School staff health and well-being thread1

[Monkeytennis97]

Hello all! Welcome to any school staff looking to improve their diet/exercise in 2021!

Last year I lost 5 stone and my BMI dropped from 42 to 28. My aim this year is to drop another 2 stone to get into the 'normal' weight category and to improve my stamina with jogging.

Welcome all!

That's great advice Rule!

I've never before had an issue with putting on weight and not being able to loose it fairly easily, probably age. And probably all the lockdown snacking.

I think I used to burn of a heck of a lot at school plus the odd weekly swim etc.

Running is now thinking time (swimming used to be and I hated running till a few years ago.) so not really a proper work out. I prefer a resistance type thing actually.

I used to do martial arts and also cycle to work and had to eat so much to keep my weight on when I was full time. When the youngest is at school I may be able to cycle to work again.

I went to the last box of Christmas chocolates earlier to find DH has been kindly helping me out and there were only 2 left, flavors I don’t like. Bless him, he’s built like a racing snake and walks 10 miles a day. So lovely of him to remove the temptation at no personal cost to his own waistline

There's actually some good exercise videos on the nhs website btw. Including Pilates and yoga (I think?)

We found my easter chocolate Armageddon stash and started it today.

I'd (mostly) forgotten I'd hidden it there.

(Filed under "well-being")

Great advice, @RuleWithAWoodenFoot - thank you. I’m not really sure what I’m doing at the moment, other than avoiding sugar.

My problem in term time is that I don’t eat properly in the week. I can’t face breakfast so I skip it. I have something like chicken or tuna salad for lunch but it doesn’t fill me up, so by the time I get home at 6.30 I’m ready to eat everything in the world. I think I need to be more organised and factor in an after school snack to stop me emptying the fridge/cramming bread and biscuits while I’m cooking the evening meal. I also need to lose my late night chocolate habit.

I get up at 6 and leave at 7 so I can't eat before school. I used to take porridge in a flask but I found that once I start eating, I can't stop - so desk breakfast + break time snack + lunch + 5pm snack + dinner.
I now try to have lunch at 12.45 and dinner by 7 and nothing else. But gin has lots of calories 😢

Can't remember who it was, but for adult ballet, you could try barre. It's oh my god, intensely painful, can't walk for a week afterwards, but you do feel like a proper ballerina.

I’m in. I’m trying to get the family to support me. First deadline is 3 months, 13 weeks today is Good Friday. I hope to have made a good start.

I caved and ate a bag of crisps, but they were really tasteless rice-cake type ones so I think they're probably free

I did do 26,000 steps today though so pleased with that. I think I going to try and avoid artificially sweet things as my first priority, have been hitting the chocolate and biscuits waaay too hard.

@flumposie

Hello. Thanks for this thread. In 2017/18 I lost 24 pounds which took me to a size twelve. I was motivated to do this as I knew I would be meeting some actors/actresses at a convention and so for vanity reasons I didn't want to look fat however during lockdown and the last 2 weeks I've piled most of it back on. My new motivation will be a big birthday in April. Today I will be joining slimming world online ( code PHE2021 gives you a discount) and starting my exercise regime from next week. Good luck everyone.

I'd love to know how good SW online is. I've always avoided it as I can't get to meetings and it used to get poor reviews, but my sister lost loads of weight on regular SW and kept it off, so have often been tempted. I wonder if everything being online means they've improved the service at all. Would love to hear your views once you've started.

Ulelia - I think the most I've ever managed is 23,000 steps. 26,000 steps is fairly epic.

I have just done 30 minutes on DH's rowing machine. He actually set it up for me and hasn't got out the biscuits after the kids have gone to bed. He's trying to be supportive after I told him off for feeding me up like Mauritian bride (seriously this was/is actually a thing).

I know I won't always manage the 10,000 steps a day but I'm really going to try to make sure I get 30 active minutes in each day (or at least 5/7).

Urgh. Just remembered. As well as generally knowing I need to lose weight. And tempting fate by booking the T2 diabetes test, I know that I already medically need to lose weight as I was diagnosed with an enlarged, liver recently after waiting for a scan for 10 months since Feb. Thank you lockdown, at least it wasn't something more serious.

So I've been told I need to not crash diet, or try and lose weight quickly, but instead eat a healthy diet and slowly lose weight.

Unlike DH, whose reaction to the t2 actual diagnosis was to diet HARD and eat 800 cals a day for many, many months. And, when his weight loss began to slow down, to have a fast day once a week.

That is NOT the route for me. Varied, slow and sensible. With some extra mobility and exervise thrown in.

@Ulelia wow 26k steps that's brilliant! I've done a measly 8k today (better than yesterday when I did 3k). Ok goal for tomorrow is 12k. 1800 cals max. (Ate well over 2000 today damn lebkuchen and Christmas chocs).

@Ulelia my friend has lost 2 stone doing it online. Last time I lost my weight using my fitness pal and my fitbit. I'm going to try slimming world as I feel I need new recipes/ meal ideas. Will let you know how it goes. Well done on the steps. My fitbit has been on holiday with me for the last 2 weeks.

My Garmin keeps running out of battery st the wrong time!

Lesley Sansone's Walk a Mile videos on youtube are an easy way to start and you can build up the challenge level. They really helped me get my step count up on my fitbit to something approaching respectable. I've got lazy in the last few weeks but am planning to restart tomorrow.

Loads of snow falling right now so no running today. I've dusted off the yoga matts (I like two!) and warned ds1 they're not for den building when I want them.
Stupidly didn't stretch yesterday. Hamstrings not happy! Might try the MUTU warm up thing and find my dumb bells.
(Note find. Not exactly use...)

I worked out that given my tea consumption, if I switch to herbal tea I can save a load of empty calories. I must get through a pint a day just in tea or coffee. So i've just ordered loads of different ones.

If I skip breakfast and just snack at break time I find it easier. Breakfast makes me hungrier at lunch. Then eat before 7 and nothing after. I can usually do this anyway- my downfall is wine. I'm going to splurge on a non-alcoholic "spirit" and try that with zero cal tonic. Does anyone have one they actually like?

Oh heavens, tea is my absolute weakness-drink buckets of the stuff (and bought fancy Thermos flasks to be able to get me through a school day without a Staffroom) but can imagine it’s not without it’s negatives!

I’m off out for some fresh air with the little one. Am going to bring a football and hope that’s enough exercise to help boost my fitness monitor on my smart watch!

Does anyone have one they actually like?
Seedlip is expensive but lovely. I can’t tell the difference taste wise!

Another vote for Seedlip here. It is expensive, though.

Right, I'm off out for a little run. Eldest wants to come with me, so that will be a good excuse just to do a mile or 2 not 3! Baby steps though

@phlebasconsidered

I worked out that given my tea consumption, if I switch to herbal tea I can save a load of empty calories. I must get through a pint a day just in tea or coffee. So i've just ordered loads of different ones.

If I skip breakfast and just snack at break time I find it easier. Breakfast makes me hungrier at lunch. Then eat before 7 and nothing after. I can usually do this anyway- my downfall is wine. I'm going to splurge on a non-alcoholic "spirit" and try that with zero cal tonic. Does anyone have one they actually like?

Do you like an aperol? DH has a low cal/non alcohol version of something a bit like that and loves it. Think it is £££ though...

I will not drink wine today.
I will not drink wine today.
I will not drink wine today.
I will not drink wine today.
I will not drink wine today.
I will not drink wine today.

I might also watch Bridgerton on the treadmill. Does anyone else have leg problems with treadmill walking though?