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..!!

thisis - why no breakfast? One of the best tips I've ever had is to try and eat some breakfast - it actually kick starts your metabolism. Good job on holding off on the pizza. I make my own pizza's and make a HUGE salad - whilst my DS and DH are eating pizza and salad I have a massive portion of salad and two small pieces of pizza. Makes me feel like I'm part of it but I don't eat as much as they do

Imissmy - I find evenings harder than the days too. I think it is because you are busy with life during the day and then all of a sudden you have time to relax and it dawns on you that you are starving. By that time you are not in control anymore or at least I'm not

Shades - I was a member of Holmes Place before it was sold and more recently I have been a member of Virgin. Tbh I am not a great fan of gyms - at least the major ones. They are very impersonal and really focussed on the dollars rather than the people. I prefer the small independent gyms, the ones body builders use - basic but focussed on the body rather than the decor . However, they are not to every one's taste

If you are thinking of joining a gym then I would really suggest that you visit a few of them and see which one appeals to you. It really depends on what you are looking for. I am not a member of any gym at the mo - I do it myself and am happy to do that. I don't want the expense of the gym tbh. Good luck picking one.

Won't it be a little squashed?

Thanks everyone, it was lovely: stilton souffle with broccoli and sweet potato. And two small glasses of wine.

Not exactly as planned, but not an out and out blow out either. Porridge for breakfast!

Love to join you - stuck my toe in the water in another dieting thread earlier but it hasn't really taken off. Just seen this had 129 posts since Tuesday - well 'ard. I need to sign in daily to keep motivation going. I have around 3 stone to loose - eek!

Morning all.

Phaseolus - well done on not going mad, it can be so difficult when you go out with other people.

Thanks for the Gym advice Timba. I used to be a member of David Lloyd but suit as I wasnt going. I dont know if I am quite motivated enough yet to join another, especially as its £££. I swim once a week and power walk twice, plus mini work-outs everyday. I just hate excersizing infront of people.

Got on the scales first thing and I am 10st exactly. I was 10st 2.5lb last week so 2.5lb loss. When I started in January I was 11st 3lb and despite a few wobbles I am pleased at what I have lost - but still 6lb to go, and they are the hardest ones.

Well I've weighed myself - 12stone3lbs, which is a stone more than 8 months ago when I stopped SW.

fEel really depressed. Am going to have to stop any snacking at all between meals.

Viva - that's annoying for you. But, well done for getting on the scales and at least you know now, and can do something about it. I felt the same way after my weigh-in, I must admit.

Hi HMC, this does seems to be a really nice thread. Have only just joined myself and I've got a similar amount to lose - eek is right!

Well done SoV - that's really good! You should be very proud of yourself.

Made a soup with a bag if veg stirfy and left over chicken carcass, with some meat on it. Looked delicous, didn't taste as good as it looked though:)

Still has left me with a few more calories for supper and a glass of wine. On the scales tomorrow ........

hello all :)

well, the maths didn't happen - the caffeine had little effect and I was still too tired. good thing I didn't stay up though as DD woke up with a nightmare at 4am.

as I'm restricting treats to the weekend, I walked down to the shops and got a few very little things, but I don't actually fancy them ATM so they are sitting on top of the cupboard.

I was worried that I'd want to pig out this weekend as I'd been resisting during the week - but actually I don't want to ruin all the effort I put in.

Now, a question - have any of you ever tried Slim Fast? The website isn't terribly helpful and I'm wondering if anybody can tell me anything. DH suggested it - he works for Boots and is trained in Tony Ferguson programme but I'm not allowed to do that as I'm BFing.

I don't really fancy doing the full on plan TBH, but is it an all-or-nothing type of thing? or can I reasonably do just one meal-replacement thingy a day, or something? and are they actually nice or do they taste vile?!

TIA hope everyone is having a nice day :)

Algebra I am fairly sure you are not allowed to do Slim Fast if you are BFing.

I am also BFing but I am trying to follow WW online as they take it into account and give you extra points so in theory it will not affect your milk supply.

WW worked really well for me after I had DD. I managed to lose 2 and a half stone in 4 months after I stopped breast feeding.

This time round I have decided to start while I am still BFing to see if I can back into my clothes quicker.

This is only day 2 so too early to tell if it is working!

Well done on resisting those treats on top of the cupboard, I have very little will power when it comes to chocolate.

Hi Everyone. Welcome hmc - glad to have you here.

Bra - I wouldn't touch SlimFast if I were you. Not good to rely on diet drinks (but that's only my personal opinion) but I am pretty sure it is not to be drunk when BFing. Best to stay away.

Well done phase - good choices made

Viva - really well done for getting on the scales. It is horrific, in the short term but it is well worth facing. This is the worst it is going to be - everywhere you go from now on it will be going down - as long as you are committed to eating healthily and to getting a little exercise in.

walkers - you could do a basic stock from a chicken carcass in future and then use that as the basis for a soup. I do this with every chicken we cook and freeze the stock made. I then use it for soups and risottos - it makes everything taste sooooo good. It might be a better option??

Timbachick - of course, going to use the stock thats left for a risotto later.
Haven't had many carbs for a few days and feel the need :) good to have support, thanks

walkers - sorry, just re-read your original post about soup and realised that I somehow managed to think you had poured stock over a carcass - so sorry, think I may be suffering hallucinations???

If you do a risotto later that will give you a carb boost. Pasta also good . I find baked potatoes good for that carb lift.

Thanks for the welcome Timba and theQuibbler

Viva - I did Slimming World for a couple of months prior to the school holidays and lost a stone. Stopped going during the summer because it was difficult to attend the weigh ins and have regained 8lbs, so I do empathise! Half the battle though is being mentally in the right place, which you are if you are committing to a thread like this?

Just having signed up on this thread last night has stopped me reaching for the biscuit barrel today! - from small beginnings....

Good on you ShadeOfViolet for your 2.5lb weight loss - I hope to follow your example

We are going to have a chinese takeaway tonight (I know!!!!, great start!) - however I am going to select boiled rice rather than egg fried, nothing in a heavy sauce (like satay), and won't do spring rolls.

timba sometimes i dont feel hungry on a morning, prefer to have a can of diet pepsi , thanks for the little tip of having salad and 2 slices of pizza, will definetly feel like i am included

well day 2 of my diet went so-so..
will maybe dig the wii fit out next week and start back on that again , as i work long shifts and cant affored the gym atm

Well have had a busy shift at work today and no chance to eat all shift. So apart from weetabix at breakfast and a chicken sandwich at lunch I haven't eaten. Just had a cereal bar and am going to bed.

I plan for another run tommorrow. Once schools start back on Tuesday I'll be in my routine of hourly dog walks most days which will also help.

Just weighed and lost 2lbs, feel alittle disapointed as I expected to lose more in the first week, or was that wishful thinking.

Ah, no - 2lbs is really good, walkersmum. Well done. I expect that is real fat loss, rather than just water weight, and that's much better.

I'm having a good weekend so far. Have got into a really bad habit of being "good" (dangerous thinking) during the week and then drinking wine and eating crisps and chocolate at the weekend. I don't even bloody like chocolate .

But I've been drinking my peppermint tea and refusing to indulge in "treats", because, well they're not really "treats" are they? Just a way of postponing what I want to achieve.

I've got to get back into the habit of exercising, too, thisiswhataluv. I'm going to say on here that I'll do a DVD at least 4 times a week. There. If I've written it down, I have to do it. Well, that's the theory anyway.

Hope everyone is having a good weekend and doing OK.

I'm going to do a BIG garden tidy up today, hoping hardwork will burn some calories and grubby hands will stop me eating
Thanks

Quibbler, thats a good way to think about 'treats'. You're totally right that they're just postponing achievment.

Algebra, don't do slimfast. Its a horrible way to lose weight. I've tried it and it just clogged me up. You're better off with say, cereal for breakfast and soup for lunch.

Shadeofviolet, well done on the weight loss! And I just go to a little local gym. Its right around the corner from me so I can get to it really easily. Its not very expensive either.

Thisis I second the breakfast nag Theres plenty of research that supports the idea that it helps you to lose weight and keeps you slimmer.

Well done to everyone who's sticking to the plan during the weekend.
I'm afraid I didn't. My sis lives 2.5 hrs away. I took some fruit with me and ate that as soon as I got there but it was a party and there was yummy food everywhere and 5, yes 5 yummy homemade desserts that people had brought over! I only tried 3 and just a little bits but that was ontop of other munchies.
It was just too hard to resist.

I'm going to rebalance my cals by having a very low cal day today.
I've already done an exercise dvd this morning and I'm meeting my friend for a run this evening.

This is my plan for the day

breakfast - apple, low fat yoghurt
lunch - salad
afternoon snack - apple, low fat yoghurt
dinner - chicken and veg soup

Morning all.

Quibbler - 2lbs is fab. Well done. I was told once that if you have a history of dieting (as I have) then you tend to have a slower reaction when you start a new one. The body 'learns' that it is going to be deprived and slows down!! 2lbs is absolutely brilliant.

Shaxx - glad you enjoyed the party. Don't go too low today. Better to spread the cals throughout the coming few days.

Shade and Thisis - I refuse to pay the extortionate sums charged by the big gyms. I power walk around the local park (free), I have a few tools (handweights, skip rope) which I use at home and a selection of DVDs and Wii Fit. And as Shaxx says, the local gyms are much cheaper and whilst perhaps not as glossy are perfectly well equipped. Do whatever you can and it is a bonus

How's everyone else doing today?

walkers - gardening is a brilliant way to exercise and not nibble - who wants muddy crisps -

I have done my power walk this morning and some push ups/sit ups etc. I have also lugged a bloody huge boiler outside with DH so that's my weight training done as well

Well done on the weight loss Walkersmum, slow and steady is meant to be the best way to to lose weight. 2lbs is really good.

Ladies, can I join you? I could really use some support. I feel really terrible about the amount of weight I've gained. Before getting pregnant I hovered around the 10st mark (and thought I was fat!! Ha ha ha LMFAO, although not literally unfortunately), during pregnancy I stopped exercising and ate whatever the hell I wanted and was 12 stone when I gave birth nine months ago.

Now I am 11 stone 4.

Gutted.

I can't seem to stop eating... all the things I know I shouldn't eat. Every evening I promise myself I'll stop and eat healthily tomorrow, but I seem to just be on auto pilot. In the past I'd run and feel good enough about myself to resist all the cakes and treats, but since pregnancy I've suffered with lower back problems and the physio has said no exercise at all until it's sorted. Even then, pilates is okay but no more running. I'm still breastfeeding 3 times a day so no crash diets either.

None of my clothes fit any more and those that still do look atrocious.

Where do I begin? Help....

Hi Specialknickers - welcome.

Can you swim rather than run? It should be good for your back and more aerobic/calorie burning than pilates?

With eating lots when I was doing SW you used to be allowed as much fruit or muller light yoghurts as you wanted. So if I wanted something to eat I could have that and if I could face more fruit or yoghurts then I knew I wasn't hungry. Also maybe try swapping junky type snacks for high fibre cereal bars - you can get some really nice chocolaty flavour ones now which are fairly low calorie, fill you up and get you the chocolate fix. Good luck.

Dear God - I am doing it again --- well done walkers on the 2lb loss...what on earth am I on? Is this a lack of food induced mania? So sorry walkers. 2lb is fab, a great start.

Welcome special. You will get tons of support here. Although I seem to have misplaced my marbles and am posting strange abstract entries . Agree with viva - is swimming an option for you? It supports all your joints and is probably the best exercise for all round benefits. Perhaps you could ask your DR/HV /Physio if they feel it might benefit you?

Don't beat yourself up about food: a baby is hard work and hugely demanding on your body. You are still BFing and that requires massive energy. My advice would be to stop making promises to yourself each night. You are only reinforcing the feeling of 'failing' when you don't follow your own plan the next day. Try to start with making better choices for one meal (breakfast, say) and then move on to the next meal and the next. Think better choices for snacks: fruit, crudites, frittata is fab as a cold slice (like quiche without the pastry). Don't beat yourself up, the weight will come off as better choices are made and more movement takes place. Can you go for a walk with DC at all during the day? When you shop try to avoid the standard options of biscuits and cakes - stay away form those aisles or, better still, do an on-line shop instead. You will soon get where you want to be and I think congrats are in order for dropping 8lb since the birth. Well done you!

Agree with viva on the mullerlight yog. I used to freeze them for a few hours and they turn into a lovely frozen dessert. Not quite ice cream but it stopped me feeling left out!