Fakin' it.

Years and years ago I bought Richy a session at an Indian cook school as a birthday gift. I picked the time and what he would be cooking because it needed booking before his birthday, so I was careful to pick something I liked the sound of (shocking!). It turned out to be one of the best gifts I have ever bought him because even though that was at least 5 years ago we regularly cook the chicken jaipuri curry and rice he made that day. It actually turns out to be very Slimming World friendly too once the oil is culled. The original curry recipe asks for 1tsp(!) of coconut milk but this can easily be swapped for yoghurt to keep it totally syn free.

It turned out this weekend has been a sort of fake away weekend. I fancied a curry on Friday so we made the Jaipuri which was excellent, and then nursing a slight hangover today I resisted the urge to phone a pizza or order a Chinese and made a chow mein. I'm not going to lie - a takeaway would have suited my mood better but in an attempt to redress the balance where last night's wine syns are concerned it was the better decision to cook something, and it suited my wallet better too.

Today's chow mein was about half a syn plus some sweet chilli sauce and was absolutely perfect for tonight. Here's what I did...

1.5 cooked chicken breasts, shredded and marinaded in 2 tbsp soy and 2 tbsp sherry
A handful of cooked prawns

4 cloves of garlic, sliced
A thumb size chunk of ginger, grated
3 spring onions, shredded

1 large carrot cut into thin batons
2 peppers thinly sliced
A handful of sugar snap peas sliced lengthways
1 medium onion thinly sliced
Half a bag of beansprouts
3 cards of noodles, cooked
Half a stock cube
Soy sauce & oyster sauce to taste

Sweat the spring onion, garlic and ginger for a minute in fry light.  Add a splash of water if it looks too dry.

Add carrots and onion, followed by peppers and sugar snap peas. Add the stock cube to a corner of the pan and add a splash of water (or sherry) to make a light paste and stir through. Toss through a couple of tablespoons of oyster sauce, chuck in the chicken and prawns, then the beansprouts..  then the noodles and mix well.

Add soy to taste and serve with sweet chilli sauce. 

This quantity served 2 adults and 2 kids and I have 2 portions leftover for lunches this week. WIN! :-) I didn't put chilli in it because my girls are wimps but you could easily add some in and obviously amend the veggies to suit what you have and like. This is quick, satisfying, cheap and versatile. I'm not reinventing the wheel here. It's nothing new and actually it's not a diet recipe.

These two dishes kept me away from the takeaway this weekend. It won't always be the way, I know, but right now I'm happy enough that this weekend hasn't been wasted.

Look at that face!

This is the face I pull when I don't get what I want. I was 3 here and 31 years later I still pull it (so I am told). In this case what I didn't get was a quick fix, but really, honestly... who does?

I know I have been a bit quiet about this (shocking!) but I have been back on plan for a couple of weeks now. First weigh in good (4.5lb) and second was a maintain. I should be upset about that but to be perfectly honest I had a takeaway, a lot of wine and a meal with friends. With cake. Hoping for that 2.5lb this week for my first new book shiney. 

Ahh... Remember the shineys? I am really looking forward to getting some book bling on the go as the pounds and inches go down. I've already dropped a couple of inches - it's amazing how quickly you can see results and to anybody starting their journey I would definitely say take measurements from the start. I know lots of people take them monthly but I do weekly and stick with it, taking a note on weigh day. The thing is your clothes might not show a difference and the scales might not either but chances are stuff is happening. I measure my ankle and wrist too and believe it or not they do show a difference!

Anyway that's all a bit dull so I'm going to leave you with that for today whilst I go and figure out what I am going to have for lunch tomorrow. I've got something delicious in mind for tomorrow's dinner though, so until then...

See ya, pals.

See Saw Marjorie Daw

I think as you get older you learn a lot about yourself.

In the past few years I have learned that I am capable of more than I ever imagined in terms of (currently lapsed) weight training. I've learned that pride comes before a fall. I have learned that I can safely describe myself as a yo-yo dieter and that I will always always have to watch my intake. I have learned how quickly weight gains on you; how little disregard it has for your mental and wellbeing or how hard you are working at the gym; how sneaky it is; how it climbs on board when you aren't watching... and then... one day... all of a sudden... BOOM!

Back at square one.

I've learned the value of the saying"never say never". "That weight is never going back on". "I'm never doing this again". One thing I can assure you I am never doing is saying these things again! The truth is that of course I wish I hadn't put weight back on, that really goes without saying... but is it the absolute end of the world? Not really. I still have my family and great friends and a happy life and that really is the top and bottom of it. That being said, Slimming World and I are about to become reacquainted and in advance of that I've already started eating according to the plan, and it's going well.

Will things be different this time? Of course they will. On the one hand, I've done it before. On the other hand... I've done it before (if you see what I mean). When I joined in 2012 I had no idea what weight I wanted to be or how I would look at any given weight. Now I know where I want to be and and I know roughly how that will look. I understand my body shape better than ever before - I know that I am pear shaped and high waisted. I know exactly where I want to get to... and that's to where I got before. At that weight (in the picture I was actually slightly heavier), I wanted to lose another 3 stone. At the time I was fixated on that weight but in hindsight I see that it wasn't necessary and that I looked and felt amazing. I maintained for a year, fighting and trying and when nothing else was coming off I lost heart and weight started to creep on.

So that's the aim.

Get... back... there.

Oh what a week!

Well. First week back on it was, frankly,  a bit of a shambles...but I knew that would happen. Visiting family, my daughter's birthday, a party, Mother's Day - all in the one week? Sheesh.

I could, of course, have gone back to Slimming World this week and not last. I had various reasons to postpone - the social events plus a dose of ill health amongst others. I had good reasons for going though, and my main feeling was that I would rather go and get started than wait, mainly because, well, what more damage could I cause?! I'm glad I went last week. I made lots and lots of very poor decisions... but you know, I made lots of good ones too. Out of 7 days I managed to be "on plan" maybe 3 days. Maximum. And I went last night to face to music. And I lost half a pound. That's a packet of butter right there. (Or not, if you like).

It's been nice thinking about meal planning again, working through my cupboards and remembering all the lovely things you can eat readily on this plan rather than focusing on the things you can't. Lunch has always been a tough shout for me, mainly because I have to really plan in advance. As in make it and have it sitting waiting for me. I've knocked up a couple of pasta salads this week, one was a take on a pasta puttanesca and the other was a sort of tuna pasta full of capers, red onions and salady things. Today though I made a couscous chicken salad, full of Speed foods, lemon, balsamic vinegar and - obviously - cooked chicken. It was massive but delicious and has reminded me of one of the great things about SW. Variety.

This time, it's personal.

I'll just cut to the chase, because let's be honest, who needs small talk?

I've been back and forth in the last year. Mostly forth. Weight creeping on. Up and up. I've piled on a massive chunk of what I lost. How depressing. How annoying.

How disappointing.

So many good intentions simply thrown away. So many good habits tossed aside. It would be so easy to say never again but that's not life. It's not reality and it's not people. It's not me, sadly.

At the point I got stuck I was determined to lose another 2-3 stone but since sticking and maintaining before gaining I have realised that actually where I was was a pretty perfect place to be. I felt good... I was around about a size 14 and had developed a new confidence. Now I've put weight back on it's all a bit messy. I didn't have "old me" photos last time, but now I do. I didn't have clothes I didn't fit into last time, but now I do. Last time it was just a battle against the blubber. This time it's a battle against 2012 me. And it's harder.

I miss my collar bones and those funny ligaments in my knees I didn't know I had before losing over 6st. I don't know how to dress my new shape (and it is new because the weight has gone back in different places) so I feel terrible most of the time. I miss my favourite dresses. I miss understanding my food. I miss control. I miss feeling good. On the plus side my fitness is massively improved and my body is smaller than before, I think I can thank the gym for this.

So anyway I've taken a decision to go back to Slimming World and I'll rejoin next Tuesday. 17 weeks until I go to Tenerife for our summer holiday. Game on.

And I'm feeling good

Well what a week.

Monday I went for my first Couch 2 5k run. I'll come clean - it wasn't pretty. For the rest of the evening I was grumpy and sore, I was walking like an old woman and my hips gave me some amount of bother all night. Tonight I went out with my wee pal Fiona for my second run. I have to say it was ok. I mean, obviously, it was hell but it was great to have a buddy to drag me around/drag around me with and I think it's  fair to say we kept each other going.

Diet wise eating on plan is going really well. Class on Tuesday night brought me a 3.5lb weight loss which is 10lb of my gain in 2 weeks. Sounds a lot but I know it will level out very soon and that will very probably be this week assuming I am not too naughty food wise given I am doing a good bit of socialising  (again). The best  thing about  weigh in though was getting my first shiny at Clare's class - I came home with a certificate as well for Slimmer of the Week! Sadly for me I've  gained so much weight since I joined that class that I still have a good way to go to get my half stone  award but this is a nice start to my new collection.

All things considered another good week and a great boost. Onwards and... downwards?

Run Fatgirl Run

So my first week back on it went well. I lost 6.5lb despite having friends up to visit, eating out lots and drinking too much wine. I would call that a success! Buoyed from that weigh in, I refused a takeaway in favour of a home cooked curry. So far this week is shaping up well - a few many drinkies and a meal out but nothing too dreadful and in actual fact I opted for a Light Option at Prezzo (a smaller portion of King Prawn Spaghetti with a side salad and a low fat vinaigrette). 

This week I've to back into meal planning and genuinely refusing naughty things without feeling left out. At a friends's house for lunch I refused crisps and crispie cakes in favour of raiding the boxes of berries! I've also gone through my freezer to see what exactly is in there and cooked up a few delights to feed us on busy days. So far I have chilli, Thai Red fish curry and a sweet potato korma waiting for me (including a portion of that korma for tonight). 

The big thing this week is that exercise wise I've come to a decision and tonight I am starting Couch to 5k. This will probably kill me, however I cancelled my gym membership due to lack of use and I plan to run, walk more with the buggy and actually use my (as yet unwrapped!) kettlebells. I will be on the lookout for a Garmin Forerunner15 watch next month so I can track and trace my runs etc as well as gather points for my life insurance. Oh the joys. 

So out I go tonight. It won't be pretty, but it will be worth it.

Chubbykins McWobblebottom

Well. Ha. Hello.

This is awkward. 

I've been putting off writing this post for various reasons, all pointing back to embarrassment. See, I've fallen off the wagon in spectacular style and regained a lot of weight. In my defence I've had a lot going on this year with my new career as a childminder and my switch of routine from office packed lunch to home kitchen grab anything you can lunch. Gone are the leafy salads (because you can't prepare that AND feed 3 under 3s!). So what happens? All the wrong things, that's what happens. That combined with a lot of socialising and drinking has made me feel fatter than ever (although I know I'm not), uncomfortable, sluggish and lacking the confidence I worked so hard to build. 

So, with a heavy heart (and even heavier arse) I went and weighed in at Slimming World for the first time in a number of weeks. It wasn't pretty, but I knew that was going to happen. It wasn't a surprise. I had already filled my fridge with the good stuff (cottage cheese, pickles etc) and planned a few meals knowing I had visitors arriving on Saturday and a lot of socialising coming up.

With weigh in heading my way tomorrow I think I've done good. I've made some very good choices, rejected a few high syn things and generally have my head in a very good place. I've realised that I had it all wrong before, and that actually where I got to was probably fine for me. A size 14/16 is where I got to, and that's the aim now so I asked my new consultant to set that for me. If I get there and lose more, then fine. 

So that's a 67lb loss from last week's weigh in, and I have a few markers. My nephew Marcus is being baptised in August, a trip to London in October, Christmas (no night out for me this year though!) and we have booked a summer holiday for next July. 

So... 

67lb?

48 weeks?

Bring it on. 

Missing a Toad

Well week one went well all things considered with a loss of 9lb. Yay! 55lb to go. Still a long way but wowee what a start. I am thrilled beyond belief and totally buzzed for the coming weeks. You all know I love a challenge so the plan is to keep my goals quite small. The first one is a stone off (preferably two!) by my birthday in April. That said I've had two nights out since I weighed on Friday so maybe a stay the same would be quite the victory this week.  ;-)

Of course the main thing with this diet is that I am only technically dieting 2 or maybe 3 days a week. Those days are pretty hard going but actually each one I do gets easier and I have picked up some tips for coping on 500 calories. First, drink buckets of water to keep you full. Second, avoid sugar or sweeteners where possible because it makes you hungrier. Third, plan carefully. I usually wait until lunchtime and then graze on some pickles or maybe a bowl of soup. I certainly don't consume more than 100 cals before my dinner and then I am left with 400 glorious calories to spend on dinner.

Tonight we had "Onion in the hole" - yep, you guessed it, Toad in the Hole with no toad. We have Save with Jamie to thank for this recipe, which I must say surprised me. For 273 calories I got roasted sweet red onions,  crispy fluffy Yorkshire pud and sweet sticky red onion gravy! For an extra 60 ish I added fine green beans, boiled for 6 minutes until just tender and then tossed in a drizzle of garlic oil, salt and pepper. I must admit that Richy would have liked some creamy mash but I didn't and I didn't miss the usual sausages either. Dare I say I preferred this? All I know is that I am full and warm on this cold winter day and for less than 350 cals. I'm looking forward to a good feed tomorrow though.

Hopefully I can make it to the weekend relatively unscathed. Fast day anyone?

Times they are a changin'

The funny thing about a weight loss blog is that there has to be some weight loss to write about. If there's no weight loss you have no blog, and there's only so many times you can say "oh well, still struggling". Nobody wants to read that. However, I am back now with something to say.

The start of 2014 saw something major happen. I broke up with Slimming World.

It's been on the cards for a while but I've been so frightened of piling it all back on that I've been too scared to leave and too scared to try something else. This somewhat backfired in a sense because I have put some (thankfully not masses) back on, but once December and Christmas was over I knew it would be time to do something else to ring the changes. Don't get me wrong, Slimming World is a great plan and I would recommend it to anyone, but latterly the problem has been that I know it too well, and honestly I got lazy.

A chance conversation with a medical friend before Christmas on the subject of My Weight Loss ended up with a suggestion of trying the 5:2 diet. Basically you eat normally for 5 days of the week and "fast" for the other 2. Fast doesn't mean eat nothing, but it's a very low calorie day at around 500 cals. I had a quick go before Christmas and decided to give it a go but initially wanted to run with Slimming World at the same time - I would have loved to be a Target member! I thought I could fast on 2 days and follow plan on the other 5. Very quickly it became apparent that this wasn't going to work as there were non fast days (or feast days) where my syns would have been through the roof but I was way under my calories (1720 according to My Fitness Pal). By the time Christmas was over my jeans were tight, nothing was comfortable and frankly I was totally repulsed by myself - how I felt physically and mentally, and how I looked.

My first weigh in is tomorrow and I've almost completed my third fast (it's been a funny week). The 500 calorie thing isn't massively difficult but you do need to be clever to get the most out of your calories. I admit sitting here a bit peckish, but knowing that I have enough calories left for a wee nibble before bed and tomorrow I can eat as normal means I feel ok. This actually feels liberating. I had cake, wine and pastry yesterday and was still under my calories. I have Slimming World to thank for that - my 3 meals were healthy and naturally fairly low calorie.

I'm so ready for this - motivated, inspired, enthusiastic. So, I've got 63lb to go - hopefully 2014 is my year.

I'm a Changingman

Away back when I started Slimming World my consultant said to the group "Nothing changes if nothing changes". It sounds corny but it is true. You have to make change happen, and nobody else can do it for you.

This year as you know I haven't lost much weight but I've spent the year changing in other ways. My confidence has bloomed over the year and last week something momentous happened: I resigned from my job of over 11 years because I am now a registered Childminder. It wasn't a quick decision to leave and I was sad to go. I know I'll miss my friends but I'm going to do something fun and exciting and new and I can't wait to get started. It hadn't actually occured to me that new confidence might have helped me along the way but Richy asked me if "Old Gem would have done this?". I can't honestly say either way but I'm inclined to say she wouldn't. I've had to tske a leap of faith but I'm confident this is going to be ok.

What isn't going to be ok is weigh in this week. It's been a funny 6 weeks. My gym closed (sob!) and it took me until last week to join a new one. We have had a death in the family, Heather started school (and has had nits and a bug already), I've been on a training course and basically our routine has gone out the window. I have been mostly going to weigh in - gained a bit lost a bit - but I weighed on the wii fit tonight for the first time in 6 weeks. My bathroom scales have been devoid of battery so I haven't been weighing there either and tonight's reading wasn't pretty. I know they say you shouldn't weigh more than once a week but I have always always maintained that for me weighing regularly keeps me on track. I spoke about this once before and what the past few weeks has taught me is that I am right - weighing regularly DOES keep me focused.

Anyway I've been to the gym 3 times this week and I'll be going again tomorrow and Wednesday before I weigh in at a different class. This falls under the category of Damage Control.

If I can just stop nibbling whilst I am a jobless bum that would be great because remember.....Nothing changes if nothing changes.

Ps if you or anyone you know is looking for childcare in the Hamilton area, please point them my way - :-D

www.gemmablackchildminding.co.uk

In which your blogger bares her soul

For the first time in 18 months I am genuinely disillusioned. The last 6 months have been hard going, barely losing anything but still sticking to the plan. As the months have gone by I have found it harder and harder to stay motivated. Finally I have cracked.

We had our summer holiday last week, spending time in the glorious sunshine with friends and family. There was much indulgence - wine, cider, pancakes, ice cream and far too much bread. I am paying the price - for the first time really I have gained a few pounds and I can really feel it. I'm not sure how many pounds I have put on because I had a holiday booked in for slimming world this week but it's enough that my jeans (resigned to the drawer during the heatwave we have just had) are noticably tighter.

In a former life I wouldn't have even noticed a few pounds going on but now I feel it almost straight away. Physically I feel bloated, wobbly... and uncomfortable. Mentally I feel disheartened and let down with myself. I feel tired, worn down and barely have the motivation to refuse the bad things just now which isn't helping. Even seeing an old, unflattering picture last week didn't help. (Posted below with a new one of us).

I honestly am considering moving on to something else to lose this final 2-3 stone but I don't know what. I'm scared and lost and I dont know what to do for the best, whether to stick or twist.

What I do know is that I am not done.. not yet.

The King

I think the humble EGG is the actual King of foods. It is so versatile,  nutritious and (my favourite) cheap. As a family we power through eggs on a monthly basis. There's barely a day goes by I am not cracking an egg. Between a bit of baking, hard boiled eggs as free snacks or with salad for me, boiled or mashed with mayo or made into eggy bread for the kids lunch we get through somewhere in excess of 50 eggs a month.

Sounds like a lot doesn't it? And yet it isnt like we live on eggs.

I definitely eat more these days than before my slimming world days, since they are free on all plans. We quite often have a cooked breakfast on a Saturday which waves goodbye to between 3 and 8 eggs depending who wants an egg and if it's going to be fried or scrambled (why do scrambled eggs disappear?) and I always keep hardboiled eggs in the fridge for snacks or to go with a salad and feta cheese or ham. It's not unlike me to have a baked egg for breakfast, maybe cooked in a hash brown or ham basket. Finally the classic carbonara (which i don't actually seem to have ever blogged about!) remains a favourite tea time choice for the whole family. Well I say finally, actually I have missed one major favourite, my brunchtime frittata. I call this brunchtime because I have it just as easily for breakfast as for lunch. It can be amended to whatever you have in (prawns and feta are lovely) but this is what I use most often to serve one as a hearty lunch.

1 sausage, chopped into chunks
1 rasher of bacon, fat removed and chopped
1 spring onion
1 or 2 cooked new potatoes, sliced or diced
3 or 4 cherry tomatoes, halved
2 asparagus spears, chopped
1/2 a pepper, mixed colours if possible, diced
1 spring onion, chopped
Chopped parsley (optional)
2 eggs, beaten

Spray a small frying pan with frylight or oil and add the sausage and bacon. Fry until almost cooked and add the chopped veg. Sauté until almost cooked but still with bite.

Sprinkle over the parsley if using, then pour over the beaten eggs. Tip the pan left and right to make sure the eggs fill all the gaps. Leave on the heat for a minute to allow to base to set, then put under a hot grill until the eggs are set and puffy and gloriously golden.

Season with salt and black pepper and lashings of good ol' fashioned brown sauce (or ketchup/chilli sauce if that's what tickles your fancy).

I do this at least once a week I'd say. This is a great fridge raider too... courgettes work well, as does ham, leftover chicken, chillies, roasted red peppers, white/red onions, cheese - literally whatever you have in. In honesty I prefer lots of filling (which is mostly superfree anyway) to less egg so it's less, well, eggy. You could easily do 3 eggs and less fillings though. Or more. Whatever... at the end of the day, it's your frittata.

Summer summer summertime

The sun is shining! In the west of Scotland where I live this is nothing short of a miracle. It's warm and glorious, and the clear skies brighten everyone's day. Of course, this puts planned cold weather casseroles and the likes out of the window because what everyone wants in this weather is barbecue food.

Generally speaking bbqs are considered less than great in the diet world. All the bread and mayo add up to a lot of excess calories. In the UK we seem to have an obsession with whacking all the grilled meat into its own bread receptacle, roll or wrap. Probably because we get comparatively little good weather, a lot of bbqs are little more than a couple of rubbish sausages, a burger, and maybe a burnt (yet raw) chicken drumstick. These days of course the supermarkets sell ranges of pre-marinaded and skewered bbq products, all perfectly prepared and ready to drop on your grill to ensure you enjoy an exotic tasting high syn feast.

There really is no need for a good bbq to spoil the diet. With a little bit of thought and by using your healthy extras you can do a bbq for very few syns. Chicken cubes can be marinated in garlic, lemon juice, bay and oregano or Cajun spice, soy and lime and seasoned with salt and pepper before threading onto skewers with chunks of peppers,  mushrooms and courgettes for syn free kebabs. Look about to find some low syn sausages so you can still have your snags - my butcher sells a great half syn sausage but supermarkets do them too. Burgers can be homemade for free, and just remove the skins from chicken drumsticks before marinating in spices of your choice or maybe a free bbq sauce. Chuck a lean steak on too. So far you have a pretty good feast, right?

So what about sides? Obviously a large side salad (with or without feta cheese as your A choice) goes without saying. A personal favourite of mine is corn on the cob, thrown straight in the grill and cooked until charred and salted to serve. Another favourite is barbecued halloumi cheese, although obviously this would be synned or an A choice. Coleslaw and potato salads are commonplace bbq sides but high syn usually. I blogged about Coleslaw recently - make your own for acouple of syns for the whole dish: it keeps a few days and is very handy to have in your summer fridge. Similarly potato salad - historically my own version was made with lashings of full fat mayo but I've managed to make a low fat version I am happy with. It's true to my original in taste and here in its simplicity, just for you.

POTATO SALAD

500g baby potatoes - boiled until tender
2 tbsp extra light mayo
4 tbsp fat free yoghurt
Handful of chives, finely chopped
Handful of mint, finely chopped
Salt and pepper

Mix the still slightly warm potatoes with the other ingredients and season generously to taste with salt and pepper (salt is the key here). Serve at room temperature. I am being bossy about this - potayo salad shouldn't be fridge cold.

It really is that easy to produce a lowish syn, healthy bbq without boatloads of bread although obviously if you want a roll or something go ahead and use your healthy extras or syns. Either way, it's perfect sunshine food.

Here's to the sun staying out!

:)

Little old wine drinker me

Most people who know me know I like a tipple or two. A wee wine here, a cold beer there. It's how I like to spend my syns, saving them for the weekend. I've said before I'd rather use my syns for alcohol than food, but with Slimming World that doesn't mean not eating! Being able to cook for myself means delicious low or no syn food.... almost all the time. Fresh is where it's at with Slimming World, and I continue to love that -it fits in so well with the way we have always eaten in this house. Obviously there are some ingredients which are high syn (flour, butter, coconut milk) but these are now treats or substituted where possible.

Clearly though, things have changed otherwise I wouldn't have lost the weight I have (6st 4.5lb so far). Almost cutting out takeaways plus fat and flour have been major contenders but cutting back on the booze has had a major effect too. Back in the old days we would think nothing of having a beer or glass of wine with dinner during the week. Often just the one,  sometimes maybe two, but the fact remains that it was 8-16 syns I am no longer consuming a few days a week.. and they all add up.

When we started this chapter I found it pretty easy to sit in in a Friday night having a diet coke because I had a night out on Saturday. I can't lie - as the months progress that's harder. Rightly or wrongly, sitting of an evening with an alcoholic drink is a nice grown up thing to do after a week of part time work and full time motherhood.

This weekend is a prime example. Knowing I had a night out on Saturday, I SHOULD have sat with that diet coke on Friday night - but I didn't. Instead me and Richy sank a very lovely bottle of pink fizz we received as an anniversary gift. Just the one... but still. I need to source that will power again. I'm sure it's here somewhere...

Happy happy happy

Friday was my birthday. Off plan entirely, I enjoyed a lovely day shopping, eating and drinking with my lovely friend, Lynne. Last week I had the 3lb gain I expected and my hopes for this week are that I can maintain. After all, what with my birthday Friday and a long overdue catch up with old friends involving lots of wine, homemade bread and a trip to our local award winning ice cream parlour, Equis, I've definitely gone over on syns. Still, April is a hard month for me and we are halfway through now.

It is always handy to have a reference point to compare things against though and my birthday weekend is an ideal point of comparison.

This weekend last year I was at my friend's little boy's Christening. I had lost 2st I think. I felt great. My clothes was starting to loosen and the dress I wore on that day was looser than the wedding I wore it to the previous summer. Richy had bought me a top for my birthday which was a touch small but within a fortnight fitted perfectly. It was a size 22, as was the dress.

This year Richy bought me another top. It's  a size 14. And it fits. I went shopping in New Look. I took various size 14 things into the changing room. They all fitted. I picked one top up in another shop in a size 14 and just paid for it, there and then. I didn't even try it on. What's that about?

Another birthday present was a cast iron shallow casserole from mum and dad that I've been coveting for a while. I used it last night to make a tremendous paella (which was happily low in syns to account for antipasti style starter of bread, olives, cheese and Spanish meats... and wine). I've attached a picture of the paella - I was so pleased with how it looked.

The other picture is me at the christening last year and this weekend on the train heading into town with Lynne. Although I recognised the significant drop in dress sizes, when I compared these photos knowing that it was exactly a year I was genuinely shocked.

Made me smile, though. A lot.

April again?

Sad news... I'm looking at a gain tonight. I was away last week and although what I ate wasn't *too* bad, I had too many pints in my mum and dad's local and thats all extra calories. The trip away was on top of a fun filled overnight trip to Edinburgh, complete with cooked breakfast, dinner out and lots of wine and cider, a Krispy Kreme donut and an ice cream as hangover food so really I am on a highway to nothing. Thankfully I've had a week (almost) back on plan to reduce the damage but with it being the Easter holidays it's hard - a day trip out with our besties and their two girls ended with a few drinks and a pub dinner on top of our picnic. None of this has helped with the weight gain this week but the top and bottom of it is that I've enjoyed every minute and every mouthful.

Despite the gain I am still in the righr frame of mind... no mean feat all things considered. At the peak of this gain (approx 7lb) I could really feel the difference. I've never noticed that before and that shows me that during this (incredibly frustrating) period of little or no losses that my body has been changing. Some of it is mental changes but maybe I have needed this time for my mind to catch up with my body. For the first time in my life I am beginning to feel really really good. I continue to have the confidence to try new things with my hair, makeup and clothes.

The weight will start moving soon I'm sure of it, although the next few weeks might be hard. Anyone who was reading my little blog this time last year might remember a series of posts about how hard April is for me. My birthday is coming up, and my 10th wedding anniversary trip to Oban in a fortnight. I can only hope to get through the month as unscathed as possible.

Wish me luck.

Checking in

*tap tap tap*

Ahem. Hello? Anyone here?

It's been a funny old few weeks. Still wallowing, still gymming, still not losing much to speak of but most importantly still sticking to plan. Mostly.

In the last few weeks I've lost 2.5lb. I am now only half a pound from my 6.5st award which is still proving hard to achieve. Unfortunately I have a week holiday from Slimming World this week so I won't be getting that award this week but hopefully the damage I do this week won't be so bad that I can't squeeze a wee half pound off by a week on Wednesday.

That said, this weekend is Easter weekend and although it isn't chocolate a-go-go in my world, I had a very hefty night out on Friday (drinks, dinner, more drinks, chips, full English) followed by a visit to my mum and dad's (cake,  wine, gravy, puddings). We are off work this week which makes things worse, but we have a quiet weekend ahead and hopefully we can eat well and be back on plan on Wednesday and right back on it when we get home on Wednesday night.

I think the main reason I haven't posted for a few weeks is because I don't have anything new to say. There are only so many times you can say the same thing, after all. Changing shape, toning, losing inches. Blah blah blah...! It's all true but I just want to see that number going down. 2lb will get my into the next stone down and I can't wait for that.

Anyway, here's a progress picture from this weekend. Excuse the cheesey grin, folks.

Ttfn.

Still here

Still floundering. Still treading water. Still on plan. Still faffing around. Last week I gained a pound. I didnt know why and I still don't really. What I do know is that after weigh in last week I felt massively deflated and for the first time since I started this whole journey I wanted to drown in a sea of wine and pizza.

Importantly, I didn't. I am aware that although the scales are stubbornly not shifting just now, my shape is. An outfit I wore just a few weeks ago looked much better on me this weekend and it's key that I keep these changes in mind.

In my last post I said I was going to drink green tea, increase my water intake, try red and green days and be vigilant. I can honestly say I have done all of these things as well as a few Success Express days and going back to and - importantly - joining the gym which is a bizarre ritual in this new life I never thought I'd see myself doing. Green and red days are a bit odd so far. Green come more easily and naturally to me but I think the almost carb-less red days are worth doing. The extra A and B choice is nice to have too but it encourages me to eat more bread... which is NOT a good thing! Last night I had my favourite red day dinner so far - North African eggs with sausages. It was quick to prepare and so delicious, just like my homemade coleslaw which I have served this week with pulled pork sandwiches and salads and it's great to munch on from the fridge.

Coleslaw

Half a white cabbage, finely shredded
Half a red onion, grated
1 carrot, grated
1 radish, grated

1/2 tsp wholegrain mustard
4 tbsp fat free natural yoghurt
1 tbsp extra lighy mayo
Juice of half a lemon
A good pinch of cayenne pepper
Salt and pepper, to taste
Finely chopped coriander, to serve

Mix together your dressing and season to taste. It needs a good amount of salt and pepper so don't be shy!

Toss through your vegetables, cover and refrigerate for at least an hour to allow the flavours to develop and the veg to soften slightly.

With summer coming this is a great recipe to have up your sleeve. The best bet? This will keep for 5 days or so - if there's any left! ;-)

Bon appetit!

Stuck in the middle with... me

I never wanted this to be a blog about how perfect it all is. That's not real life. This weight loss game is all well and good when the going is good, but what about when the going is less good? What then?

I will come clean - I am stuck. I got my 6st award well before Christmas and have yet to get my 6.5st award. I have hit a plateau and I am pissed off, not least because I am far from being done. I also don't really know what to do about it, having never really had any problem before. A few people have suggested that my loss might simply be slowing and I get that to a degree... but I have another 3 stone to go before I set target, and target MAY be lower than that. I can't help shake the feeling that if I can jump the hurdle of my 6.5st award then things will start moving again in the right direction.

I have a feeling I might see a gain this week - or maybe another maintain - so in the absense of any official help I am basing my next moves on advice I have picked up from other people over the past (almost) 13 months.

Drink green tea
I am told this can boost metabolism. Is this true? I have no idea, but it can't harm.

Increase water intake to 2l daily
I've actually been doing this anyway for he past few days so I will carry on. Again, it can't harm.

Be vigilant
Extra care with healthy extras and syns and the amount of superfree I am eating.

Try Green and Original days
This is a biggie for me because I have been an Extra Easy girl (no jokes please) from the start. Green allows unlimited carbs and limits meat and Original (or Red as it is sometimes known) is the othet way about. You can still have meat/carbs, just you need to measure them out and they are much more restricted.

Hopefully if I can successfully manage some green/original days I might be able to kick start my system. Maybe I'm too used to it now. I suppose I am. I don't NEED to look at my book much now (although I still do) because I know what I can and can't have. Tell you something though,  nothing changes if nothing changes... and something needs to because I am so not finished changing yet.

Wish me luck.