Trying to lose!

“Let’s talk non-scale victories” – Mia

My apologies, I’m not sure how to share – I’ve hit the share button at the bottom of this blog post, several times, and I get an empty screen. Neither can I find the reblog button. Any help would be very much appreciated 🙂

So below is the information copied over from Mia’s blog, which I thought very useful, especially given my theme today :). https://newmenewmia.home.blog

Mia, thank you for letting me share this info. https://newmenewmia.home.blog

Tip 1: Measure Yourself! Dig out that tape measure and measure your hips, waist, thighs and neck and keep a record in a diary or notepad when you see those numbers changing it can be a great motivator.

Tip 2: How do your clothes feel? Do they fit better? Are they feeling baggier? This can be a sure fire way tell that you are making good progress. As I said in a post earlier this week I now own a pair of MC Hammer looking trousers! They look ridiculous but it made me feel great.

Tip 3: Endurance! Are you finding your cardio workouts easier? Can you manage a few extra minutes without feeling exhausted? If so this is a great indicator of progress. I am somewhat limited due to my fibro so I have to be careful to pace myself but when I started my little bit of exercise I could not manage more then a few minutes of Pedal biking but over time I have managed to build this up so again progress!

Tip 4: Face Gains and Definition! As your journey continues you might start to notice more muscle definition in your body. I have always had a bit of a double chin but over time I have noticed that my face is a little slimmer and I can see much more muscle definition in my legs since biking.

Tip 5: Gut Health! Might seem a strange one when talking about progress but I have noticed a massive improvement in my gut health. I have become a lot more regular which for a suffer of IBS from birth is a huge relief!

So when the scales don’t seem to be budging just look at the bigger picture and keep going!

Mia, thank you again for letting me share this info. https://newmenewmia.home.blog

Not losing weight? Don’t give up!

Hello! This is a post for anyone who is disappointed with their weight on the scales – please don’t give up.

That sinking feeling….

You’ve been sticking to your diet religiously, you’ve been doing your exercises consistently, and it’s come to weigh in time.

You’re feeling nervous, excited to see what the numbers say, anxious. You’ll be having a conversation with your weight loss buddy, or with your internal self, “I’ve been good, I’ve worked hard, I should have lost weight. But what if I haven’t. No, surely I have!”

You approach that set of scales with a mix of excitement and trepidation – you step and wait, and then….

Angry, guilty, upset!

Angry – You’ve put so much effort in – what’s going on!

Guilty – Oh, maybe that sneaky bar of chocolate in the entire week of goodness has killed all your efforts.

Upset – Why does this happen to you – heaven know’s your trying your damn best!

Well, guess what – it’s not always as disappointing as those numbers tell you. I had a very interesting read out on the chemist scales over the weekend, and I found it really enlightening. So much so, that I thought I should dedicate a blog just to that – with an aim to encouraging any the weight loss journeyers out there who have been, or will be, in the above mentioned scenario.

Last week I lost absolutely no weight. None. And yet….

I am absolutely DELIGHTED with the results of my readout – to explain, the scales I use also give a read out of my fat composition, this is not usually information I bother to look at, the only number that mattered to me was the overall weight. But on looking on the bottom of my print out, it showed a reduction of 1.9kg of fat, that’s just over 4lb of lard! GONE!

I’m guessing I’ve looked at weight only scales thousands of times over the years, and I’m thinking about all those weeks where I was hoping for a reasonable weight loss, only to be so utterly disappointed, and I have thought “What’s the bloody point!” And there have been plenty of times where I’ve then gone straight to the cupboard and opened the ’emergency’ huge bag of crisps and scoffed the lot – only to feel more miserable and down and then to have a few bad days – Oh my word, all that heartache I could have saved myself!

So please, don’t be disheartened – If you know you’ve put the effort in, and you were deep down expecting a weight loss, there’s every possibility that the nasty stuff, the fat, has actually depleted, you might just be holding onto more fluid than usual!

I would recommend maybe once a month popping to a chemist/shop where you can get a read out like above. This week has so helped me with my motivation, and it may just help with yours too 🙂

Reasons why we might not lose overall weight:

Hormones
Water retention
muscle growth

I shall be starting to take my measurements soon, I’ve heard that’s a great way to see how our bodies are changing 🙂

I do hope this blog post finds anyone who needs it. Keep going – you can do this!

18th Aug 2019 – SUCCESS! Kind of…

4lb of fat – GONE!!! more on that lower down – here’s my summary for the weekend.

So, I am on the whole pleased with the food this weekend, here’s what I had:

Saturday – 3 Turkey rashers sandwiched between two slices of seeded wholewheat bread, spread with olive spread, no sauce. For dinner mum-in-law cooked pasta with chicken and bacon in a low calorie ragu sauce. Mum-in-law also bought healthy nuts for snacks during games, I did have a couple of a few crisps and cheesy nibbles, but not a lot. There was quite a bit of alcohol, my in laws have discovered a new rum. It was lovely!

Sunday – 2 slices of toast for breakfast, gammon (no fat), my healthy spuds and loads of veg for dinner. I turned down ice cream – GO ME 😆

Now we’re home, Paul (the significant other) and I had cucumber, celery and humus. There have been a couple of cups of tea, and a few tablets – not just for alcohol induced reasons – but I’m currently enjoying (?) a glass of water.

I’ll be preparing my salad and eggs for the first half of week shortly.

Exercise – none.

I had prepared myself for a potential weight gain this week, and there would have been perfectly good reasons for it – 1. The mysterious weight I gain during my menstrual cycle, 2. The exercise and possible muscle increase, 3. The naughties which have jumped into my mouth last week.

I wouldn’t have been disappointed because I don’t believe the naughties would have made that much difference, I can’t help my biology, and I have worked hard on exercises, so I had it in my head that actually I would have lost had I not been at that time of the month.

Well… I didn’t lose or gain, but…

My body fat has been reduced by 1.9kg, that’s just over 4lb of actual fat!! I’m sooo pleased, and although I would have loved to see the overall weight go down, I feel fantastic knowing the exercises I had done has made such a huge difference! See below for last week’s and this week’s tickets:

So glad I took more than a cursory glance at all that other info!

Hopefully my stomach will calm down in a day or two and I can start exercising again.

I’m so excited to be carrying on, I can’t wait to see what I can achieve next week 😊

Anyway, goodnight for now.

A quick update on last night

Turns out when my sister-in-law buys pizza, she also gets a ton of sides!

I love pizza, and I love chicken wings, garlic bread etc, etc. It was all there, right in front of me.

So, I started with a chicken strip, then I ate my pasta and vegetables, and as if it was meant to be, there was the skiniest slice of pizza you’ve ever seen – I had that. And that dear folk, was my dinner!!!! I am sooo pleased with myself, I was so worried I would lose my resolve, but I didn’t! What’s more, I didn’t feel hard done by!

As for alcohol… started with one cup of tea (2 sugars), and throughout the evening had two rums with Pepsi max! Again, so pleased!

Feeling ultra positive I can continue this for the rest of weekend, mum-in-law is happy with me taking hummus and crudites.

Byeeee for now.

16th Aug 2019 (pt 2) – Dinner sorted! Exercise done!

PHEW! got everything sorted, left work to work from home this afternoon, had a choice, go to shop or exercise before lunch time over – opted for exercises – my habitual 3 routines now sweated through for the day, good thing given I won’t have time before going to the sister-in-law!

I did have that packet of crisps, but take solace in the fact they are oven-baked.

I am gonna stick to my guns and have one slice of pizza, no more, just to be sociable! but I have made a nice big pot of wholewheat pasta (60g cooked) with a load of veggies! frozen sprouts, peas and sweetcorn (sprouts steamed for a few mins to soften up and then cut up) with the remaining fresh brocolli (also steamed to soften up), added to a saucepan with garlic puree, dried sage and 10 squirts of 1 cal oil. mixed about a bit and left on a low heat for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Veggies and pasta added to bowl. drizzle of sweet chilli sauce, mixed together. bowled up for pic (below) then added to tub to take with me tonight! There’s just over 3 portions of veg (269g)

Anyway, gotta go – for just a bowl full of food, i’ve created a mountain of washing up for myself! how is it possible!

May not get a chance to update tomorrow.

Here’s to hoping you all have a lovely weekend 🙂

16th Aug 2019 (pt 1) – tricky diet weekend (and no salad today!)

Stupid me! stupid, stupid, stupid me! I forgot to go the the shops last night to get fresh salad stuff, so I’m gonna have to cope today without my salad – not only is that my lunch, it’s also my main source of fruit and veg!

So, what can I do, I’ve got my usual other stuff, nuts, eggs, cherries and apples. I have a pack of oven baked crisps. I can eat more nuts than usual if necessary. Ok, that’s the day sorted. Hopefully! I doubt I’ll be hungry, just lamenting the missing tastes and textures of my salad 😦

Then there’s tonight, and for that matter the weekend!

Tonight we’re going to spend some time with my sister-in-law, there will be pizza and booze! Plan: make up a salad with what’s left in my fridge – half a carrot, half a pepper, red onion, cucumber? yes, maybe. Add olives and raisins. Or, make up some rice and cook and add frozen veggies (and maybe raisins :)) ok, neither of those are a bad plan – delight in one slice of pizza and salad/rice and veg – yes, that’s doable, totally committed to that. As for booze – take pepsi max to mix with vodka/rum – whatever we have, make the alcohol weak and have glasses of water inbetween. Yep, also doable – and totally committed to that! Ok, that’s tonight sorted!

Tomorrow night? Ok, so that’s round at the in-laws – afternoon/night alcohol, card night, nibbles, ok, so same plan for alcohol as tonight – that’s fine. nibbles – will just need to limit myself – have, this very moment, texted mum-in-law to see if she would mind me taking round hummus and veggie crudites (is that crew-dite or crew-de-tees? I’ve never known!) Hopefully she’ll be ok with that, that will relieve the pressure of the nibble situation. Ok, so far, depending on mum-in-law, this is sounding like a plan! again doable and something i’m committed to. Ask for toast only on Sunday morning, no bacon (unless it’s medallions) – not sure how committed I am to that! Take a tub of half spoon sugar for any cups of tea!

Don’t know where Sunday dinner will be, home or in-laws – will cross that bridge when I come to it.

Ok, let’s see how much determination I actually have shall we? wish me luck! 😀

15th Aug 2019 – a mostly healthy day with homemade risotto!

Hello!

I’m feeling pleased with today, my usual daytime food- natural nuts, hard boiled eggs, salad, cherries and an apple, and a cheat – 3 small pieces of chocolate! I am not sorry for this, my intention is always to try my best, but if I need, and I definitely needed today, then I would treat myself!

I also made risotto for the very first time today! It was ok, not fabulous, but not bad. I’ll try it again soon with a couple of changes. In the meantime, if you fancy trying the recipe as is, the link to the recipe is https://www.diabetes.org.uk/guide-to-diabetes/recipes/mushroom-risotto

And I did my exercises, all 3 programmes!

So yes, chocolate aside, I’m pleased with today.

Anyway, that’s enough of me for one day 😆. Goodnight

14th Aug 2019 – interesting day

So, having looked into portion control (if interested please check out my previous post) today, I now know I don’t need to worry that I’m not getting enough protein, but I’m not getting enough dairy and may not be getting enough carbs.

As a knee jerk reaction I had two slices of bread with my salad, but this took away from my fruit portion as I didn’t eat grapes. This wasn’t a conscious decision, I simply forgot to eat them. I guess the bread just filled me up too much. I then wondered if I was worrying over nothing, as there’s probably carbs (starch) in fruit and veg. I shall need to look into that.

As for dairy, I’m going to start having Greek yoghurt instead of chocolate mousse in the evening.

So, my usual eggs, salad, cherries and nuts plus 2 slices of seedy wholewheat bread.

Tonight, gammon (I cut off all the fat) with my oven cooked, herby, garlicky spuds, mushrooms and broccoli. I did eat too much of the gammon, all of it in fact, despite the portion control post (I’ll shop according to that for next week). I did leave some spuds. And I didn’t have any apple sauce.

Exercise, yup, I did all three programmes, so over 30 minutes of exercise today, easy cardio, beginner step, beginner strength. I’m sure my body is coping better, it doesn’t feel easier, not by any stretch of the imagination, I just feel I can do it all better.

Anyway, that’s me for today.

Goodnight all.

Let’s Talk – Portion Control!

Ok, so I do have a habit of over stuffing the plate! I can’t bear the thought of not serving up enough dinner, and this has led me to overfeeding myself and my family.

In the ongoing efforts to improve myself I thought I really should look into portion control. I used the following website for the bulk of information: https://www.bupa.co.uk/health-information/nutrition-diet/portion-size

For my diet, I think I need to adjust the starch element – shouldn’t be too hard – I love my bread! Salad sarnies – WOOHOO! I was also worried I wasn’t getting enough protein – especially as the recommended allowance is for skinnier people (apparently we need 0.36g of protein for every 1lb we weight), but it turns out I’m having 2 portions of protein before I’ve even hit lunchtime! And then there’s dairy – so, other than cheese, I’m not a dairy type person – don’t think I have a problem with it, I’m just not keen. So, i’ll try to increase this with yoghurt. Will have to be from next week now though.

Anyway, It was quite an eye opener for me doing this little bit of research, found it very interesting, hope you glean some snippets of interest too 🙂

Starches

3-5 portions a day (men upto 50 can have upto 7)

Starchy foods are an important source of energy. After they are eaten, they are broken down into glucose, which is the body’s main fuel, especially for our brain and muscles. Starchy foods provide important nutrients to the diet including B vitamins, iron, calcium and folate. https://www.nutrition.org.uk/healthyliving/basics/carbs.html

Portions per day – 3-5 portions a day, men upto age 50 can have upto 7 portions

40g cerial (about 6 tablespoons
2 slices of bread
1 bread roll or bagel
1 pitta bread
5ish egg sized potatoes
1 medium jacket spud with skin

Choose healthy options, ie fortified non sweetened cereals, wholewheat pastas and breads.

Proteins

2 portions a day

Proteins are fundamental structural and functional elements within every cell of the body and are involved in a wide range of metabolic interactions. All cells and tissues contain protein, therefore protein is essential for growth and repair and the maintenance of good health. Protein provides the body with approximately 10 to 15% of its dietary energy and it is the second most abundant compound in the body, following water. A large proportion of this will be muscle (43% on average) with significant proportions being present in skin (15%) and blood (16%). https://www.nutrition.org.uk/nutritionscience/nutrients-food-and-ingredients/protein.html

Portions – 2 portions a day

60-90g cooked meat (about the size of a deck of cards)
140g cooked fish (size of the palm of your hand)
2 medium eggs
200g tin of baked beans (small tin)
4 tbsp lentils
1 tbsp peanut butter
1 handful of nuts

Go for lean meats such as chicken or turkey, without the skin.

Try to stay away from processed meats such as bacon or sausages – but as and if you do have them, go for healthier options from supermarkets (I buy cumberland style veggie sausages sometimes – very nice)

Aim for 2 portions of fish a week, one of which should be oily – high in omega 3 – salmon or mackerel for instance.

Try to limit red meat to once a week – better for our bodies and the environment.

Go for unroasted/unsalted nuts.

Diary

3 portions a day

Consuming dairy products provides health benefits – especially improved bone health. Foods in the Dairy Group provide nutrients that are vital for health and maintenance of your body. These nutrients include calcium, potassium, vitamin D, and protein. https://www.choosemyplate.gov/dairy-nutrients-health

200ml milk, including fortified soya, rice or oat milk
125ml yoghurt
30g hard cheese (size of small matchbox. grated cheese goes further)

Go for healthier options, for instance semi-skimmed milk instead of full fat, and reduced fat cheddar.

Fruit and Veg

5-7 portions a day

Fruit and vegetables are a good source of vitamins and minerals, including folate, vitamin C and potassium. They’re an excellent source of dietary fibre, which can help to maintain a healthy gut and prevent constipation and other digestion problems. A diet high in fibre can also reduce your risk of bowel cancer. https://www.nhs.uk/live-well/eat-well/why-5-a-day/

Each portion should be about 80g each. 150ml of fruit counts as 1 portion – no more counts towards your five a day. 30g of dried fruit counts as 1 portion.

1 medium fruit – apple, orange, pear, banana
2 small fruit – kiwi, satsuma, plums
2 large slices of larger fruit – pineapple, mango
1 large handful of grapes or berries
3 heaped tbsp small veg – peas, sweetcorn, carrols
150ml fruit juice or smoothie – anymore can not be counted towards your daily intake
30g dried fruit
3 heaped tbsp of beans or lentils – anymore can not be counted towards your daily intake

Oils and Spreads

Use all oils and spreads sparingly – buy 1cal spray – very handy – if not, buy cheap spray bottle and decant veg oil into it – this helps control the oil tippage!

Water

try to drink 2 litres a day (more if exercising), water is best, but teas, coffees, squashes all count.

There’s loads of foods out there to enjoy, hopefully this will be useful to me, and to you 🙂

13th Aug 2019 – I’ve got this weight loss thing down to a tee!

At the moment 🤣

Right now I feel like nothing’s going to stop me succeeding this time, it’ll be interesting to see how I feel over the next few days, as monthly meltdown is definitely gearing up!

So, onto food. I had my lovely normal day time food, along with cherries and grapes… YES, I remembered to buy fruit this week! I did have a pack of cathedral city cheesy bites this afternoon.

Then for the evening meal I cooked a homemade carbonara. Now I halved the ingredients as there’s just the two of us, this means the recipe as I made it should have been for 3 people, we did eat it all! I also used a bit more garlic, and will use bacon medallions next time for a stronger taste. But it was tasty, easy to make, and quick. My happy surprise is that I enjoyed the wholewheat spaghetti – I didn’t think I would! Anyway, here’s the link just in case you fancy giving it a go! https://www.superhealthykids.com/recipes/healthy-italian-spaghetti-carbonara-recipe/

Homemade carbonara, missing the Greek yoghurt!

The other half has just told me I forget to add the Greek yoghurt to the carbonara… IDIOT that I am! That would explain why it wasn’t as creamy as I was hoping for! Still tasty though 😁

I have also found another great little exercise routine! I did my steps with a view to then doing my strength exercises, however I was more worn out than usual after the step, on account of my step being a good three inches higher! So as I sat down another youtube clip started running, so I watched it and then did it twice.

Now, this new routine is going to be incorporated into the usual, I’m going to start with 1 of the new exercise, then step (And I might as well keep it high now) followed by the strength.

This new one is only a 7 minute programme, uses no equipment, and has no jumping around, but it did make me sweat, so all good! Here’s the link: https://youtu.be/0x4OP0yDE90

Anyway, that’s it from me tonight, good night all. 👋