Starting today... 2st to lose.

[owlets]

Whilst shopping with my super slim friend over the weekend I realised just how fat I feel - and getting on the scales provided proof. I've put on 2 stone - 1 stone of which has come on very recently ( think a month or two?!).
Other than looking lumpy and increasingly featureless, my legs are achy and I don't feel like I've woken up properly ever.
So, I'm going to start on the diet today. The plan is to eat lots of veg and fruits, lean meats, and limited carbs. I'm going to have 3 decent sized meals a day, and not snack unless I'm truely hungry.

I'm going to weigh myself and post on here every Tuesday. Anyone who wants to join in please do!

Starting weight; 11st 13.
(Target weight 10st so 1st 13lbs to lose)

oh, moose. take it easy today and see how you feel. we have friends with two sons with apparently inconclusive lesions too - they have been desperately trying to get some expert referrals instead of the 'oh, well, we'll wait and see' stuff. only one has sysmptoms though. the TIA thing is crazy - that should have been checked straight away. grr.
look after tourself today x

Thanks Madwoman.

By the time I saw the GP I hadn't had an 'episode' for a few weeks and I've been ok-ish since the end of May (odd isolated symptom, but not TIAs) so I was kind of hoping all this healthy eating, exercise and weight-loss had helped in some way. Been going downhill since Saturday now though (started with just the tingling in my left hand and foot and a bit of odd vision) and am praying it doesn't progress any further.

I am being sensible and resting - I daren't risk doing anything that might make it worse.

i might be tempted to call the gp if i was you - they might be able to bump your appointment if you have current symptoms?

might just be a virus that's knocking you off a bit - not nec sinister, but possibly worth getting the doc to make the call? sometimes i think it's quite useful if they can test whilst you are actually having symptoms?

my mum had a series of strokes at 32. knocked her speech and one side out for a few weeks/ months. she managed to get decent meds etc and is definitely the wrong side of 60 now. really scary, but as soon as they get to grips with the cause they can hopefully rein in the symptoms... i had a really bad summer a couple of years ago where i kept losing vision - they stopped me driving and all sorts, and i was convinced i was experiencing the same as my mum, but all seems fine...

take it easy anyway - a couple of days rest won't undo all the good work you have done.

on a surreal note - i've just had a phone call offering me an interview tomorrow morning. tomorrow morning ffs. so i panicked completely, (have no clue where any of my work/ interviewy clothes are, even) ran upstairs, started chucking stuff out of drawers so that i could find some trousers to try on. did that, not too bad.

then i realised that somehow i had managed to get my other trousers off without undoing the waistband... so i might not be lighter, but i do appear to have lost a couple of inches. i was thinking they felt a bit looser when i was out with the dogs earlier.

anyway, i will try not to panic-eat over the next 18 hours. but i can't promise.

feck.

hope you are hanging in there, moose, and feeling a bit better x

Oooo! Good luck today Madwoman.

See - I bet your snowpants will fall down now and you'll have to go shopping for a new skinnier version.

Feeling quite a lot better today. Going to try and shred, but may do lots of modifications and less reps.

I did it!

I actually found it much easier than I did on Monday, so I guess I really wasn't well enough to do it then.

Back again! Lambskin, I was looking into calorie cycling/zigzagging and thought it might suit you.

Here's a link to a site that helps you calculate your daily kcal intakes if you want to try it.

I was looking into it as my calories have been all over the place this week, with a few days slightly under, one very under, one on target, my roast dinner day over and yesterday being ill so very low as I didn't eat much. Got on the scales this morning and I've lost a 1.5lbs when my weight had been stuck since I started the shred.

Of course its possible it could just be down to not eating enough yesterday. I suppose the only way I'll find out is if it actually stays off.

moose - thank you for thinking of me, I'll have a good look at that.

So sorry you've been suffering so much. I can't believe they didn't do a follow up appointment I have no experience in this area whatsoever and I can only imagine how scary it is for you.

Well done for managing another day of shred! It's counterproductive to exercise when you're feeling at all unwell so do look after yourself and take it easy - obviously you are doing this already but, well, you know

Good luck with the interview madwoman! And yes, it is weird about clothes v scales. We become obsessed with the magic numbers but it's the clothes that really tell the truth. Well done you

Right I'm off to have a mug of green tea and some raisins (crazy me) and read moose's link. Cheers everyone!

Evening all!

I'm doing OK, not going to make 3 gym sessions this week, I'm out tomorrow and working Friday.

I'm also doing some free photography work on Friday night :) Photographing a charity fundraising event so that will be interesting :)

hi lollipop - friday sounds interesting, could tie in to your business idea too? (no idea where i read that thread... please tell me it was you talking about kids w/ disabilities?)

moose, well done you. you sound much better already! maybe just at a low ebb with the shred load and fewer cals? so difficult to make a call when you are worried about underlying issues. i think i'm a fair way off my snowpants falling down! (or even doing up...)

lamb, you're right, of course. i think as i've cut down on the carbs again i'm less bloaty (nice) which is great. i finished work four months ago though, and the first two months off i put on a stone, so none of my work clothes looked particularly great - cue panic interview shopping this morning. nothing like building your confidence up by trying on clothes an hour before your interview...

my interview was terrifying. it's the mirror of the last job i had, just a different place, but exactly the same job, and exactly the same ethos. it doesn't, however, match the rest of my cv. which is chock full of fairly weighty management roles around the world . soooooooo, it was essentially an hour's grilling about why i wanted an entry level job, how i would react to management, whether i was a team player (presumably if you've been management you aren't...(?) he he) and additionally the company haven't interviewed for two years and i was the first candidate they were seeing, so they (two interviewers) admitted they were a bit rusty. oh, and because we've just moved here (to our 'forever' house) and i have such a wide variety of locations on my cv, and it's a really popular temporary work destination, they were grilling me on why we had moved here, whether we are staying, why here, etc etc. all perfectly reasonably questions. but oh my!

right, am stuffing salad as i type, so no harm done. i wondered if i'd come back with a craving for carbs tbh, but the adrenalin seems to have kicked in and boosted my confidence! even if i don't get the job! they're interviewing until next weds, so i won't know until then. and that's if they don't short-list and second-interview.

oh god. i've just had an e-mail from the interview folks asking me to clarify my date of birth, as apparently on the security check form they asked me to complete, i wrote (right) day, (right) month, 2011. ha ha ha ha. way to impress, mad!

Loved that link moose. Is ok if you manage to keep up with the exercise - I can eat more than mfp is letting on for example - but had a look to see what would happen with no exercise and it was frightening! I'm going to have to exercise at this level for the rest of my life if I want to enjoy that life still, I was heartened to see that the erratic way of eating is the right one to fool your body into keeping up a high metabolism. Very interesting. I've printed off different scenarios for reference

Carbs really are the devil madwoman. There was a woman on Any Answers on radio 4 who was adding to the discussion they had had on Any Questions about obesity. She said she was researching nutrition, don't know if this research was academic or because she's a diet nut but anyway, she said the whole food pyramid thing with the carbs as the base for all meals and a healthy diet, was a dangerous lie, and that fat is not the enemy. We should be basing our diet around protein (meat, fish, eggs etc) and vegetables, not carbs (potatoes, pasta, bread and rice) and sugars (found in fruit as well as the usual refined type).
I've been on low fat diets and I've been on low carb and I know which one I prefer and feels more natural.

Rant over, that interview sounded truly horrible but didn't sound like it went badly or anything. Do you actually want the job? I went for one once that I didn't really want, walked it, got the bloody job and didn't know how to tell them I preferred what I was already doing thank you very much. I did that job for 2 years. What a twat.
You sound very well qualified and if they turn you down it will be because they were intimidated. Either way it will all be fine, have a

Madwoman, pleased to hear you survived the interview - sounds like it was a difficult one.

Well I ate white carbs last night in the form of quorn fajitas made with weightwatcher's wraps and this morning feel all sluggish, squishy and bloated and have gained back most of the 1.5 pounds I'd lost. Woke up this morning feeling ridiculously dehydrated as well, so at least I know its water. Doesn't help that I'm now in the run up to the dreaded TOM as well, so any weigh-ins I do are likely to be dubious.

Had discovery fajia spice mix on it as well this time and after the way I've been feeling this morning, I'm now more sure than ever that processed foods are evil. Every time I eat something processed - other than cheese (cheddar, cottage or feta) or natural yoghurt, I end up gaining water weight and feeling awful.

In fact I felt so rough this morning that I didn't think I was could face doing the shred - which would have been a shame, because I'm on day 10 of level 1. I found myself using the fact that my workout gear was still drying to excuse myself until later. I did do it in the end though and feel much better for it, but I sweated buckets more than usual and I reckon that must have something to do with the water retention from last night's meal.

Off to the furthest park with the dcs this afternoon, so that's a good 3 mile ish walk. I usually make it longer if its just me and dd in the pushchair, but I fear my boys would expire if I made them walk over 5 miles!

Dreading tomorrow's weigh-in, don't have a clue what to expect.

moose, that's how I've been feeling for the last couple of weeks. Because the diet has had such a major overhaul I can really feel it when I eat some crap - just imagine though, we were eating like that all the time! no wonder we put on weight. You know though that as soon as your period is over and you are back to eating healthily, the bloating will be gone and you will lose weight. My dh seems to live on those packets of spice mix and they're full of salt.
Remember that whatever the scales say this is long term and you are doing so well overall, especially with the shred and all that walking, don't stress the little stuff. It'll be my first weigh-in since putting on 3 lbs so I'm feeling a bit concerned myself!

Thanks Lambskin - you can obviously tell I'm feeling a bit er wibbly today. I hate hate hate the week before my period. Even though I know its my hormones, I still can't seem to lift my mood. Harrumph!

Spice mix was foul as well - only asked dh to pick one up on the way home because we'd run out of some of the spices we usually use - won't be doing that again. Yuk!

Right am off out for my walk soon, meeting dh at the park after work so dh can show him the new deathslide and he can have a go. Big kid!

yy, it's definitely the salt in the packets. way back at the beginning of the thread i think i was banging on about craving salt - fortunately that little issue seems to have disappeared. (although i do confess to scarfing a handful of pistachios yesterday)

tricky question re job, lamb. i want a job. my real issue is that i've done a fair few different things out of necessity and availability (have lived in all sorts of odd places!) so am reasonably content to turn my hand to most things. and really do just get on with it! this one has some definite benefits (actually in terms of the benefits package, lol) that are very attractive/ useful to us currently - and i would enjoy the social aspects of the job (it's very customer facing), but the actual work itself wouldn't be at all stimulating/ challenging. in terms of work/ life balance (as well as the benefits package) it would be great.

there are a few other jobs i've got my eye on which would be more challenging/ interesting, and in terms of overall financial gain would be similar, taking into account higher wage but different benefits package, but the work/ life thing would tip slightly more towards work. probably not catastrophically so, but the whole point of moving here was to make a conscious effort to improve work/ life balance.

it's tricky - so much of your identity comes from what you do. but i'm trying to think practically. my ego would love me to get a really meaty role, but tbh as long as i'm earning a reasonable wage it isn't essential, and an easier job would let me concentrate more on the 'life' bits...

well, i need to do a grocery shop today, so wish me luck in the supermarket of choice, avoiding the bakery counter!

Madwoman, yes it was me, don't worry :)

The charity doesn't relate to my plan, but it's the one I volunteer for so could open doors for more free work to build my portfolio. I'm doing freebies for a while, since I'm living at home so I can afford to, apparently a good way to know you need to charge is if you are getting a lot of requests for work in, then you need to charge. I'd only be charing say £50 for my services to start, plus printing costs if people want the prints from me, or maybe an extra £10 if they want the images on a disk to sort themselves. I dunno, that's a way off!

Had a good day today, only really bad thing I've eaten is cheese pie for lunch with chips and beans. Everything else has been healthy, drinks and snack wise :)

I am weighing-in at 10 stone 7 lbs and 4 ounces, which is a loss of a pound since last week. I'm relieved tbh. It means I'm back on track and losing at a sensible rate. I lost too much in one week and inevitably put it all back on again but I think I've calmed down now

I'm trying to get the balance between zigzagging calories and starving and binging which was what I was doing. According to moose's link and the Dukan website I should be 9 st 3lbs so I now have a definite goal.

Good luck everyone else if you're weighing-in today!

Morning

I have weighed myself and while I still weigh more than I did the other day, I'm still down on last week and on target, so not too bad.

Starting weight 16/6: 14st 2lb
Weight 24/6: 13st 8lb
Weight 1/7: 13st 7lbs
Weight 2/7: 13st 5lbs
Weight 13/7: 13st 4lbs
Weight 14/7: 13st 1lb
Weight 21/7: 12st 13lbs
Weight 29/7: 12st 11lbs (and 6oz)
Weight 16/8: 12st 9lbs (weighed in Tues not Fri due to holidays)
Weight 19/8: 12st 8lbs
Weight 20/8: 12 st 7lbs
Weight 26/8: 12st 8lbs 4oz
Weight 2/9: 12st 6lbs

Next week's goal: 12st 4lb - hopelessly optimistic considering its TOM week and the way things have gone since starting the shred, but what the heck!

Read some shred threads on MFP last night and lots of people seem to gain for the first couple of weeks and then start to lose either in the third week or once they've started level 3. [hopeful emoticon]

Hey, it's all going in the right direction - well done moose! I hope that's made you feel better. Yes, after TOM you'll notice a difference

Thanks Lambskin - you're on the right track again as well I see. Somehow managed to miss your post this morning. Was rushing to feed the dcs and get level 2 of the shred over and done with!

I am enjoying doing the shred so much, especially the feeling of getting strength back into my muscles after being weak for so long. So much so, that I've decided to do level 1 this evening. I did level 2 this morning - sweated buckets and have sore shoulders and thighs, but am not convinced it was a good enough workout to keep the pressure on, as I am still learning the exercises/positions, so won't have done them as effectively as I will be in a few days.

I say I've decided - of course it will depend how much my muscles seize up between now and then - and how well behaved the dcs are this afternoon. I may well be too pooped to haul my bum off the sofa!

Ha! You've caught the exercise bug! It feels great doesn't it? I always feel so healthy after a workout I actually don't want to ruin it by eating some stodge, and lately I've been pushing myself more too. I got out my diet and recipe books this morning, I need another push to get me through the next stone +.

Guilty as charged!

I used to be addicted to exercise in my teens and early twenties and was superfit. I'd forgotten just how addictive it can be.

I need to look up some recipes as well. I'm enjoying all the fresh salads etc, but am thinking I'll need something a bit warmer in a few weeks time.

Actually, I need to overhaul the whole family's diet. We seem to have ended up rotating a few favourites and its very dull. Not easy with ds1's diet restrictions and sensory issues around food, but I definitely need to do something.

If I can just shift the next 4lbs I will be halfway through my overall/long-term goal and that will feel like a real milestone.

Have a look at this website (if I can do the link)

www.marissapeer.com/news/obesity

I bought her book ages ago and looking at it again has reminded me of some of her techniques - thinking of gluten as glue and milk products as pus [vomit emoticon] that really do work when you fancy a pizza or even just cheese on toast or a sandwich.

Recipe wise I know it's hard for you because you're a vege. I used to make a bean and vege sausage stew with garlic, tomatoes, mushrooms and onions that ds 1 and I lived on, and quorn mince shepherd's pie with parsnip and apple mash is good. Not very inspired I know! When I was a vegetarian I was very unhealthy and by the time I was healthy I was eating fish.

Ds2 doesn't like certain textures, like rice, and is very funny about smells and colours - loves green and red though which is good!