Would any other slow losers like a half a pound a week solidarity thread?

[thenewaveragebear1983]

I am such a sloooooooow loser and peri menopause has pretty much killed it off. If I am left to my own devices I naturally eat exactly my maintenance calories, and to undercut by 500 a day feels like such a hardship. I exercise regularly, get my steps, cook from scratch and it’s not enough any more.

please don’t suggest weight loss meds. I’m not eligible and I couldn’t afford them anyway.

my strategy is 1500 cals a day, good quality food with as little UPF and sugar as possible, increase veg intake, get an extra walk in after dinner, and reduce my alcohol intake. It’s all very simple stuff really. A half pound a week will add up to 21lbs by the time I go on holiday next summer 👙

anyone else feel the same?

so I didn’t get a sandwich, I took Ryvita, Soft cheese and sliced cheddar and made myself a little cheeseboard. At our office social I had a hot chocolate sachet, 3 marshmallows and cream, and a couple of cakes. When I got home, dh and dc had already left so I had (don’t judge) a big bowl of leftover swede and veg from Sunday and I cooked 2 rashers of bacon for the top. It wasn’t particularly nice but it was easy. I am ending the day on target cals but only 70g protein but actually I am really pleased I didn’t overindulge on the sugary stuff, I brought loads home with me as well.

I am tired tonight but as I’m home alone I took the dog out for a short walk to get my steps over 10k. so all in all very positive for a Tuesday!

Sounds like your office day went really well @thenewaveragebear1983 nice to have the house to yourself after too! No judgement from me on your tea- I do hope some gravy was involved though..

I felt really rubbish yesterday, not sure if I'm coming down with something. My energy tanked, I couldn't concentrate at work (so now have loads of catching up to do!) and wanted to snack all day. I stuck to my calories and wasn't hungry as such, just wanted to eat sugary stuff. My hormones are a bit all over too as I've changed pill, might be contributing.

I still have a thumping headache this morning but I'm hoping for a better day- or at least a more productive one!

Today was a bit of a test. I didn’t have any protein yogurts and struggled to get my grams in (what a boring story, sorry ladies) …. But thankfully, I found a tin of tuna and protein snack was saved. I’m sure you’re all as relieved as I am

jokes aside though, shows the importance of planning and also the things that are good sourced rather than not so good for the calories. I had Ryvita and ham and Boursin for lunch, and for dinner I had a pork steak with half a cauliflower and some cheese sauce. Quite boring food but hit my goals and came in under cals. I went to bootcamp after work and it was the first time it’s been dark when I finished, autumn is coming 🎃

tomorrow might encounter similar issues unless I can get out to Tesco abc grab some protein yogs and a few other bits. I’m a bit bored of boiled eggs now. Need to batch cook a few goodies this weekend I think. Still resisting the scales although i definitely feel like I’m losing a few pounds. I almost don’t want to weigh myself in case I haven’t, because I’m in a really bouyant mood and feeling really positive about it.,

Plodding along here - I did go for a fantastic Indian meal on Monday with DH, I just had a main with veggie side, no rice or naan, it was fabulous and still just about on calorie allowance.

Maintaining at the moment, I probably won't lose anything for another week or so as my defecit is so small.

I did a 6k jog and 26km Zwift ride yesterday, very happy with that, I've been a bit lazy with Zwift lately.

Weights & walk today - 15k step goal.

That’s good going!

i’m also feeling quite on it, I’ve been snacking less and making decent choices, and I’m still exercising most days. My lower weight from earlier this week has stuck so I lost 1.3kg in the last month. Not loads, but if I keep going that will be another 2.5kg by Christmas.

Good evening, I struggled today. I’m due on and I’m 3 months into my new HRT and I’m not sure if I’m actually going to - I’ve had no pmt really and no insatiable hunger for carbs. But today I was just very hungry first thing and couldn’t wait til 12. I luckily had some leftover pork from yesterday and I ate some of that. Went for a run at lunch then had soup and Ryvita, walked after work and then had a weird meatloaf made of seasoned mince wrapped in bacon. It was nice actually and I had it with brocolli and cauliflower with a sprinkle of grated cheese.

tomorrow I need to plan better, I ended up over calorie goal because I ate so much meat 🤦‍♀️

@thenewaveragebear1983 that really sucks! Hopefully if it’s hormonal, it will pass and a couple of bad days won’t set you back too much. Were you able to plan out your day’s food last night like you wanted to?

@Swearwolfyes I did to an extent, it’s a bit scrappy because the cupboards are looking a bit bare as it’s Friday. My meals have been a bit boring this week which hasn’t helped, but sometimes it’s just the way it is, I find planning meals for every day so draining. Reflecting back on yesterday though and actually in previous months I’d have been 100 times worse and it would have been all sugary rubbish so actually if my body was craving protein and iron it’s not the worst thing.

interestingly I ran yesterday and I was noticeably hungrier as well.

sooooo glad it’s Friday, this week has been long. I need to do a weekend food shop, and my plan is just to clean my house, do a couple of workouts and catch up on life a bit. Food wise I have no idea as I haven’t sat and done my list, I feel like I need some inspiration! I’m not drinking this weekend though and that always gives me a boost.

Definitely sit and do that list, preferably right after you’ve eaten! I need to shop tonight too but I have a half hour gap while my child is at a class and I’m going to do it then - the time pressure will stop me wafting around looking at stuff!

It sounds like you’ve had an inevitable hormonal blip and you’ve dealt with it in a way that did the least damage, that’s great. Don’t let perfect be the enemy of good, or something?

Happy Friday 🥳 I hear you on the long week @thenewaveragebear1983 I'm so glad it's nearly the weekend! I'd much rather have gone over cals on proper food than sugar/junk so agree with @Swearwolf that you dealt with it well. I was the same yesterday, to the point I had my protein snack straight after my lunch and my sugar cravings got the better of me last night. I stayed within a deficit but feel a bit rubbish today.

I've kept an eye on the scales this week and my lowest was 67 exactly, but that was a one off and I've been higher all the rest of the week. I'll do my best to stick to things this weekend and hopefully see a 66 soon 🙏

I'm feeling a bit uninspired too so been trawling old deficit threads for ideas! I made a huge pot of chilli with lots of lentils, beans and veggies that's low cal for a satisfying portion- I need more stuff like this! Everyone likes it and it freezes beautifully- the holy grail 😅

@NahThen this time of year I just want nice hearty warming things. I also have a hankering right now for sweet/savoury combos, things like Moroccan sauces with apricots and things like that. Unfortunately the last few weeks I have sat and hurriedly done my shopping order, hence it’s got a bit bland.

I'm 8 weeks in now and so pleased to have found this thread. October and November are my danger months. Lots of Halloween and Christmas treats about, more time spent indoors because of the weather and shorter days, combined with snuggly jumpers and no need to expose my arms or legs.

This year is different as I'm already feeling like I'm ahead and that the Christmas gain is not going to be inevitable.

Does anyone else do the Mike Holland Tai Chi/Qigong inspired moves that seem to be all over my feeds at the moment? I've been doing them since the beginning of September and feel like they've helped improve my posture and reduce my cellulite. People say that they're life changing, I wouldn't say that, but I do find that they set me up for a better day.

I did my shopping order, I’ve planned marry me chicken, a slow cooked beef casserole which will do 2 days, roast on Sunday, sausages 😋 some nice warming autumn food

so very glad it’s the weekend, what a stressful week. But also I just reflect that I have been in the role just 6 months and when I started I never thought for a million years I would be competently doing it and here I am, just being awesome 🙌 go me !

before I allowed myself to flop and chill I did a Caroline Girvan leg workout in my gym and now I am going to light the log burner and get my weekend started!

Had a really nice Saturday yesterday, got lots of jobs done, house looking tidy, shopping done etc. Today I plan to take ds to football, walk the dog, batch cook and chill!

i ate quite a lot of chocolate last night but I still ended up ok for calories because I didn’t eat much all day, not intentionally but it happened. Although I did have quite a few days last week where I was over for various reasons, and ate more sugar overall. Hormones I guess naturally driving more carb intake and I definitely noticed I was more hungry generally, I found it hard to last til 12 for my first meal. Hopefully this week things will have settled a bit.

we’re having roast chicken tonight, with lots of veg and I will cook extra for the week, plus a tray of seasoned chicken drumsticks for snacks as I am getting a bit bored of eggs. My official October weigh in for my diet group is a week tomorrow so I am really determined this week to get my focus back and I’m quite excited to see the scales after not weighing all month!

Your meal plans sound great @thenewaveragebear1983 and pretty similar to mine weirdly!

We had sausages last week- the heck chicken ones are really good for calorie counting so we had those with a roast type dinner. Also got beef casserole in the oven for this evening, the house smells amazing.

Yesterday was delicious but not especially calorie friendly. I didn't end up eating a thing until dinner, by which time I was ravenous and DP cooked. He's a fantastic cook but embraces butter, cream and fat 🙈 we had a version of marry me butter beans with roast pork and greens. Absolutely amazing, and leftover beans will be going on some toast very soon!

I'm going to try and get out for a walk this afternoon if the weather holds, haven't done much exercise this weekend and feel a bit cabin feverish.

@67eleven I haven't heard of those but have been bombarded with Grow with Jo videos recently, I remember doing some before and they were really good. Was easy enough to pick something less intense if needed and the music was right up my street.

@NahThen 😋

@67eleven I haven’t heard of those, I am currently working my way through Caroline girvans iron series on YouTube. I’m on day 12 now, and it’s hard work but if you like a dumbbells home workout they are really good and they work, you will see muscle definition in the 30 days if you lift heavy enough (and I don’t use anywhere near as heavy as she does)

I’ve had a very active morning, walked the dog, took ds to football and just ran 8.5km. I put my underfloor bathroom heating on before I went out so I am now going to drink a nice latte in the bath and read my book! Then dd is coming round because she “feels like baking” (the joy of adult children!) so we will probably hang out in the kitchen and bake and cook the roast while dh does something with the boys.

Well, it must be new joiner's luck as I lost 2lb this week but it'll bounce back up again for the next few days, it always does. I have been really committed to lymphatic drainage and body brushing this week, so perhaps that's helped.

I particularly love beans in the autumn and winter, we had smoky beans on portobello mushrooms with cheese last night and a late roast lunch today. Some much needed maintenance this afternoon, my feet are prone to be tough and are now almost human, was tempted to do a foot peel but only painted my nails the other day and they still look nice, so that can wait. Tinted brows and lashes so my eyes have some definition back again.

My son played me Ella Langley "Be Her" as he thought I'd like it - rather than being about being envious of another woman, its about becoming the best version of yourself. Love it and adopting it as my theme for my weight loss expedition.

Wishing everyone all the best for the week ahead.

Right, I’m back! Went off piste for a couple of weeks, not following my Zoe app, too much snacking in the evening and boy do I feel pants. The lack of energy and brain fog is awful. So, I have restarted the app and will start again today. Weigh in was 10st11. Still a few pounds under what I started on with this thread so pleased with that.

Day menu:
B - overnight oats
L- some sort of healthy salad
T - Crosta and Mollica pizza. DD has her 12th sleepover so she’s having pizza and hotdogs. I need to start away from the crisps and sweets and just have pizza and salad.

will do one weights workout at some point

Woohoo well done @67eleven

welcome back @WhitegreeNcandle

i was just thinking while walking the dog, I can’t remember the last time I had such a consistent run of just doing it, no dramas, no fluctuating and write offs and start agains. I really feel like something has clicked for me in the last few weeks, long may it continue. I made a few small tweaks and in combination I think they are really working. I don’t know if I have actually lost weight as I am still off the scales but I feel so much better and I would be surprised if I haven’t. I’m going to weigh in officially next Monday for my diet group and I’m weirdly excited about it 🤣

today then- fast til 12 ish,
lunch is leftover roast from yesterday
dinner is spicy chicken and sweet potato wedges

protein snack is protein pudding and fruit
treat is yogurt, chia and rhubarb, plus an apple with peanut butter.

Hope everyone has a good week

Today is my office day, for me it’s always the worst food day of the week, and I have to be especially wary of the pitfall times so they don’t catch me out. 3pm is a bad one, having a coffee and cookie shop inside the office doesn’t help, then once I have driven home I can sometimes end up in the kitchen cupboards going wild.

today I’m going to take my yogurt, chia and fruit with me to eat at my desk. Then lunch will be Ryvita and cheese with salad bits. I will take my protein yogurt to have at 2.30/3 and two green apples for the drive home. Hopefully they will curb the snack attack. I have to pick up ds from footie and then come home and prepare dinner, which will be chicken of some description, with veg. The biggest thing is drinking enough water, I never drink enough at work and I’m wary of needing a toilet on my way home. But I think if I ensure to drink at least one refill that will help.

I’m feeling good though, my hormones have settled again after what was an incredibly light period and I think my HRT is kicking in properly now which in theory should stop them all together. Then hopefully I can rebuild some iron and ferritin stores. As I said yesterday I don’t think I can really remember the last time I just was ‘on plan’ consistently without having some sort of blow out/ restart cycle going on. It’s very calming and I actually think I might be able to get there this time!

I hope your office day went well!

All good here, I haven't weighed myself for ages as I think I'm just maintaining and don't want to be depressed by the scales!

I'm burning, according to my Garmin, between 1700-1900 kcals a day and eating around 1500-1600 kcals, so loss is very slow going.

It didn’t go great, I came home really frazzled and a bit tearful and ended up eating some, but not loads, of Halloween sweets (pure sugar) which took my overall calories up to 1900 for the day. Just about tdee, my meals were good and I got my protein in but I just didn’t drink enough water all day.

I find my job very hard and I had my 1-1 with my boss and I was quite honest about how I feel and what I’m struggling with. He’s really lovely actually and supportive but I think I felt a bit emotional after that.
i am so ready for a bit of time off as well, i really need a break and I’m looking forward to next week.

today, back in the game. I am booked onto bootcamp but the forecast is dire and I am not in the mood for a wet cold muddy workout. So if I don’t go to that I will do a session in my gym.

food is there but not sorted. I need to cook a tray of chicken legs which I was supposed to do yesterday, and I also want to roast some squash and make soup. I might not get chance to do this during the day so if not that will leave my meal plan a bit sketchy. I do have a pot of Tom soup which I could have for lunch. Dinner will be a slow cooked casserole which I will have to prepare before I log on.

and water, I must drink extra water today. That definitely contributed yesterday to my brain fry

Morning, sorry you had a rubbish day @thenewaveragebear1983 it sounds like you're ready for some time off, I always think the last week before a school holiday is a slog! Hope you get chance to do your prep, it's definitely the key isn't it 😬
@TakeTheDog my deficit is tiny too so loss is slow going. I did see 66.9 this morning but I doubt it will stay! I think my maintenance cals is just over 1600 and my mfp target is 1400. It's rare I go over and quite often hit around 1200 but mentally I like to know I've got space for extra if I need it. When I set my cals to 1200 I instantly feel deprived 😅
How did the sleepover go @WhitegreeNcandle?

I get the hard job stress @thenewaveragebear1983 can anything be done to make it better? Can you do something nice for yourself, sit down for half an hour, burn some essential oils and have a nap or get cosy with a hot drink and a read. Or if you're not on camera do a hair or face mask?

@NahThen I find that when I set calories at 1200 they seem to go much quicker than if I set them at 1400 (1200 but with an extra 200 emergency/contingency). Although I've discovered if I go below 1200/day my hair starts to fall out, but seems to be ok on 1400. Frustrating as I'd love to be able to do a fast diet and drop a stone or more before the end of the year but I really don't want to lose any more hair.

It's cold and wet here today, my least favourite weather, so I'm going on my walking pad later once I've finished my 3.5 hour taxi rounds.

@67eleven thanks. To be honest I think it is just that it’s a technical role and I work with a team of younger men and I just sometimes feel like my brain is full of new things. I like learning but it’s hard at 40+ to just completely change direction. My office day is especially hard because I can’t just walk away from my screen and I feel like I’m ‘masking’ all day. I am pretty good at 5pm switch off and not thinking about work though.

I also agree about your calories comment. Somehow 1200 feels ridiculously low and I will end up eating 2000. I’m doing pretty well hitting 15-1600 at the moment, and I do feel like I can consistently hit that, but have to make my peace with slow losses.

today it’s going to be a lovely sunny day so I am going to go out at lunchtime for a run. The last few days I’ve not been as tight on my diet as I had been so today I am fasting til lunch, then having leftover stew from last night with lots of veg. Dinner will be a piece of salmon, again with veggies. If I feel up to it I might use my gym as well this evening but maybe just for some yoga as I have bought myself some really cute grippy socks which I want to try out.

I’m going to do my first official weigh in of the month at some point this weekend as end of month weigh in for my diet group is Monday. I have really enjoyed not having the scales and I think I will continue into November. I think it’s really helped me to think of the bigger picture of my overall diet rather than 1 meal/1 day = weight loss / weight gain. I would be very surprised if I haven’t lost some weight as I can feel it in some areas but my body has been know to surprise me before so 🤷‍♀️