3 weeks/half a stone

[flowerycurtain]

Hi.

After lockdown and a mental period at work I've let a good 3/4 of a stone creep on.

I feel fat, clothes are starting to feel tight and I'm 1lb off being in the overweight BMI. Worst of all though I feel so lethargic and tired. Wine and Dominos last night have not helped!

So, the kids go back to school in 3 weeks. My really long hours are over at work and the next 3 weeks should be on a bit more of an even keel. I'm aiming to lose 7lbs to start with. I'll do this my mfp and exercise.

Anyone want to join me?

Today's plan:

5k run
B: All bran, Greek yoghurt and berries
L: Lamb kebabs and roasted veg cous cous
T: salad

@Cavagirl clearly I the universe decided we need to be the same as this morning I've crept up to 4.5lbs!

@lightlypoached yet again your menu sounds delicious.

Today for me:
B all bran, yoghurt and berries
L - hummus wrap
T smoke salmon and scrambled egg on bagels with spinach and broccoli.

Day off today so am taking the kids to the park and hoping to do a bit of reading and maths with them!

Have a good day all

Oh my goodness @lightlypoached you're not weighing until the very end?!? That is some serious self discipline! How much are you aiming to lose? Your menu today sounds lovely!

@Cavagirl my aim is to fit comfortably in my clothes again ! If you looked at me you wouldn't say I was fat, but I have a belly roll and hips that weren't there before, and fat rolls coming out by my bra ( and my boobs don't fit in my bras anymore). It just makes for discomfort with clothes digging in and rubbing. I really don't know how very obese people cope, it would be so miserable and physically difficult just to do every day things (I know how easy it is to get there though, it just creeps on, so not a criticism). I just know that I can't ever get past where I was, it would mess with my head.

Started out at 64.5 kg and aiming for about 60 - my natural post menopause weight (I spent most of my adult years at 57-59 kg but accept that over 50 I'm likely to be a bit heavier) .

The willpower thing is true - but psychologically I'm focussing my willpower on not weighing myself rather than food so,it's a distraction.

It really helps that the Fast800 food and recipes are fun and quick to make (we cook together in the evening) and taste so lovely. I'm eating 6-7 servings of veggies a day now. DH skin already looks loads better. Also finding its much cheaper than our normal diet.

I think I'll pretty much stick to this way of eating once I'm at target but add back in sourdough bread, butter and wine. With a sprinkling of cheese !

Without getting too instagrammy on you all, here is a picture of tonight's dinner :

Courgetti spaghetti with lemon garlic sauce, tomatoes and halloumi.

290 calories.

How's everyone getting along ?

@lightlypoached that looks absolutely scrummy.

I'm not doing so well. Had a bit of a binge last night. Tired and stressed so 3 cheese wraps and 2 natures valley bars later I didn't feel any better! This is normally where I berate myself and the weekend goes to pot and I start again on Monday. This time though I'm going to be kind to myself - my period has arrived today and that does always make me feel rough. Also I am genuinely tired and stressed and there's not a lot I can do about it till October! Things get easier when the kids go back a week on Monday but in the meantime I just have to catch a relax when I can.

So today's menu:
B - all bran and Greek yoghurt
L - Greek salad and homemade broccoli muffin
T - summer tomato stew with crusty bread. Probably some added spinach for me.

Hope others are getting on better than me!

@lightlypoached that looks delicious! How do you find the spiralised courgette? I've never tried but heard it gets a bit soggy?
I'm very happy as have hit the 1 stone lost mark today another 10lbs to go...tried on a pair of shorts that were a real squeeze a couple of months ago and they fit nicely now so I'm pretty pleased - just need to hope for some September warmth so I can wear them!!
Now just need to not sabotage it all this weekend... we've got family coming to stay so it will not be easy.... aiming to minimise the damage rather than expecting no damage tbh!

@flowerycurtain keep going. We all
Get bad days

@Cavagirl I bought a £5 spiraliser from Robert Dyas (my fave shop ever). As long as you just heat it gently in a pan with no water then it doesn't get soggy. About 2 mins max. The recipe here is 2tbs olive oil, gently soften garlic then add prawns/ halloumi and warm then add Courgetti and lemon juice and seasoning. Then warm through.

It's still got a bit of bite. If you booled it it would be horrendous

@lightlypoached thanks. The deluge today has meant at least we get half a day off tomorrow which will help

@Cavagirl that's amazing well done! Feels incredible when you can get into clothes again

Morning all. How's the weekend going?
Ok for me yesterday. We had lunch at the inlaws which was not the healthiest thing I've ever eaten (pizza, sausages, sandwiches - not a speck of green anywhere on the plate!) but the damage today isn't too bad. I'm hoping for a really good day today to bring me to 10.4 for tomorrow's weigh in. So menu today:

B avocado & egg
L some form of salad
T steak, chips and salad.

The chips will depend on how far my run is! Also doing a lot of gardening today.

Hello @flowerycurtain and everyone else.

Dinner with friends on Friday (homemade vegan curry with no rice). Very nice but I fell off the wagon and had 2 slimline gandts (naughty). Still managed to stay at 1000 calls though. Friend is also on Fast800-4 days ahead of us and she's lost 5lbs already.

We are now on day 9 (12 to go) and my trousers are starting to feel less tight. I'm wishing the days away a bit though as I'm really missing bread and cheese, and wine!

Still weeing absolutely tons ! (TMI, sorry)

Today:
B:avo, eggs and cherry toms
L: Homemade slaw and halloumi
D: cod with nutty broccoli

Fingers crossed for everyone weighing in tomorrow.

Morning all. A whopping half a pound off this morning to take me to 10st 4.5 lbs.

I lost 6 stone pre kids so find this slow weight loss a bit hard. I need to remember that pre kids I was 10 years younger and had nothing else to do apart from work and focus on diet! So actually any loss is a good loss these days. So today's menu:

B avocado, eggs and spinach
L cheese salad
T TOMM puttanesca

Any tomato recipes welcome - I got a bit carried away buying tomato plants in lockdown and the family are getting fed up of tomato based meals!

@flowerycurtain 6 stones !!!!! @Cavagirl Good losses.

I made this for brekkie today. Homemade spicy baked beans. So filling I almost didn't finish. 320 calories (inc a small slice of sourdough).

These Fast800 recipes are awesome !

Am itching to weigh myself but will hold out. The realisation that we have 1 more weekend of very fast 800 to go was a boost yesterday.

@lightlypoached I need to buy that book. Dh and I are going to give that a proper go once harvest is finished and the kids are back at school.

Good day yesterday. Ended up doing a lot of walking as the cows went for an unexpected walk!

Today's plan

B all bran and Greek yoghurt
L leftover veggie bolognese
T burger and salad

Sorry for radio silence. I had a bad long weekend, not helped by the fact I've got a cold, so dieting went out the window as I'm feeling miserable! Today: cereal, leek and potato soup, salmon and prawn curry.

Day 12 in the lightlypoached household......

Sensing that they are over half way in the challenge, our housemates are feeling tired but determined. A breakfast of porridge, banana and peanut butter should stave off the pangs until a lunch of slaw with a boiled egg. Last night's dinner of steak , mushrooms and green beans was a triumph with the housemates commenting 'this can't possibly be 280 calories!'. Today's challenge will be not thinking about wine. Again.

How's about you lot?

Hello!
@LoveB sorry you've got a cold. Hope the soup perks you up. My kids go back to school next week and I'm dreading the shower of bugs that'll descend on us!

@lightlypoached your post made me laugh! Another inspiring menu.

Today for me was
B all bran & Greek yoghurt
L cheese salad, natures valley bar and fruit
T - meatball tomato pasta and broccoli

I've just succumbed to a mini mars bar and small cornetto. In my defence I've run 5k today and walked over 20k steps every day for 3 days.

Evening off now as it's pouring with rain. Am having a bath and putting my retainers in to prevent any more snackage!

Thanks @lightlypoached your post has given me a kick up the backside for the last few days!

Morning. Right, big push for me for a few days. Today:

B - all bran, Greek yoghurt and berries
L - salmon & chickpea salad
T - leftover meatball pasta with spinach

Kids and dh are having a McDonald's but I shall resist! Won't have time for a run but might try to do a yoga session

Have a good day!

Hello fellow awesome women.

Yesterday
B: porridge (made with water and jumbo organic oats) with half banana and tsp peanut butter.
L: homemade veggie soup (from all the leftover stalks and bendy carrots whizzed up with a handful of chickpeas and coriander) with a plain pitta
D: roasted beetroot with mackerel and capers and spinnach/rocket/watercress with a sprinkling of toasted walnuts

I've been in a very low mood the last few days (lots of work pressure) and it was refreshing not to fall back on chocolate and wine to get me through. I feel better for it. The daily yoga helps too. How are you lot sleeping ?

Resisted chocolate birthday cake that was hanging around. We've now started counting backwards , so 8 days left to go until weigh in.

I'm planning to weigh in the morning if the final day and if I'm at 60kg or less it will be whatever I want for dinner, with a glass of wine (that would be a 4.5kg loss over 21 days) .

TBH I don't look any different yet after 12 days of 800 calls so hoping that it is busy working on getting rid of the hidden visceral fat 1st, and my thighs and stomach after. Anyone else noticing physical changes yet?

I put my jeans on this morning and was really pleased with myself as they felt so loose.

Then I worked out they were my husbands

@flowerycurtain 😂😂😂😂😂😂

Today. Not a good day
B homemade baked beans
L: salad Nicoise
D: coconut lentil soup

Why was it not good?

The keto sticks arrived (the ones you dip in wee) and it showed that I'm only just in keto, after 12 days ! Waaaah! It means I won't be burning much fat yet.

And then I felt so deflated that I weighed myself. Only lost 2.3 kg (about 5 pounds) over 2 weeks, on 800 cals a day and being pretty active. At this rate I won't make my target of 60kg by next Friday. I still have a fat belly with rolls and my clothes are still tight.

Tell me it's all going to pick up speed and will be all fine and dandy for a week on Friday ?

@lightlypoached do things happen quite quickly once you've got into ketosis maybe?

Also 5lb is actually really good. I have an old set of weight my dad used in his workshop. Even the 2lb one is surprisingly heavy.

I think I'm resigned that I'm only going to lose 3lb not 7. After a bit of thought I'm quite happy with that. I feel better just having lost 3lb, I'm doing this against a background of long working hours, no time off since Christmas, the kids at home for 6 months etc etc. It's amazing I haven't put 3lbs on to be honest!!

Keep going @lightlypoached you've come so far. Let's do the last few days and see where we are x

@flowerycurtain Thankyou. I know I'm being impatient and anything off is good, but just hoped to be in keto by now (still not this morning).

Agreed with everything going on it's a miracle we are losing, not gaining (the Michael Moseley programme said that biscuit buying had doubled in lockdown!), sounds like you've been under huge pressure for ages and ages. It must be such a relief with the kids going back to school! I'm lucky in that my kids are older and self sufficient , but work is relentless and very pressured (sales),so can sympathise.

You're absolutely right that 3 pounds is heavy. I mean it's the equivalent of of 5 blocks of butter that were sitting inside your body (shudders). And for me that's 9 blocks of butter. (Boak).

Will keep plodding on. Thanks for the support

Hi All, can I join?
I’ve let a sneaky stone pile on during lockdown and my clothes aren’t fitting well at all!!

Mfp and upping the exercise is the plan but aiming to be back to pre-lockdown weight by Xmas.

@Allthetea welcome, welcome, welcome !!! Love your username (we have a whole drawer of tea in our house)

What's your plan? Any secret hints or tips for us