IF AT FIRST YOU DON'T SUCCEED, try try try again and again (and again...)

Afternoon maintainer,hope you do get your enthusiasm back for the diet, people who have never had an issue with food have no idea the struggle we have. Have a great weekend x
 
Hello diary... I've been absent for my usual reasons, although have two clean days under my belt :) (and 3 kilos on the scales)

Wedding - everything's sorted that should be I think (dress, wrap, shoes). I've found a hairdresser who'll come to the house and sort three of us out. She looked horrified when I mentioned there would be two other females in the house and they too might like something doing - she seemed to think a bride's hair could take 2.5 hours! No way! I fully intend to look like MYSELF on the day... and so I also refused professional makeup! Nah!

I've found a lady who does flowers - I didn't know I needed these but I did think about button holes for the men, thinking they probably don't exist over here, but they do so I have a quote and in July will order some. And a couple of little arrangements for the tables for the drinks do afterwards.

I've got quotes for nibbles from the bakery for that and we'll buy Burgundy champagne (crémant) ourselves from our favourite place.

What else? Oooh all the darned papers. They're proving costly to translate by official sworn translators, and they want some papers which don't exist in the UK, and the British Embassy is very helpful (NOT). They charged us €175 for two "Certificates of Law". The dearest thing about my wedding will be the paperwork!!!

Then I've also talked to the place we'll have our meal after the vin d'honneur with the village... there'll be just 10 of us, all English speakers. We went to the same place for my Dad's 80th.


So why isn't all this motivating me to keep my weight down? Who knows! Anyway I'm holding off restarting Dukan for now, to avoid the water weight on and off, even if my two at least months' out didn't prevent 10lbs odd being whacked on in 3 days' overeating...
 
Well the wedding is all under control Maintainer - now you are too - sounds all good to me!!! x
 
good to read your wedding preparations are speeding along a lot of money for a bit of paper french red tape - eh!

Difficult to keep to any regime when you are so busy but sounds like your hanging in there.
 
Hello nice to see you! Glad the prep is all under control - the paperwork will follow. And the rest will too!
 
Your wedding plans sound lovely.
Your OH knows what you look like at a range of weights, no point in worrying about being a specific one for the wedding, if it bothered him he's have been gone long ago, so youre not being motivated one way or other about it makes total sense.
 
I agree with jaqys :) if anything the strength you feel from your relationship is showing through here massively

...afterall is it really healthy emotionally that women feel so insecure about their relationships that they feel compelled to get skinny for the big day? I would question such a woman regards is she marrying the right guy :)

As the new guy said to me, he has to see me sick/without make up/tired at some point, if they haven't already run away after that :) they're keepers!

when's the date of the wedding Jo?

xxx
 
Four months today is the big day... I really hope that between now and then, if ever the weather improves, my mindset will. We had one hot day last week: suddenly it was 27°C; none of my (ironed) summery clothes fitted. I puffed and blew my way through the day. Goodness knows how I did it with 10 stone extra! I really felt the weight somehow... I looked at my six pairs of cream / white trousers / jeans last night and wondered whether I'd ever wear them again.

Why not?! If ever I can get my head back into gear. Still staying away from Dukan as a voice is still advising me to do so...

Thanks for your constant encouragement... I can't afford to stay this size, that's for sure, as my wardrobe is too small for me sizewise (yet overfloweth in quantity!)...

:)
 
Is the rain preventing your stomping?
I always find the warmer weather helps keep appetite at bay, so this extra winter is not helping.

4months, thats time to find and lose motivation over and over ;)

Understand that voice(I cant strict dukan either, too easy to fall into the overly controlledness), you know what your demons are and yet another quick solution wont help, you know that.

Please stick around though obv.
 
Hiya,

hope you're having a good weekend. Just wanted to share details of a book I have just read on Kindle:

The Decaf Diet: Is Caffeine Making You Fat?
https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B003ZSHOSK/ref=kinw_myk_ro_title

It was free when I got it, but it is quite informative an worth reading /keeping an eye out if it's on promo again/ if you are consuming a lot of coffee and 'caffeinated beverages'. Below is copied from the Amazon reviews and I can second that - it's got footnotes and a huge list of references at the back:

============================================================
4.0 out of 5 stars Well researched!, 5 Dec 2010 By LegalBeagle - Published on Amazon.com

This review is from: The Decaf Diet (Paperback)
As someone who would like to lose a few pounds I was intrigued by Eugene Wells' provocative book The Decaf Diet: Is Caffeine Making You Fat? I admit to being a little skeptical as I had never heard that caffeine could negatively affect one's weight. However, after reading this well documented book (it includes over 70 pages of reference notes!) I am convinced.

According to Wells: "caffeine is at odds with weight loss because it decreases our feelings of satiety, contributes to overeating, and also decreases our energy expenditure while at rest." Nor is weight gain the only side effect, caffeine also:

* Reduces muscle mass;
* Slows the metabolism;
* Elevates stress levels;
* Elevates insulin levels; and
* Negatively impacts thyroid function.

And if you think that being a tea drinker is any better -- think again! Wells states that regular tea is, in fact, even worse than coffee. Apparently, caffeinated tea (including green tea) contains large amounts of fluoride which can alter thyroid function.

After laying out the case why caffeine is harmful, Wells includes three decaf plans: gradual reduction; cold turkey; and optimal caffeine use (for those who want to continue to caffeine in moderation). As a caffeine lover, I paid particular attention to the last plan. Nowadays, I still have my morning java break, but I do, more often than not, skip the second cup. This, I think, is a start!

The Decaf Diet is a well researched book that may just convince you to grab a nice cup of herbal tea instead of the usual coffee and a muffin.

Review copy provided courtesy of the publisher.
===========================================

So the overeating problem may be in your head, but it's not helped by your cup of coffee which puts you into 'stress mode'. I am going to reduce my caffeine to one at breakfast - after only recently finding myself drinking more and more of the stuff for no reason. I always switch to decaff (there could be problems with that too...) from lunchtime onwards but even so the 4-6 before midday can't be doing me any favours! So I'll see how I go ;-) Herbal? Water?

Oh and re the not strict Dukan - I 'nearly' cruised (PP days always had *some* Veg at the family meal) for 2 or 3 weeks post-Easter and saw hardly any losses, then switched to proper conso mode last Monday and this Sat I'm a pound down. Go figure... Through cruise I have however managed to re-strengthen my resistance muscle :), it was getting very weak...
 
Thank you Anja. I hadn't returned to my own diary in a week, having little or nothing to add to it, so I missed this gem... This spell of nice weather has reminded me how much I love eating salad and CRUNCHY things which I so missed on Dukan so they will be figuring heavily on my preplanned menus for England (June 8-18). Fruit also is something I will use and abuse in England and it's been many years since I've actually been home during the strawberry season so they will be a treat in themselves, particularly if I find a slot in our already overbooked schedule to go and pick my own :)

I have just received what should be the final paper to be translated by the official court sworn translator (another €100 down the drain)... it will be good to know that the paperwork side of the wedding is complete (mind you, it still has to be accepted as being "complete" when I see the Mayor mid-July).

Still beautiful weather here (another day I think) so I'm wearing a nice summery dress. I saw your maxi dress on your thread, which looks lovely on you, but my eyes still can't get round to my wearing such things having lived in tent type clothes for so very many years! My sister swears by them, and tells me how cool they are to wear, but I still fear I'll let go and "fill them up" if ever I buy one! :D Daft but true.

I'm not sure I can live without my caffeine... well live yes, stay awake at work when I'm up at 5.30am most mornings? I doubt! In England, mind, I drink far less so I could give it a shot on vacation and see how I cope...
 
I'm the same as you Jo, have managed to do without so much in order to lose weight but can't get rid of the caffeine! I keep looking at people looking gorgeous in maxi-dresses, both slim and curvy women, yet can't help but feel I'd look like a medicine ball in one! Our minds are our worst enemies. Glad the bureaucracy is getting sorted.
 
Hi Jo, nice to see you pop in :) - you're about the same as me, wandeing round Minimins but not ever popping into your own diary...

About the caffeine - yes I have slowly cut back now, I just realised how I was knocking the stuff back, not so much for the caffeine but just for the sake of having a drink, there no doubt the caffeine was building up.

I have now mixed half decaf and half normal ground coffee at home, and not yet told DH what he’s drinking! He’s not noticed or commented yet... I have one large mug of ‘half’ coffee in the morning and one at work and have switched to decaf for the rest as far as possible. I’m not going to great lengths to exclude it from other sources, I am still drinking conventional Teas, about two cups a day. I have not noticed any difference or any ‘withdrawal’ headaches or anything else. Today however I’m drinking caffeine - even in the afternoon because I had a late night on Tue, then a 2am bedtime last night (preparing accounts for committee meeting) and tonight is going to be late again (the actual meeting), and of course I am still getting up around 6/6.30am unchanged....

Quite long time ago I saw a programme where they followed two heavy coffee drinkers for a week or two and then gave one of them only decaf for a similar time span, though both subjects did not know WHO was not having the caffeine. And what it showed was that the continued coffee drinker had some ‘withdrawal’ headaches and the other was apparently fine, both of course trying to work out who was going without. In a short term alertness / reaction test the decaf at first slightly underperformed but by the end of the week she was performing back at the level she’d been at the previous week - fully caffeinated. So the point of it to me was that a, withdrawal CAN be in your head, and that the perceived improvement of performance is soon outweighed with the need to keep the caffeine up because of the actual withdrawal affecting your performance.

Anyway it's just another faddy thing no doubt and that book goes on a lot about the associate calories (ie the muffins and sugar we have with the caffeinated beverages) - so cutting those would already make a difference to the average person that always had a big latte & muffin from Starbucks every morning!

Take care and don't forget your adoring public. And have fun in the UK next week! You're missing all the Diamond Jubilee Extravaganza though?
 
Hello there,
Yes I know I'm missing everything (but did watch EVERY minute of the Pageant yesterday, even if I had to keep switching to French TV each time the BBC moved to the studio to interview people instead of showing us the important stuff, grrrr!). When I booked this holiday, we discussed coming over a full week early, but then realised it'd be school holidays, everyone would be busy over the long weekend, roads would be worse than usual, and so we thought it'd mess up our one trip to England this year! Even though I had a few pangs yesterday!!

I'm not that much of a coffee drinker to be honest... I guzzle lots of water though!
 
Hello diary...

I'll be right back, but wanted to paste my old signature somewhere here before amending it!

Dec 2010: 72.5
2011
Jan: 79.5 -> 73.5
Feb: 73.2 -> 71.2
Mar: 70.1 -> 70.1
Apr: 68.6 -> 67.6
May: 66.8 -> 66.5
June: 68.6 -> 68.3 fin Dukan
July: x - 69.0 -> 69.7
Aug: 69.9 -> 71.4
Sept: 69.6 -> 70.8
Oct: 70.5 -> 70.7
Nov: x - 72.9 -> 72.7
Dec: 71.9 -> 73.6

2012 -redukan Tues 3/01 at @79K
Jan: 76.6 -> 73.0
Feb: 72.2 -> 71.6
Mar: 72.0 -> 77.0 (yep) - no more Dukan!
Apr: 73.5 -> 72.7
May: 72.5 -> 73.6
June: 73.9 -> 72.3
 
OK I'm back... My break in England was great DESPITE the weather. I had the worst ferry crossing imaginable and not only because of the wind and high seas. We usually cross late at night, so finding coach loads of schol kids (or rather HEARING) throughout the entire journey... whoooping with glee at each roll of the ship initially (then alas turning green and worse!), was a nightmare. SOME of the teachers, to their credit, did return and sort some out but I'd like to know where they disappear to leaving their 100s of charges to run freely around the ship! grrrr!

It rained, hailed, was windy, and horrible nearly all the time I was in England. I never wore a skirt or dress and only walked once! I was even cold wherever I stayed (some of you Brits are hardy folk, I note, rarely if ever turning the heating on once it's supposed to be Spring/Summer!!).

I'm back with a hefty weight increase but am already on day four of "my old (prior to Dukan) diet" and won't be returning to Dukan...

Wedding looming in 12 weeks so I know what I have to do :) and it'll be without ketosis and with plenty of fresh veg and fruit as with my initial 11 stone loss.
 
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Hi Jo,

nice to see you back! I was wondering where you'd got to! Are you going to decamp your diary to a different forum or will you stay here?

Good luck with the new plan - so the 'unlimited' element has gone then? I'm sure you'll be fine.

Commiserations at the ferry journey! The teachers were probably just as green, huddled in a different corner.... As for the weather - yes it was doing it's best to be BRITISH! Cue lots of comfort eating, ditto for Father's day (any excuse) so I'm about 3kg over too. But I am not abandoning Dukan Conso-style yet ;-) but must retrain my resistance which has visibly relaxed again in the last year!
 
would be good if you did stay here Jo love your posts and your sense of humour :D hope the wedding plans all go smoothly in the next 11 weeks x
 
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