NOTHING TASTES AS GOOD AS BEING SLIM FEELS

[BudaisintheZONE]

And a very good morning to you all!

New thread!!!!!!! As promised.

Weighed in and have lost the holiday kilo. So back to 15 st 3. Am still amazed that I only gained a kilo. There was NO restraint!

Goal now to get to 15 st.

I must have jumped into the void you created in the zone Slobbadan - personal trainer outdoors at 8.30 this morning, followed by spa treatment (kids free day today thanks to my lovely DH so I could enjoy my birthday present from him), lovely healthy chicken wrap and green bean salad from Leon, christmas shopping and chilling in a child free flat for an hour or so. I bought some xmas chocolate today, including a bar of chilli chocolate for myself, and its sat on the side totally unopened so I can share it with DH later.

But FWIW weekends are hard - there is so much going on its easy to jump in the biscuit tin. So dont beat yourself up about it too much, just draw a line under it and start afresh.

Yep Dandy - you're going to have to combine calorie control with lots of water drinking (for lovely glowing skin when you're off on your exotic holiday) and you're exercise to look as amazing as you want to on your holiday. Plenty of the exercise magazines in shops have diet and exercise programmes to get into that little black dress for christmas party season in them - have a flick through them and see if you can get any inspiration. May be easier to follow a pre-programmed plan for that last push to svelteness.

Morning all!

I am feeling soooooo demotivated and depressed at the moment, and i have decided to join WW tomorrow and try this new ProPoint Malarky as im ot doing so well on my own as i think i need the fear of the face to face weigh in! I also really begrudge paying some one £5 to weigh me but im getting desperate now.

I went christmas shopping to the Metro Center yesterday and i was surrounded by thin and trendy people and made me feel even bloody worse!

Morning everyone!

Did end up making it to friends' over the weekend, so bit of overindulgence this weekend. Am on the water, soup and pu-erh tea today for a bit of a detox. (Encycogirl, figured out what the smell of the tea reminds me of - a farmyard...)

Both sets of friends commented on the fact I had lost weight and I've had to tighten belt one notch.

Shaxx, how are you and DS? Feeling better I hope?

Dandy, level 2&3 together?! That is some going-you'll be in that bikini in no time if you carry on like that. Second what dinky said re water. Have you tried to aforementioned farmyard tea? Am convinced it helps.

Dinky, your day yesterday sounded fab!

Slobbadan, we're here with you. If you find yourself reaching for something bad, take a second and just think about it before just putting it in your mouth. Think about the fact that it will give you a moments' pleasure but will contribute to not losing that weight. Think of us all on here and the brilliant things people have said on the pep talks and the weigh in Friday. I always tell myself that when I get to my goal weight, I'll have a day of eating all the chocolate and food that I want. That piece of cake/chocolate/high fat food is ALWAYS going to be there. It won't go away-you will be able to eat it at some point, you just need to avoid it at the moment. Have a big glass of water/piece of fruit/a few nuts/paint your nails/post on MN.

All those potential shredders-come on!! It really makes a difference. I can feel my arms toning up. It's only 20mins. It's over before know it!

Ladies (both on thread and lurking) - remember what your aims are. You want to be slim and healthy and to get there you need to remember these golden rules

(i) aim to lose weight in a sustainable manner - often this will mean only a small lose or a few stay the sames followed by a sudden loss. Those fad diets that promise a 6lb loss in a week are not sustainable or healthy and often result in the weight going back on. Look on yourselves as marathon runners - its a long old slog to get there, but everyone on this thread is cheering you on, and the feeling of elation when you reach the finish line is going to stay with you for a long long time

(ii) look after yourself - both mentally and physically. This means doing exercise which gives you feel good feelings - if you're looking on your exercise as a chore, mix things up and try something new. Find something you enjoy and half the battle is won. And think about what leads to overeating - are you a boredom biffer, an emotional biffer, a stress biffer or a non-conscious choice biffer? Think about what else you can do when the urge to leap headfirst into the biscuit tin hits and put it into effect - it could be picking up the phone to a friend (distraction), heading out the door for a quick walk (diversion) or coming onto MN (and hopefully this thread) to stay strong in the face of temptation (dire emergency!).

(iii) practice mindful eating - natural, unprocessed foods wherever possible and enjoy each mouthful.

(iv) life would be joyless with no treats at all - if you want a small treat a day (a glass of wine, a small piece of cake) indulge in it and enjoy it - but dont biff out. What we're aiming for is a healthy sustainable way of life - there's a place in that for indulgences, its all about balance.

(v) set goals and reward yourself for reaching them - eg. lose 6lbs and I'm going to go to the movies, lose another couple of pounds and am going to get a haircut etc. You're doing a great job and should congratulate yourself every so often on that.

(vi) if you get disheartened, that's ok - just remember to keep the faith and stay in the zone and you will lose weight.

End of speech

Slobbadan, X posts. Sorry to hear you're feeling down at the moment.

I think WW will help. When I joined, it definitely gave me renewed enthusiasm (and the weigh in scared the crap out of me).

I think you're doing the right thing. You WILL lose that weight. Picture yourself walking round the Metro Centre in a few months shopping for clothes to fit your new, slinky shape.

Have you tried Paul McKenna's CD? I found in the early days of starting to eat better, it really seemed to keep me on track.

Will be sending positive zone vibes out to you today.

Excellent Monday morning pep talk Dinky!.

I am now going to have a satsuma and another cup of farmyard tea.

Come on ladies, let's have a another good week and see some losses on Friday. Christmas is nearly upon us!

Glad the snow has passed so I can get back to some normality. Far too much snacking and baking occured last week whilst stuck at home.

Thanks for the pep talk Dinky, I feel like i've been given a big hug

Thank you for the Pep talk dinky! I really needed it today, and thank you for the Zone vibes ilovecake.

I spoke to myfriend who also goes to WW and she was deterring me till after christmas saying "its only a couple of weeks, new year new start" and i was thinking your right i will wait etc. After i came off the phone i thought, no if i start now i could be a few lbs lighter by christmas, and if i wait i will be more than likely heavier! So im off tomorrow and will see how i go!

Dont worry will still be posting on here and will still weigh in on friday with you girls.

Off to make a nice healthy salad for my dinner at work tonight.

Slobbadan - definitely join now rather than in the rush in january. You're feeling like you need the help now, not in January, so do it!

Dinky great pep talk. Just what I needed for my restart tomorrow

Iluvcake We're a lot better thanks. Still not 100% but def ready to get back into the zone after having loads of days off the diet.

Slobbadan sorry you're feeling a bit depressed. I'm sure we can all sympathise! (I'm feeling v. depressed at not being able to wear boots! Everyone's got sexy, lovely boots on and my calves are too fat.)
Def go to ww. It might be just the push you need at the moment.

Shaxx - you just made me laugh and melt at the same time with 'my calves are too fat'. I hear you. I have boots envy too.

dinky - fab pep talk. Get back on that podium soon - your thread needs you

slobb - we all have days like that . I agree, join now. Do a few good weeks of WW and you'll feel a bit brighter and lighter for Christmas.

iluvcake - I didn't shred today. Bad me. But was completely sleep deprived from sleepless night with insomniac baby. Will have to do it tomorrow. Sigh. It's not that bad missing days, is it? I did it 5x last week. That should work, right?

Slobbadan, how are you feeling today?

Very festive iluv . You are sounding very upbeat - well done. I had an incident with a jar of nutella yesterday . I'm a sucker for offers at the supermarket I thought "dd and ds would love that as a treat for Xmas morning, ooh it's on offer, let's get some" Stupid, stupid mistake. Half a jar of nutella went in the dustbin this morning

I keep reading dinky's post and have decided I need to treat myself more . My ultimate aim when I reach target is a trip to Rigby & Peller. I would love to be properly fitted for a bra. I'm curious to know whether M&S have been getting it wrong for years

Justaminute, my treats along the way (some of which I've used) are

• haircut
• subscription to a fitness magazine (I like trying out the different work outs etc.)
• new gym kit (I'm aiming for new trainers as my next milestone treat as current ones are looking v worn)
• shopping trip for new clothes (if near target) or accessories (those will fit you even if you do lose alot of weight)

How about highlights or a pedicure or a massage?

We have a big jar of nutella at home - fortuantely DH is the nutella fan in our house though as I'm immune to its chocolatey nutty charms. Stinky cheese however is an entirely different story so we just dont buy it....

Dandy - is your little one teething? Hope it passes soon whatever it is. I actually think having a couple of days off the shred is a good thing for your body (and your mind as its boring as all sin doing the same exercise all the time) as it lets the muscle fibre repair - do you have a yoga or pilates dvd you could do? Stretching out the muscles will help elongate your silhouette (my word of the day!) and you'll feel good for having done something (albeit less hard core than the shred). Hope you have a better night tonight. Its on tired days that I often biff to see me through the day - remember, drink lots of water and make healthy choices (fruit, vegetables, unprocesssed stuff) and you'll get through the day without sabotaging the bikini plan

What a great pep talk dinky, you can really get back on that poduim anytime, and keep us all in check

Sorry to hear you were a bit down slobbadan, sending you lots of zone vibes and virtual hugs [fbear]

I haven't really thought alot about treats, but I did have a long awaited massage on saturday (baby weighs over a stone now, which is hard work on the back!!!). But I might have more of them as my treats along the way as I really enjoy them, plus some pedicures, why not, better than speding money on biscuits or other naughty goodies at the supermarket.

Hope everyone is staying in the zone. Take care xx

Evening everyone! justaminute, I have done that soooo many times-bought sugary things for "DS" but eaten them myself! Well done on putting the half full jar in the bin though.

I am feeling positive at the moment. I feel as if I've finally discovered a big secret. NOTHING WORKS for losing weight apart from eating better and exercising. For years, I've been crash/faddy dieting looking for a quick fix. I haven't been perfect but I've eaten so much better and cut out 90% of the junk I was eating before. It's had a massive effect on my energy levels, pmt (none last month-normally I want to stab someone) and my mood. I'm usually a moody cow quite grumpy and low but I feel happy, upbeat and positive since I started this. I just don't want to go back to feeling how I did before and that in itself is keeping me on track.

Dandy, shred wise, five times in one week is really good going-especially when your're so tired. I'm a bit four days on/four days off at the moment, keep trying to do a bit more. As long as you feel you're toning up and it will help rev up your metabolism as well.

Morning all, everyone seems so motivated at the moment i need it to rub off on me! So well done.

I have never thought about having little rewards as an incentive to keep going so i think i will have to start compiling a list.

I never got to WW last night as it got cancelled because of the snow, but i will go there next week. Not been 100% strick with myself when i know i should be because im dreading the weigh in being a gain (and it will be all my own fault so i cant blame anyone). But im going to try and stay on the straight and narrow.

Slobbadan - take each day at a time, dont focus on the weigh in. At the end of the day I want you to be able to look back on the day and feel proud of yourself for doing well - yes, we all slip up every now and again but so long as 90% of your day has been in the zone, you're doing great.

Remember

• drink lots of water (often when you think you're hungry its just thirst)
• if you need to snack, go healthy - fruit is the best snacking food to go for
• nothing tastes as good as being slim feels!

Dinky I really like what you said about being proud of yourself at the end of the day. I know I much prefer going to bed thinking I did really well and looking forward to breakfast because I know I will be genuinely hungry. The contrast is when I pig out and am in bed feeling podgy, kicking myself and asking myself why I'm such a glutton!

Its not worth it!

A friend of mine started dieting at the beginning of Oct with me but she took the slow and steady route (has 2 treats a day, 1 at 4ish and 1 after dinner, eats normal but low fat meals) while I thought I'd go full on and then 'had a break' went full on again put it back on etc.
The result is that I am 2lbs down since I started and my friend lost 1lb every week (with an initial bigger loss) and is 12lbs down!
Slow and steady definitely wins the race!
(How I'm kicking myself)

Shaxx, I would second that. That has always been my problem before too. I always wanted to lose a big amount of weight in a short time. I would go on these awful, faddy diets that promised 17lbs off in 6 days and I would be STARVING and go off the rails big time about two days into it.

Even if I have a small loss (and sometimes I get a bit ), deep down I know that I'm getting there and it's much better to do it slowly.

Slobbdan, do you do what Shaxx mentioned? 3 meals/2 snacks. If I'm struggling, I try to have set times for each that can't be deviated from. ie first snack of 2 oatcakes & peanut butter at 11am/lunch 1pm/snack of dried apricots & almonds at 3pm. So, for instance, if I'm starving at 10.40am I know in my head I've only got 20mins to go until I have something to eat and I distract myself with housework or painting nails etc. Your blood sugar stays stable as well so less chance of feeling as if you want to biff. Apologies if I sound like I know it all-I so don't.

Well I've tried to stick to that today and have gone back to logging all my food so fingers crossed!

I do better when I have to follow Rules so I think I'll go with sticking to particular times for meals and snacks.

How's everyone done today?

Hello skinnies! I'm fat again.

Coco me old mucker - lovely to see you back. Did the lure of the wotsits prove too strong? I'm still here - Buda and Cyb and MamaG in various guises and Dukes pop in from time to time too....