Help, I need to get into my jeans - anyone want to join me for a September challenge?

[thatsnotmyfruitshoot]

Just put all my loose linen summer numbers in the loft and realised I'm bulging out of all the lovely jeans I planned to wear this autumn. Going away for half term so it would be great to be a size smaller by then.

I'm 5ft 7 and need to lose about 20lbs to be at my most comfortable, so not drastic, but enough that I'm feeling really lardy, and need to do something before I gain any more.

My plan is to eat healthily (using food focus website to keep me on straight and narrow..) - boiled egg and slice of toast with grilled mushrooms for breakfast (totally fills me up), then soup for lunch and something with veg for dinner. One treat meal at the weekend. 30 mins exercise a day (either running or exercise dvd)

Please come and join me, I'm hopeless when left to my own devices..!!

Imissmyjeans thanks for that. I went to sports direct and got their asics for flat feet maybe I just have to get used to them. Can't take them back as I have already worn them outside. I think the problem is I have the support in the trainer but also the specialist insole so may raised too much.

Thanks everyone for your ideas :)

Imissmyjeans - well done in getting into those jeans :o

Will be starting with porridge, lunch will be a 3 bean stew with rice and dinner will most likely be the same as I made a huge pot of it last night.

Hope you all have a good day and thanks again for all your help xx

Good luck Shortandsweet!

I've just had porridge for breakfast and I'm going to a Chinese buffet place with friends and kids after school so that'l be my early dinner! Must stick to one simple dish.

I'm hoping to go to 'tone and groan' today

HAPPY BIRTHDAY! Imissmyjeans - have a good one..

Shorty - as an ex-runner I would say that SportsDirect don't really compare with the advice and assessment you would get from a Specialist running shop. I do hope you manage to sort it out - but alas some runners do have to quit because for some of us, the pounding/ jolting/jarring on tarmac can bugger up various parts of you. For me it was my back - I can now run on a running machine though (which provides extra shock absorbency) as long as I jog rather than run

Re the exercise debate, I notice that the link which suggested 1-1.5 hours per day, mentioned moderate exercise and refers to walking briskly and gardening as examples. I think that is qualitatively different to more focused aerobic exercise - such as running, cycling, exercise dvd etc. Perhaps the 30 minutes a minimum of 4 times per week which Shaxx mentions refers to the latter. I am quite certain running 3 miles in 28 minutes as I used to 3 /4 times per week were as effective if not more so than a brisk walk daily for an hour. I certainly know which would knacker me more!

Timbachick - what was the recipe for the pasta and spinach balls, am intrigued

All going fine here - not fallen off the wagon too much since the weekend (apart from a packet of doritos!) and weigh in due tomorrow [eek]

hi everyone, feeling a bit better thanks. It transpires I have a severe milk intolerance and mild wheat intolerance. Jolly good..

Have ordered myself a lose weight without wheat book, will do a large online Tesco shop and get back on with it. I suppose at least I have a really good reason for avoiding the cakes now

Hope everyone is well, will check in again properly later on.

Afternoon Everyone, I hope everyone is having a great day?

hmc - not sure of the recipe as it was made for me but I will try and find out and post it here. Haven't forgotten the canneloni recipe either - will post that this weekend...just haven't had time to do it and my DH won't get off the laptop and he bought it for me ... so it's mine, all mine

Well done fruity on getting into your jeans. That's really good news. . It really is motivating when you start to see things changing.

Happy Birthday jeansy. I hope you have an absolutely fantastic day.

How is everyone doing today?

• sorry to hear about your intolerances fruity - at least you know now though, and can statr to change your diet to eliminate these things. I am sure it will make you feel tons better.

Happy birthday Imissmyjeans!

Thatsnotmyfruitshoot I'm glad you have an answer. Are you a big milk drinker, or is that not much of a problem to give up? And I'm sure you can find gluten-free cakes... not that you should eat them, of course. No, no. Have an apple.

HMC, yes I reckon the real point is to exercise every day, and no doubt running for 1/2 an hour is more effective than just about anything else (if your feet can take it!), even if it adds up to less time. Like you, I can still run on a treadmill but me old joints can't take the pavement on a daily basis anymore. Twice a week of running outside is okay. It's a shame because I can run for far longer outside - I get bored on a treadmill after 20 minutes or so.

Good day so far - did post earlier but link failed..

Breakfast
naan (was about to go off)
coffee

Lunch
pasta with tom/mushroom sauce,no cheese

then slightly scuppered by craving for peanut butter on cracker at 2pm? obviously I needed protein

Supper
fish and green beans, bread

aah fruit that is a satisfying explanation.
Still there is always polenta cake! I think Delia had a nice one with dates didn't she in Wnter cooking?

Also went for two jogs

Hello everyone

Have had a nice birthday with DH and the kids but was majorly disappointed when my friend who had agreed to babysit cancelled at the last minute as she was sick. I know these things cant be helped but it was going to be our first night out as a couple since last Oct!

So, we ordered in a big chinese and opened a very nice bottle of wine. Have decided to have a day off the diet.

I weighed myself today so to avoid having a weigh in after my birthday. Have lost another 2lbs so very pleased with that! So I am treating myself tonight and I will be working hard again on the diet from tomorrow.

shorty Out of interest what asics do you have as that is the make that I use.

Happy Birthday Imissmyjeans!!

Jeans they were these ones

I have lost a total of 2 and a quarter pounds in 2wks which I am very pleased with as I have been stuck for the last 6mths!!

So glad it is Friday!! Hope you all have a good weekend :)

Just weighed in and have lost 5lbs (2.2kg) . Am sooooooooooooo pleased. So that means since starting September I have lost 10lbs!!!! Oh, I love this thread.

Just done my hour walk and now have to clean the house so that's another 1+ hours of bath scrubbing, dusting and hoovering ... I bloody hate housework (think I must have been a princess in another life )

Hope everyone is having a great day?

Fruity, I'm glad you found the cause of your discomfort. Do you know if you're intolerant to all milk or can you have lacto-free?
I think if you're avoiding wheat, you'll def lose weight without trying too hard (as long as you don't replace the naughty bakery goods with high fat stuff)

Short, well done on 2lbs lost!

My stomach is sooo bloated today, its ridiculous. I'm sure its pmt but I don't think I've ever had such a huge jelly belly! Eurgh.

I had some cornflakes mixed with granola for breakfast. I'm in intending to have a light lunch today as I'm going out for a meal today.
My friend really wants to go to Jamie Olivers Fifteen for her birthday, but she's not booked a table and was planning to try today! I think her chances are pretty slim!
I have dh's birthday tomorrow. I'm planning to make a red velvet choc cake and we're going out for dinner.
I knew I'd have to write this week off!
Plus nothing fits me and I look horrible in everything (boo hoo am having one of those self pitying why am I so fat? days that always seem to come up when I'm going out )

Hope everyone else has a good day.

Oh Shaxx the red velvet chocolate cakes sounds delish (slaps herself to stop trance like state)

Well done Timba on a mega weight loss, and Shorty too for getting off the weight loss plateau you've beens stuck on, brilliant! Also well done Imiss for your 2lbs - how motivating is this thread!!

I've lost another 1.5lbs today so that makes 3lb in 11 days. Am happy, since I haven't been feeling particularly deprived or starving - I've just been careful. Also sleeping a lot better since the alchohol consumption has gone right down - feeling very chipper.

ProperNoun - oh you are so right about the tedium of the treadmill, and to add insult to injury I was forced to watch helicopters heroes today whilst doing a session since that was already on the tv when I got there (only one tv, it is a teeny gym at village golf club)

Hope you feel better with your elimination diet fruity. My friend was diagnosed gluten intolerant a couple of years ago, it's a bit of a faff (e.g. having to quiz waiters at restaurants etc) but she has learnt to live with it, and her symptoms (very painful bloating) are now well under control.

Hope everyone has a lovely weekend x

I've lost I kg!
not felt particularily deprived either, still had odd bit of bread, flapjack, but kept off the slices of cake at cafe, big bowls of cereal at 10.00pm and the glasses of wine and basically kept to scheduled mealtimes.

feeling peckish now though, but trying to hold out till 12.30 for lunch!

Well done everyone!!!! Fantastic news all round, especially timba - 5lbs is amazing! We are over halfway now, it's flying by!!

Thanks to you all for your kindness, I can still have lactofree milk, soya and rice milk. Yoghurt and cheese are also ok so that's a good thing. Hopefully the wheat won't be long term, I just have to give my system a chance to recover. Coffee and tea are going to be the hardest to kick, a decaff tea with soya milk just doesn't hit the spot the way my Starbucks americano with a shot of syrup does!!

Despite that, I am exercising every day and do feel a lot better. My bum has changed shape from all the running and squats

Hope everyone has a lovely weekend!

Hey shaxx - I had one of those days during the week. I had to go shopping for a few work clothes and desperately wanted to buy another size down but it just didn't look right so I ended up feeling quite down about it all . I had to give myself a right talking to - telling myself that if I hadn't started on this 'journey' I would probably be a few pounds heavier and even more depressed and that soon I would be buying stuff in a smaller size. I am trying to reward myself with things like a new book/mag, a new top etc. I hope you have a great day/evening out with your friend and with your DH on his birthday. The cake sounds abso fab

Well done to everyone - we are all going great guns aren't we.

Thanks fruity and shaxx - for starting the August thread and for starting this thread - heroes the pair of you

Wigh day tomorrow - I'm not holding out much hope. Don't think the Alli is working as I'm not pooing at all, never mind pooing myself. Had a naughty day on Weds when I went to London for the day with a friend.

Had a consultant appt today about my bad back and as I was leaving he told me to try and lose some weight. And thats without weighing me so I obviously look fat enough to say that to. God I really need to do this.

Oh Viva! - everything crossed for you tomorrow. Hang on in there

You can do it Viva, just one day at a time. After all, by the end of the day you will have forgotten the times you were tempted but didn't get to eat something you wanted. Sometimes it is just plain boring as well as hard, but you will get through.

Today have managed to avoid bacon and chips at cafe (which dcs were eating) all biscuits cakes etc, but did succumb to a chinese takeaway (lots of broccoli at 7.30 when I was completely completely starving.
Lunch was a healthy sandwich of cream cheese, lettuce and chorizo, sort of healthy at 1.30 (ironing to U2 distracted me till then)

now drinking Irish coffee after a whole week of nil sugar, nil alcohol and nil cream.

Well I weighed myself, have put on 1/2 lb.

I've been good all week apart from Weds when I ate pizza and drank beer. I've been taking Alli all week FFS.

OK, will start writing down what I'm eating to see where I'm going wrong.

Yesterday - 2 weetabix, cup of tea
ham roll, mullerlight yoghurt
weightwatchers pizza, cereal bar
apple, grapes.

Most days are similar.

Sounds like you are eating v. healthily Viva - you can't do more really. I think by next week something will probably drastically re-align and the Alli will start to work. Are you drinking enough - I know cups of (white)tea kept me going through many bad moment.

today had
breakfast pumpkin bread with btter and jam, white coffee, snack white coffee bacon and whte toast (well ds1 had the full English - so I just had a bit off his plate in the cafe) - we were visiting ss - very strenuous bus journey avoided choc, croissants, muffins etc

lunch - bowl of low-fat veg soup (homemade)slice of pumpkin bread and btter, then plain salad (undressed) 2 boiled potatoes with 1/2 oz of butter, bunch of grapes

Pumpkin bread sounds interesting - is it low fat/calorie? Do you make it yourself?

Morning! Viva so sorry u put on. Keep at it should start 2 move soon. Are u drinking plenty of water? I went running yesterday in my new trainers without the special insoles and was the best run I have had with hardly any pain :o

That's good to hear shortandsweet - how far did you go?

Viva - I think that sounds like you've actually eaten very little, I don't know if this is a pile of crap but I was told by a Slimming World leader in the days when I attended classes that eating too little can retard weight loss

Also, could you be retaining fluid? I weigh heavier at certain times in my menstrual cycle