Head in the right place finally!

[Cee]

It's the same old story. I've been on one diet or the other for years. Never losing any weight, gaining weight and getting more miserable. Suddenly there's a change in my head. I'm no longer desperate to lose it really fast. I'm so impatient! I'm happy to take it slowly this time. Well.... not TOO slowly. I'm hoping for 7lbs a month. That's not too much to ask is it? So I start tomorrow.
I've ordered some Joe's sausages. I'll be doing some SW shopping tomorrow.
The main difference with the way I will be doing SW this time, is that I'll be doing intermittent fasting too. There has been a lot of research done into the benefits of fasting and I decided to try it. I've lost about 8lbs doing this but things have really slowed down because I haven't been eating right.
Basically, I do the 18-6 version of intermittent fasting which means I have an 6 hour window in which I eat all my meals, and I fast for 18 hours (sleep included). I usually start eating between 12.30 and 1.30pm and stop eating between 6.30 an 7.30 pm. This has really helped me with my overeating and bingeing and I don't think about food so much now.
If I can have my SW meals between 1pm and 7pm and stop there, I'm sure it will be a winning combination for me. (Fingers crossed).
SO heres to another start, but this time, it's going to be the last start.
Aiming for 3st off by my birthday on 30th March!
SO excited!!

 

[Cee]

So, today is where it begins! I have determination and drive! I hope it lasts. I'm hoping to stick to red days mostly so I would appreciate any great tips for red day lunch ideas if anyone is reading.
I've decided to do a 20-4 intermittent fast schedule, to really get things going this week. I'll eat at 3 pm and stop at 7pm.
I'll be trying to get some exercise into my daily schedule. Apparently I need to exercise a couple of hours before I eat. I've got to find out if that's correct or not. I'm also going to try to do a meal plan for each week, so I'm not caught unawares and unprepared. This usually happens and I end up just eating anything I can find and ruining everything.
So I'm feeling positive this morning, and hope it stays that way. Now, to write my food shopping list...

 

[Cee]

I've decided to make my goals monthly. Not weekly. My goal for the next 4 weeks is 14lbs. Then 7lbs a month/4 weekly after that. 13st by 24th Oct.

 

[LilBlossoms.co.uk]

Good luck! I would eat 2 hours after you eat, if you eat 2 hours before you will be running on empty, won't get the best from your workout and you'll probably feel awful.
I do red days almost every day, having a chicken tikka salad with 227g jacket potato for lunch today x

 

[Cee]

Good luck! I would eat 2 hours after you eat, if you eat 2 hours before you will be running on empty, won't get the best from your workout and you'll probably feel awful.
I do red days almost every day, having a chicken tikka salad with 227g jacket potato for lunch today x

Hi LilBlossoms, thanks for your post. I'm still doing research into the whole fasting thing and how to fit in the exercise. What you say makes sense, but apparently there is some benefit to working out on empty and then having a recovery meal/drink a little after that. I'll have to read up on it more before I say anything else. I'll see how I feel though. If I feel bad I'll change it up and work out after a light meal. I'm not doing anything too strenuous though. My GP has advised against it as I'm really anaemic. After 2 months on the iron tabs and clean diet and I'll start some serious working out. I'll probably be on them for over 3 months though. Hoping the weight loss by then will make it easier to exercise too.
I'm thinking I'll also be having a lot of jacket potatoes for lunch, with different fillings. It seems the easiest to do at work. I'm not keen on salad anymore. It reminds me that I'm dieting. lol!
What other snacks do you tend to have on a red day, apart from fruit?

So I didn't go out to do the shopping. I made the mistake of getting home after dropping kids at school, and changing into my home lounging clothes. That was it. I could't get out of the house after that. Then it began to pour with rain. So I went for a lie down. I managed to fast till 2pm and stopped eating at 6.30ish. Didn't do any exercise either. Such a lazy thing I've been today. SO I did the shopping online, which is A LOT faster anyway and will get deliveries tomorrow. My Joe's sausages should arrive tomorrow too. I'm having breakfast for lunch at 2pm. 2 sausages, 2 eggs, 1 burger, 1 slice of toast, some baked beans.... my mouth is watering already lol!
I'm also going to make a large amount of Bolognese and freeze it. I'll use it for spag bol, for my jacket potato filling and for cottage pie. Hopefully cut down cooking time. Also gonna make some turkey burgers to freeze. Fingers crossed I can do it and I don't get too exhausted and just lie in bed all day.
I've found the trick to night time temptation is to go to bed when the kids go to bed. I sit in bed and watch TV or watch movies online or do some stuff on the lap top or whatever. I do't go downstairs or near the kitchen again till the next morning.

 

[chocolate_bananas]

Good luck, you sound extremely focused. I am a binge eater too and i can tell you within 5 days of being on plan i felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders, like i was back in charge!

 

[Cee]

Good luck, you sound extremely focused. I am a binge eater too and i can tell you within 5 days of being on plan i felt like a weight had been lifted from my shoulders, like i was back in charge!

Hi Choc_bananas, thanks for your post. Being a binge eater is such a depressing thing. You want to take control of your life and your health but you just can't help yourself.
You've got some good losses, well done! Can I ask if you're doing red, green or EE? I hope I get such good losses too.

 

[Cee]

All my shopping has arrived. It's now 12.46, I'm going to wait till 2 before I eat something. I'm going to have some fruit and a packet of skips and then go and pick up my girls. When we get back, I'll make myself something to eat. Can't decide now if I should have the English breakfast or something else now. In fact, I'm not even that excited about eating. Very strange thing. I'm hungry for sure, I feel slightly weak too, but I just feel like I should have a slice of toast to get rid of the hunger and not bother with anything else. I have no excitement about food today. The GP did ask if I had a loss of appetite, and now that I think about it, yes. Being anaemic is helping me lose weight. I worry that I'll go back to having a voracious appetite again when I'm better.
I was going to exercise today but somehow don't feel like I have the energy anymore. Is it the anaemia or am I just making excuses? Hm! I guess it's boring working out on your own. Maybe I should join the gym with a friend.
This is weird! I'm really not looking forward to eating anything at all!!:sigh:

 

[Cee]

So, in the end I had the sausages and burger. It was vile! There's no point eating that when there was no enjoyment factor in it.! I'd rather save all my syns and have the full fat sausages and burger. I literally forced myself to eat it. I knew if I didn't eat it and I got hungry later, I could very well go on a binge. I used a little more that 15 syns today. 3 packets of skips (15 syns) and a tiny bit or marmalade, about half a teaspoon, a sip of orange juice (need to take iron tablets with it). So I guess maybe 18 syns for today? I just went crazy with the Skips. Remind me NEVER to buy them again. Lots of fruit today, not a lot of veg. I barely had my 2 HEX B (some baked beans and 1 slice of wholemeal toast) no HEX A. Also had some crab stick as a snack.
Pity about the sausages and burger. Maybe I'll try them again, maybe I'll use them in a sauce of some sort. They were Just. Too. Dry!
Tomorrow I plan to get busy with the cleaning. Do some exercise, and some cooking. To be made tomorrow...
Turkey burgers to freeze
peppered chicken for dinner (with SW chips) and lots of veg
Pancakes for lunch (using eggs, protein powder, vanilla extract) with yoghurt and fruit topping.
Find extra lean lamb mince from somewhere and make 1 syn lamb samosas (Got the filo pastry and other ingredients already) to freeze

I'm also looking forward to making SW friendly pizzas with Weight watchers wholemeal pitta bread as base.
King prawn stir fry (with 100g wholewheat pasta mixed with 200g Shirataki noodles)
Cottage pie with cauliflower and carrot mash
Coleslaw
So much, SO MUCH!! Thanks to those who experimented and found great alternatives for us to eat our favourite naughty foods without all the fat.

 

[Cee]

Good morning me. I've been looking around for anyone on Minimins who is doing Inermittent fasting and there are some, but they all seem to be doing the primal eating with theirs. I'm not doing primal. There's no one doing exactly what I'm doing. I feel so alooooone (melodramatic voice). Anyway, I've been to Tesco and found me some extra lean mince. It didn't come up when I did the online shop for some reason. Anyway, I am going to make a big pot of bologese/chilli type thing to have with pasta or Jacket potato. Also was planning to make some turkey burgers but that might have to wait till tomorrow evening.
I weighed myself this morning and I'm already 4lbs down. :happy036:
If I keep up the good behaviour, I might be down another 2lbs by Tues. It's mostly water at this stage, but I'll take it. Next week, I'm hoping for some fat loss.
I've avoided making a fuss about my new weight loss journey because, I've made a fuss so many times, no one cares anymore lol! So I'm just going to do it quietly and steadily and one day BAM! They'll see the new and improved me.
I have a party on 27th. If I can be in the 12's by then I'll be overjoyed. But I doubt it. That's like 11lbs in 4 weeks? Maybe I should make that a goal. Means I'll have to reaily get serious with the exercise. I'm gonna try it! If I don't make it, then it's fine as long as I'm still on track for my main goal for my birthday.
Here goes operation "Lose 10.5lbs in 4 weeks" Cue Rocky music. Gotta go get my workout clothes on then.

 

[Cee]

I take back what I said about the sausages and burger. I had them again today, thought I'd try frying them instead. Used fry light, it took ages but turned out good. I actually put little holes in the burger and added water to it as it cooked. I was so worried it would be dry again. Adding the water helped I think. I guess I grilled them for too long or something yestaerday. Had a cheese burger with tomatoes on top, and a sausage. Full up!!
Oh! I did work out too. I almost passed out at one point though lol! I've got to remember to take it easy and not try to be as good as the instructor! lol

 

[Cee]

This is fast becoming like a twitter account.
Anyway, I've just had my pancakes. I think I will start taking pictures of my meals and putting them up on here, incase I can't think of what to eat one day, I can go back though for past ideas. The pancakes tasted good. Piled fruit on top and smothered them with fat free natural yoghurt. I can't eat the stuff plain like that so I added some vanilla extract and some sweetner to it. Yum. The pancakes were a little dry but tasted yummy. I'm gonna add some banana to ti the mixture next time, to see if it makes it a little less dry. I never did like oily pancakes anyway, prefer it dry so I was happy. I still haven't had all my HEX A, I think I only had half of 1. I've had one Hex B. Can't decide what to eat tonight. I've only got 2 hours of eating time left as I broke the fast at 1.30, which was 30 mins after my workout.
I'm working tomorrow, so I need to decide what I'll be having for lunch too.
One more thing, red days are darn expensive! Good thing I'm only eating one main meal a day. :candledinner:

 

[Cee]

I wasn't organised enough to make something for lunch at work today, so I took some fruit and a packet of Skips. I also had 2 oat and ginger biscuits. I got home and made what was supposed to be cottage pie with Swede and Celeriac instead of potatoes. I ended up not waiting for the topping to soften enough and it turned out more like a casserole. It was yummy though. I sprinkled grated cheese on top. I am not stuffed. I have no desire to eat anything more.
My eating window today has been from 1.30 to 7.50. A little over what I planned, but it took ages to cook the meal because I only have one working burner!
I'm really tired now. I think I need an early night.
Tomorrow a roast dinner. I've got loads of the cottage pie/casserole left over. Also have some of the cooked mince to freeze for Spag bol and for jacket potatoes. I haven't made my turkey burgers and I might have to get the turkey mince into the freezer tonight.
No exercise tonight.
Even though I have now lost 1 stone in the last 2 months or so, no one seems to be noticing yet.

 

[Cee]

Today's not been a good day food wise, but, unlike before where I would have signed this off as the end, and gone a week long binge, it's just a blip that is insignificant in the long run. This is a new lifestyle for me, not a diet to get me to a certain goal weight and then that's it. This time, I'll get to my goal and that will be the beginning. The hard work is trying to maintain it. I also want to have one more child after I've lost the weight. I will need to carry on with the healthy eating whilst I'm pregnant to avoid getting massive.
Anyway, to repair some of the damage from today, I am going to cut down the amount of food I eat this week and get some exercise in as much as I can. Even though slimming world says you can eat as much as you like and still lose, at the end of the day, if you eat less calories than you expend then you might lose more that week.
I'm working 3 days this week, so I'm planning a jacket potato and the mince thing with cheese on top for one day, a chicken sandwich, from left over roast chicken today, and turkey burger in a wholemeal roll.
Anyway, gotta go, my OH won't stop talking and I have to look like I'm listening.

 

[Cee]

Tired.com! Dropped kids off at school and went back to bed.
I fasted till 1.30pm, had the last bit of cottage pie thing I made, with cheese on top. 2 packets of Skips, 2 nectarines, or 3. After picking the kids p from school and giving the dinner,I made some no syn pancakes again. I added half a banana and it came out good. Not as dry. Topped with fruit and sweetened o fat natural yoghurt. That's been it for today. Started fasting again around 6pm. I'm working tomorrow so I've made a chicken and mayo sandwich in a wholemeal roll. For dinner, when I get home, I'll probably have another sandwich. Egg and ham I think. Or an omelette with toast. If I'm still as tired as I've been feeling since the last 2 days then it'll just be the sandwich.
I tend to feed the kids different stuff to what I have because kids need the fats and oils in their diet, so instead of sing lean mince for them, I'll use the normal mince etc. I'm thinking of getting them in to Soya milk too.
So, a good day today, food wise. Hoping tomorrow will be just as good.
Anyway, in need of some rest before I finally go to sleep. Looking forward to work tomorrow. Not!

 

[Cee]

Meh!

 

[Cee]

I'm premenstrual. My premenstrual symptoms begin about a week before my period is due. So I basically just want to lie down and go to sleep now and ignore all housework and shopping that needs to be done. I can't do that though because now I have to wash the shower, 3 toilets, 3 sinks, mop floors, put on 2 loads of washing, clean up the kitchen and go grocery shopping before its time to pick the kids up. I wonder if I'll get a chance to take a nap. Not likely!
I'm not in the mood to do anything!