Healthy weight loss without weighing ourselves

[BrimfulOfBaba]

Weighing myself is driving me crazy! I know what works for me and that's managing my calorie intake and exercising regularly. Whether or not I have the drive to stick to it consistently is another story entirely...

It doesn't help me to see the fluctuations in weight on the scales anymore. All it does is demoralise me if it's up, or make me compete with myself to get it even lower. Not healthy!

My wedding is in July and I want just enough fat loss to feel comfortable. I can monitor this via how clothes fit and photos rather than the scale, for now.

I'm going to use this thread to record my activities for the day as it keeps me motivated. Please feel free to join me!

I’m in awe of anyone who can manage exercise in the morning. Well done!

I had a reasonably good weekend. Long walk & exercise bike on Saturday, a shorter walk on Sunday. I had planned to go on the cross-trainer too, but in the end decided that it’d be better to give my body a break from intense exercise for a day.

Because my walk on Saturday was so long, I ended up not having my first meal until 16:00 and then didn’t really feel like having dinner at all, so just had a few crackers. It wasn’t my finest day nutrition wise. I really need to think of something quick and healthy I can take with me on these kind of walks, but am a bit stuck for ideas on portable healthy snacks.

Today I’m planning spicy bean wraps for lunch and leftover pasta puttanesca with veggie meatballs for dinner. I have a feeling the cross trainer will be calling me later today.

I’m planning to add an extra 5 minutes to my cross trainer session this week, although part of me thinks that’s madness when I can barely manage 20 minutes. We’ll see how it goes!

(Sorry that’s such a long update 🙈)

I love a long update as you may be able to tell!

Ah that's a lovely weekend! The only portable AND tasty healthy snack I can ever think is a sandwich - though they do hit the spot for me on a big walk!

Good luck with adding time for the crosstrainer, you've got this!

I am still riding a wave of relief at finally managing an early workout and I do feel more energised today. Pleading with myself internally to keep it up!!

I’ve had a great weekend socialising with all that comes with that and I’m feeling like a blimp today. It’s not logical-it hasn’t been that bad really and it’s period time which doesn’t help. I’m hoping to have a good week this week and feel less wobbly next week.

Today I’ve done a Hiit class and had a short swim in the local pool for the first time in months. It was just lovely although my knee was complaining after 28 laps. I think I’ve forgotten how to do breast stroke! Food has been odd to take into account the 1pm swim and the delicious leftovers in the fridge. Breakfast : mini pack of cookies as an emergency before Hiit
Lunch at 1130am : big chunk of focaccia and houmous
I’m about to fridge raid now for a substantial snack-probably some tofurkey and olives
Dinner : leftover Channa chat from saturday’s Indian takeaway with salad and brown rice

@Crazzzycat I’d take a spicy bean wrap with you! That’s pretty much my go to walking lunch. For walking snacks I like nuts or packs of veggie “meat” (particularly the squeaky bean pastrami). I find that filling and travels well.

@BrimfulOfBaba I am also in awe of your early morning workout. Let’s definitely spur each other on for a good week this week. The sunshine really helps me get in the mood for being healthier.

I managed to finish my 25 minute session on the cross trainer yesterday 🥳 I can’t quite believe it was only 10 days ago that I was complaining about how hard just doing 15 minutes was. And now I’m back to complain about how hard 25 minutes is! Seriously though, every part of my body hurts, but I’m very pleased with the progress.

Today’s plan is spicy bean wrap for lunch and a curried lentil & spinach soup for dinner. Not sure how filling that dinner is going to be, so I might make some flatbreads to go with it. Exercise will be my usual lunchtime walk, followed by a session on the exercise bike after work. I checked my FitBit stats the other day and was surprised to find that my walks are actually more intense than the exercise I’m getting on the bike. Time to walk a bit slower, or cycle a bit faster 😄

Thanks for the tip on the Squeaky Bean pastrami @PurpleDaisies. I’ve seen it in my local Tesco’s but not tried it yet. Sounds interesting

Hope you like it @Crazzzycat. it’s one of my favourites in a toasted sandwich/bagel with sauerkraut, cheese, mustard and Mayo like a Reuben which is one of the things I miss from my meaty days.

I’m feeling a bit better today after stepping on the scales (sorry!) and realising I’m only up 1kg which is normal for period week. I’m aching after yesterday’s accidental epic exercise day (hiit, walk, swim, body balance stretch) so today I’m planning on just a walk and some enthusiastic gardening. Maybe more stretchy body balance to help the muscles! Food wise, it’s the usual toast and houmous for breakfast, leftover tagine for lunch and dinner probably Bosh cauliflower wings with salad and maybe flatbreads. They’re a faff but really nice.

I love the squeaky bean tikka pieces, will need to check out the pastrami as I also love a Reuben!

Amazing, @Crazzzycat! It's such a good feeling to look back and realise the progress you've made, even if it's chuffing hard. I've also noticed on fitbit that my longer walks burn more calories than my far less pleasant and very sweaty workouts. I don't know why it feels like taking the mickey, but it does!

@PurpleDaisies very impressed with the swimming and generally activity filled day!

I woke up early to exercise again!! 30 minutes on the crosstrainer. But I did find it hard to power through it, the energy to go hammer and tongs isn't there yet. But again it is so nice to get it out of the way.

Today's meals have taken some inspiration from you!

B: hummus (jalapeño and red pepper flavour, yum) on toast with a poached egg and coffee with semi skimmed milk

L: ready made soup - tomato, black bean and cashew, which I'm excited about!

D: anchovy-less puttanesca.

Yesterday I found, bought, and ate some limited edition katsu flavour crisps. However I didn't eat the whole bag and obsess in shame, I had a bowl of it, logged the calories, and moved on. Also I've avoided the scales despite big temptation over the last couple of days.

I'm trying not to feel pressure about the wedding coming up, because my arms are not where I would like them to be yet. But I refuse to be drawn into a crash diet or obsess about exercise as that will make me so unhappy and unpleasant. I'm really happy with this more positive, healthy mindset.

Funnily enough, I decided to add a handful of cashew nuts to the soup I’ve been preparing for my dinner. I thought I was being really wacky, but clearly not 😂

I think the occasional treat (or bowl) of crisps is absolutely fine @BrimfulOfBaba. It’s all about balance. Like you, I’m enjoying this more chilled approach to weightloss. I used to weigh myself every single day and it really didn’t make the weight shift any faster!

When’s your wedding? I’m sure your arms will be absolutely fine, but I understand the worry

It certainly sounds like you had an epic exercise session yesterday @PurpleDaisies! I’m glad you’re feeling a bit better. Stepping on scales can have such a massive impact on our moods, even if what we’re seeing is pretty much as expected. Scales should come with a mental health warning!

I thought it was wacky too, @Crazzzycat which is why I was so excited about it! It was delicious, I hope your soup was too.

I agree, if crisps etc are incorporated in my overall week I'm much less likely to eat a family pack or two over the weekend and then feel bad!

Woke up early again and did a core workout. We are lucky to have a room we can use as a gym but it's relatively small so at the moment DP and I are alternating days where one of us is on the crosstrainer and the other is doing a circuit. Not a huge calorie burn doing abs of course so will have a long walk at lunch.

I weighed myself today, which was stupid. I feel I look how I usually do at around 9stone7-ish but the scales say 10stone2. Just trying not to worry that maybe I am being dysmorphic. Just going to focus on a manageable deficit and daily movement as that's how I'm happiest and see results.

Brekkie was hummus on toast (tried to poach an egg in the microwave but it exploded and I could not be bothered to try again after cleaning up) and coffee with semi skimmed milk.

Lunch will be a salad of green lentils, feta, a third of an avocado, peas, beetroot and spinach, dressed in olive oil and red wine vinegar

Dinner will be a tofu and greens stir fry, probably with egg noodles. Need to tot up the calories.

May add an egg later on today to boost the protein.

Hope you all have a winning day :)!!

I’ve got a multipack of those baked crisps as snacks for this week. They’re binge proof for me and only about 110 calories. I’ve also got mini bags of twiglets. In the context of most eating being healthy I’m not worried. I add nuts to pretty much anything as well!

Yesterday’s cauliflower wings are to die for-well worth the effort. Today I’ve had marmite houmous on toast for breakfast, lunch a spicy bean wrap (thanks for the idea!) and dinner probably burnt aubergine chilli from the bbc good food website with a baked sweet potato. Busy day today so I’m hoping to squeeze in a quick walk after hiit. I will be glad to get to 745pm when I can sit down!

Have a great day everyone x

Sounds like you’re on fire when it comes to exercise Brimful. Is it possible you’re a little bit heavier than you expected because you developed more muscle mass? So many different factors influence weight and the difference is pretty small, so I think you’re right not to worry.

I had a pretty frustrating day food wise. Everything was just so weird and bland. By the time DH showed up with a chocolate mousse, I felt so sorry for myself that I was unable to resist the offer. At least it was tasty, so I have no regrets there 😄

My plan for today is spicy bean wrap for lunch and harissa bean stew with halloumi for dinner. I also bought myself some hot chilli cheese, so will have that as a snack with a cracker and some grapes. I’m clearly compensating for yesterday’s lack of flavour!
There will definitely be a walk sometime today and if I have the time, I’ll go on the cross trainer after work 💪

Oh and I really like PopCrisps for my crisp fix. Only 70 calories a packet. So even if I binge on two or three, the total damage is limited!

Oooh could you share the cauliflower wings recipe @PurpleDaisies?

@Crazzzycat muscle mass is a possibility. Fingers crossed! Either way, I'm hiding the scales. I forgot to answer you re: my wedding - it's in early July (80 days away!) so realistically, plenty of time. I just wish you could spot reduce fat (don't we all)!

Ahh flavourless food is such a disappointment, glad you had a lovely pud as compensation :)

Ah I love the crisp options you've both mentioned, I should stock up!

www.bosh.tv/recipes/cauliflower-buffalo-wings

It’s these. I did half the recipe for a small cauliflower. I’ve done it using sliced new potatoes which was really good. I’m going to try sweet potatoes next. Frank’s buffalo hot sauce is my favourite for the coating. The dip is really good, but if you’re short on time they’re good without anything or with mayo. I like them in wraps with crispy lettuce.

Those pop chips are lovely- especially the bbq ones.

Happy Thursday-nearly the weekend. I’m absolutely wiped out after yesterday’s busyness. Thankfully it’s a quieter day today.
I went for an evening walk and got caught out by a road closure which ended up adding another couple of miles on to my distance! Probably five miles altogether. It was generally lovely until it got pitch dark at 9pm. Spotted eight deer so next time I’m taking my camera.

Today’s plan is houmous on toast for breakfast as usual (maybe I need to branch out!), Linda McCartney hoisin fake duck and cucumber wraps for lunch and aubergine pasta bake. Dh bought mini cookies (damn him!!) but they’re only 100cals per bag so if I can stick to one at a time, they’ll be ok as a mid morning snack with coffee. Exercise today will be a fully daylight walk with a friend and Zumba this evening, plus I still need to do some weeding.

How was your harissa and halloumi stew @Crazzzycat? I totally agree that flavourless food is rubbish. I’ve usually got emergency hot sauce in hand just in case! @BrimfulOfBaba 80 days...how exciting! Have you got dumbbells? I found they’ve made a big difference to my arms. Also swimming but that’s difficult to book at the moment with all the post lock down enthusiasts coming out of the woodwork!
Have a great day both.

No need to branch out @PurpleDaisies. Stick to the classics if you enjoy them!

I’m not entirely sure what today is going to bring, as I too have a long walk in a nature reserve planned for tonight! Great minds think alike Purple, although I doubt I’ll see deer on my walk. Eight deer sounds a lot!

We’re planning to set off at 5 and stay until well after dark, so not sure if I’ll have dinner before or after, or stick to snacks I can carry with me.

Exercise wise, I’m sure I’ll get my steps in. Every time I’ve been to this reserve there have been lots of closed paths and needing to do a massive detour or two is almost guaranteed. From a human perspective it’s quite a frustrating place to visit, but hopefully we’ll be rewarded with some interesting things to see!

Happy Thursday! It sounds like we've all had really lovely active weeks :)

I have been very very hungry this week - I ate a whole pack of Quorn cocktail sausages yesterday. Didn't have noodles with my stir fry dinner to compensate and went for a long walk with DP in the evening. However, on the cross trainer this morning (4 days of 6am-ish workouts in a row! Yes!) I was so hungry and could not push myself at all. Regardless I moved for all 30 minutes.

Thanks for that recipe @PurpleDaisies, I can't wait to try it - I have a vat of Frank's hot sauce just waiting for something like this. I do have dumbbells, and kettlebells - been curling and rowing away!

Had Skyr and granola for breakfast. Was still hungry an hour later so ate my leftover tofu stir fry. Lunch will be a peanut soup with buttery toast, dinner will be pasta with butterbeans I think. I am meeting a friend for lunch tomorrow which is exciting! There will be lots of walking I bet, but will give myself a break from proper exercise until Saturday - my body feels battered!

Ooh hope you have a lovely walk @Crazzzycat

It’s odd how feelings of hunger can fluctuate so much. When the feelings are that strong, it makes sense to listen to your body and give in a little.

I had an epic walk yesterday, hit 20k steps and saw some interesting wildlife too. DH spent ages photographing what turned out to be a female mallard, thinking it was something ultra rare. In all fairness, the bird confused me too, so we just concluded we must be the world’s worst bird watchers 😂

We didn’t get back until after 10, at which point I no longer fancied dinner and just had crisps instead. It was fine calorie wise, but obviously not quite so good on the nutrition front!

My plan for today is spicy bean wrap for lunch and some more of that weird soup, I made earlier this week. I really don’t like wasting food, but the thought of chucking it away did cross my mind.

Speaking of weird food, I diverged from my beloved bean wraps yesterday and had some Quorn kebab in a wrap instead. Big mistake! That stuff is like flavoured cardboard. Yuck!

Anyway, I hope everyone has a lovely weekend. I have some walks planned, but think I’ll avoid anywhere with ducks for a while!

Happy Saturday! The weather is glorious here so I’m planning a walk and some pottering in the garden. I weeded half the patio/dandelion nursery yesterday and had a lovely hour sitting out with a book facing the bit that didn’t look like a meadow. My arms are aching a bit today from either yesterday’s hiit or gardening but either way I’ll take it as a good thing.

We’ve had jus rol cinnamon rolls for breakfast as a Saturday treat. Lunch will be wraps with quorn meatballs, salad and spicy tomato sauce. Dinner is pasta, mushrooms, smoky tofurkey, leeks and creme fraiche, maybe with garlic bread. We had fab fake away burgers in buns with salad and a small portion of chips last night which I’m not convinced was healthier than McDonald’s but felt like it! Caramelised onion chutney on the burgers was a great addition.

How are you two getting on? Once again lovely sounding food on this thread (except that quorn kebab stuff which I agree is grim!). I’m intrigued by peanut soup.

It never fails to surprise me how exhausting gardening can be Purple. Proper back breaking stuff! I did a bit of gardening too, although I must confess that mainly consisted of walking around the garden, telling DH where to plant things. Lots of extra steps though!

It’s another sunny day here, so will probably go for a walk. Nothing too strenuous as hay fever season has been hitting me hard over the last few days. I’m trying hard not to fall back on my usual method of dealing with that, which is to drink lots of full fat coke to try and get some energy back. It never works for long anyway, so I’m going to be strong and resist!

Not sure what’s on the menu for today. I’ve run out of the bean mixture for my wraps, so may try something different. Those veggie meatballs in a wrap sound good Purple. May be I’ll try something like that 🤔

Have a lovely Sunday!

Sounds like you both had lovely weekends - barring that Quorn kebab! Quorn products are so hit and miss. It sounds like we all enjoyed the sunshine :)

I took Friday off to have lunch and go shopping with a friend. Glorious! I had a lovely pizza with mushrooms, caramelised onions and watercress pesto. Divine. Saturday went to a BBQ at a friends and was, again, treated to exceptional food.

I tried on my wedding dress again this weekend, and was sent photos of myself wandering around shops by my friend (she was documenting our day for her social media!) - and I had to be very honest that if I want to feel my best for the wedding, I am going to have step things up, just a bit. That won't involve huge differences really. In all honesty I eat many more snacks than I let on even here!

I did 60 minutes on the crosstrainer last night (pretty happy with myself!!) followed by an interval circuit. I did 30 mins on the trainer this morning.

Brekkie was Skyr, granola and coffee. Lunch will be a poke bowl of tofu, avocado, peas and salad bits. Dinner will be cauliflower and chickpea curry I've batch cooked, with some brown rice.

Hoping for another good week! And I hope you have lovely starts to the week too :)

Sixty minutes on the cross trainer @BrimfulOfBaba 😯 #exercisegoals! If it makes you feel any better, I don’t list all my snacks here either. It’s not that I have anything to hide. It’s just that I rarely plan those out in much detail. But it sounds like you’d be able to cut calories a bit, without it hurting too much Brimful? There’s a lot you can do in 60 days, I’m sure!

I completely overdid it on the exercise on Saturday. It was “just a walk”, but one involving a 300 meter climb, which I did in 30 minutes. I kept waking up through the night because my muscles were so sore 😬 Nice views though!

My plan for today is a veggie burger in a wrap with salad for lunch and tomato & dill orzo with veggie meatballs for dinner. I bought a Greek vegetarian cookbook yesterday. It’s possibly a dangerous move as I’ll want to try all the recipes in as short a time as possible. They look reasonably healthy overall though.

I am also in awe of the 60 minute cross trainer session @BrimfulOfBaba. I would be dead after that. Literally dead! I’m not sure how I’d feel about being “documented for social media”! I always look awful in pics.

30 minute hiit today which was so hard with loads of abs. I am hurting already. I accidentally ate two packets of crisps and a cookie afterwards which was 270 calories I didn’t really need. Will possibly skip my afternoon snack-I’m another one not listing those on my meal plan. Most days I have a small packet of crisps/twiglets and maybe a biscuit or two. After weights work outs I try fof more protein based stuff but I don’t always have the willpower to choose them or the organisation to have them in.

Yesterday I made a big batch of sad veggie soup with the end of last week’s veg box. It’s turned out nicely so I’ll have that for lunch with some pine nuts and harissa on top. Breakfast was crumpets (m and s five grain ones are lovely) and dinner will be mushroom and leek cannelloni and salad. I’ve made the filling and currently deciding whether to put a tomato sauce or cheesy one on top. The recipe is a cheesy one but tempted to just open a jar of passata instead of any more effort.

I absolutely love greek food-share any nice recipes @Crazzzycat. Your walk sounds wonderful.

I was listening to my favourite podcast (The High Low - no longer running but I have a huge backlog to catch up on) while on the trainer and honestly it made the whole thing feel less of an eternity than I thought! It was a good way to mark the countdown to the wedding and making sure I feel as confident as I can for it :)!

Ahh more gorgeous food ideas. Seconding the request for recipes, @Crazzzycat - that orzo sounds delicious, as does the veggie burger wrap.

@PurpleDaisies sounds like a brilliant workout - and that cannelloni sounds amazing. @Crazzzycat, nice going on the hike - I can't abide an incline, seriously impressive!!

I absolutely love a podcast to keep me going. I have a mix of music to get me up big hills round here and interesting discussion.

www.jamieoliver.com/recipes/mushroom-recipes/mushroom-cannelloni/

This is the cannelloni. I saw it on Jamie’s programme and thought it looked nice. Decided to stick with the cheesy topping. I didn’t bother measuring the mushrooms and forgot how much they shrink so only have three tubes each. The cheese will have to compensate!

I went for a walk and actually ran a fair part of it. Maybe the sunshine sent my brain crazy but I actually enjoyed it and didn’t feel like I was about to keel over. It was nice to actually feel fit and strong for the first time in a while.