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.

I'll be honest, have had a terrible week. Still loads Xmas chocolate in the house. I start every day with good intentions then pig out, then kick myself.

Tomorrow is the weekend and i get rid of kids for a bit. Planning to make myself start drinking a gallon of water before i eat anything each day (though tea/ coffee allowed), and use my treadmill to walk an hour per day. That's it, the plan so far.

It's nearly my birthday and I'm a stone heavier than in birthday photos from last year, this is depressing. But I'll feel better on the day if i start going something about it now.

Weighed a day early as I'm off overnight. Stayed the same, which I'll take. Still taking pics, but for myself rather than posting as I realised it's only me doing that 🤣

It is hard getting started @6poundshower but you have a plan. Adding a change or two weekly will all add up. You've got this 👍

@6poundshower are the chocolates kept out of sight? We keep our treats in a box in the spare bedroom rather than the kitchen so we don’t open the food cupboard and see them as an option. It has to be be more of a conscious decision. Have you tried meal planning your food so you know what you are eating? You can plan snacks too. Either than or really cutting back on buying treats and donating existing stuff to a food bank.

It can be really tough and different strategies work for different people. I have spoken with people who find no snacking at all works and they just repeat that they don’t eat outside of meals until it’s a think. Others who find regimented snacking useful and others who will have a picture of a dream outfit inside their food cupboards. I hope you find something that works for you.

I weighed in at 10st 5.6lb this morning, still not down to my 10st 4.9lb that I was pre bloating last week but a small loss from yesterday’s 10st 6.1lb

I managed 17k steps yesterday 🥳 it isn’t very nice here today so I think it will be a 5k Get fit with Rick before we start doing some decorating and hopefully it will be slightly better tomorrow so we will go out for a long walk if it’s tolerable. Hopefully I will do another strength workout tonight as well now my legs have recovered, I didn’t fancy risking DOMs on my upper body and lower at the same time. COVID has wrecked my strength and I’m not so sure what counts as a a hard workout any more. It’s certainly no where near what it used to be.

We are now halfway through the month and if we can get through January (even with a few blips) then we can get through the rest of the year. This is definitely the hardest month and it will get easier, the days will get longer, the holidays and summer wardrobes will get closer and give motivation and salad weather is coming!

Morning all

Whoop whoop for the weekend - this was my first full week back at work and it has been fairly intense so I'm ready for a couple of days respite.

@WutheringShites86 well done on resisting the coffee shop temptation - those places rarely have any healthy options. I'm going to the hairdressers later and they always put one of those little wrapped biscuits on the side of my cup of tea so I shall have to resist that, probably twice, as I usually have two cups while I'm there.

@6poundshower sorry to hear you've had a rubbish week. I think the key thing is to acknowledge it has happened, then put it behind you and move forwards with a positive mindset. I know different things work for different people but when I'm trying to re-set my approach to food I push myself to log all my calories for a few weeks as that makes me really focus on what sorts of things I can eat plenty of to stay within calories and what things I need to limit. Crucially for me it also re-sets my picture of what a healthy portion size looks like. I use a paid for app but I think lots of people like My Fitness Pal which is free. Your plan of lots of water and an hour on the treadmill are also good places to start.

@ALittleBitAhAh Well done on the STS - anything that's not a gain is positive.

@Dashel thanks for your positive words about looking forwards to summer - just what I needed to hear this wet and windy morning. I am definitely a summer person not a winter one!

I have STS on the scale this morning at exactly 11 stone, not unexpected after a carb heavy tea last night. I stayed off the wine though so that's a small win, hopefully I'll manage the same tonight. Still counting calories today but allowing some of my treat foods back in for the weekend - already looking forwards to crumpets for breakfast! Was planning on a cardio HIIT workout this morning with 'growingannanas' but she puts lots of squats in and I have DOMS this morning so changed my mind and did a more sedate 45 minute 5000 steps with Olivia Lawson - won't be as many calories though so may try to fit a walk in later if time and weather allow.

Have good days all.

@Dashel Its funny you say "summer wardrobes will get closer and give motivation and salad weather is coming!" as I said to husband this morning that I can't wait to try on my summer clothes (not now but in a few months when I'm hopefully smaller).

I didn't have a wine last night! and none planned tonight either 😊

Well done to everyone, we can do this!

Well done to everyone who had a successful Friday!

You're welcome to keep posting Photos if you want @ALittleBitAhAh, we're all doing our own thing.

I had a bit of a blip yesterday evening in the form of doritos and dip. I had been saving calories to let loose a bit for my evening meal yesterday but it back fired and I was just way too hungry then ended up snacking. Oh well, lesson learnt I guess. It meant I was more or less on maintenance calories yesterday so shouldn't cause a gain but I'm a bit annoyed with myself. Especially as I did so well in the coffee shop 🫣.

No alcohol for me this weekend either, we can do it!

Thank you. I have adhd so struggle with impulsively. But had a much better day today. Drank a gallon of water. 1 hour walk on treadmill, 15 minutes on bike, steps and stretches. Ate small salad plus some coffee so far, so plenty of calories but I'm not craving much for now.

Good morning,

@ALittleBitAhAh I take progress photos every now and then of me in my undies but they are not going to be posted online. Please feel free to post some photos if it helps. We could do with some colour.

@bigdecisionstomake it has been a long week hasn’t it? I am definitely a summer person too. DH enjoy walking outside and it’s so much nicer in thr better weather and when it’s light and getting our vitamin D. This has to be a lifestyle change to keep off the weight permanently so getting used to less alcohol is a big win!

@Gemzee well done as well to you for no booze! I hope you and everyone cutting down on it is feeling better for it. Maybe if you put the savings into a new clothes fund it might provide extra motivation?

@WutheringShites86 we can do it! I haven’t had any alcohol since New .Years Day 😇 It sounds like a small blip and I am sure you will be back on it today! I think the Christmas challenge helped me with my ability to bounce back after a blip or meal out.

@6poundshower I hope the cravings stay away. It sounds like you had a very productive day!

DH and I had a good chat yesterday. Neither of us is happy with the progress we are making. So we are going to start using MFP to track everything and really cut down on snacking to help us cut down the calories. I am even swapping some of my tea to herbal tea to save on milk. We also have agreed to put maximum effort into our workouts so when we doing our 5000 step get fit with Rick workout we were adding arms and really going for it.

So including the workout I did 15.5k steps and had 1411 calories. Thankfully the scales seem to be happy with my efforts as I am back down to 10st 4.8lb .

My weekly average two weeks ago was 10st 6.8 and last week 10st 5.8lb so lost a pound again on my weekly average. My fat content is also coming down slowly too although I’m not sure now accurate it is.

Apparently the weather is going to be ok this morning so we should be going for a walk outside.

I hope that you all have a really great Sunday!

Happy Sunday everyone! It's very great to see some more losses. I've just weighed myself and am down 2kg (I work in kg!) since I started the new year so im very happy with that, 4 more kg until I reach my first target which will put me in the nhs bmi 'healthy weight range' rather than the current overweight one. I am finding not eating after 5pm working well as well as keeping sugar to a minimum as im such a sugar addict. Off to do a quick YouTube workout now. Enjoy the rest of the weekend everyone 😀

Morning all

@Gemzee well done for another alcohol free day, I stayed strong too and am definitely sleeping better so that's a massive win for me.

@WutheringShites86 unplanned for Doritos and dip is I think what's called a 'snackcident' - I used to have them very regularly last year!

@6poundshower sounds like you're making lots of healthy choices - well done.

@Dashel great work with the loss this week. I think all weight loss efforts have a stage where you kind of get 'stuck' and it's a great plan to try to shake things up a bit rather than just keep doing the same things and letting the frustration de-rail you eventually.

@Matilda142 that's an amazing loss in 15 days - congratulations!

@summer2023 I spent a significant part of last year losing and gaining the same couple of pounds over and over again so I absolutely get how frustrating it is. It sounds like you have a plan moving forwards though - keep reading and posting, the support here is fantastic.

My scores on the doors for this week are as follows:

Week 2
Start weight 11st 5lb
Target weight 9st 11lb
Last week's weight 11st 2.6lb
This week's weight 11st 0.4lb
Loss this week 2.2lb
Total loss so far 4.6lb

So I've had a small gain (0.4lb) this morning - no real reason for it as I was within calories yesterday - but I know from experience that weight loss is never linear.

I'm over the moon with an overall loss this week of 2.2lb though. It was more than expected so will be interesting to see how next week goes. Hopefully should be in the 10s soon.

I have avoided specific exercise routines this morning and just had a walk as my hip is a little sore this morning - I have osteo arthritis in my right hip. I've managed just over 8K steps though so I'm pleased with that and it should set me up for being able to stay within calories today.

Have good days all.

@bigdecisionstomake wow 8k steps with a bad hip is awesome! I'm doing that on a good day and my hips are fine 😆 (gonna work on improving my steps though).

Slightly over calories yesterday but nothing too bad, just had a carby delicious dinner 😋 not worried about that. Another booze free night 😁
Have a good day all.

Well done everyone who has seen a loss this week! Hard work does pay off!

I've weighed myself this morning and I am now 11st 12lbs. Last week was 12st 3lbs. So I'm well pleased with myself. It's been hard to stick to a diet and exercise routine and yesterday I allowed myself to have a fish and chip from the chip shop. That took me way over my calorie count and I really thought I had undone all my work last week but this morning says different.

Hi I'm starting weight loss through less snacking (my downfall) healthy choices and exercise. I weighed myself Friday 12.5 stone and I want to lose about 10 stone. I've set a target of June.

Hi Everyone,

I've stayed the same at weigh in this morning, that will be the snackcident as @bigdecisionstomake said!

Well done to everyone who has had a loss and hit the no booze target.

I'm making a roast chicken dinner today but I've done over an hours hilly walk with DD in the pram so that should cover a roast potato or two I hope!

I think there has to be some give and take to make it a long term thing.

Hi, checking in. Thank you for the slow cooker recommendations ( for my after work 8pm meal) I have been thinking about one for a while but the £3 grand+ I just spent on a new boiler has put the stop on any spending for a while. I did buy a new set of scales as the old ones seemed to be fluctuating too much. I was 2lb lighter on them this morning but still about +3lbs from my pre Christmas low. My DD has finally gone back to uni today so I’m hoping to get back into a better routine with less treats.
Well done everyone who has lost - or STS- this is a great achievement given the time of year. I have a new target to aim for- a college reunion in April. Hoping to be at least 1 st lighter by then. Have a great week everyone 💪🏻

@Matilda142 that is fantastic hopefully you will be in the normal range soon!

@summer2023 I have tweaked my plan so don’t be afraid to mix things up and try new things.

@bigdecisionstomake I am not surprised that you are so pleased! That’s a great result! If you have arthritis in your hip would something like seated cardio be worth considering?

@Gemzee you are rocking the low alcohol life 😊

@sidesplittinglol that is a terrific loss and to go into the next stone too! 🥳

@autienotnaughty im hoping there is a typo in your figures or are you going for toddler size? What is your plan?

@WutheringShites86 absolutely I agree there are going to be off plan meals and holidays and things.

@Stepcount congrats on the loss hopefully you will be on your way to your target soon! I hope the new boiler is keeping you warm. We had snow this morning 🥶

Just a quick point which you guys have already mentioned - meal planning.
Just want to say that yes, this helps massively for me with sticking to calories! I do a weekly plan and shop accordingly.
Another thing helping me is thinking of it as a lifestyle change rather than a diet - I'm not worrying about going slightly over calories a couple times a week and I'm not eating salad all the time (or at all actually, my dh is for lunch but I prefer warm lunches at the moment). I'm making tasty meals that roughly fit into my calorie goal, not snacking and cutting way way back on alcohol.
I hope I can keep this mindset, unfortunately I'm a yoyo dieter since I was about 23 (39 now).

@Gemzee totally agree with you. I want to keep off the weight for good.

Yesterday I really went for it
1300 step Get Fit with Rick whilst DH was finishing off some painting just a tiny bit
30 minute triceps and biceps Joe Wicks strength workout with DH
3 hour walk with friend and DH
30 minute nap 😴
1300 get fit with Rick to get me to 30k steps 🤩

Calorie wise I was at 1642 and when I completed MFP it said if every day was like today I would be 9st 5.6lb in 5 weeks. I think I would also be very broken and exhausted.

I did have a good loss this morning and went from 10st 4.8lb yesterday to 10st 4.0lb today. I thought I would have a gain due to DOMs so I am super pleased with that.

Today I am going to do another GFWR as it’s freezing and icy here. I will try and get another weights workout in and get my steps in and keep tracking my food.

I think it’s going to be a tough week, but hopefully we can all stay largely on track and just keep going….. Summer is coming

Morning all! 1.5 inches off my belly since I started on 3rd Jan 😊 I definitely think the lack of wine has contributed to this!!
If anyone ever gets demotivated by the scales I can recommend measuring yourself!
Have a good Monday all!

Morning all

Great losses and STS for the end of last week everyone - well done! Loads of positivity from everyone too which is great.

And just like that a new week arrives.

A quick one from me this morning as I've got a busy day. I've weighed and have STS at 11st 0.4lb - I sang 'just keep swimming' while looking at the scale and willed myself to be patient and keep on track. I had a really restrained weekend food wise and burnt lots of calories too so was hoping for a loss this morning (even a small one) but hey ho - that's sometimes how things go.

Have done a GFWR 3000 step workout this morning followed by Day 4 of CGs Christmas series which was glute and hamstring complexes. Glutes are particularly good for me as I need to keep the glute muscles around my bad hip strong to keep it supported so I tend to do them every other day anyway, even if only a few of the ones the physio taught me. Despite this the muscles around my bad hip are still noticeably weaker than those around my good hip so this was a good workout for me today although I'm sure I'll feel it tomorrow.

Have good days all.

@Dashel well done on the loss this morning - a good way to start a new week!

@Gemzee they do say that alcohol makes you put on belly fat and although I haven't measured I think my belly is looking slimmer since stopping drinking - great motivation to carry on!

Well done everyone, lots of positive updates particularly @Dashel and @Gemzee 💪

I've felt like shit today, horrendous night last night with DD, bit of a row with DP and stress at work. However, haven't gone into full comfort eating mode so feeling good about that at least.

Can I ruin all the positive update? I’m totally stuck, just can’t get back into the swing of things after Christmas & New Year. Scales appear to be broken and refusing to move at all

@Gemzee that is awesome! Are you clothes feeling looser?

@bigdecisionstomake keep on swimming! Fight against the current and waggle those fins! It might be so many things and you might have even lost fat and gained muscle from the workouts. Injuries really suck! I will always have to be careful of my back due to injury from a car crash 20 years ago. I have good days and bad, but it was best when I was running.

@WutheringShites86Sounds like you need some downtime and an early night. Have you ever looked at Yoga with Adrienne on YouTube? She does videos of all different lengths even 5 minute ones. Hope things settle down soon!

@Isyesterdaytomorrowtoday I would review my plan for exercise and food. Try and schedule any exercise and meal plan so you know what you are eating. You won’t make hungry choices that way. I wasn’t getting the progress I wanted so I have started using my fitness pal to log my food. I don’t enjoy the faffing of weighing and scanning but it does work. Can you add new habits to exist ones? Ie do toe raises whilst you brush your teeth or put the kettle on and March on the spot or do 10 minutes of steps whilst you watch the news in the morning and evening? I like to get to 5k steps before I start work and yes it means getting up early as I start at 8. But it’s worth it to me, but find what works for you.

You can do this! Remember we all plateau on the scales from time to time, you just need to keep going! Find a mantra to say when you feel you are struggling, watch a motivating tv program or think about why you want to loose the weight and if you need to take some downtime maybe do something to help yourself feel better like yoga or do something nice for yourself that’s not food related. You really can do this x