Louise Parker Method thread 2. All welcome

[HardRockOwl]

Precious thread is here ... Louise Parker method anyone? I know it's a bit old fashioned now .. http://www.mumsnet.com/Talk/weightlosss_chat/4517125-louise-parker-method-anyone-i-know-it-s-a-bit-old-fashioned-now

Just a place to chat about the method, the ups and downs and how it works etc.

I personally have just completed the first 6 week Transform phase and have lost 18 lbs. Not quite 'transformed' yet but on my way

Thanks for the well done messages, I needed them as I’m feeling a bit despondent this week that I haven’t lost more weight, but I know it’s more sustainable to lose it slowly!

Planning definitely is the key when busy or traveling. The next few weeks are going to be a challenge for me as work has been piling up the last few months thanks to Corona, illness, nursery closures etc and now it’s all getting urgent.

Re stress and eating - remember that not getting enough sleep (eg if stressed / busy) also messes up your hormones and makes you feel hungry. So maybe an early night may help to get out of it?

@chloechloe how much would you like to lose? Apologies if you've said this before - it takes me a while to cement people in my mind but I'm getting there!

Had yet another seeded halloumi roll for lunch with salad for lunch. However, that finished off the halloumi now so I'll have something different tomorrow

I have a new gadget! A ninja foodi which makes hummus, dips and smoothie bowls so I'll experiment with that a bit. Maybe homemade hummus with roasted veg for dinner tonight

Hi everyone, please may I join? I've just finished Week 3 of the first stage (Transform??) and after a whopper of a first week (5.5 lbs) it's taken me another fortnight to lose another 1 lb. I do understand the first week is mostly water weight, but it's a little frustrating nonetheless. I've pretty much kept to the plan other than one dinner out where I had wine (ate healthily though) so that's probably what did it. I'm 5ft 9 and 11 stone, aiming for 10 stone. After many years of yo-yo dieting - and if I admit it to myself - binge eating - I think Louise's book is definitely the holistic plan I'm looking for. Have been exercising like a maniac, plus I walk about 18k steps a day anyway so no need for improvement there, just need to keep at it with the food.....

@Bet01 welcome to the thread

That's a great loss. Because you're tall and already a normal weight, you'll probably find it is a lot slower.

It's taken me 6 weeks to lose 19 lbs but I was rather err 'chubby' and still am to be honest!

Thanks @HardRockOwl ! Wow that’s an amazing loss, congratulations. Yes, I am a fairly normal weight, size 12, but Louise is always banging on about how ‘you can be the best version of you, just keep going’ etc etc and to me that’s a size 10 so I’ll just have to keep at it. I also think it’s age. There’s no way it would have been this hard when I was in my 20’s but I’m 45 now and it’s a whole different story. Good job I like spinach!

@Bet01 ha, well Louise has assured us that maintaining a size 8 body is as easy as maintaining as size 14 body so absolutely must be true

Another day, another breakfast of gritty sludge (aka oat bran bircher).

It's day 5 and a bit of a struggle today. A colleague bought some mini rocky road in to celebrate her birthday and I had to talk myself out of having one. But I succeeded.

B bircher with strawberries
S apple
L antipasti salad
S raspberries and blueberries
D grilled goats cheese on mushroom with spinach leaves

I might treat myself to some nuts after dinner.

I'm meal planning for next week as we have a delivery on Fridays.

What's everyone's favourite dinner for a family? I've been making my dinner separate from the family but wondering what you all do as it's driving me slightly mad.
Thks

@blardyfeck I’ve been making the bolognese and having courgetti while DH and DS have regular pasta. Also there’s a white bean soup recipe Louise does that I found on Red Magazine’s website (it might also be in one of her books that I don’t have) which is really tasty. I just have it without any bread. Sorry to hear about the Bircher aka sludge! I actually really like it, but the smoothies are super quick and tasty too. I’m having gazpacho for dinner with a couple of oatcakes which I’m guessing is allowed.

Looks like a nice menu @blardyfeck but I think you need some protein in your snacks to prevent hunger - I like Babybel + grapes or nuts + apple

Dinners I make for me + 3dc:

Fajitas (no wrap for me)
Omelettes
High quality sausages & veg (kids get chips too)
Curry & caulirice

Thanks @Bet01 , we've had the bolognese (with courgette for me) and it was lovely. I like the sound of the soup but alas everyone else in this household wouldn't eat it, the fussy bunch.

I'm getting used to the bircher, it's not that bad! I might branch out and try something else at the weekend when I've got more time.

Todays menu:

B: Greek yoghurt with nuts, seeds, berries
S: Babybel and apple
L: low GI roll with ham and salad
S: yoghurt with cinnamon and satsuma segments
D: omlette & salad

@blardyfeck I am a bircher convert. But for me the secret is using a 50/50 ratio of oats to oatbran. 100% oatbran is too hardcore for me! And yes, too gritty.

I also don't bother with stevia but I do add a splash of apple juice. My favourite recipe is the raspberry and chocolate one (though Louise suggests soy yogurt, I use zero fat Greek yogurt instead). I really love it.

I think you're right @NinetyNineRedBalloonsGoByAgain , I definitely need more protein. I will try to have a bit of cheese or nuts to nibble in the car on the way home.
Great ideas for family-friendly dinners that are crowd-pleasers too!

Food times for today ..

Porridge with quark yogurt + berries

2 babybels + orange

Seeded roll with halloumi + salad

Mexican hot chocolate + watermelon

Roasted peppers, garlic, tomatoes + carrots with homemade hummus

Hello @Bet01 18k steps a day, that’s amazing! I’ve looked up the soup and it sounds great, I’ll give it a go when the weather cools down (heading for 30 deg here!) I’ve definitely noticed that the weight has started sticking since hitting 40.

Will your kids eat soup at all @blardyfeck ? I find puréed soup goes down well, like celeriac or carrot and lentil or tomato. Mine also eat veg soup with toppings like mini soup pasta or homemade croutons.

Otherwise frittata, scrambled eggs with sautéed veg (mushrooms, spinach etc) separate. They also like a Greek style salad where I sauté chicken marinated in lemon and garlic then served with a cucumber and tomato salad. For the adults I add oregano and black olives (they used to eat olives at one point but are now refusing). Baked salmon with veg and potatoes for the kids. White fish in a Provençale sauce (Amelia Freer recipe).

I ordered the LP cookbook tonight as well as one of the roasting tin ones - I had to order DD school books and decided to treat myself!

@HardRockOwl You have now had me googling the foodi ninja to see if I need a new Gadget in my life! You asked about target weight and at 5”6 I’d like to lose around a stone to get to 9 stone / 58kg ish which I was before each of my 3 DC. I’m in the middle of the healthy BMI so I guess these are vanity pounds that my body is hanging on to! I do question whether it’s really possible to get to size 8 like LP promises but a size 10 would do me!

Day 4 here.

Twas an aggravating sort of day, hectic with work and difficult people and I was late home. I'd asked the resident teens to start dinner but they hadn't so I had to start to cook. The dog ate the dinner I'd saved for my son coming home from work, then the belligerent teens didn't clear the dishwasher ("Didn't hear you ask")
And now I've been the worst in the world all evening for daring to suggest a bit of exam revision instead of sitting on your phone might be a good idea. And no I don't know where your P.E. kit is.
And Breeeeeeeathe!
"They were such lovely babies" she said wistfully...to be fair they're still lovely but incredibly lazy round the house and one in particular can't get off the phone.

So in that context, today's food was:

B. Overnight oats with hazelnuts and citrus puree
S. Monkey toast
L. Veg platter with blue cheese and parma ham
D. Fajitas with no wrap for me

I also had a handful of salt and vinegar crisps before I put the rest in the bin which I'm claiming as a massive win.

Arrgh! tomorrow's another day. I'm off to lock myself in the bathroom for my bedtime routine. I have not eaten loads of things I shouldn't and I have not drunk wine. Go me.

I'm annoyed with myself - tried to pick up an LP friendly salad for today's lunch from the supermarket; got home and it has pasta in it. So I've told the husband to have it. Lesson learned - you have to put the prep in!

Hi all, trying to motivate myself to face the day, but feeling very tired and therefore want to eat all the food! Last couple of days and lets be honest a whole lot longer) I've eaten well all day then succumbed to the binge monster in the evening. Now some days as I've said before, I have been genuinely hungry so I do need to get that balance right, most of the time though it's been comfort/stress/disordered eating which I first fell foul of in lockdown and now can't seem to shake, not helped by some not great stuff that's been happening recently. I'm trying to address this as a separate issue though so not going to drag this thread down!
Today I have Korean style chicken with peppers, carrots and spinach planned for main meal and a butternut squash, rocket and goats cheese salad waiting in the fridge for my lunch. Not really sure beyond that, but it will no doubt involve fruit, yoghurt etc .
Welcome to the thread @Bet01 , you are the same sort of height and weight as me and with similar aims, I'm reasonably happy with the size I am, but I'd like to be a little more trim and toned! Aiming for 9 stone 13, which sounds very random, but I was this weight for a very long time at the period in my life where I felt and looked my best. Starting weight, like you was 11 stone (ahem, lockdown, looking at you,) now down to 10 6ish.
Hope everyone has a great day 🙂

Thanks @ElvenDreamer I'd love to be 10 stone 6...it seems quite far off at the moment with my weight loss slowing down so much. I really am sticking to the plan so it's a bit dispiriting. I don't want to give up, but I can feel my motivation waning. End of week 3 today, start of week 4 tomorrow.
I had 1 slice wholemeal toast with half a banana and tbsp almond butter for breakfast (plus small oat milk cappuccino) and for lunch I've got tricolore salad, which is one of my faves as you get a WHOLE ball of mozzarella, albeit a low fat one. Then for dinner I'm having savoy eggs, which is literally just steam-fried cabbage with two eggs on top (joy). Snacks as usual are either oatcakes with a bit of nut butter, or apple and almonds. Oh, and I'll do a 4k run at the gym in a bit. That's the plan anyway!

Your post made me laugh @Firsteatthefrog - my kids are 7, 5 and 3 and I survive by telling myself it will be easier when they’re older, whereas when they’re older the stresses are just as big, just different! How did you find the citrus purée? I made it once and it was so bitter (due to cooking the pith) that I had to throw it away.

Sounds like you’re doing a great job in difficult circumstances @ElvenDreamer

I’m going to have to be inventive today as there is not much left in the fridge! And after I’d made a double portion of the lovely lentil salad yesterday for today’s lunch, DH wolfed it down. It was a big hit though, so I won’t complain!

@Bet01 what have your losses been so far and how much would you like to lose? Sorry to read you're feeling a bit dispirited

Food times for today so far ..

Smoothie made with berries, yogurt, almond milk, oats and chia seeds

Apple + peanut butter

Seeded roll with hummus and salad + an orange

Kefir quark yogurt + mixed nuts

So now I'm considering dinner .. I don't know what I feel like eating though tbh. May go for mozzarella ball + tomato + avocado

Hi @HardRockOwl I was 11 stone 6 and now 10 stone 13. Which I know isn’t bad…but 5 lbs of that was in week 1! I’m hoping to get to 10 stone. Eeek. Seems a long way off!

You'll get there @Bet01 ! Don't give up now - you'll only have to restart again and we all know just how irritating that is. Maybe consider mixing up the food a little? Has boredom set in a bit?

I'm in week 7 now and I've tried a couple of things this week to try and stave off the boredom. Namely a few Mexican hot chocolates and halloumi burgers! All in plan but makes a bit of a change for me