Come and lose 7lbs in Slendertember - watch the weight fall off like autumn leaves from the trees!

[ponygirlcurtis]

The weather is definitely cooler, there's an air of autumn in the... well, air. But we march on with our mission to lose weight. Stash those sandals, look out your best warming recipes and let's support each other to lose weight. Whatever your method, everyone is welcome!

Link to the August thread.

Hello all!

Managed two excellent days last week and one fairly good one, because a combination of jet lag and some kind of fluey thing totally took me out for about 48 hours I still felt beyond vile on Wednesday but managed to rally and get everything done even with a smashing headache. I did an impromptu weigh-in on Wednesday evening, because I was sitting in Boots waiting for a load of photographs to print out of the self-service booth and there was a BMI machine right next to me. I was exactly at the top of my "acceptable" range, which I thought wasn't too bad given that it was the end of the day, and I'd just finished eating an apple ten seconds earlier (I normally weigh first thing without even having a glass of water). Then on Thurs I went off to a wedding and ate and drank for four days solid

Back on it now and planning five golden days this week, but rather frustratingly, I seem to have done something to my achilles tendon, and so am not walking for a couple of days to try and persuade it to rest. I know one of you has terrible trouble with yours - is it you KickBishopBrennan?

So anyway, trying to be sensible with food but benched in terms of steps, which is seriously frustrating

@quim it's me and @quantumweatherbutterfly. I think hers has been going on longer than mine.

But yes I have had problems since January after running regularly for years. It's got a lump on it and it stiffens up and hurts towards the end of the day. It's a pain in the arse injury because it just doesn't seem to ever get better.

How exactly does yours hurt? I can give you tips but it might be a different problem.

Welcome back Quim! Sorry you have been ill! That’s rubbish. And sorry about your injury. Also rubbish! I live in fear of an injury as I know I will just end up frustrated and eating all the things in the world.

In news here after my disappointment yesterday morning I am a pound down day. After wine and crisps last night. Weird. But good!

Kick mine was just nagging in a weird way for a couple of days, it didn't even really feel muscular at first, I thought I'd managed to wallop it with my suitcase or something. Then I put on my posh shoes for the wedding and after a couple of hours the whole thing seized up and I could hardly dance on it which made me very sad indeed, so I drank more wine and pushed through which turned out to be the worst thing to do, because the next day it came up like a melon, with a big pink / grey patch on the skin like a weird internal bruise It just felt really tight, I couldn't put any weight on it going downstairs, and there was this disgusting "creaking" feeling every time I moved it.

Anyway, feels much better today - still can't go downstairs very easily but the creaking has stopped, it now just feels tight again, and I think the swelling is gone. I'm just impatient to start getting my steps in again, it's OK hobbling around on it but I don't want to go back to square one by going out for a walk on it too soon. I'll aim for a short walk today and see how it feels...

Aww, quim that sounds really hard, when you want to exercise and a long-term injury is stopping you. Hope you can get a few steps in today.

I’m a wee bit fed up, was 10stone 1 this morning, which I guess is two pounds off in a week but I have had some sneaky mid-week weigh-ins and was down to 10stone at one point, also i’m off work with a high fever, feeling a little better but ate v little yesterday. But guess had a foodie/boozie weekend so guess that’s taken it’s toll.

Hope we all have a better weighing/walking/eating day today.

Hi, Quim! Welcome back! Yes, it's me with (at least one of) the dodgy achilles tendons. It sucks.

Rest it for a few days, and if any of the following apply, see a physio:

1. It doesn't get any better
2. It gets better but it is still very stiff and painful in the morning/if you've been sitting still for any length of time,
3. It feels thickened or bumpy compared to the other one
4. It seems find during/immediately after exercise, but is sore/stiff the following day.

Great if it is minor enough to improve with rest, but if not, prompt treatment will really speed up recovery. The main reason mine proved so stubborn is that I basically ignored it for 4 months before I saw anyone. In my defense, I was not in a great place MH-wise, and was super stressed with going back to work after DD (happened the same time) and some other personal stuff. But looking back, I was an idiot about it.

I wasn't going to post today, because I was back up to 12st 8.5 and very pissed off about it. Humpf.

Thank you so much for posting even when you don't want to think about scales Quant That advice is exactly what I wanted: a list of clear warning signs to keep an eye out for at which point I should drag myself to the doctor. I'm hopeful, because it's feeling so much better now than it did on Sunday, but I'll be sure to keep an eye on it.

God knows what's going on with me and weight. I've basically been in free fall for a fortnight, and although I'm planning to be good all this week (INCLUDING Friday), if I can't get many steps in, my calorie deficit will be a lot less impressive. I think until the foot's better I'll just aim to get things a bit more under control, and not worry about getting to goal.

I was 11st 13 today which keeps me in same as usual range with no improvement

Havent eaten much today and am starving. I have actually joined the babybel crew and am liking those alot. Its also a satisfying feeling to peel one open or is that just me?

Just about keeping up with plank challenge and doing ok but only at 1m 25 sec thus far. A long way to go...

Yaaaaaay! Welcome to the Babybel Crew TV!

I like them because they're a) portable and b) a set "portion" - I can't be trusted with any other cheese because I always want "just a bit more" Peeling them is definitely satisfying too! And I find them surprisingly satisfying if I'm really hungry and just need something to stave off the tummy grumbles.

Did my mid week weigh in today and have lost a whole kilo. Clocked in at 57.7 kgs today. I have been quite strict with diet and the shift to 5:2 seems to be worming well. Today is my fast day so hoping to keep the down ward trend going.

Upping my daily steps to atleast 12k and change in diet seems to finally be showing some results. Keeping my fingers crossed

Hi all! Mid week weigh in today and I am now very definitely in the 14s. 14 stone 11.2. Very happy with that. Next mini goal is 14 st 9. May seem random but it’s the lowest I got to a few years ago. When I get to that and then get lower THAT will feel like a real loss not just re-losing a massive gain.

Had a shitty afternoon yesterday due to issues with a ‘friend’ so I did have wine last night. Felt too crap and upset to eat much though. And didn’t go overboard on the wine. Got about 2.5 hours sleep as it was all churning around in my head and I still feel crap today.

Well done on the planks TVHubby. I’ve been rubbish!

Quim - hope your Achilles heals quickly.

Well done everyone else. And thanks to the thread I’ve just remembered I bought Babybels too. My other go to snack is ten almonds. Seems to be just enough to ward off hunger. 70 cals for ten. With a big glass of water it keeps me going for a bit.

My daughter loves Baby eps maybe I should start snacking on them too now :)

Gosh, well done on the mid-week weigh-ins guys!

the shift to 5:2 seems to be worming well ...Oh my

Peridot I completely understand about your arbitrary weight goal and about feeling like you're really getting somewhere when you get under it. Mine was exactly the same - I never knew how much I weighed until I knew it was "too much", so I asked at my doctor's surgery what my weight had been whenever they'd weighed me yonks ago, and I just went for that number. I'm still strangely fixated on it!

@QuimReaper 😂 me and my fat fingers and my DD likes Baby Bels not whatever I typed up there

Oh goodness second week and it’s not going well. Spent the day in Ikea, spent too much money and had TWO slices of cake. I might also have had chocolate when I got home.

Well done everyone, I’m happy to see no one is struggling as much as I am. I do have Babybels in the fridge tho. 😀

Aaaah paws sometimes cake is just too good to resist! I'm sure you can STS this week, and with a loss last week you'll still be on for the month. Hit the Babybel life hard today!

Morning all! I'm still very grumpy about what the scales keep saying to me, but at least I have an explanation: I have a cold! And as a result I am retaining fluid like buggery, according to the fat % reading on our scales. I know they're not accurate, so I don't track it as such - but I do find they give a decent indication on whether I'm holding on to fluid or not. I'm feeling a lot better, so hoping it will all sod off very quickly.

What has cheered me up no end is that I did my first C25K run this morning, and it seemed to go well. The next one is scheduled for Sunday, so I have until then to watch out for any delayed after affects.

Anyway - 12st 8.2 this morning (the horror!), and 12st 7.8 after my run. Average is 12 st 8.3, so well up on last week. But at least heading back in the same direction.

Hope your achilles is a bit better, Quim?

I bet it was tasty though, Paws

Did someone mention cake? Yum. I do like cake. Very rarely have it though.

I had more medicinal wine last night. Quite a lot. And chocolate. And crisps. Woke up with a splitting headache funnily enough. But I did manage to have a good talk with DH and DS re ‘friend’ situation and it helped see a different perspective.

Back at it and on it today. Just did a 9km walk.

Poorpaws - we did an Ikea trip this week. Wasn’t allowed any cake though. We did avoid a row though! Hope your house is getting sorted.

Quantum - yay to first run!

Hello, I am 5"4 and currently 12st 9lb. I have a horrible habit of snacking in the evening while watching telly, I eat stupid huge amounts of food, I drink way too much fizzy pop and all of my clothes are too tight. I look like a pork joint from the butchers. I will be attempting doing the slimfast diet starting Monday morning. Please help me and be gentle I am very fragile and chubby and my self confidence has practically been murdered.

Oh Fatty we're the one for you ( ) come on in - we're a lovely bunch and we'll sort you right out!

Snacking in the evening is a demon looooooooads of us have faced, it's a real blighter to break, especially when you get into the demoralising cycle of being 10000% platinum perfect all day and then get attacked by the cookie monster at 8pm and eat two days' worth of calories in two hours... That one's the worst because I know somewhere in your brain you're being "good" in the full knowledge that there are Pringles in the cupboard for later.

A few things that have worked for me and others are:

• First and foremost - don't have them in the house. Is that possible? I know it can be tricky with family members etc. but it's an easy win. If not possible, can you put them in a locked box or something? Something that makes it less easy for you to graze so you have to check yourself before diving in.

• I'm a great believer in breaking habits - they're a terrible bitch to break but once you do, it'll be so much easier. I bet when you sit down in front of the TV your brain immediately starts screaming for half a sweet shop. Could you, even just once or twice a week, have a bath with a glass of wine and a book / something on the iPad in the evening, or read a book in bed, when you would be on the sofa? If you don't put yourself in the usual "snack scenario" you'll find it much easier to resist. Once you manage a couple of evenings without snacks you'll know you can do it and you'll be much more confident.

• You need a substitute. TV had a bit of a pudding problem when he joined us, we convinced him that after dinner if he had a coffee and a bit of dark chocolate then it'd still feel like a "treat" but much less ruinous to the waistline, and I think that worked pretty well to keep the beast from roaring.

• On that note, cold turkey is great in theory, but in practice, in my experience, it just makes you feel miserable and deprived and eventually crack, which then badly affects your confidence, and makes dieting seem like this grim prison sentence, which it needn't be if you're not so hard on yourself. Sounds like you might have fallen down that rabbit hole yourself, from what you say about your confidence being shot. I always say that even if you only lose a pound a week, even half a pound, then you'll be much lighter in six months (which as we know goes by in the twinkling of an eye) than if you deprive yourself to tears, lose four pounds, then crack, run screaming to the nearest pizza, put it all back on again, and end up petrified of dieting. So what I'm saying is, start slow - do one thing at a time, and only promise yourself you'll do it once - so don't say "I'm never eating biscuits again" or "from now on in the evenings it's water and a single plain cracker for me, FOREVER" - just start with "on Monday I'll have a bath instead of watching the TV, and I won't snack", and see how you go. Keep telling yourself whatever it is you're craving, you can have it tomorrow, you just need to do one day. Then once you succeed, when you wake up the next morning you'll be buoyed by your own amazingness and it'll be easy to make it "every Monday is snack free night" and go from there.

Lots of people also find it helpful to say "the kitchen is closed" after dinner. It's psychological but sometimes helpful. I've been known to tape the fridge closed to make myself think twice about mindful grazing

Anyway, any of that ^ may or may not be helpful to you, it's all very individual - any of it strike a chord?

Just one more thing on substitutes Fatty (in fact fuck that, I'm calling you McGee) - if you decide to allow yourself, say, a small amount of chocolate in the evening (perfectly reasonable) then it's a much, much better idea to get a small wrapped bar than to have a mahoosive one and try and control yourself. It's just psychological, but if you sit down in front of the television with a nice herbal tea and a chocolate bar, then devour it from start to end, it gives it a sense of completeness, rather than like a test of will power. Sorry if that's obvious. My mum used to buy those teeny weeny Green and Blacks bars for the same reason, if she broke a bit off a big bar she could hear the rest of it calling her from the cupboard! Sorry if that's totally obvious, works for me though.

Quant how's the cold? Having a cold makes me SO flabby even when I manage to control my eating, it's a mysterious thing! Especially since when I'm coldy all I want is carbs, and I'm pretty good at resisting these days, but feeling flabby, dry-skinned, red-nosed AND deprived truly sucks Still, more importantly, congrats on the run, that's amazing! It's been a long time coming, hasn't it? I wish I could be as enthusiastic about running as you. Running with a cold too... that's dedication. My ankle's still naggy, but much less creaky today and yesteday, so I think I'll take it out for a walk today - good idea? Bad idea? I've been resting it for four full days and I'm going a bit crazy...

Peridot in times of trouble, wine and chocolate are not treats, they are necessary survival aids - glad you're feeling a bit better about it now, and I'm sure the 9k walk managed to beat some of it back. Want to talk about it to a bunch of strangers?

Welcome McGee (like Quim, no judgement here!) - there's some great advice above, and we'll all be here to support you xx

Quim its incredibly frustrating. I feel pretty much back to normal now, but I'm still a couple of pounds up on where I should be despite having eaten very little in the past few days. It can only be fluid but I really want it to sod off now! That said, we have guests this weekend, so there will be bad food and lots of wine, and DD and I made some brownies this morning too. But - I need to trust in Paul and follow the rules and it should come good in the end.

I am really pleased about the run. There is no way I was going to wuss out on it even with a cold - I've been waiting for/working for it for 2 years. I bet I won't be so enthusiastic when it is cold and raining though! It's weird, I don't like running as such, but I do love being outside and seeing what has changed or is happening in my local area. And I always feel great after it is done. If I can get back to running 5-10k three times per week, as well as controlling my eating, it will have a massive impact on my weight.

Welcome McGee! Can’t call you Fatty!

I agree with lots of what Quim said about evening snacking. It’s a very hard habit to break. I know you said you are planning on doing Slimfast and if you can stick to it great but if not maybe think about calorie counting. I’m using My Fitness Pal and counting calories and after trying every diet under the sun I am finding it really good because I can have whatever fits into my calorie allowance. My calories are not too low which can trigger binging in lots of people. And if I want a treat in the evening I can have one.

Quim - I’d probably rest the ankle for another day or so. Frustrating I know but you might end up out of action for longer if you jump back into activity.

Friend situation is a long saga really. Condensed version. Friends dd is at school with my DS. The dd is doing a lot of drugs. I’ve been told by lots of people. And saw some worrying pictures. I knew it would be a shoot the messenger scenario and was warned but I felt I had to tell friend anyway. She has taken it very personally and seems to think I was just being malicious. This all happened a few weeks ago but it’s now around school that I spoke to her mum and the dd is getting some stick. It all blew up this week again. The thing is the dd was getting stick last year for the drug use but of course couldn’t exactly tell her mum. But now she can focus it all on me and DS. It’s all a bit of a mess. And apparently I only told her because I am judgey. Whereas I actually told her because I couldn’t live with myself if anything happened to her dd as a result of drugs and I hadn’t said anything.

Anyway. I’m back on track now. Just did a 9.3km walk.

Quantum - I know just what you mean about being outside. After 7 years here I have just discovered a lovely country walk with fields and cows and horses along a quiet road. I feel so much better when I’ve done my walk.

Did firs weekly weigh in at SW yesterday and have lost just over 3lb so now 11st 6.5. Happy to follow the plan but can't bear the Group meeting. So much guilt and sadness around food. Am doing a 6 week countdown so four weeks to go and would love to be 10,10 but anything under 11 would be nice. Just not sure how it will pan out with breastfeeding hormones....?

Welcome McGee please, please change your name, it doesn’t suit you and most certainly won’t when you’ve been here a while.

Quim you are so so wise (but didn’t you forget the bit about the best thread ... 😀).

Went for a surprise meal tonight and had a large dessert . will be looking at a gain this week 😢