Anyone else looking to get in better shape for the summer?

[Chocolatecoffeecup]

I'm in my 40s and have a big family wedding in July I'd like to get in better shape for. I'm trying to cut down on the sugary snacks and exercise more. Anyone else interested in a support and motivation thread.

Tuesdays are my office day and I always take it as a rest day, no exercise. I’m new at my job and I find the office quite stressful, I was late this morning, couldn’t park, and I find it hard to concentrate when I feel like everyone is watching me.

I’m eating my freezer stash of prepared meals this week to clear some space, so today I had chilli and rice, I have taken something that looks curry ish out for tomorrow. But I can’t calorie count as I don’t know exactly what everything is. Made sugar free jelly for tomorrow as well

That sounds ok @thenewaveragebear1983 It's definitely harder to exercise on office days. I didn't even have my collagen this morning because I was up and out quite early...

I am going to do my abs exercises in a moment. I'm procrastinating!

Can I join please? I have a stone to lose and I’d like to do it my the summer, not sure if that’s feasible though.
My plan is to walk to work three times a week (2 miles each way) and cut all the crap out of my diet. I have a really sweet tooth but I’ve discovered a healthy alternative to chocolate and biscuits to eat when I crave sugar in the evenings if anyone’s interested…

@QueenAstrid A few of us are aiming for weddings and other stuff going on in the summer! I think it's long enough to make a difference to feel better about yourself. Definitely interested in your healthy alternative as I have a very sweet tooth! My go-to is a piece of dark chocolate or chewing gum. I also like frozen grapes!

Ooh I need to try frozen grapes <adds grapes to shopping list >, I can’t stop at one piece of dark chocolate though.
I’ve been mashing up a banana, mixing in some oats until the consistency is like dough, then adding a few sultanas and/or chocolate chips. Then shape into sort of fat cookies, and bake in the air fryer for about 15 mins. They are delicious!

They sound good Astrid!

Have you tried frozen banana? I have braces and don't think I could bite into one at the moment but that's also a goodie. With chocolate or nuts on obviously.

No I haven’t, I didn’t know you could freeze banana, will give that a try too 😃

Yeah same here but I’ve replaced with spray and tablets so that should stop anxiety.

If you get dates and stuff them with a bit of peanut butter or a half walnut and freeze them, they never actually freeze solid but they do go like toffees 😋 except high in fibre and good / better for you at least. My current favourite is a salted rice cake, spread with a teaspoon of Peanut butter, then add sliced strawberries or bananas, it makes a really filling snack but do weigh the peanut butter because it’s very high cal

Yes. I’ve started intermittent fasting can’t believe the results in tummy area. I’m 5’1 - 10.6 stone. Looking to lose a stone. I’ve done a few 24 hour fasts & im really pleased with the results, less bloating round upper body & tummy area. But I love food & sweet stuff so it’s quite a challenge but I’m getting better at accepting the fasts now.

The rice cakes sound good @thenewaveragebear1983 The dc might like them too

Love the idea of dates as toffee. I will try that. I was so hungry last night I ate a bowl of granola. Wednesday is my weigh day and I’ve stayed the same as last week which is ok with as I ate a lot this weekend.

tofays food:
B - peanut butter & banana on toast
T - lentil dahl

out for lunch - dh are looking at a business to buy and part of it is a cafe so I assume we’ll be testing it after our viewing!!

I’m up for this as well!
Have just come out of hibernation where wasn’t looking at what I was eating and lots of drinking, and the sunny weather didn’t help with the drinking. But I have a holiday booked for whit week and would like to lose weight and look and feel more comfortable.

Im calorie counting at the moment, lost 3lbs since Sunday but thats probably water salt retention from having a nice weekend of eats and drinks. But I’ll take the small win to keep me going.

Willpower is high at the moment, we’ve had cakes and treats at work Monday and Tuesday and I haven’t had one!

Also I went for a walk/ jog yesterday with the dd so hopefully I can add that to my week and do some exercise.

Thanks @Chocolatecoffeecup, it definitely helps the motivation when you start seeing results. I’ve learnt as well not to put any meaning into my weight - whenever I start going to the gym I change shape but my weight never changes much, so I go by how my clothes are fitting. there’s some great tips and advice on here re snacks, I’ll have to give some a go.
One breakfast I like that feels healthy but not dull is a slice of brown toast, spread with some peanut butter and topped with slices of banana, then a grating of dark chocolate. You only need a tiny amount of chocolate, not even a square, but it still tastes really good and starts the day with a chocolate hit (is it obvious I have a sweet tooth?!).

@itispersonalI love the hibernation period over winter, but yes it’s depressing to emerge from that cocoon and back into reality!

Welcome @itispersonal I'd be happy with 3lbs off

@WhitegreeNcandle You absolutely must do your due diligence and test the cafe!

@laddersandsnakes16 I like banana on toast so that sounds good. You are right about weight. I think what's bothered me is I lost a good half a stone last year but then I've put half back on which is annoying.

I'm on the train into work. I would love a hot chocolate from Nero but I've told myself I can have it on Friday morning if I still want one. They're expensive as it is but it's payday and I have got a busy work week!

I have two bananas for breakfast, will try to go for another salad for lunch and hopefully not snack too much. I bought a big bag of nuts yesterday to keep me going but it's easy to eat too many!

Please may I join too? I had lost a lot of weight last year and got back down from a 14/16 to my comfortable size which hovers around a dress size 10 (I don’t weigh myself really), just go by what things look like). However since Christmas I’ve been less disciplined and the weight has definitely started to pile back on, so that im much more a 12 than a 10 and it all sits on my belly (in ways it didn’t before my mid 40’s). I just feel a bit grim.
I started clean eating last week and I’ve been going to reformer Pilates two or three times a week. I work outdoors in a pretty lively job so I easily do over 10 000 plus steps a day but my body has got used to that so I actually need to figure out how to do more without being really knackered or having sore knees!

I am really trying to overhaul my whole diet so by counting calories but also trying to make better choices with what I do eat. I have cut down on bread/pasta and am eating rice & potatoes more but it means I have to give much more thought to lunches. I used to just make sandwiches for work as it’s easy.

I also realised how little water I drank. I have really upped my water but it’s probably still not enough really.

@laddersandsnakes16 I have a month until my first swimwear debut of the year and in front of people. It’s a frightening. I do find when I up my walking or exercise then I get really sore for a week and then I get used to it. You could try a massage gun or foam rolling (although that’s a painful torture in itself)

@Chocolatecoffeecup there are lots of people who swear on a ninja creamy ice cream maker to make healthy protein packed ice cream. I tend to have a Coke Zero when I get a sweet tooth.

@QueenAstrid welcome to the group. Your desert sounds fab!

I totally agree @ApricotRow sandwiches and often with crisps are a bad idea for lunches on a regular basis as most of the calories are severely lacking in nutritional content but they are so easy to make or buy.

I have STS on the scales this morning. I like to weigh each morning. I still have Very little energy and so will again be well under my normal step count and no real exercise and the timer is ticking away. DH wants us to book a nice holiday for just us but everything is so expensive and I would like to do long haul which feels like a really bad idea First world problem I know!

Welcome @piscofrisco

@ApricotRow I'm not good at taking lunch into work but if I did it would just be sandwiches as it's easy. I usually only need to go in twice a week so I treat myself to lunch and today and yesterday I've gone for salads which is a start. I don't drink much either as I don't get very thirsty and don't drink tea or coffee so I just don't reach for things...

@CarelessWimper I think I really wanted a dream at one point so I could make ice cream from bananas! Protein ice cream sounds like a good idea. Are you happy with STS? I'm trying to just weight on Fridays but might go for twice a week as I think once weekly can skew things as our weight fluctuates so much 🤔

I checked my ab separation last night and it seems to have improved a lot after 3 weeks of gentle exercises. I plan to keep doing them but building up a bit more.

Thanks for the welcome.

I find I generally eat better when I’m at work compared to when I’m off (teacher) and I have the same things for lunch at 3 times a week which I prep on a Sunday night (overnight oats). On my 4th day I would normally get a meal deal but will change that to a home made wrap instead.

We are also quite routine with meal (neurodivergent household), so can easily get into the swing of it, it’s just portion size and stopping the snacking and drinking. Which obviously is the hardest part and needs the most will power and causes the most self destruction!!!

@Chocolatecoffeecup there are a lot of banana nice cream recipes online, you could try some?

https://realfood.tesco.com/recipes/banana-nice-cream.html

Earlier this year I was over 10st 10, anywhere between 11st 4lb and 10st 10lb and then DH decided that we both wanted to loose the weight and have been putting the work in, including buying a magic mirror. I thought my goal weight would be 9st 7lb but I’m currently 10st 0.4lb. Last week I was 9st 13lb and that difference mentally is huge and I’m desperate to get back into the 9st somethings. Considering how much I have already lost, it doesn’t look particularly noticeable to me.

Im only 5ft 3 and if I’m honest, I’m a bit disappointed that I don’t think 9st 7lb is going to be low enough.

@itispersonal i love overnight oats. Giving up alcohol will really help and it’s such a waste of calories and so disruptive to sleep which makes it harder to stay on track.

@CarelessWimper I didn't think to use a food processor. I might give it a go as frozen banana is nice as it is

I am a similar weight to you and want to lose a similar amount, about 7 lb. I feel like losing about 1lb a week should get me there by June / July. This time last year I weighed about 4-5lb less than I do now and it's annoying I put it back on...