Any Slimming world veterans? HELP needed please.

[MadeInScotlandFromGirders]

Ok here is the summary;

Been loosely following slimming world since 1st week of jan and had lost 8lb (would of been 12lb but i put on 4lb on my mini moon but lost it straight away the following week).

Last week i actually dragged the books back out to follow precisly and logged all food since sunday in a food diary (following extra easy) and have been sticking to it like a t, only had 2 treats which were counted in my syns (2 ww cookies on tue and a cream egg on wed) so i weighed in this morning and i have GAINED 1.5lb, i could actually cry as i have been sooooo good and have been for a run twice in that time, so can someone please tell me where i am going wrong? dont think its portion size as im being consious to not go mad even tho its free food as trying to learn portion control.

Im willing to post my food diary if anyone is interested.

bump as help needed please.

I have done SW before... post your food diary and i will look for you.

Yes, do post it. I've done SW - once i lost 3.5 stone, once I gained weight

Will be v. interested to see what you put. Also you could try just logging your SW food on myfitnesspal.com to just have a look and see if your portions are bigger than you think...

IME I think snacking on free food rather than superfree food was what ruined my second attempt...

I am in the middle of ZH diet and have lost 7lbs in 4 days..and I am not very overweight. I think that they key to your diet right now will be an excess of carbs. Cutting the carbs makes such a massive difference.

Are you having your healthy extras? - they are crucial

and the other thing, with extra easy I think you have to stop when comfortably full

whereas if you stick to red/green days you don't

Like others have said - post a few days intake so we can see.

Shine - I just googled ZH diet, and got zilpaterol hydrochloride feeding - can I assume this is not what you are up to??!

Yeah, yeah, that's it exactly... it's very COMPLICATED...

No, it's the Zoe Harcombe diet - phase 1 lasts five days and comprises of meat, fish, tofu, eggs, all veg [ bar potatoes and mushrooms ], live natural yogurt and water. And fuck all else. Doubly difficult for me as I am vegetarian.

But bloody hell - the results are incredible! I am not massively overweight - was a chuuby size 14 - but Jesus... I have dropped half a stone in 4 days. And I do not suffer from bloating or water retention so it isn't that.

I was sceptical at first and it's been a bit of a killer but I am almost evangelical about the weight loss.

If you gear yourself up for 5 days of hardcore willpower then it's the way to go.

Hmmmm - that's really interesting, thanks!

I am looking to lose 3 stone in 7 months - or else be the only fat bridesmaid in a bevy of 7 lissome creatures with gazzelle like limbs and silken locks etc. etc. Mostly doing it the sensible way - SW, swimming and walking - but I do intend to occasionally to a few days of real BLITZING (if you see what I mean) every now and then.

Change it up a bit, keep the body guessing, to quote the piece of genius that is Dodgeball.

Have a read of her book. Low carb is the way to go. And as an egg disliker, vegetable refusenik, if i can do it.....

3 stone is entirely doable within 7 months.

Do they really have gazelle like limbs? i hate them on your behalf.

Thanks Shine, it's good to have in mind. I am amazed that you have got that far given your food tastes

Yeah, this stage of my diet (long term travel from 18 stone at 20 to 15 stone now, and hopefully downward ever downward!) was kicked off by going to a bride's dress fitting. The bride herself has such an amazing figure that every dress in the shop fit like a glove, and assistants were coming to watch and coo. She literally looked so beautiful I had tears in my eyes

Anyways, the room was lined with floor-length mirrors and all the bridesmaids were there. I never ever look at myself sitting down and there they all were - dainty frocks and long legs, or skinny jeans and boots - and there was I, taking up literally twice the space, my vast spreading thighs overhanging the chair

Talk about bloody motivation.

Yes, i can imagine that being a bit of a fucker! 15 stone to 12 is entirely possible in the time scales you state. I have lost nearly 2 stone since January 21st... and no, not all on this mad ZH torture. I want to be 9 stone something... Am currently 11 stone ish. I am a small 5 foot 3 and a half though.

It is good to feel motivated.

CRikey, well done - that's very impressive indeed.

I've actually started a Pinterest board to keep myself motivated, like a total lame-ass, but it does help, as does watching loads of fat telly

At 15 stone I'm a size 16/18, and at 14 a 14/16, so 12 stone should be a respectable size on me. No idea, mind you , since I have been obese all my life

Anyway, thanks for the tip - I'll def. look that book out.

Yes, do.

I will look you out on pinterest when i can be arsed. I am a member but a lazy one

Hi all thanks so much for replying, and weel done to all those who have lost already.

Well as requested here is my food diary from last sunday.

Sunday - Pear and banana, coffee and tea HA
Roast beef (no fat), mash 2syns,carrots, roasties HB (olive oil), gravy 2.5 syns, 1/4 giant yorkie 3.5 syns
Roast chicken and few pickles to snack on
Chicken fried rice 1 syn
total 9 syns

Monday - Coffee HA, porridge HB with water and bannana with honey 1 syn and splash of milk.
Ham and pickles to snack, yog 1.5 syns
left over chicken fried rice 1syn, grapes and yog
3 egg ham omlettte and tomato sauce 1 syn
Total 4.5 syns

Tuesday - Coffee HA, wheatabix HB with honey 1 syn and milk
grapes and yog 1.5 syns, banana
Fillet steak rubbed with little oil 2 syns (hubby made) with veg and pepper gravy 2.5 syns, new pots with small knob of butter 2syns
2 milky coffee 2 syns, 2 ww cookies 5 syns
Total 16 syns (damn cookies)

Wednesday - coffee HA, 2quorn sausages & scrambled egg tom sauce 1syn
ham and pickles to snack on
6 cracker bread and cottage cheese HB
Spag bol 7 syns (not lean mince and shop bought sauce, v small portion.

Total 10syns

Thursday - Coffee HA, 6 cracker bread and cottage cheese HB
Banana, yog
Stir fried veg, rice soy sauce and sweet chilli sauce 1.5 syns
cream egg 8.5 syns
Total 10 syns

Friday - Coffee HA, yog and apple
left over stir fry from yest 1.5 syns
Banana, grapes
3 qorn sausages, mash 4syns and sweet corn.
6 cracker bread and cottage cheese HB
Total 12.5 syns.

Portions are NOT massive, HA gets measured and used in coffee etc in the day, all stuff is frylighted and i gave up bread for lent so not bloated off bread.

Bump

oh hello!

Right, here is my advice.

a) Portions may not be massive. But. Your definition of massive, and mine, may be quiet different. And when you are dieting, your portions actually (whatever the diet) need to be fairly small. If you are anything like me, then you got overweight by eating big portions, so you have a kind of disordered perception of what a small/medium/large portion is. Why don't you portion out for yourself what you consider to be a reasonable serving, and then weigh it and calculate the cals. You may be quite right and it's a small serving...but you might get a shock!

b) I think you are still eating a fair bit. For instance, on the sunday you had both mashed potato and roasties. Lovely and yum and I'm sure you wouldn't do that on ordinary meal, but that's 2 types of spud, and I wouldn't do that on a normal meal, never mind when dieting, IYSWIM. (God I feel like I am being really harsh! )

c) You seem to be snacking a fair bit on FREE rather than SUPERFREE food - ie chicken, ham, and on Friday did you have leftover chicken stir fry as a snack (and then bangers and mash for lunch, crackers and cheese for supper)? I think this is where I went wrong last time. Regardless of the guidelines, I don't think it is wise to actually treat free food as 'free' in the sense of being able to snack on chicken or jacket potatoes or (in my case ) bowls of noodles, when it's not a mealtime. If I were you I would ONLY snack on superfree food. I had 2 hard boiled eggs for a mid morning snack yseterday, for instance.

d) you are also going right up to your syn limit on treats. AGain, I know you are encouraged to eat your syns, but at the end of the day you are on a diet, and in one week you had a cream egg , cookies, and non-lean mince with a shop-bought sauce. You could maybe try cutting your syns down to 5-6 a day, and using them on things like extra virgin olive oil for stur-frying, or a tbsp of tahini for a dressing, or some stewed fruit/dried prunes asa snack. All these are essential oils, fibre, fruit etc..

I really hope that helps and I'm sorry if I sound really harsh, but I have had 2 experiences of SW. The first time I lost 3.5 stone and it was bliss. The second time I gained weight. And I know only too well how heart breaking it is. My big problem with SW is that it gives the impression that you can eat and eat and be full up all the time on free food AND on the top of that use your syns for choc/booze etc., but the brutal truth is that if you are dieting then somewhere along the line, there is going to be some form of restriction.

If I am way off feel free to swear at me and soemone far wiser than I will be along with advice! Meantime good luck and I will be lurking here as I am always glad of advice from others.

If it helps, here is a sample menu of mine for 3 days, from when I would probably be losing 1-3 lb a week (from memory but pretty accurate - I am an old hand!)

(Red Day)
BReakfast - half a banana, ff yogurt, 2 tbsp muesli (HEB)
Snack - bowl of cherries
Lunch - 3 egg frittata with roast veg and feta (HEA), green salad
Dinner - medium sized piece of salmon grilled without fat, steamed veg, stewed apple (HEB) with honey (2 syns) and Total 0%

(Green Day)

B - scrambled eggs on toast (HEB)
L - butterbean and courgette stew with feta on top (HEA)
Snack - toast and marmite (HEB and 3 syns for low fat spread)
D - pasta with roasted veg and parmesan on top (HEA), fruit salad and fat free natural yog

(Green Day - this was actually yesterday's food!)

B - all bran and berries (HEB)
snack - 2 hard boiled eggs
L - roast veg pasta with feta on top (HEA)
D - sweet potato gratin with cheese topping (HEA), small piece of lean steak (HEB), green salad, fruit salad and ff yog for pud.
Gin and slimline in the evening - 4 syns

If you compare you can see on days like this I am simply eating far less (NOTE - I do not eat this well all the time ).

My advice would be similar to TSP's but I would add in ...try not to snack at all. This is what I dislike about SW... you are encouraged to graze all day. The best thing you can do is eat just three times a day with no snacks unless you are desperate.

All food has a calorific value. No food is 'free'.... I am still amazed that they class pasta as a 'free' food.

I would stop eating your 'syns' and stop eating potatoes and snacking for a week and I am sure you will see a loss.

Yes, I agree - when I failed on SW it was because I was snacking for the hell of it, because the plan made me think I could (and 'should', even!). I was studying and stressed and looking back was quite clearly over-eating.

The way to look at SW is that if you are absolutely starving and it's not lunchtime/suppertime yet, then there will be something you can eat (ie I had hard-boiled eggs yesterday). but as a general rule, if you're on a diet...well: best not to eat in between meals!

Thank you both for the reply when im finnished wimpering from being a greedy bitch im going to re asses the portion sizes and try not to snack, think its because we get up at 6.30am everyday and i have breakfast early, therefore lunch at say 12pm instead of 1pm and its a long time till dinner!

I will confess to have even vast quantities of junk since sat afternoon untill last night as i was so pissed off (well aware i should not do this but im an emotional eater, but trying not to be).

Today is a new day, so can i eat a piece of fruit between meals if im starving? im not clock watching till lunchtime honest

thanks again for the advice etc also i should add m=im doing couch 2 5k so exercising too and im going to start to shred too.

I bet you a tenner yuo're nothing like the greedy cah I am. I have just come back from an all inclusive holiday and realised with absolute horror that I eat more than my strapping husband

I'm an emotional eater too which is why it is SO important for your mental state that you eat really really well for a good week and give yourself the massive boost of a respectable loss. Without that impetus, if you're anything like me you just cry for hours, sink into a pit of self-loathing, then make a cake and eat the entire bowl of cake mixture

scarlet you made me laugh and put a smile on my greedy chops, so thank you!

Ok sooooo today im having /had - jus to give an idea if im going the right way.

Breakfast - Coffee, porridge made with water and splash of milk HEB with hint of HEA

Lunch - Omlette made with tomato and peppers proberbly

Dinner - Carrot and lentil soup (homemade, 0.5lt bowl as taking to work) and small roast chicken salad with balsamic dressing. too much?

have ff yogs and fruit if i cannot resist anylonger!

I'm glad! Depressing enough being overweight (I speak as some of significantly heifer-like proportions, myself) without getting mizz about the diet....

Your meal plan today sounds ace. If it would help why don't you join one of the SW threads on MN where people post their daily plan? It does focus the mind. I'm on one called The Big Fat List which you'd be super welcome to join - we have weigh ins on Wednesdays, but there are other threads (I think) that don't necessarily have a mass weigh in, just general support...

Either way, shedloads of luck :)

Ok, going to put my two cents in too! I see that you are doing "extra-easy" menu but to me it looks like you are lacking on super free. Don't forget a minimum of 1/3 of your plate should contain super-free (fruit / salad / vegetables excl. potatoes).

I've lost over 4 stone and only have 7lb to go. I am only just considering limiting my syns to under 10, and snacking mainly on super-free rather than just free so IME you don't need to limit this until you are nearly at your target contrary to other posters.

A typical daily menu for me would be

B: large bowl of frozen red berry fruits (defrosted!) (super-free)and a fat free muller light yogurt (free) 30g of All Bran golden crunch cereal (HEB)

L: 2 egg omlette (free), cooked in fry light, a huge bowl of salad of lettuce/cucumber/carrots,spring onion, celery, tomatoes (super freee) fat free vinagarette dressing (free), ham (free). Apple and grapes

D: Roast chicken no fat (free), roast potatoes sprayed with fry light (free), carrots , brocolli, cauliflower (super free) Sainsburys basics yorkshire puddings 1.5 syns, gravy made with granules 2.5 syns Jelly 1.5 syns and frozen muller light yog (ice-cream!)

Snacks: snack chocolate bar 5 syns

Drinks tea using 250 mls ss milk (HEA) and then black coffee!

Hope that helps. I am rarely hungry as I eat tons of food....... I love it!

Aw thank you, i think listing the food does help also need to buy some scales.

Will pop over to the thread later for a wee read and may join if im brave enough!