Anybody fancy losing a stone and a half by Easter?

[MercuryRising]

I have just weighed myself and the results were hideous. I need to start taking some steps to shift some pounds - the first one being moving away from the Christmas chocolates. Does anybody fancy joining me?
It is 16 weeks until Good Friday so losing a stone and a half is very doable. I am a ww monthly pass member but haven't attended meetings regularly or followed the plan properly since the Summer
Please come and motivate me.

Talkin: I initially stayed at 1200 kcal, but now tend to eat more like 1400. But I aim for 1200, IYSWIM, so that I have some "spare calories" to snack on at the end of the day (I'm a night owl and often do not sleep very well). I am starting to see more of a resistance to loss at this weight, but I'll persevere for a while longer, and definitely try to up planking, HIIT, squats,etc. a bit.

I have a dinner party tomorrow. Don't really know the people, but have to go to be polite. Also I know that there will be tons of food. I mean tons. And it will be hard to refuse any of it. Kind of not looking forward to it, as blowing my allowances on fish pie is not something I would like to do..

I try and keep under 1400 at the mo, with two days at 500. My average daily calories last week was 1024

I am only being this strict the January to kick start it and get a grip on calorie counting as it's the first time I have done it

I think that 1000 a day will be unsustainable long term for me but I was very interested in a post on another thread which said they did

2 days at 500
2 days at 2100
3 days at 1500

This seemed to cover them for a bit of a week end splurge or treat

Toysrluv
Dinner party

• offer to help the hostess carry things from the kitchen, then you can check out the whole menu and plan

no nibbles before the meal - or max one of each type
be the designated driver to restrict booze
starter - eat any and all greenery served with it
main course - help yourself to salad and veg before the main dish and make sure 2/3 of your plate is in use
then have a small piece of the main dish

you'll end the meal sated but not stuffed and nobody will click that your calorie intake will have been less than half of normal

Thanks for the tips, Talkin!

I'll try my best to watch it as much as I can..

Katy, I'm not a mum either and came here under similar circumstances :) the weight loss support is just what I need!

Good to hear toys, I will believe this can work then! Looking forward to Monday weigh in. I know what you mean about the dinner, I've yet to face eating out if my control. I'm going to a friends next week and decided it was easier to explain I'm watching what I eat and could we keep it light. Not an option for you I understand, but worth remembering if you're brave enough in other mire casual situations. I never normally would but can't face wasting calories on treats I haven't chosen haha!

Well done on loss killimesoftly.

I've just eaten apple crumble for dinner, carefully made and with ice cream it was 500 calories, don't even want to think what my normal contains!! Still under for the day so trying to feel good about it, but intrinsically feel guilty fir eating it!!

I feel the need to confess to a bad week here
I've had a six course tasting menu with paired wines, and a works leaving do cake fest.
If I've maintained the same weight on Monday I'll be pleased

lunch was lovely talking and actually now I look back it wasn't a blow out. I had a soup and green curry. I had only two spoonfuls of rice and didn't manage to finish the curry. I am sure it still blew my calories because I didn't feel at all hungry for the rest of the day - BUT I didn't eat the rest of the day either :).

I recorded a new low on the scales today unexpectedly so it can't have been too terrible.

I think I have a brain problem though...a part of me seems to think that if I stuff myself even for one day then I will wake up back up at my 18 months ago weight and be obese again. This doesn't sound like a bad thing to think except that for most of yesterday and this morning even I kept thinking 'well its too late now you may as well give up on the diet and exercise'.

stupid stupid brain.

Icebeing
well its too late now you may as well give up on the diet and exercise
it is NEVER EVER TOO LATE

my gym is in the middle of the "January Rush"
the
oh, crap I'm fat after Christmas, New year resolution is to get fit
95% of them are gone by Valentines day.
Lets make this thread be the 5% who succeed

I don't disagree...the problem is that there is no such thing as success. If I am slim for 10 years then become obese, I will be a failure again. Or maybe I am a failure because I spent 15 years of my life over weight already and it doesn't matter that I am flirting with slimness now?

In a microcosm of that you can successfully fight off a chocolate craving for 10 hours and then give in for 10 seconds and fail. Sometimes it feels like torture. IF you know you will crack you may as well do it before they hurt you....

the problem is that there is no such thing as success
please put that attitude in the bin

if you set yourself up to fail you will

set yourself up to succeed
its not just about a number on the scales
its about cardio vascular health
its about avoiding dementia
its about avoiding type 2 diabetes

and every month that you can reduce your risk factors for those is a SUCCESS

Failure is a very big word! There degrees of success - if you manage say, 10 hours of avoiding chocolate, then surely that's a success? Compared to eating the whole bar after 30 minutes, and then another one later in the day. And then if after 10 hours you're struggling, make a rational decision to have a small piece of chocolate in say, 20 minutes, and stick to it, but put a gap between yourself and the temptation - it's still a success because you exercised self-control in the face of great temptation, and you can take pride in it! And really savour that small piece of chocolate, eat it very mindfully, knowing it's the only piece you'll have that day... Every one thing you achieve towards those goals that TalkinPeace listed is a success, rather than viewing one slip up as a failure, and therefore viewing yourself as a failure, start stacking up all the small successes, if that makes sense? X

Apologies if this is a bit hippy-ish but I've found it quite interesting to do - we so often eat mindlessly.

www.pathwaystoresilience.org/wp-content/themes/pathwaystrust/Documents/My-Friends-Youth/Session%204/Mindfulness%20Exercise%20-%20Chocolate.pdf

thanks guys. I think you make very valid points. I think you are right. Having the attitude that one slip makes you a total failure is indeed neither helpful nor true.

I think it might be quite common to the sort of people that struggle to lose weight though...so hopefully others might get something from your debunking of my non-logic.

I particularly like "every month at a healthy weight is a reduction in risk".

Okay so I might not keep this up forever - but every month I do is a victory especially as I have a heart condition and a young daughter....

thanks again!

You're right about it being a brain thing - that's the struggle, getting your thought processes to support your diet wishes! If only dieting were just about food...

I am definitely prone to black and white thinking with food. Time for me to wise up and grow up, I think. After all, it's unlikely that I will be scouted for modelling now although 2cousins on both sides of my family have..lucky bastards!

somethinglovely
that link is not hippyish - its BRILLIANT
MINDFUL EATING
is the answer.
I shall shamelessly share that link around. You've made my day.

icebeing
every single day that you can eat mindfully improves your chances of a longer healthier life
count each hour completed as a success
then count each day
then count each week
then if you have a crap day, its just a day lost, not a week
but seeing that the glass is half full is really important

and actually your post has given me a much greater insight into why dieters give up that many I've read in the last 18 months
for that alone you are a success

Mindful eating is important and something I want to help my DC's learn.

I have had an odd relationship with food from a young age and want to be fit and healthy now I've finished having DC's. I want them to learn how to eat happily and how great it is to exercise!

Talkin, I'm glad you like it!

I too have had a very odd relationship with food, caused by juvenile diabetes which was diagnosed aged 6 - I went off the rails a bit food-wise in my teens and it took til my late twenties to get some perspective and some help... I ended up seeing a diabetes psychotherapist which made a huge difference, and I started meditating (hence the mindfulness) and exercising, it's been a life saver, quite literally. I count myself very lucky to have had the support and to have been able to maintain a healthier lifestyle with it!

Weighed again today, another 2lbs off

So that's 8lb in total in 2 weeks

It's going to go a bit tits up tomorrow as is DH's birthday tomorrow and we are off to the pub

Well done Rufus! I am stuck at the same numbers this week. Although, yesterday (dinner party) wasn't too bad, but still. Did a 10 min HIIT with burpees yesterday and can hardly walk now. Ouch, my thighs!!!

Thank you Toys

It's a bad day tomorrow, but I'm going to try and be very good this week

May also try restarting shred! It's a pain tho beau I sweat buckets and I hate having to get ready in the morning, walk ds3 to school go back and do shred and then redo everything!

If I wasn't such a lazy moo I would do it before I get into my pjs (must stock up on tena lady pants for those star jumps)

I have been off the wagon for a couple of days due to a) period and b) being ill so eating whatever my body demands cheese rolls. Back on it today, may switch my weigh-in day to weds as it gives me a bit more distance from the weekend!

No loss here this week. 5:2 always does this to me but its ok. It's been a hectic week and I've been eating mindfully.

I did see a 1lb loss on friday but that was gone by sat so I'm not counting it. So still a loss of 7lb overall.

Lovely to catch up on the posts and talkin's tips.

I'm another 2lbs down here this morning which I'm happy with. Makes 5lbs in total.

I've got a fancy dinner with DH on Tuesday so we'll see how much damage that does! I am going to try and shred every day this week as DH is off so we'll see how that works...