LOSE IT! April 2022 🌻

[TheRealHousewife]

Hard to believe it’s April already 😮. Fresh new month, fresh new start, fresh new habits. Jump right in to reset & refresh to become a healthier version of yourself.

As no one size fits all, members need to follow their own way of eating. This thread aims to offer guidance, support and a bit of hand holding.

We generally have WOW (Weigh On Wednesday) day each week. However post and share your progress as often or as little as you prefer. Do what works for you.

The important thing is not to think of it as a diet (based on deprivation and unsustainable) but more a way of life (sustainable & enjoyable).

I calorie count based on a lower carb Mediterranean diet. I intermittent fast and generally eat twice a day.

Are you in😊 What food plan will you be following? What do you want to change and why?

March LOSE IT! 2022

@buzzofthebumblebee thank you, it's tough isn't it? We settled the estate this week too, so it's all a bit bitter sweet. His house sold, but the money giving me new options and changing mine and my husband and daughter a different life, but I'd give it up for one last conversation.

@Wizzwazzwas I find data manipulation helps me when I'm struggling for motivation. So, assuming a goal weight of 72kg for you:

You've lost 6.78% of your body weight
You're 31.8% towards your goal weight

Seriously you're doing great!

I’m not braving the scales either 🙃 Good idea to sign up for a 10k @buzzofthebumblebee. I’m thinking of doing something similar once my crazy rowing challenge is over, although I’m not sure that spending a long time sitting in my garage has got quite the same appeal as running outdoors!

@Wizzwazzwas, long term motivation is the hardest thing. I’ve lost 27kg so far and what helped me, especially at the start, was to break things down into small goals and making sure that each of those goals was almost guaranteed to be achievable.

When I hit a goal, I wouldn’t immediate jump to the next goal, but see how much more I could lose during the time period I’d set to achieve that loss. So instead of constantly chasing the next goal and getting frustrated, I’d have a few weeks where I could pat myself on the back for the great progress I was making, regardless of whether I was losing a lot or just a tiny bit. I’d also carry whatever extra I’d lost over to the next goal. So if, for example, I was aiming for 5 kg every 2 months, and I’d lost 6, I’d only need to lose 4 kg the next two months.

For me that really worked well, as I made my goals so easy that I was ahead of schedule most of the time! When I hit a 3 month long weightloss plateau, it was frustrating, but as I’d already gone way over my targets the previous months, it didn’t bother me as much as it might have done if I had been more ambitious in my goal setting.

At the end of the day, whether you have an ambitious goal, or a highly realistic one, as long as your diet is the same, the rate of loss will also be the same. It’s just a much nicer, more motivating experience, if you can “engineer it” in such a way that there are plenty of small wins to celebrate.

@buzzofthebumblebee Unfortunately I find I can lose the first half a stone with moderate ease, but then it plateaus which I find a bit demotivating, and the only way that I know works for me is to calorie count. I am letting myself go over by about 300 cals a day when I am due on as it helps with PMT. I just accept that the PMT week is a 'maintain' week not a loss week.

I do find calorie counting allows a bit of spontaneity too, if I really fancy a burger (for example) it would be ok if I had a salad for dinner for example.

You do have to be careful though to not go under the calorie allowance, as tempting as it is, to speed things up, as that is never sustainable in my experience. Also as you lose weight you have to adjust the calorie allowance accordingly. It's all learning what works as an individual. It is rather dull to enter it all, I won't lie, but I'd rather put up with that and get results than feel like I am trying but not get anywhere, as then I would be more tempted to try extreme calorie counting or over do exercise (saying that I am definitely underdoing exercise at the moment).

I personally weigh every day on digital scales, mainly as it helps me stick with it, but I know it would be fine to just weigh once a week. Digital scales are good as they show every 200g loss which is nice to see. Slow and steady!

@Crazzzycat I like that approach. I think that is how my PMT week works for me, it's like a sort of reward and relax week for the rest of the month. I'm not very good at knowing what I lost in a calendar month. I could probably backtrack notes and work it out though.

Thank you very much crazzzycat and milk. I really appreciate your support. I think you’re right and focusing on about 5kg at a time feels more achievable. So if I’m at 80kg or just under after 12 weeks then all is good. Right now I think just seeing an 84 point something would really help!

Various losses of close relatives also on my mind this week -Easter’s a tough one with a couple of anniversaries. Sympathies and strength to everyone else feeling similar x

Good Morning Everyone

Good progress @Wizzwazzwas 👍. I understand that you feel a little disheartened but rest assured you are making great strides. Another way to look at it is that not only have you lost weight you will have also improved your health. Keep going, you’ll be glad you did. 😊 @milkfromthesleepycow and @Crazzzycat makes an excellent points too!

WOW - Stayed the same. Better than a gain.

Menu
Meal 1 - Simple romaine lettuce & Parmesan salad with olive oil & boiled eggs.
Meal 2 - Juries still out …

Enjoy your day!

Cross posted @Wizzwazzwas flowers ❤️

Emoji fail @Wizzwazzwas ❤️💐

@TheRealHousewife

Hi *@buzzofthebumblebee* it would have been delicious but had a menu change due to the wet and cold weather. We had Spicy Cauli soup with GF Parmesan & garlic croutons 😬. As a snack nuts aren’t all bad. Fibre, healthy fats and other good nutrients 👍

My eyes 👀 nearly fell out of my head at your step count @Gonnagetgoing … blummin well done 👏 At least it was teeny tiny mini eggs and not ginormous cream eggs 😬 I’ve not seen laughing cow 🐮 for a long time. I first discovered that brand in the Canary Islands. I laughed my socks off at the name 😅. It might have been something to do with going shopping after a lazy boozy lunch and wearing beer Goggles.

Might just go back to bed. Not slept properly for a few nights due to flare up in pain and I’m bone crushingly shattered.

@TheRealHousewife - thank you re steps! I love walking and also running but I can literally walk miles if I have the time!

Luckily I don’t have other demands on my time lol 😂!

I actually prefer walking to driving now, I rarely use the car apart from longer journeys or unless I need to get something heavy. You do have to factor in time for it though. I also live in one of the highest areas in London so the hills are great for firming up legs and posterior area!

Last night I met up with a friend - had Pornstar martini, strawberry and mint dacquiri, blackberry/currant gin & tonic, half a Nutella and banana pizza with squirty cream and feta cheese burger (think greek inspired) with fries and Mayo.
Breakfast yday was Kellogg’s granola blueberries yogurt honey, lunch was large healthy salad with beetroot, melon, tomato, lettuce, avocado etc. Snack bramley apple and raisin/sultana (?) hot cross bun with flora proactiv.

Run 20 mins

14,533 steps yesterday.

Breakfast today hot cross bun with proactiv and tea.

Hope you’re ok re pain? What’s wrong?

@SunshineCake1 - so so sorry to hear re your DD again. If it helps I can ask a close friend to do reiki healing via distance for her?

@SanFranBear - yes sadly the mini eggs are still yummy despite some people saying they’re not! Risotto recipes and hiking sans kids sounds great! By the way, I never thought I was a runner either until one day I was walking fast round the park and thought I can run and I wanted to run. I love it now! I don’t like pollen at the moment which makes me sneeze etc even with antihistamines.

With my walking I just literally started a few years ago, walked to nearest small town had tea then walked back home or got bus. Very hilly where I live. Built up over time went further. Put air pods in, audible or even nothing and just listen to sounds of street life.

Love that you sort of fell into running, GonnaGetGoing... sadly, my knees are pretty kaput and even C25k disagrees with me now. Hiking however, seems to be fine so shall stick with that for now. The sun is back out today so will be heading back to the Forest for a 12k this afternoon.

I've also planned a lovely Potato, Basil and Green Bean Risotto for dinner tonight... I like all those things and whilst it's a weird combo, the book assures me it's delicious and fulling - and is surprisingly low calorie so I'm in!

Wizzwazzwas - I totally hear you, it can be so dispiriting, especially when you've been lighter before and just put it all back on. I'm not even to my pre-pandemic weight yet but am hopeful I will be this month. But I still had significant weight to lose at that point so will keep on keeping on. I find this thread a real motivator so do stick with it, and us.

to all those missing loved ones at the mo. I dreamt of my Dad last night, really vividly, and even though its been three years since he died, it still hit me when I woke up. Hugging DC and pusscats a bit tighter today.

Thank you @Gonnagetgoing.

I'm going to take the sleeping tablets tonight as last night was a really awful night. I have been running and walked the dog. We tided DDs room and I'm not doing much else as I am so tired.

Hello everyone! Much love to you @SunshineCake1 you are pretty much in my thoughts constantly. FB memories remind me that 13 years ago my daughter went missing at a particularly difficult time and I can still feel the horror of that time. Take any help you can get from friends or from medics 💕 and take our love too there are people across the country sending you love and good wishes 💕

Weight wise I’m a bit shit this week. Husband made millionaires cheesecake so I’ve eaten too much of that. Had the last 2 days off so not so many steps although managed 20k today with a run.

Got 2 10ks in May 😊 supposed to be doing a half marathon too but my friend has pulled out and I’m not a solo runner 😂😂 need to see if I can latch on to someone else before I commit to doing it!

Made bean burgers tonight for tea which were rather nice. Had them with chips and onion rings so not healthy ☺️

Just had a large gin as not in work until 9am tomorrow which feels like a lie in 👍 but off to bed in a minute.

Wonderful walk this afternoon... back to the trees and the ponies. The sun was also out in force and, due to a couple of wrong turns, ended up doing over 13k which I am definitely feeling now.

Note to self - if you're going to make a dinner which involves chopping a ridiculous number of shallots and constantly being on hand to stir, do it before you go out! My risotto was delicious but took aaaages and I just wanted to sit down Can you freeze risotto, does anyone know? Chef Google is a bit vague and contrary and I've got three more portions to eat.. I'll probably manage a couple over the next few days but would like to freeze one.

I have a book that tells me all about freezing so I'll look tomorrow for you @SanFranBear.

all is well over here, exercise and decent food choices.
dh is doing all as normal except for nyquil at night to help with the sinus congestion.
@SunshineCake1 ongoing positive thoughts my friend.

So sorry I'm being a terrible thread mate!

@SunshineCake1 that sounds rough re police not taking you seriously. I’m so sorry you’ve no definitive news or support as yet. Hope the sleeping pills worked.

Op thanks for the welcome back. Yea I had a good start last week - off track this week! Have joined ww online today and started tracking on that not doing so well today but hopefully will pull it back over rest of week

0.75lbs gain

Sw 13 st 6.75lbs

Cw 13 st 7.5

Gw 9 stone

Too much eating out! Due to moving organisation stuff. That won't be the case this week.

Bad day today as had a delivery to deal with and succumbed to crisps and choc while I was waiting!

I need to get back to proper cooking and eating meals at reasonable times and my lower cal snacks.

Had to go to shops today as ran outta loo roll (messed up my online order!) and I picked up some yellow label bits (I need to do better on money too! Another reason to get back to cooking from scratch!) and managed to get some fruit and veg that was reduced

Thyroid not my area of expertise! I've no idea what the normal or optimum ranges are but from mn I know that many think the nhs range is too broad. That numbers that would instigate treatment in other countries don't here

@SingaporeSlinky well done and have a fab holiday! Hoping to join maintenance thread in like a year?!

I love to cook but find it hard to make the time to spend more than 20 mins preparing dinner.

20 mins is my max due to disability. Stir fry is a favourite as its quick and can easily be done low cal but what other things do you like? Pasta is quick and easy just make sure plenty of veg in the dish and not too much actual pasta, I tend to make my own super quick tomato based sauce BUT it tastes even better if made at least one day ahead and left to marinate in fridge, eggs make super quick meals too. Scrambled with added veg, omelettes, frittata, even poached eggs toast and asparagus, if 20 mins is your "standing at the cooker bored" limit but you don't mind if stuff takes longer to cook then things like chilli/curry/casserole done in the slow cooker or oven can be very tasty and low cal too

@Foreverlexicon how about asking dp for her help with your motivation? A non judgemental way of prompting her?

Sympathies and strength to all those dealing with bereavement issues. In our family it seems to be November so I get what you mean about certain times of year are harder.

I finally braved the scales. I'm 11 7 which is a huge disappointment as I was 11 2 for SO long.

On the plus side my body-size hasn't changed (except my thighs) and I'm still needing to downsize huge amounts of my clothes. I am stronger than ever given all the pilates & weight training I am doing (sounds like I do a lot - I don't, but I do it consistently every week, 2 classes of each and a run) .

On the down side I need to address the snacking and gin which has crept up. But to do this I need to get head / mindset out of self-sabotage mode. 4 days off work (and horrible draining confidence-sapping clients) over Easter will help! I'll get mentally calorie counting again too.

Thx for advice @MistySkiesAfterRain - all makes sense. I joined this thread started at 13 2 in September last year & got down to 11 2 by end December. I didn't calorie count properly, but was on about 1400. I also weighed every day. Relaxing into old habits now though.

You are doing brilliantly @Wizzwazzwas - you should be very proud with yourself. Keep doing what you are doing, really, and over time the weekly (uneven) losses will result in a very satisfying longer-term loss. Don't be disheartened or hard on yourself - we've all been there. Keep strong & making good food choices and you will get there.

Big hello @Graphista - your positivity given all on your plate is infectious. Thank you for your lovely post.

Morning!

I'm definitely feeling risottos at the moment, but agree they are tiresome to make! And I don't much trust oven baked ones 😂 what flavour was yours last night @SanFranBear?

Do you have a recipe link for the beanburger @HouseofHolbein?

Yesterday I didn't log everything in mfp but I'm pretty confident I was under calories. For lunch I ended up just having half a teacake (shared with the 17mo) and a Greek yoghurt with fruit a bit after. Did homemade meatballs with tomato sauce and pasta for dinner. Happily, my fussy 7yo ate some (plain) meatballs!!

Today my son has a hospital appointment which is over lunchtime, and he'll be having McDonald's after, so I'm going to try and have a quick early lunch with the youngest before we go so I don't end up getting one too. Going to make a veggie curry for dinner tonight.

I braved the scales this morning, just because I know that as it's the start of the long weekend I may well have some wine tonight 🤦‍♀️ I was fully expecting a gain of at least 3lb but somehow I've lost 1lb?! I'm sure it's wrong, but hey I'm going to take it!

One thing I love that has changed for me is that when I get a loss (particularly an unexpected one) on the scales, instead of instantly thinking 'yes, I can celebrate with takeaway/crisps/insert other treat here' I instead feel more determined NOT to have those things. I really feel like my mindset has shifted this year. The motivation that shines out of this group really helps with that! Thank you everyone ❤️

That's so kind, Sunshine.. thank you! And it was the potato, basil and green bean one I mentioned up thread a bit - I added cooked chicken to it yesterday which definitely lifted it but it was pretty tasty already but then anything with a massive amount of parmesan in makes me happy

Good tips for quicker meals, Graphista - definitely something to bear in mind. I eat loads of boiled eggs but rarely do anything else with them and you're right, they're so versatile and quick.

Going to head out for a much shorter walk this afternoon, in advance of weighing in tomorrow. Hoping to see a decent loss as have been pretty mindful this week.

@SanFranBear

Brown rice.

Make sure throughly cold before freezing. Store in a polythene bag or rigid container. Remove the air and seal. Storage time 6 months.
If serving cold as a salad thaw at room temp for 2-3 hours or overnight in the fridge. If serving hot, heat in boiling water or steam over a pan of boiling water for 4-5 minutes, stirring frequently to break up and heat evenly. Alternatively, heat in a cover container in the microwave, stirring frequently.

Same for long grain rice.

Can't find any reference to risotto.

Storage time for cooked chicken is 2 months. 3 months for cooked potatoes.

HTH.

That is really helpful... thank you so much!

Shall bung a container full in the freezer and then sort of steam it as that will hopefully prevent it drying out.

Afternoon all! Just the usual update from me - exercised a lot, but also ate an impressive amount of food. My plan is to weigh myself after my gruelling rowing challenge is finished. There just doesn’t seem to be much point doing it at the moment as I really feel I need the extra calories. Only one more day to go 🥵 I still can’t quite believe that I’ve made it this far. At this stage it really is willpower, rather than muscle power that keeps me going!

I freeze rice too Sunshine! Such a good tip and so quick and easy. I just run it under cold tap as soon as cooked, portion up and freeze. Microwave to defrost for me.

Yesterday’s gloom carried over into dinner and I ended up eating Thai takeaway stir fry chick and veg, plus a few crispy duck pancakes. No rice. Mostly in line with my eating plan, but a bit high on calories salt.

Back on it today and feeling more positive. Onwards