Diet For Summer Challenge

[Dashel]

This is a continuation of the diet for Christmas challenge that was undertaken in 2022. Thank you to @OhFatty for starting that.

It is a group of us wanting a supportive environment to loose weight in the long term. Hopefully the posters from the Christmas challenge will sign up again and new members are welcome.

We each have our own way of doing this and there are no rules other than being encouraging to everyone and cheering on successes.

@UpOnDown thank you. I know plateaus and fluctuating scales are a part of the journey but I wish they weren’t!

Date night in our house:

Good morning,

I think I may have pulled something doing knee ups 🤦‍♀️So will need to be careful as my right hand side is really sore, but I’m not going to let it stop me getting my steps in.

I managed 18.5k steps yesterday as DH was a bit short so we did another 5k GFWR when he got home. I also did the Joe Wicks pyramid biceps workout last night so will probably have T. rex arms at some point too.

The scales showed a loss of 0.7lb at 10st 2.2lb. I so want to be out of these pesky twos. I was reading about plateaus and some websites say they count a plateau as 6 to 8 weeks of no change, I do not have the patience for that! My head would explode in frustration. I like to see a loss of a pound a week, although I do realistically understand that’s not always going to happen.

I need to crack on with more DIY if I ever want my gym to be finished so I hope everyone has more fun than me this weekend

Morning all

Welcome to the thread and Happy Birthday for yesterday @imustbepatient what a great present to yourself! I think you're spot on with trying to find the sweet spot between being strict enough but not taking the joy out of life at the same time. Your targets sound good ones too - a few kg at a time is much better than an enormous target that will take ages to get to. Good luck with it all and keep posting to let us know how you're getting on.

7lbs in a month is awesome @SnowyMouse well done, you must have worked hard at it. Great to now been in the 10s rather than the 11s!

I laughed out loud when I saw a picture of your date night @Dashel 😂To be fair I've had worse dates...😃

Sorry to hear you've pulled something - take it easy until it's starting to feel better - hopefully walking should still be ok. I don't know how I'd manage if I had a plateau that lasted 6-8 weeks, 6-8 days is bad enough. At least you're moving in the right direction again now, and right at the bottom of the 2s too so the 1s are in stretching distance. Hope the DIY goes well (will probably burn some calories!) it will be amazing to have your own gym, I have to workout in my lounge which isn't ideal - DP rolls his eyes a lot 🙄

I stuck to my plan last night in it's entirety - I just had one (admittedly quite large) glass of wine and sipped it through the night and drank lots of water to go with it. The food was on the table to help ourselves so I was able to just have small portions of everything which was ideal.

Tonight is a local quiz night but the plan is broadly the same. Hoping I can stick to it two nights in a row.

This morning showed a STS on the scale at 10st 10.8lb. I'm happy with that. Like yesterday, I've done a bit more exercise than usual to put a few extra calories in the bank so I've done a 30 minute club hits dance aerobics workout with Up to the Beat fitness followed by a 10 minute GFWR then just walked in from of the TV for 20 minutes. I'm going to try to squeeze a walk in later too but need to do some work today 😕so not sure if there will be time. My step count yesterday ended up at 12.5K which was great and I'm already at 6.5K today so should reach target easily.

Have good days all.

Oh no, I hope you recover soon @Dashel ! I know what you mean about plateaus!

Well done sticking to plan @bigdecisionstomake ! Good luck with the quiz! Well done on STS, it's better than a gain, you can smash it next week!

Hope everyone is doing well! I am still soldiering on. Struggling to hit calorie goal over the past week or so which I know is a bad habit to get into.

I'm glad you're soldiering on @2023caloriecounter ! How much are you struggling to hit?

@bigdecisionstomake I hope that you enjoyed your quiz, sounds like you have been really busy and showed great will power and with loads of steps too. Sorry you had to work on the weekend.

I sanded down and white washed two walls of fresh plaster and undercoated lots of architrave and slimed down the amount of wood/tools we had in the house. The other two walls will need a good sand and then DH will fit the woodwork and cove them and then they can be painted and the floor tiles can go down and the gym stuff cleaned and put in.

Unfortunately I’m still not in a good mood with my scales. I put on 0.1lb but am now under 34% fat. So 10st 2.3lb and 33.9% fat. I ate ok and managed 16.5k steps only 3k were with GFWR as we did go for a short walk.

My average weekly weight has gone down very slightly from 10st 3.2lb to 10st 3lb which is frustratingly small for my efforts. My body fat is dropping which is good.

I am hoping for a whoosh soon but I’m not giving up. I will keep going and think about what I’m eating and my exercise.

I hope everyone has a fantastic Sunday

Morning all

Thanks for the encouragement @SnowyMouse when progress is slower than hoped it helps to have people cheering you on!

@2023caloriecounter keep going - you've identified what the problem is, now you just need to think of ways to tackle it. Keep weighing as it keeps the mind focussed even if you're acknowledging a gain or STS. Can you moderate your calorie target a little so that you don't feel like you're constantly failing? If we can help with anything let us know 🙂

@Dashel sounds like you had a really busy day yesterday which must have burned loads of calories - you and your DH obviously work well as a team together.

Although the scales aren't showing the weight loss you'd like, the fact that you've reduced your body fat percentage is fantastic and that likely means you're replaced some fat with muscle. I suspect you'd find that you may have lost inches rather than pounds. If one of your aims is to look good in a bikini on holiday then that is a real positive and just as important as the number on the scales. I think you're doing a fantastic job and you should be proud of yourself 😀More muscle means higher basal calorie burn too so will help with calorie loss going forwards!

After feeling smug about sticking to my plan on Friday night, last night was less successful! I managed the food side of things really well so avoided the nachos left on the table completely and ate half of a medium sized jacket potato with chilli and very small sprinkle of cheese and avoided the butter, salsa & soured cream. All good so far. The wine however was a different story 😳we were sat on a table of 8 and wine was bought by the bottle so people kept topping up my glass when I wasn't looking so I think I ended up having about 3/4 glasses in the end...whoops. Then the boxes of Celebrations came round and after having the wine my good judgement went out of the window and I had 5 or 6 (or possibly more...) of those.

Anyway....today is a new day!

The scales have been kind to me and I've had a STS at 10st 10.8lb again - given the wine/chocs last night I'm more than happy with that. That means my scores on the doors for this week are as follows:

Week 5
Initial start weight 11st 5lb
Final target weight 9st 11lb
Last week's weight 10st 11.4lb
This week's weight 10st 10.8lb
Loss this week 0.6lb
Total loss so far 8.2lb

Given the fact I've had 2 nights out I'm more than happy with just over half a pound loss and I'm feeling positive about progress moving into the new week. I now have 1 stone to lose to get to target.

I didn't manage a walk in the end yesterday but still came in at 10.5K steps. I've just walked today - I think I'm going to designate Sundays as 'rest days' for exercise as I think it does my hip good to have a day where there's no movement other than straightforward walking. I'm already at 7.5K steps so my target should be easily achievable and I may try to get an hour in the garden later which will add a few more steps.

Back to no alcohol tonight and next week Mon - Thurs and then I'll see how I feel and what progress is like when I get to the weekend.

Have good Sundays all!

@Dashel when I read about your small gains but body fat reducing it does make sense! It’s not ideal for you in a motivational sense but if you’re becoming more muscle than fat then you will weigh more I think?

I haven’t been managing to eat enough. Have just not really been hungry so not looking for anything outside meals and then this weekend have had dental trouble so have been surviving on milkshakes for the calories

Afternoon everyone!

@Dashel sounds like some fantastic progress with your DIY, not to mention the physical workout that must give!

For the workouts I do, I’d highly recommend Strength and Bloom on YouTube. She has a huge range of videos available, some with weights, some without, some are more cardio but a lot are aimed at weight conditioning / training. She has some sections specifically for perimenopause (me!) but others as well for particular injuries eg ones for low impact on joints, or standing only etc. I find she has a really nice manner and is easy to listen to.

I’m also doing the Joe Wickes 21 days of strength that someone recommended on one of these weight loss threads, which I’m really enjoying too.

I have a tenancy for my right knee to play up, so I have to be a bit careful, but I’m really focusing on upping my walking and fitting in at least 4 workouts each week.

@bigdecisionstomake I’d call your weight loss this week a superb victory, with two nights out and a few glasses of wine, that shows you can still have occasions out and make this work for you.

I saw someone on one of the other weight loss threads post a brilliant YouTube video about the science behind plateaus and unexpected weight gains, basically more detail behind the whole ‘weight loss isn’t linear’ thing.

A lot of it I think we already know inside, but sometimes it helps to have someone explain it all so succinctly and sometimes we listen more to others than to our own voice! Although I’m trying to work on that too. Anyway, I’ll try and post the link to that video in a separate post, if I can work out how to do that!

He also has another video with his own view on how to calculate what calories someone should eat when trying to lose fat. It’s very interesting (and straight forward) and leads to a higher daily target, for me anyway. Which I am thinking might lead to more sustainability for me - that magic sweet spot. I’ll try to post that too. Just FYI, he’s a tad sweary, which doesn’t bother me but I thought I’d flag that in case it’s not others’ cup of tea!

Also, just to add as one final point, I’ve taken lots of body measurements on Friday and will re-take them again at the beginning of March. I know from the last two times I lost a good amount of weight that some weeks nothing would show on the scale, but I’d lose an inch or more off some body part. It really helped to keep me focused and see that I was making progress if it was coming off on the measuring tape, even if not the scales.

This is the ‘science of plateaus’ etc video I mentioned:

and this is the one with his method of calculating your daily calorie target:

His main point / method for fat loss is that it is essential to create the calorie deficit (but with his calculator that isn’t super low) and to focus on your protein target (which with his method is actually pretty high, at least by what I had previously been aiming for). And that’s it, as far as the eating side of things go.

I’ve watched a few of his other videos now and they are very thought-provoking. I have had my best results with low carb / keto / very clean eating, but as it isn’t sustainable permanently for me, I’m trying to find a balance that gets results (and slow and reasonably steady is fine for me) and that I can do even when on holiday, on special occasions, when work is busy, when I’m tired…..

I will still aim to be lower carb than the average ‘way of eating’, but I think I’m going to give his suggestions a proper try, for the 90 days he talks about. So I’ve re-jigged my Nutracheck settings to put in the calorie amount his calculator gives me and to increase the daily target for protein. He suggests aiming to hit these goals 80+% of the time over 90 days and you should get the results you are after.

I’ll let you know how I get on!

Sorry, just to clarify that last bit I said - he isn’t saying you will get to your complete target in 90 days, just that if you give it full commitment for 90 days then you will see results and be making good progress towards your target.

Hi all! Had a night out last night, ate pub mac & cheese and garlic bread - it was lovely but feel a bit sad today that I didn't make better decisions. I also drank ALOT!
Would have been over calories by loads (I've not logged it yet) 😔
Even though I was hungover I have done my 50 squats and from tomorrow I am going to start exercising more (up my steps & also start doing some weights as my arms are feeling flabby). I doubt I'll lose any weight this week.
I did hit over 10k steps on Friday which is a first for me, this is nothing compared to some of you guys but a small win for me!

@bigdecisionstomake one stone to target is good 🤩and congratulations on your half pound loss! Trying to find a workable balance is the right thing to do and it’s really important to have fun but manage to have your attitude where you had the booze and a few treats but don’t give up as you went off plan for a few hours. Its our anniversary this month and we are planning a nice meal with alcohol and pudding and I’m getting a M&S plant kitchen Victoria sponge cake and I’m going to enjoy it and yes it will be wildly over calories but it’s our wedding anniversary and I’m going to get back on it straight away. Just like you have.

@2023caloriecounter thank you. I hope you are right. Have you thought about those Huel drinks that are complete meals? Have you got a dental appointment?

@imustbepatient thank you the house was bought as a project. The architrave was glossed by the previous owners without sanding or even removing drawing pins or lumps of plaster so it’s all been replaced as it was so bad. We have two patio areas to do when the frosts have passed and by back has healed so good exercise there!

I am doing Joe Wicks but will definitely have a nosy at Strength and Bloom. Thanks for the videos I will have a watch. My clothes are definitely looser even my previously tight ish summer ones. I imagine as I get nearer to target then this journey will get harder. I can’t do no carb either lower carb is ok but no carb is too hard. I think previously we always had crisps and bread in the house now we don’t.

@Gemzee crazy nights are bound to happen. Don’t beat yourself up, just get back on it and accept its part of the journey. As above I’m going to have a crazy night off soon and I’m going to enjoy it and try not to feel bad as I know it’s part of life and as long as you get back on it then it’s ok.

Weights are so good for you. I hope you enjoy doing them. I find them relaxing for some weird reason.

sorry you've slipped @Gemzee , but well done on the exercise!

Good luck with the house @Dashel !

@SnowyMouse thank you. Still so much to do, but we are getting there.

@summer2023 we are too tired for date nights! The sad thing is although it was a joke, it’s also true. Try and put the bad stuff behind you. Meal plan and plan your exercise for the week and focus on going forward and why you are trying to loose the weight.

Yesterday we went out for a walk and according to Fitbit I burnt 623 calories. It was a bit hilly which I found easier than I would have done a few weeks ago. I did a Joe Wicks back and biceps video when I got back and used by 7.5kg weights for some of the exercises 🥳

My legs definitely have DOMs this morning and I know that can effect the scale so another gain isn’t a surprise at 10st 2.4lb up another 0.1lb. It’s still frustrating though. I had 1800 calories so not too bad but I was so hungry.

I am going to try to fast until dinner tonight to see if that would help. I need to get out of these pesky twos!

Today is a new week, so whether we are on plan or not at the moment it’s a great time to refocus and start new tweaks or just carry on carrying on.

Have a great day!

Morning all!
I went out for a 35min walk at 6.15am just to try and get some steps in before getting ready for work/school run.
Have a great Monday 😊

Morning all

Not desperately pleased to see Monday today - not going to lie!

Sorry you've not been well @2023caloriecounter dental pain is just the worst so not surprising you're not eating much. The Huel shakes are a good idea, it's important to keep hydrated. Hope you're feeling better soon.

Thanks for the links @imustbepatient I watched them both last night and the one about plateaus was really interesting. I've subscribed to the channel so will have a browse through his other stuff when I've got a minute. I checked out the Strength and Bloom workouts too, they look great. Let us know how you get on following the calorie/protein recommendations.

@Gemzee sounds like you had a great night. I wouldn't worry about the calories too much - in the scheme of things it's not likely to be as bad as you thought and dwelling on it won't change it. Just mark it down as a good night out and move into this week looking forwards to making some good choices. Well done on increasing your steps - that's great work!

Sounds like you had a busy weekend @Dashel I think when I've finished the CG Christmas Series I'm going to do the Joe Wicks one as I didn't get very far with it when I tried it before. The plateau video talked about leg days causing you to retain lots of water weight so that's probably what's going on. You've got a great positive attitude so just keep swimming and I'm crossing my fingers for you that the pesky 2s are behind you really soon.

@summer2023 sorry you've slipped off the wagon a bit, but your attitude is spot on - it's a new week and a fresh start. Is there anything you can tweak in your plan that might make it a bit easier to stick too? Sometimes shaking things up a bit can help - or planning a (non-food) reward if you manage a full week without deviating from plan?

Saturday's night excesses have caught up with me on the scale this morning with a small gain to 10st 11.2lb. At least I'm not back in the 12s although I do wonder if I'm now going to have a week of bouncing between the 10s and the 11s. I've got my food planned for the week so as long as I stick to the plan all should be fine.

This morning I've done 20 minutes of Grow with Jo as a warm up then Day 13 of CGs Christmas Series which was 'Lunge Day' and yes, it was as bad as it sounded! I got through it all but boy am I going to be sore tomorrow! Steps is going to be the issue today as I'm only just at 4K and I've got a full day in the office today with pretty much back to back meetings so no time for a walk and it will be dark when I get home. I may have to do some marching in front of the TV later to try to get to 8K today. Keen to try to do it as I managed 10K yesterday so have stuck to target every day this month so far.

Have good days all.

@Gemzee just seen your update this morning - what a great way to start the day - start as you mean to go on, I love it 😍

@Gemzee sounds like a great start to the week!

@bigdecisionstomake I could do with three day weekends as well! Thank you for the kind words. I do enjoy the JWs ones but as my back improves I’m thinking about trying CG so we can swap! I am trying to keep motivated. Storming off and saying I give up is not going to help me. I think I have learnt that if I want to do loose the weight quickly it isn’t an easy journey and I just have to keep going.

Lunge day sounds awful and not enjoyable at all. Sorry about your gain but hopefully it will be gone soon and hopefully no more bouncing around for you!

@summer2023 I am usually a bit tired but the last few days it’s more than that. Yesterday I felt hungover but obviously not had any alcohol in over a month. Did you manage to get back on track yesterday? I wish I had patience but I have always been a bit all or nothing.

So I have some big news…. I am out of the twos and weighed in at 10st 1.8lb 🥳🥳 I wouldn’t be surprised if I don’t bounce back up to the dreaded twos again but I’m hoping against hope that it’s a downward slope to the 9s now.

I managed 1300 calories by not eating till 3.30 and then just a banana with peanut butter so didn’t manage a 24 hour. I got 16.7k steps and I did a pyramid bicep workout as it was only 12 minutes.

I am feeling a bit more energised this morning, yesterday I felt terrible and so I’m pleased about that. DH is home late tonight so will try and get some yoga in then.

I hope that everyone has a great day.

Morning all

A very cold and frosty one here - hoping that spring is on its way very soon.

@summer2023 Monday was....rubbish to be fair! At least it's over now although I've got a mountain of work to get through as a result so it's going to be a busy week. Patience is not my strong point either but I've come to accept in the last 10 years that I can no longer lose weight quickly - it takes a sustained and consistent effort. I really should try to stop putting it on in the first place....! Hope you managed to start getting back on track yesterday 🙂

@Dashel Whoop whoop for being in the 1s - that must feel good 😃It shows that you're doing all the right things and you're being consistent which is the important thing. I'm going to cross my fingers that there's not too much bouncing around for either of us!

I have had a STS at 10st 11.2lb again this morning. Yesterday was a bit carby food wise and I have some DOMS from lunge day, although not as badly as I expected to be fair. I should think they may have contributed and also things are probably still stabilising out from the weekend. Hoping for a little downward movement tomorrow though.

I've been abs focussed this morning and done a 30 minute Olivia Lawson standing abs light cardio workout followed by a Jessica Smith 15 minute Core and Back session. Yesterday was a step disaster waiting to happen as I didn't get home from work until 7.30pm and then had to cook tea straight away but I marched up and down the kitchen while cooking then in front of the TV for 15 minutes while dinner was in the oven and just managed to drag victory from the jaws of defeat and came in at 8.1K steps in the end. Hopefully today should be easier as I'm working from home and hoping I can carve out time for a lunchtime walk.

Have good days all.

I've put on a pound and a half today. I have been super good, so where the hell has that come from. I'm livid. I was 3lbs away from the next stone bracket but now that 3lbs is 5lbs away. I've not been to the gym in 2 days as just not had time to get there. I cannot get there today either, due to work. I night be able to fit it in during my lunch hour, but it is going to be very tight.

Feeling disheartened ay being so close yet now so far away from dropping into the next stone.

@encoreunfoisnumber2 sorry you've had a bad result on the scale this morning. If you've been within calories all week then it won't be fat you've gained it will likely be water which will go as easily as it came when the time is right. @imustbepatient posted a link to a great video a day or two ago about plateaus and the first section of that talks about all the reasons why we don't lose weight when common sense says we should have. They include things like food in transit, DOMS from gym sessions, hormones, eating carbs etc.... Are you approaching TOTM for example - that always used to add 2-3 pounds for me.

The important thing now is to not let it de-rail you and just keep swimming. If you carry on sticking to plan it will come back off at some point. Drink lots of water which will help flush your system through and stay strong - you've got this!