Littlest Cupcake. Low GL living.

[Littlest-cupcake]

Hello all.
My name is Beth.
I have recently finished my journey with the cambridge weight plan, and am now embarking on Patrick Holford's low GL four week diet plan (although I intend for it to be much longer term.
GL Living has always appealed to me, and now seems like the right time to embark on a healthier way of life - not just fad dieting. I love food and i run a food blog so it is time for me to get a healthy relationship going with food.
I started Cambridge on New Years Day. I weighed 148 pounds (10.8)
I now weigh between 110-112 pounds (it seems to vary!) but my.ultimate goal is between 100-105 pounds, so about another half stone. These arent goals set in stone, as i said this is much more about a good relationship with food,rather than losing more weight - to get to goal is just a bonus for me.
Just a note, I am only 5ft so 7 stone is healthy for me,plus i have a very small frame so i dont look "thin" as it is in proportion.
I have joined the gym, and try to go three times a week - and do zumba for wii and wii fit yoga three times a week. But i have just ordered 30ds as well so we will see!

Tomorrow is day three for me, and so far I am enjoying the meals and the cooking - though i have spent an inordinate amount of time cooking and planning ahead this week! I am not going to record any weight gain or loss this week, as i think my body needs a week or so to adjust from cambridge.

Also, please be aware that i have and still do suffer from disordered eating. I have had both anorexia and binge eating disorders in the past, and i need structure to my eating or i tend to binge. Last week i am ashamed to say that i pretty much lived off chocolate.

So, Holford is hopefully going to be my long term answer as he will give me all the basic principles for long term health and nutrition.

Here is my food diary for yesterday and today:

Monday:

B: cinnamon apple porridge w/ sunflower seeds



S: 0.5 apple and 5 almonds

L: leek and potato soup



S: 2x nairns rough oatcake and whole earth organic peanut butter

D: pesto salmon w/ 3xbaby new potatoes and rocket with roasted tomatoes



Drinks: water, 2x blackcurrant ginseng and vanilla tea, 50ml skimmed milk (post exercise)

Exercise: 20 mins treadmill / 45 minutes Zumba

Tuesday:

B: scrambled eggs, mushrooms,onions on biona pumpkin seed rye bread.

S: 100g blackberries / 100g raspberries 1xlight babybel

L: leek and potato soup

S: pear and pumpkin seeds

D: pesto salmon and new potatoes with rocket and cucumber

Drinks: water and 1x blackcurrant tea.

Exercise: none really today as have been feeling very tired,think this is probably all the refined sugar from last week trying to make me suffer!

Sorry this was suchh a long post!! Xxx

[Littlest-cupcake]

Forgot to add a pic of my breakfast from this morn (as a food blogger you will quickly see my obsession with photos!



Was so nice to eat bread! Rye bread is yummy!

Also, forgot to mention in my last post. I really need support on this new journey. I leant on minis a lot during cambridge..but i think because i was at the lower end of the weight scale people often didnt engage with me as much, and i was lonely when i started a cambridge maintenance thread noone was very interested and i fell off course quickly. So any support is so so welcome and appreciated xxxx

[irish molly]

You won't be short of support on here! Welcome to GL. I personally think it is the greatest way to live. You have done loads of research and seem off to a good start. Love the idea of a food blog too. It will be very motivating for you and inspiring to others.
Being such a petite person it must be doubly hard to keep your weight at a healthy level. I'm sure GL will be a good tool together with your exercise regime.
Food looks fab so far. You'll quickly get used to doing a bit of planning and pre preparing some "ready" meals.
Look forward to seeing how well you do over the coming weeks/months.

[Rkmriddell]

Hi You're ahead of me but my plan is to learn about low GI ready to follow when i have finished my CWP journey so thought i'd subscribe and say hi so i can see how you get on and hopefully learn a few bits your food looks lovely - i love to cook too x

[Malteaster]

Hi and welcome. Your meals look great. I am learning about this lifestyle but really need to get my act together. I have a small frame as well and agree that every excess pound shows.

[Littlest-cupcake]

You won't be short of support on here! Welcome to GL. I personally think it is the greatest way to live. You have done loads of research and seem off to a good start. Love the idea of a food blog too. It will be very motivating for you and inspiring to others.
Being such a petite person it must be doubly hard to keep your weight at a healthy level. I'm sure GL will be a good tool together with your exercise regime.
Food looks fab so far. You'll quickly get used to doing a bit of planning and pre preparing some "ready" meals.
Look forward to seeing how well you do over the coming weeks/months.

Thanks Molly! I am enjoying the eating so far! But it feels strange to have to eat so often! I feel as though my whole day revolves around food!!

Thanks so much for the warm welcome. You are right about it being hard to keep weight off. I am so short! Lol. It makes me wonder how i ever let myself get to almost eleven stone! Xx

[Littlest-cupcake]

Hi You're ahead of me but my plan is to learn about low GI ready to follow when i have finished my CWP journey so thought i'd subscribe and say hi so i can see how you get on and hopefully learn a few bits your food looks lovely - i love to cook too x

Hey RKM! Thanks for your comment. How have you found cwp? It did the job for me...but of course it wasnt fun! The meals i am making are suprisingly easy to knock together. I was scared they would be really hard...but holford makes it so quick and easy. rick gallops express gi diet book for busy people is also good.

When do u finish cwp for good? Xxx

[Littlest-cupcake]

Hi and welcome. Your meals look great. I am learning about this lifestyle but really need to get my act together. I have a small frame as well and agree that every excess pound shows.

Helllo! I am sure we can do this together! Mutual support and guidance is key! Good luck!

And booooo to being a shortie! I cant win...i put on weight and i look like a marshmallow..i lose weight and people mistake me for a child haha xxx

[Littlest-cupcake]

Today has tired me out!

I feel like i have been either eating,cooking or food planning alll day!!! I was so busy cooking for tomorrow i couldnt fit in my afternoon snack or my exercise today! Lol!

Trying to organise the shopping list is the worst thing! Can never work out quantities to buy and i am slightly ocd about getting things right!

Does anyone order from goodness direct? I ordered some tahini and xylitol from them last week...still no sign. I had planned to make muffins and carrot cake...but cant until the stuff arrives it says it is on the delivery van! But no delivery!

Sigh. Anyway. 30 day shred is on its way to me! Gulp. But its ok...i bought a primrose bakery,hairy bikers and rachel khoo book to balance it out!

Today's food:

B: low carb muesli with blueberries and skimmed milk (YUM X10000)



S: oriental mushroom broth



L: salad nicoise



S: half punnet of grazebox billionaires shortbread



D: spicy homemade turkey burger with sweet potato fries and red pepper and cucumber salsa. (i do have a pic but havent had a chance to upload yet so will post tomorrow!)

Drinks: one pear and blueberry smoothie and water.

Exercise: none. Tut.tut.tut

Wow...is it just me,or is that a LOT of food?!!! Xxx

[Rkmriddell]

Hey RKM! Thanks for your comment. How have you found cwp? It did the job for me...but of course it wasnt fun! The meals i am making are suprisingly easy to knock together. I was scared they would be really hard...but holford makes it so quick and easy. rick gallops express gi diet book for busy people is also good.

When do u finish cwp for good? Xxx

I've ordered a rock gallop thing to have a read through whilst I'm on holiday next week! Hopefully will make sense lol. I'm a bit wary of it at the moment by that's probably that I just don't know anything about it.

I'm hoping to begin working up the steps from July. That gives me two months to hopefully drop two more stone which will bring me just over 10st and then I can find the right weight for me whilst working up the steps and living low gi I guess. Don't really want to be on ss much longer than that as have some bits in August that I intend on enjoying regardless of where I am

Am looking forward to learning the new way of life though. Had you done low gi before or is this the first time? How did you find working up the Cambridge steps? X

[Rkmriddell]

Today has tired me out!

I feel like i have been either eating,cooking or food planning alll day!!! I was so busy cooking for tomorrow i couldnt fit in my afternoon snack or my exercise today! Lol!

Trying to organise the shopping list is the worst thing! Can never work out quantities to buy and i am slightly ocd about getting things right!

Does anyone order from goodness direct? I ordered some tahini and xylitol from them last week...still no sign. I had planned to make muffins and carrot cake...but cant until the stuff arrives it says it is on the delivery van! But no delivery!

Sigh. Anyway. 30 day shred is on its way to me! Gulp. But its ok...i bought a primrose bakery,hairy bikers and rachel khoo book to balance it out!

Today's food:

B: low carb muesli with blueberries and skimmed milk (YUM X10000)

<img src="http://www.minimins.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=48135"/>

S: oriental mushroom broth

<img src="http://www.minimins.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=48136"/>

L: salad nicoise

<img src="http://www.minimins.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=48137"/>

S: half punnet of grazebox billionaires shortbread

<img src="http://www.minimins.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=48138"/>

D: spicy homemade turkey burger with sweet potato fries and red pepper and cucumber salsa. (i do have a pic but havent had a chance to upload yet so will post tomorrow!)

Drinks: one pear and blueberry smoothie and water.

Exercise: none. Tut.tut.tut

Wow...is it just me,or is that a LOT of food?!!! Xxx

A lot of very lovely looking food!! How do you find the graze boxes fit in with low gi? Are they good? The salad nicoise particularly looks gorgeous x

[Rkmriddell]

Oh and the 30ds is tough but great! Another thing I want to do when I'm sorting out my new me. Lose weight first then sort low gi then sort including exercise. One step at a time x

[Littlest-cupcake]

I've ordered a rock gallop thing to have a read through whilst I'm on holiday next week! Hopefully will make sense lol. I'm a bit wary of it at the moment by that's probably that I just don't know anything about it.

I'm hoping to begin working up the steps from July. That gives me two months to hopefully drop two more stone which will bring me just over 10st and then I can find the right weight for me whilst working up the steps and living low gi I guess. Don't really want to be on ss much longer than that as have some bits in August that I intend on enjoying regardless of where I am

Am looking forward to learning the new way of life though. Had you done low gi before or is this the first time? How did you find working up the Cambridge steps? X

I hope you enjoy rick gallop! I like his book because it makes everything reallllly easy to understand. The basic principles of low GL are easier to put into practice than they are to read, and the results speak volumes really im not even a week in and already i feel like I 'look' healthier. I went a strange grey colour on cambridge!

I know what you mean about having events that you want to enjoy, but the beauty of low GL Is that you dont have to sacrifice the enjoyable things in life,it is much more a lifestyle than a diet, i certainly dont feel like im dieting anymore!

Eek, i can only wait and see what 30ds is like....i am scared haha. I did the same as you though, cut exercise out for ss - its not healthy to do exercise on such low cals. But i joined a gym as i went onto the 810 plan, and am trying to fit exercise in where i can, but not overdo it!

I find that graze is a treat rather than a low gl staple. Because i dont buy sweets,crisps,chocolates etc anymore, graze is like my little weekly ' sin' so i feel like i am gettin a little treat. I thought it better to have some graze snack pots to nibble rather than ben and jerrys! This week i got some nuts, flapjack, rice crackers and dried fruit with almonds and fudge - not super low gl but not awful either!!!

Have a good day all, im in the middle of nowhere giving a class on social media all day, then going to a film quiz tonight. #filmnerd

[Littlest-cupcake]

Ps. I struggled..a lot with the cambridge steps. I found it difficult to manage real food and packs...i just used to get confused...and the lack of structure made me prone to binging. I think the steps are an lmportant part of cambridge but for me, they were making me very obsessed with calories and not the actual food i was eating. So i am doing the holford diet to lose the last half stone...because of my rubbish relationship with food i had to stop cambridge because it was making me act in strange and dangerous ways e.g eating all my.calorie allowance in junk. thats just me tho, for most people it works fine! xxx

[Rkmriddell]

I hope you enjoy rick gallop! I like his book because it makes everything reallllly easy to understand. The basic principles of low GL are easier to put into practice than they are to read, and the results speak volumes really im not even a week in and already i feel like I 'look' healthier. I went a strange grey colour on cambridge!

I know what you mean about having events that you want to enjoy, but the beauty of low GL Is that you dont have to sacrifice the enjoyable things in life,it is much more a lifestyle than a diet, i certainly dont feel like im dieting anymore!

Eek, i can only wait and see what 30ds is like....i am scared haha. I did the same as you though, cut exercise out for ss - its not healthy to do exercise on such low cals. But i joined a gym as i went onto the 810 plan, and am trying to fit exercise in where i can, but not overdo it!

I find that graze is a treat rather than a low gl staple. Because i dont buy sweets,crisps,chocolates etc anymore, graze is like my little weekly ' sin' so i feel like i am gettin a little treat. I thought it better to have some graze snack pots to nibble rather than ben and jerrys! This week i got some nuts, flapjack, rice crackers and dried fruit with almonds and fudge - not super low gl but not awful either!!!

Have a good day all, im in the middle of nowhere giving a class on social media all day, then going to a film quiz tonight. #filmnerd

Ah am glad you think it makes it quite easy to understand, that makes me feel better. How long have you been doing low GI now? LOL @ the grey colour - my mom and sister are always telling me i'm blue, just so cold on this plan lol. Worth it though!! I'm just looking forward to finding a way of living that works for us all. My family are very much in the sw way of life without the rules - i fresh cook for them all the time. I want them to grow up healthy so that's important to me. I'm hoping that i just need to apply a new way of thinking to the way that we live.... from the quick glance i've had it seems similar in that green is good as much as you want, yellow occasional and red avoid? Just need to determine what the occasional is and work on the understanding when i am hungry and when i'm wanting to eat because of my emotions and senses. That's going to be one of the biggest things for me i think.

I have quite a bit in August - it's our wedding anniversary on the 4th and i've agreed to go out somewhere for a nice meal with hubby and then we go on holiday for 10 days the next day. Only camping so i can control most of it but it will be my 30th birthday whilst we are away and i want a nice meal that day. Then when i get back we're going to v festival for the weekend and tbh i don't intend on following anything that weekend. I want to eat and drink what i want and just enjoy being there without feeling fat would be good

Ps. I struggled..a lot with the cambridge steps. I found it difficult to manage real food and packs...i just used to get confused...and the lack of structure made me prone to binging. I think the steps are an lmportant part of cambridge but for me, they were making me very obsessed with calories and not the actual food i was eating. So i am doing the holford diet to lose the last half stone...because of my rubbish relationship with food i had to stop cambridge because it was making me act in strange and dangerous ways e.g eating all my.calorie allowance in junk. thats just me tho, for most people it works fine! xxx

Ah i see why you left the cambridge steps then - the right thing for you! I suppose it does give the freedom to pick what you want when you get to the higher plans - i'm hoping reading up on this now will help me to get around that though.

I'm looking forward to seeing how you go - love your pictures and stuff x