30 day challenge - want to join?

[YouBelongWithMe]

Backstory - I've been quite ill for about a year, and lost about 8kg through being unable to eat. I was then put on medication and feel fantastic, and have been living life to the ultimate full - out for coffee and cake, extravagant dinners, I've basically been in 'treat yourself' mode foe three months.

I've out on 7kg in three months 😬

I'm need to do something but want a set a short term goal. Next month it's my birthday, and in that week I'm off to see Taylor Swift with my daughter and also have a glorious London trip booked with my mum. I'd like to see what I can lose before then, to feel a bit more like myself again.

Anyone want to join? I'll update daily with what I'm doing, eating and how I'm getting on.

I ended up having an M&S Indian curry and felt so heavy and bloated after it. Slept so badly too, an wondering if it was all the salt. Definitely back on it properly today

Taking the dog for a big walk. Think we're planning a BBQ later but I'll stick to low fat meat and veggies, with salad.

I agree, I get a lot less hungrier in the heat and also naturally want to drink more water so it’s a double win.

and yeah I hate it when I get into losing and gaining the same 2-4 pounds. I’m grateful for losing even 1 or 2 pounds in one week but I don’t quite start seeing it as progress until it’s happened maybe 3 or 4 times in a row so I know my weight is actually going down and that one pound loss is not just a blip/natural fluctuation.

I've been doing ok the last few days. Warm weather has meant bbqs etc but I've tried to pick the healthiest things I can. And watched portion size!

I've managed to do my 4k walk/hike 4 times since wednesday.

A couple of people have commented last few days that I have lost weight and look healthier. I don't weigh but will hopefully feel my clothes starting to get looser soon.

It's true what you say @YouBelongWithMe - a curry etc sounds so tempting at the time but them after you feel heavy and bloated, it's just not worth it.

We're back to heavy rain here today So a walk is probably out of the picture. I'm going to do a good food shop this morning, maybe try something new for dinner. And I'll see if I can find a exercise video on YouTube to follow in place of the walk.

Ah, I forgot about this thread but it's timely that I saw it as my commitment was a little shaky today. I'm on day 10 of my no alcohol initiative. I've also increased my gym time and I'm eating well and ... I've lost a grand total of nothing. It's a little deflating as I'm feeling fitter and I'm wearing a pair of trouser that were uncomfortable before, not to mention the clear headedness of not drinking, so it would have been a boost if the scales had reflected that. I'll keep on with my experiment though, I will feel proud if I can see it through even if only to test my theory.

I'm enjoying the porridge chat. I don't do overnight oats but I love hot porridge and eat it most days. At the moment I do porrige, soya milk, cinnamon, raisins, a chopped up banana, a heapng scoop of a ground up seed and nut mix, and then either a cut up apple or some apple sauce - the one I buy has only apples as its ingredients. It's massive but it's my only fruit and I can go for ages on a bowl of this.

Well done dudsville , I hope the scales start to show your efforts soon. (That's the exact reason I don't weigh).

For those that do intermittent fasting, do you count calories too and is there a minimum number you try to meet? I don't do fasting but missed breakfast a couple of days in the last week and struggle to make it up to 1200 calories those days, which I am using as my minimum daily amount.

Well done everyone, try to remember even though our efforts might not show on the scales, our bodies will be thanking us for all our healthy choices and actions.

@Greenmayleaves I'm fasting with 1300 cal. I sometimes don't have time to fit all the food in but if I don't eat up to that I do struggle during my fast, although it is becoming easier.
Water helps as does some complex carbs just before your fast ends. I find that I'm super hungry about 3 hours after I first fast so I'm trying a piece of granary toast( I need something better but it's so delicious) at the end of my fast and it has taken the edge off my hunger pangs.

Keep going all, you're inspiring me

I totally understand not weighin in, and we do fluctuate day to day anyway - I then went UP a pound the day after posting but that's gone again. For me, I had a bonus 25 pound weight loss last year owing to a temporary health concern, and I bought the scales to help me maintain that loss. So if I weigh in daily or frequently then if it goes up I can have a couple of days of making smarter choices to keep it in check, which is soooo much easier than trying to lose a bunch of weight, as I would also like to do. I always remembered a mner from years back weighing in before and after a holiday and then doing what needed to be done to get the holiday weight off, and that seemed so sensible to me so it's this notion that I'm using. It was a hurdle to get over the fear of weighing in though!

Another issue for me is that I've been going to the gym since December. I can see and feel massive changes in muscle to fat ratio, I've built up endurance and strength, and I have evidence that my heart is healthier (my reason for going) so I hav actual evidence of my hard work even though it's not registerng on the scales, but it never ceases to surprise me. It's true fo rme the old rule that weight is about what we eat and not what we do, but that what we do is differently important.