Please Help, I need to lose a fairly significant amount of weight, get much fitter (without further damaging my lower back) and give up smoking - first check point in 4 weeks!

[yorkishbirdy]

This may be long, but I have no idea what I am doing and really need help and advice!

I need to make some decent changes, my first checkpoint is in 4 weeks time and my end date is in 3 months. I have never been on a diet in my life and have no idea how to calculate calories, %fat etc etc. I also have damage to my pelvis and lower back so I cannot change my excercise levels without being very very slow and careful.

So, I need to lose 2 stone overall I would also like to take the opportunity to detox. a little? My initial thoughts were to stop tea and wine and up my water (how much are you supposed to drink BTW?) With diet I guess cutting out fatty sweet stuff? I hae been told to keep my calories below 1500 per day, is that right? How do I know what calories there are in fruit and veg though?

For excercise I suppose I am left with swimming? I thought I could just try it out and do as much as my body can cope with, building it up over time? Unless anyone knows of a way of excercising without moving either the lower back or pelvis (it is movment not impact that causes the most trouble!)

Oh and to top it all off, I am giving up smoking too (which I have to do, for various personal reasons - it is not actively killing me yet but I think I have used all of my good grace with that one).

So, how realistic is this? Can it be achieved, does anyone have any suggestions at all, meals, snacking, counting calories etc. Oh and I don't like the idea of faddy type diets, I find healty eating much more attractive!

Thank you so much if you have got this far, I really have no idea what I am doing and it is important to me to get this right!

eleusis, 7days now and I am still managing fairly well, for some reason that worries me Good luck with your nanny, hope she is worth the extra calories

PG, Happy birthday! I have no idea about SPD, but it sounds horrifically painful, I didn't realise that it could go on for this long. I guess I always assumed it went away after birth I love the idea of doggy paddle, I can manage crawl (although I am bad at it lol) I guess different movements affect us?

Are you going to go for the cigs as well PG or concentrate on the eating for now?

7 days is fab. Well done.

the eating bit.

Had chinese last night, first for months.

Feel like the new year can start now.!!

The secret to losing weight/staying slim is portion control. You could start by reducing whatever it is that you eat by 1/3. Give up sweets and cakes in excess if you can, but really the most important thing is just to eat less.

If you normally have 2 pieces of toast for breakfast, try having 1.5 instead. If you normally have 2 glasses of wine with dinner, try having 1.5 instead. Be diligent and truthfull to yourself.

You will see results in a few weeks, but the best part will be that they will be from a life style change that you can stick to.

Good luck.

sounds very simplistic, but very managable. instead of cutting out all the things i love.

will def take your advice on board, thanks!

SA, I agree with that, it is the conerstone to my plan thus far, I control my portions and bulk up with "free" items, ie, if you have a roast meal, have a small portion of Chicken or Pork, a few small potatos (not roasted) and as many steamed vegetables as you can eat!

PG I love chinese food, sadly it loves my thighs best

Hey Yorkishbird,

Sounds like you are doing really, really well. You have got some willpower girl.

I had every intention of checking this thread every day to see how yr doing and I DID have every intention of smoking my last cig last Wed night like I said. I got up Thursday morning, put my patch on and took 4 kids (1 was my neice) into town NOT recommended when you are trying to avoid stressfull situations. Then my 3 year old son came down with a high temperature which worried me THEN my patch fell off which made me realise today was not a good day to stop! Unfortunatley I never even bothered the next day because my sons high temp turned out to be Meningitis and he was rushed to hospital. He is ok and is making real good recovery but any thoughts of diet, keep fit or stopping smoking have kind off gone out of the window at the mo!

He is at home now and hopefully next week things will be less frantic so I will dig out the patches again and open the fitness Dvds (which arrived from Amazon yesterday) and I will be leaping around like a lunatic whilst climbing the walls for a cig!!
I will keep you posted

Keep up the good work your doing really well

I actually think it's not a good idea to bulk up with "free" items. I think it's better to just adopt overall good habits and attitudes and that way you aren't ever in the frame of mind that a lot of anything is good. Moderation in everything is the key to success.
By the way, try cooking everything in extra virgin olive oil and garlic instead of butter. It's much healthier, will make you feel better and it means you can have roasted potatoes (I do mine in olive oil (use charlottes or new potatoes) and they come out great.

cantseemyfeet...sorry to hear about your ds...I read other thread too. When you are back on your feet, try spending a little time rethinking your daily habits with regard to smoking. ie Do you light up with morning coffee? On the telephone? While watching tv? And then try to either stop doing the things that you associate with smoking for awhile or plan a substitute activity to replace the cigarette. For example, a diet soda while on the telephone. Beading or knitting or somesuch while watching tv. Popcorn for stress. Quitting smoking is a huge project and you need to approach it with a fully thought out plan that has contingencies for all potential pitfalls. (ds with meningitis is valid excuse for not yet quitting)

Hi yorkishbirdy

Have just found this thread.
Congrats on the smoking, as an ex smoker remember how hard it was. DP is trying to give up at the moment he's got the gum but not the willpower, still has the odd one but keeps trying

I'm trying to get back into the excercise and healthier eating (hate teh word diet) as am putting back on all the weight i had lost. With regards to excercise i brought a 'Lateral Thigh Trainer' lost a trouser size in 30 days but obviously you wouldn't be able to use it.

SA I agree with you about filling up on the free items also eat things that relese energy slowly e.g.
Porridge for breakfastwith banana/ dried fruit.
Brown rice
Wholemeal bread

These will really fill you up and won't give you that sugar kick and then low.
I'm sure everyone can think of loads more I've got a cold and my brain is totaly non functional this morning.

Hope something in this prattle helps. Will be trying to follow my own advice with you and keeping up with everyones progress.

BBL
Cantseemyfeet hope your DS is back to full fitness soon.

Where are you YB?? I have been watching to see how you are doing and there is no sign of you?

SA, Thanx for reply, I read your replies on my post and really appreciate it.
I am going to really try to stop smoking, it hasnt helped that my dad has just brought me 200 back from Tenerife and I must admit they have come in handy over last few days but am determined to quit once they have gone. I never light up first thing, I sometimes go a couple of hours before I have one but once I do it sets me off. I dont smaoke in the house so TV/phone is not going to make me want to light up but do tend to stand in garden with cig everytime I make a cuppa. Maybe will opt for gallons of fruit juice instead of coffee for a while.
I do not own a deep fat fryer and the only time the frying pan comes out is to do Ds fried eggs with Saturday breakfast and I use olive oil or rice bran oil when cooking. I grill most things like chicken, fish etc and it seems so unfair I seem to gain a stone just looking in Greggs window!!
Have got pretty lazy over Christmas so probably feel totally unfit because I wasnt hiking up huge hills to get DS to nursery.
Have vowed to walk more and do dvd each night (with ds who is desperate to try it out) Me thinks he just wants to have a giggle at his mother looking like waynetta slob doing aerobics!!

Hi, sorry I have family here this weekend o have been busy! still not smoking and am going to weigh myself tomorrow so wish me luck for that!

SA when I say bulk up i do mean within reason, I think the best thing is to get used to eating portions that fill you rather than leave you feeling like you should be spit roated

Cantseemyfeet I am so sorry about your ds, I hope that you are all ok now? Giving up has to be at the right time and when your child is ill is not the right time!

Right, I will be back as soon as the family have gone

YB I'm curious about these deadlines that you mention. The types of lifestyle changes you are talking about take more than 3 months to become embedded. I'm a bit worried that you may be setting yourself unrealistic targets.

FWIW, I'm fitter and healthier than you, but still need to lose about 10kg that has crept up on me. I'm thinking in terms of 6 months, not 3.

Sounds like you're doing well, but don't be too hard on yourself.

don't worry triathlete, I have no illusion that I will achieve what I have set out for! I am one of those people who works best under pressure so I have given myself the target of achieving the full amount in the minimum time, this way I will keep working at it and (hopefully) achieve around about half the wieght loss I want to overall.
I would like to have lost it all by mid May (this is my final target date) which is about 5.5 months. As I say though I would just not get anywhere if I set May as my target!

Whats a lateral thigh trainer and where can I get one????????

Allen Carr worked for me. Good luck.

CSMF, I think the cheapest lateral thigh trainer I have seen was on cyberchekout.com (or co.uk?) anyway I am not sure about the postage on there though...here. How is your DS?

Thanks saggers am still going strong!

CSMF I brought my from Sky. They r on the advertising channel loads, shows you how it works really well.

Oh I got to get me one of those they look great!!
Actually managed to open workout Dvd tonight, DS1 decided he would do it with me....... I collapsed after the warm up!!! IT IS OFFICIAL I AM UNFIT. I watched the rest of the dvd whilst DS flung himself around trying to keep up (which did make me chuckle) But I am truly ashamed of myself and shall be getting it out again tomoro.
Think thigh trainer looks lot better and thanks for the info on them, I think a friend of mine bought one of sky now I think about it, ill see what she paid for hers.

Ds2 is soooo much better thanx. He has spent most of the day destroying my home!! He still sleeps for a good couple of hours through the day (which is when house gets put back together again) But I was warned he would get tired easily.
Going to attempt to stop smaoking again next week. Hopefully will get past day 1 without anymore disasters.