade fish & chips, again loaded with salt. I also upped my water intake yesterday! The end result was major water retention! Ugh. So today its NO salt lol.. and lots of water to get rid of it. Tomorrow is wi day and I am determined to get that next 2lb off!

We have a busy weekend ahead which actually starts for me today with shopping/packing for our long weekend of camping with my BIL & SIL and my 5yo nephew. Our awning is not up yet and it doesnt look like the weather will be kind enough to let us put it up. So I have visions of 4 adults, a 5yo and 2 dogs all crammed in our caravan. Good thing we all like each other! They are bringing their tent to sleep in but obviously we must socialize somewhere. We better have a decent summer this year. I cant take another 12 month winter! **Just had a thought.. the campground has a clubhouse that I have only been in once for a drink. I think that may be our saviour! Not sure about the dogs though. hmmmmm **another revelation - dogs will go to the kennels this time! (all booked in now and I feel much more relaxed lol)

So off to start my day and hopefully will have time tomorrow morning to update with my 2lb loss lol *fingers crossed*

Feeling wobbly!

Not feeling very motivated this morning in general. Have lots to do so should really be getting on with it. Haven't exercised at all this week which is unusual. Got a tricky hip at the moment so haven't even been out walking. I think the dogs will revolt soon :-) This is probably the reason I am feeling a lack of energy. Must do something today! Taking my granddaughter and dogs for a walk in the woods later.. maybe that will help. Points wise I have been good and a sneaky peak on the scales this morning show a 1.5lb loss. WI not official till Friday so hopefully I can add (take away!) another 1/2lb to that. However I have not made the best food choices this week either which is also probably adding to my generally feeling blah today! tsk tsk. 5 days into this week and have had about 2 days worth of fruit and veg and have hardly had any water either. I know better! Off to do the housework and get dressed. Hopefully the day will improve :-)

April 7, 2009

I have decided it is time to start a blog. Looking at other peoples blogs has been such a big inspiration for me that I thought I would start my own. Perhaps one day in the not too distant future it will inspire someone else who thinks the journey is just too long/difficult. So here goes!

I started my journey (this time) weighing in at a whopping 324lbs! Probably the most embarrassing thing I have ever seen about myself in print! But thats ok.. because I fully intend to change this! I have been doing WW for 10 weeks now and have lost 25lbs! This is my second attempt at WW. The first time was a few years ago and I lost 4st 4lb (60lbs) in 6 months. Then a long holiday in France was my demise. Although I only gained 2lbs during my time away, I lost my motivation completely. Now I am back on WW having gained most of that back :-( Not this time though! This time is for life. I know that now. Food is my addiction and I will have to work the rest of my life to keep it under control. But I'm ready now :-)