All New "Lose a stone in 5 weeks" thread - come join me?

[SundayGirls]

Hi

I have a significant birthday coming up in 5 weeks time.

I really really want to lose a stone by then. I'm 10st 8lb now. I have been creeping up from 9 1/2 stone since autumn last year. I'm best at 9 1/2 stone, I feel like "me" and my clothes fit properly.

I've been snacking and being lazy. Buying junk I know I don't need. Telling myself I'm going to start "tomorrow" every day but failing by teatime. I really don't want to have this extra stone on my birthday.

Does anyone else fancy joining me for support/tips swapping/motivation? Apparently, if you've made a written commitment, it's 58% more likely to happen than if you only thought it. Or something. All I know is I want to lose this stone and a few buddies along the way would be great

Anyone in with me?

@SundayGirls - name fail, sorry!

I answer to anything Pythone Thanks for the tips. I do eat fish, (well, tuna but not prawns). I haven't had it for ages though! Might buy a can today.

catlover I love retro 50s/60s stuff too, and still have clothes from the 90s, although as I'm in my 40s now I have to dabble in retro rather than the full look I still love a flower print shift dress though!

Ruggles well done for achieving your daily targets yesterday! Great progress.

I'm finally a pound down today (yay) so 10st 3lb. Feeling positive again today. Resetting the goals has really helped mentally. 4 more pounds to go to my new target! I'm hoping for a clear weekend eating-wise although might have to do a birthday meal on Sunday, if so I'm sticking to the salads no pizza no pizza Today I want to not snack and increase protein intake so off to the shops for some carrot, hummus and ham

Thanks @ruggles, I've not managed to eat anything this morning so I guess I may as well hold off until lunch. I downloaded MFP so we'll see how that goes. I managed 12000 steps yesterday so hopefully I'll get to 15000 today. Need to up the walking if that's the only exercise I'm gonna get.

bobbie how's the sciatica today? Sounds painful I once had a trapped nerve in my back (feels like a slipped disc but mends by itself after a week) and it was truly awful even for a short time. Hopefully the GP can take some action next week.

I'm trying to look on the bright side that it comes and goes and isn't a constant thing. It's not great lugging a baby around the whole time but could definitely be worse.

How is your day going @Sundaygirls?

Bobbie it must be very frustrating though, not knowing if it'll come back again and when. Hope it gets better soon! I've had a OK day thanks, haven't snacked but then I'm moving into evening time which is always the worst time for me and snacks! I'm still feeling positive though so I am hoping I can get past the evening hurdle and maybe see a change on the scales tomorrow too (but I won't hold my breath, progress is slow but at least it's progress in the right direction! How has your walking gone today?

Have you got something to focus on for the evening? I've heard things like knitting are good for distraction from food.

We had a bit of a crisis at home today, I think its mostly sorted but wasn't nice this morning. I had plans to meet friends out, so would have walked then but haven't actually left the house. I've held back on the food to compensate but I know that's not a healthy long term strategy. DH is making dinner but I'm only on 250 calories so far. In fairness, it's mostly been that I've been too distracted trying to sort things to eat rather than really restricting but I made a conscious choice not to gobble down a pack of digestive when I really wanted to.

Oh no Bobbie, that doesn't sound good I hope things are better tomorrow x. If you've not felt too bothered about missing meals it's fine for a day or two (people fasting do 500 calories per day, so you could still have something else small and a bit filling to eat, cheese and apples or peanut butter on toast type thing, and not spoil your efforts?) It would be shame to give in to the digestives now though, I know it must be extremely tempting especially after a difficult day. I was wavering massively over snacking this evening, but reading your post has helped me decide to not, I won't if you won't

I used to have loads of evening hobbies but after dealing with the 3 demanding small DCs from dawn to dusk, most evenings I just flop on the sofa and I've lost all of my hobby mojo... it's either sofa, cleaning up or tackle laundry/something useful or practical which I hardly ever want to do, obviously, but I do it because there's always so much that needs doing, all boring stuff though. I did have a new creative hobby lined up, I got inspired a while ago and bought all the stuff in, have had it for weeks but I just haven't got stuck in - that's a very good idea to keep busy. I know that people snack when they're bored but somehow I didn't connect it with myself, but evenings are the worst for me and snacks and that's when I'm usually out of energy so it's easy to start picking. Thanks for the insight!

We had chicken stir fry for dinner, lots of veggies & no digestives. I heard a line on tv the other day - "when we make plans, God laughs" and that just sums things up in pretty much every aspect of my life! I recognise I'm being more pessimistic because I can't access my usual coping strategies but that knowledge doesn't help a huge amount!

I'm glad I've been useful for you. I never anticipated how difficult it is to just be at home with a baby, forget having 3 DC! Aside from distracting you from the snacks, I would encourage the new activity to regain a bit of "me time". It sounds like you're doing a lot for others and not much for you.

A better and more positive day to report. Managed to come in at 1380 calories which isn't bad as that included half a slice of homemade banana loaf ( on ds' s request)
Lots of fruit and salad took me through the day feeling full.
Sunday well done on losing a pound! And not snacking.
Bobbie you can do it ...there's always better days and worse days..try and not be hard on yourself..(please remind me of this... as I'm sure to need to be told that at some point in the near future ..lol)
This thread is definitely helping me - I feel ĺike I'm amongst understanding and supportive friends ...so thank you

moreofyou that sounds like a good day, well done! Do you track the calories on Myfitnesspal? I tried that once a while ago, and it seemed really helpful, but it took up so much time that I gave up. Although maybe that is the point - you take so much time to log each calorie that after a while you have no time left to eat them.

Sunday I am not surprised you are shattered in the evenings with three young DC! It does seem to get a bit easier when the kids get older. Just try to make sure you get them used to helping a bit around the house, I thinks it makes a difference now. I love the idea of crafty things, but I am not very good at them. Knitting always defeated me, maybe crochet would be easier? I would love to join a choir though. I am just a bit worried about committing to it and then not turning up regularly. I fear you have a false image of me as being retro in a slightly trendy stylish way, that is far from reality - I have all these old clothes because I absolutely HATED going clothes shopping when I was younger (and still do really, I just can't into it at all), so just used to collect clothes that my family or friends would pass on to me instead, and I can never bring myself to throw them away.

Bobbie hope tomorrow is better than today

My day was OK - survived the first post-Easter meeting with my horrible boss without arguing with him or getting too annoyed, and drank lots of herbal tea. Vegetable stirfry for late lunch with a small portion of basmati rice. I love basmati rice, I could eat it every day.

catlover yes I geo it on mfp ... This is the longest 'streak ' I have managed to do on it for about 21 days , thanks to this thread started by Sunday .I had dabbled previously but I started to lose the will ...it was so time consuming to calculate and then enter the calories! This time around I have simplified the food that I am preparing for myself - trying to use stuff that I can scan the barcode of etc and going in for recipes which have few ingredients only. Much easier this time around.Also I am just keeping my food calculations separate from that of my OH and DS. Like today ds wanted some "Bruschetta"# when will school open ..so made all that for him ..it looked so delish and he loved it but it would be difficult to count each bit that I put on it - glug of balsamic, olive oil, tomato, olives,rocket etc, so I made a roast cauliflower recipe instead that had appeared on my fb page randomly, and looked doable.With some salad ... and kept me full.
Wanting to save some cals for a piece of the homemade banana loaf ..I am so greedy!
Of course most times it's not possible to do separate food..taking a day at a time and planning meals .
You are right ..having to think about having to count and input calories in each food item puts me off certain foods to start off with! Try some simpler recipes etc and once they are in your ĺist of foods on mfp you can use ' multi add' when you want to enter figures on the diary. I enter everything I eat.
I love Basmati also but it's really terrible for calories. I did have some last week but very small portion and then tried to stick to within 1200 rest of the day( albeit unsuccessfully but nearest that I could) , by eating fruit and veg rest of the day.I like the fact that a cup of tea with semi skimmed milk no sugar comes in at 17 calories only!
Sunday it is so hard with little ones and hats off to you for trying to keep on track/ sane.

Thanks everyone, We're having a better day today. Greek yogurt and fruit for breakfast & sushi for lunch so I'm managing to keep on track too. I've been wandering round our shopping centre with DD too, almost done 10,000 steps so I'm definitely feeling better about things. Was almost 2lbs down on the scales this morning which was a nice boost too. Thank you all for keeping me on track.

@moreofme go for the banana bread (its fruit, right?) Seriously though, it's important to allow yourself some treats or you end up binging (at least I do).

Bobbie good to hear you are having a good day .Thanks , I am having the banana bread now - with a cuppa! Enjoyong every little crumb

Get your calories worth

moreofme yes, that all makes sense. Enjoy the banana bread! I guess that with mfp at least once you enter a recipe/meal you can store it and then re-use it, so the more you use it the quicker it gets, no? I imagine it helps as a reminder of portion size and that sort of thing, too. But giving up basmati rice is a dreadful thought - I think being able to carry on eating it will be a major motivator in getting me to go to the gym more often.

bobbie really glad you are having a better day! Your meals today sound delicious, and 2lbs off is great! I hope you had a lovely day shopping with your DD.

I am really pleased, I am down to 10st 7 lbs, so 3lbs down from my starting weight. Not quite sure how that happened, but I think I have possibly been more careful than I thought over the past two weeks and maybe the return to original weight last week was a glitch/time of the month/water retention. I think for me portion control maybe does work in the end (i.e. eating whatever is going, but just much less of it). I have overall lost 3lbs, not as much as hoped, but a good start. I am going to follow Sunday's wise example and lower my target slightly, and then I have a chance of reaching it. So my new target is 10st 4lbs rather than 10st.

Sunday you are a star for starting this thread!

3lbs is great @catlover, well done! I'm looking at things in terms of temporary goals. Ideally I want to be 10st again but for now I want to be below 12st and I'll go from there.

Morning all,

Bobbie – really sorry to hear you had a tough time. Glad that things are getting better. Your food does sound good – in fact everyone’s does.

Sunday – young DCs are exhausting and I know how you feel about hobbies. It is a good idea though – I’m looking forward to getting out into the garden. Over the last couple of weeks I’ve found our evenings at home really boring (!) I think I’ve had enough tv and sofa action over the winter….

Catlover – well done on the 3lb! a choir sounds great fun and it’s supposed to be super good for the soul. I love basmati rice too – there is something in it which is very more-ish. I didn’t realize that it was so terrible with calories MoreofMe. We eat it most days, so I am going to have to re-think that… You sound very organised with your food, which is a great bonus, to plan ahead.

I am going to re-think food for the next week and embrace spring I think we’re in a bit of a rut and someone mentioned boredom being linked to snacking too much. I think I’m def bored of our food at the mo – in fact, I think I’m a bit bored of everything.... very ready for Spring.

I went to Ottolenghi this week and had a look at their food spread – I bought a couple of things and they were so delicious… I also bought the book, so planning to do some more interesting meals. One of my challenges is food allergies – DS is very allergic to nuts and sesame and I am allergic to fish, quinoa and blue cheese. They are all easy to avoid, but I do end up doing quite a lot of cooking (as DH/DS have fish most days) and I really miss nuts / sesame.

Today is a busy day for me - we’re baking for a friends party and cake sale, then going to the party. Somehow I need to avoid grazing on this all day… Tonight we’re going out to dinner with other friends to a really nice restaurant. I’ve been really looking forward to it and we’ve even booked a taxi, rather than one of us driving. Really hope I don’t blow everything. And I feel a bit funny as our friends are all thin and glam and I’m struggling to find something that fits me… I need to change my mindset from diet vs. no control....

So, today’s plan is to think positive thoughts and focus on my goal of 141lb/5 weeks. I am going to eat three meals and not snack between them. Tonight I am going to avoid nibbles, bread and pudding.

I've just re-read my post and realised it all sounds a bit self pitying. I am so lucky to being going out tonight and I need to re-frame my thoughts around food - delicious food in a restaurant is a real treat and worth avoiding all the c**p for

Hello!
Is it too late for me to join in? I finally started back on the wagon on 26th March and had a hideous 3 stone to lose just to get to the upper end of my healthy weight range! Am really cross with myself as I did really well in 2016 and lost loads - but put over 100% of it back on. I can usually do strict dieting once I finally get round to it (which takes months and a couple of stone.....) so I'm determined to keep on the straight and narrow this time! I've had too many flawed attempts when I lose a couple of pounds but so slowly that I lose motivation and then put on lots more..

My downfalls are usually wine so I've gone cold turkey - and bread!

@ruggles you don't sound self pitying at all. It's really tough when it's cold and nasty out to eat properly and when you're restricted by other people's dietary requirements and allergies its even easier to fall into a rut with food. I think looking at new recipes and things is a great way to go around that, even looking at things you couldn't normally cook and making your own adaptations.

Enjoy your meal out too. Remember clear spirits are way less calories than wine so you can drink more gin than wine for your calories everyone deserves a night off every once in a while. Don't lose it completely and it won't derail you too much.

Staying the same weight still, I would lower my calories but not prepared to do that whilst breastfeeding. Went back to work this week in a new job, on my feet and climbing on stools all day, it’s like a hiit work out

Gave my son a little bit of his milky bar Easter egg earlier, had about half myself.... myfitnesspal says 60g or so is about 400 calories! I’ve never had a huge sweet tooth so rarely eat chocolate but is that seriously how many calories are in those few bites?!

Only lost 1lb this week. Need to sort my diet out.

Had quinoa chicken salad for lunch and will make a big batch for lunches next week.

Evening all!
Welcome to GU24Mum! It's never too late to join in Good to have you here!

bobbie congratulations on your 2lb down, that's fantastic & I'm happy to hear things are a bit better. Also thanks to your inspiration I dug out my new creative hobby and actually made a start on it last night, it's good to have something different to be doing of an evening!

catlover also well done on your loss too, you're doing great!

moreof sounds like you're got the MFP thing down to an art, I keep meaning to try this but haven't got around to it. The banana bread sounds lovely and well worth leaving calories free for!

Ruggles enjoy your night out tonight!

I'm a half a pound down yesterday and today so 10st 2lb. Getting there (slowly) and have a birthday meal to navigate tomorrow evening but going to look very hard at my favourite new dress hanging up before I go - maybe I should take a pic and make it my phone screen pic so I can look down and see it as my hand brushes the dessert menu...

Oh and MrsTyler 1lb down is still 1lb down - still a win - well done!! If we lost 1lb a week we'd be nearly 2st down after six months even though it wouldn't seem like progress during the time. It all adds up!!