⭐️ LOSE IT! August 2023 ⭐️

[TheRealHousewife]

⭐️LOSE IT! August 2023⭐️

Healthy eating in the summer can be tricky to navigate. Summer barbecues, holidays, get togethers with family & friends makes it tougher to stay on track. No one wants to miss out on all the goodies on offer or be seen not joining in. However with forward planning and by setting your intentions you can mitigate any serious undoing of your endeavours. For example having a lighter lunch if you know you’re going for a slap up meal. Eat lighter the following day and keep hydrated to compensate.

Another new month to embrace and re-set to become a healthier version of yourself. These threads are for those who’d like to lose weight as well as those who wish to maintain; to encourage a healthy & varied diet and exercise.

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 eat twice a day. Im a long time healthy eater and overall I’ve lost over 3 stone. After having been on the wrong side of 12st Im now hovering around 9.5st. I had a blip a couple of years ago when my thyroid went wonky but now back (mainly) on track. I Would love to wave bye to another half a stone 😬 The main thing is to never give up! Keep going!

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

I am really proud of myself yesterday, stuck to the plan, even avoided the lemon drizzle cake the kids had after lunch, and in the evening when my DH and DS1 were munching while watching TV I had a glass of water.

I did have a glass of wine with dinner, but just 1.

hopefully I can stay with it today

B: toast and marmite
L: sausage rolls and baked beans
S: chicken fajitas

Good Morning

WOW- You know that 1lb I was down overall for July; well it's back! Starting weight for August = 9st 7lb. I'm basically maintaining (which is better than gaining). I'd just like to see another 7lbs gone (no timescale).

Welcome to the thread @HowIsItAugustAlready @wiltingflower Great to have some new members 😊

Thank you @WeirdPookah I love going into food shops. We have an Asian Food shop not too far away and it's fantastic for all things spice and curry related. Their fresh produce is Market fresh too👍

Welcome back @greenspaces4peace @DownUdderer

@MamaGhina well done on going for a walk when you didn't feel like it! Excellent 👌

Menu
Meal 1 - Salmon and spicy rice. Almonds.
Meal 2 - Mediterranean Omelette. Apple. Greek yoghurt & berry compote.
Tea, black coffee, water.

The weather is utter pants! Stay safe and dry guys! ☔️ ⛈️ 💨

Morning all; thank you @TheRealHousewife for the new thread.

It’s still slow going here, but with an overall downward trajectory, and this morning’s weigh-in is the lowest since I started on these threads in May:

SW - 128 lbs
CW - 123.4 lbs
TW - 119 lbs

With all the things going on, I lost/regained/lost, but did end up weighing in 3lb lower at the end of July than the start, but that was before this latest weekend of stuff! This weeks weigh in will see if I've technically undone all that.

@TheRealHousewife it's about the only thing I miss about living in London, was the access to every cuisine imaginable. The TFC (Turkish Food Centre) was the best shop ever, and I miss the food from there so badly, nothing like that at all up North!! We have a couple of Asian supermarkets, but not big ones.

Today's plans are changed, since STILL can't get many eggs. It's all well and good limiting it to 2 boxes, so then everybody buys the big boxes up, and all I could get was 2 6 boxes.

B: Kidney bean burrito
L: Richmond vegetarian sausage, tomatoes, peppers and onions
D: Mango almond korma, cauliflower with lemon rice paste

Hi @NothingTraLaLa Great Numbers!

@WeirdPookah Your Burrito sounds very tasty!

I’m averaging a loss of about a pound a month which doesn’t sound like a lot, but I’m hoping that it will prevent yo-yoing in the long run since I’m making tweaks to my everyday eating habits rather than dieting followed by a period of not-dieting.

Fingers crossed to hit target weight by Christmas! 🎄

Hi @NothingTraLaLa a 1lb a month, month after month = Nearly a stone for the year. That’s a fabulous steady weight loss 👍Everything crossed for you 🤞

Evening all. I couldn’t face a walk in the rain tonight so I did a Caroline Girvan workout instead with weights. I just need to do something each day during the holidays. Otherwise my activity levels are so flat.
I didn’t manage to avoid caffeine today hope that doesn’t impact my sleep too much. I have had 3 pieces of fruit and a wrap stuffed with salad for dinner. Also managed to avoid the temptation of biscuits after dinner and had some plain nuts instead as a snack. The kitchen is now closed!

The weather certainly feels autumnal @MamaGhina. I’ve never known a summer like it. Well done on getting your workout done ✅

I guess in the UK you're having rain and in Australia (in my neck of the woods) we've had a warm sunny day today.

My eating today is good so far. Yesterday evening I really enjoyed my salmon. Yum. I've just had some Greek yogurt with strawberries.

I've done some walking today, that was nice.

I must drink plenty of water today it really really helps me.

Another day of being on track.
Multivits
Water
30+ minutes of fitness
B and L both measured and weighed at 210 calories
IF from 6pm-10am
weighed myself but not looking yet :(

Not such a good day yesterday:

impromptu meet up with mother in law, at a coffee shop, she insisted I have a slice of cake. I am also convinced that the second coffee wasn’t a decaf as it set off my tremor.

i managed to spend a good bit of the evening reading, and normally munch while doing so, but just sucked 1 sherbet lemon.

todays plan is
B: toast and marmite
L: tuna wrap
D: veg heavy homemade curry

Thursday can be a tricky day as DSs have swimming lessons and there is an hour between lessons so DS1 nips to the shops for a chocolate bar, I am also bad for having a bit of their pizza at their dinner time. Going to let them eat their pizza while watching TV I think so I am not at the table with them, and take a bottle of water to swimming lessons.

thanks all for being supportive, it’s nice to read other people’s journeys.

Well I got back from holiday last night and did a weigh in for the first time in 2 months. Have gained 4.5 lb.
I now weight 98kg which is horrific.
On holiday I was hot and short of breath climbing stairs and made a resolution to sort myself out.

Got to start somewhere.

SW 15 stone 6 or 98 kg

Did IF 13 hours last two days, no crisps or sweets eaten on the plane . Drank lots of water.

Today
lots of water
IF 13 hours
morning walk

It feels odd having to think about what I’m going to eat….
have a good day all!

Hello - please can I join?
I started trying to lose weight properly on 15th May and my SW was 12 stone 7 😥. I am pretty pleased with how it’s been going as my CW today is 11 stone 1, so a loss so far of 20 pounds 😊.
I was diagnosed with a fatty liver in May and want to reverse this if possible through diet and exercise. I’m alcohol free and last alcohol was over Christmas last year. Giving it up has definitely helped with weight loss, although for the first few months I was overcompensating with cheese and chocolate. I also started exercising in January but only twice a week
I'm not really sure what my goal weight is but I’m thinking 9 stone 7 initially, so I have 1 stone and 8 pounds to go to achieve that. I used to be between 8 and 8 1/2 stone when I was younger but don’t know if this would ok now - I might look like a deflated balloon? I’m mid 50s and post menopausal and on HRT.
I’d like to end August at 10 stone 10 I think. Thanks.

Morning all, another poor sleep despite going to bed early and I only had that one coffee yesterday. Will try really hard to stick to decaf today and hope it makes a difference.
My plan for today is porridge at breakfast, salad for lunch and fish and rice for dinner. Plus plenty of fruit, plenty of water and 30 minutes of exercise somewhere in there.
@esormirP my DC also have swimming today and killing that hour is normally spent in a cafe. If it stays dry and I might try and get them to go to the park today. Desperately hoping for a change in the weather.

Good Morning

☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️☀️ It’s sunny! I hope it is where you are ❤️

@DownUdderer Your update sounds positive! Well done on keeping on track! Are you mainland or coastal ?

@greenspaces4peace Hope you’re ok ❤️

@esormirP Planning to avoid snacks is a great strategy 👍🤞

@olympicsrock A big bloody well done on braving the scales! It isn’t easy, especially if you suspect you’ve gained. Visualisation is your friend now. Imagine what change will happen by this time next week/month/year etc if you stay on track. Imagine how you’d feel/look/walk/generally going about your perfect day. Hold those feelings/images when you’re planning your menus etc. ‘You’ are the difference between now and your future self. YOU CAN DO IT 👏👏👏

Welcome to the thread @RubyMurry22 Congratulations on your loss to date! 20lbs 😮👌👏 You obviously have found what works for you 👍 Now keep going 😬

@MamaGhina Poor sleep is a sabotager of healthy eating as it messes with your ghrelin and leptin ratios. Are you getting enough carbs? If my carbs are too low it can affect my sleep. Magnesium supplements are also said to improve sleep/staying asleep. Dr Michael Mosley in his sleep study said 2 kiwis can also improve sleep 🤷‍♀️ I hope you get a better night tonight.

Menu
Meal 1 - Mushroom Omelette. Side salad. Apple.
Meal 2 - Chicken curry, cauliflower rice. Greek yoghurt, fruit compote.
Tea, black coffee and water.

Weighed in today, the several days of different birthdays didn't do as much damage as I thought, only up just over a lb, still under the new "ten" on the scales which was pleasing.

Been for a walk with my children, they had an ice-cream as it is the summer holidays and have to let them sometimes! I didn't have anything, just had a coffee at home now. The sun has turned up from somewhere, made me hot and annoyed on walk back.
At least vague chance of everyone's Gi's drying, seagull pooped on the already clean heavy one, so has to be rewashed, urgh!

B: Kidney bean burrito
L: Mini tortilla wraps, tuna, salad
D: Roast vegetables, feta, mixed beans

@WeirdPookah Great that you havnt undone all your progress. 1lb either way can be part of natural fluctuations. May I ask what's in your KB Burrito apart from KB😬

@TheRealHousewife I get the jars of roasted peppers, blend them smooth with some jarred jalapeno's, then use a spoon of that over a mid-size tortilla, 1/4 tin of beans and a slice of cheese. It's nothing fancy, sometimes when I feel like making more effort I make a pumpkin seed paste instead. We really liked the Tex-Mex style breakfasts after going to Texas years ago, it comes together in a few minutes, ideal for busy mornings.

@TheRealHousewife thats interesting about carbs because I have intentionally cut them down. I assume there are carbs in the porridge but then I avoid at lunch when I have a salad and restrict as much as I can at dinner.
Maybe I’ll look to get some wholemeal bread and reintroduce.
I think I have to face facts I can’t function without my coffee so I’ll aim to just have the one each day which feels more realistic (then failing that target each day).

@MamaGhina I have had to cut caffeine out of my diet as much as possible as I have a familiar tremor and caffeine makes it worse.

It was so hard but I am pleased I have .

In May last year, I cut coffee out entirely and switched to tea in the morning. I had a cola when the headaches got to bad, after about 2 weeks the headaches stopped and I slowly swapped my tea bags for decaf ones. I occasionally have a decaf coffee, but I am not always convinced I get them in some places as my hands shake.

@esormirP I do think caffeine affects me a lot, especially my sleep. I will cut it down to 1 a day for now and then try and get rid of it all together.
Tonight was so hard not to eat crap. I snacked on fruit but I’ve almost had to sit on my hands not to eat chocolate.
I went out for my walk and felt great about that, so glad I managed to resist.

@MamaGhina brown rice, wholewheat pasta or boiled new potatoes skin on are good adds to evening meals 👍. I track my macros on MFP and aim for 30-40% of my daily intake. I find if my overall cals for the day are too low it will also affect my sleep 😴

@WeirdPookah Thank you! I have all the ingredients in ... I think I might sub my omelette tomorrow for one 👍😬

Hello, I’m just trying to find the right balance.
45 minutes of daily exercise just isn’t sustainable long term, and for me long term seems to be years not months.
Same with the CC, like many I have counted out many low cal options that start the day on the right foot.
But mentally, the process occasionally is draining.
I’m hoping to find a sweet spot mentally, physically and nutritionally. Where missing the mark on one parameter doesn’t cause me to visualize what my scale might look like in the am.

@TheRealHousewife I should use my nutrition web site better, I’m pleased with Cronometer, but am not entering supper as the prep can sometimes be complex, thrown together EVO not measured.

I've managed a nice long walk today, 9km. I'm pleased with that. Perhaps next week I'll try a longer walk. Just building up the stamina again.

I've just had strawberries and greek yogurt. Quite a nice snack.

@TheRealHousewife I'm a 30 minute drive to the beach, so I count myself as being coastal :)

My weight is really slow to come off now. I think I'm about 4lb from where I'd like to be. I know I can do it if I focus, I just give in to snacks too often at the moment.