overweight for 34 years ... finally discovered some willpower

[Bella Rose]

Hi, I am new to this site and only started CD about 10 days ago. I tried it about 25 years ago and failed miserably. Newly married and keen to impress with my cooking skills. as well as cooking with my mums instructions didn't help. The quantities She was passing on to me were for 5 people and I was only cooking for 2 !! Diets have always been a big fat fail for me, my excuse/reason... I simply love food and in my culture (greek) its very much a social thing. I am approaching 50 now and have a lot of engagement parties and weddings coming up. Im absolutely terrified of clothes shopping and the thought of my own kids getting married and me turning up in a tent and no energy to dance.
Willpower has always been my failing. I have always been easy-going, accepting, non-competative, live-and-let-live etc. Normally good traits but not when it comes to losing weight. My inspiration this time round has been my daughter who is on the diet with me. She only wants to lose a few pounds for a holiday, though I am hoping that the CD will be part of my routine before I am going it alone. It helps that she is at home for the summer before going back to University, so my aim is to lose as much as possible before she goes back in October.
I also live with my partner and my son who both have physical jobs, and sweet-tooths that means they eat loads of junk but never put on weight. Cooking tasty, manly meals that I cant eat is torture at times.
My routine for cooking their meals has developed into drinking two glasses of water before going into the kitchen to cook,
I make my milkshake with a little less water so it is smooth & thick (i use an electric hand blender) and sip on it while i cook. I dont stand over the food, instead walking to living room and back every 5 mins so not tempted by smells and also getting in some more walking.
my plan is to have a treat every 4 weeks, my first is chips & curry sauce ... only 18 days to go
As I said earlier it is early days and I don't know how long I can keep it up.
my other distractions are a mini-stepper in the living room that i do during all commercial breaks on the tv, and crochet which keeps my hands busy. Gardening is another but we haven't had many dry days this year. The dog also gets a 45 minute walk every other day.
Above all I think the biggest step I have taken this time round is to join this site.
I would love to hear about the small changes that have made a difference to your successes. And as I get bored of some activities and discover new ones I will share these with you all.
I also vow to share the let-downs and bounce-backs, the frustrations and the enlightenings I go through.
You can either laugh at how wierd I am or join in and tell me you have done or thought the same.
I wish this site was available when I was younger

 

[SkinnyMinni_x]

Well done for taking the first step again !

This site is great for motivation it has really helped me too! Getting past those first 3 days are key .. So stick to it and look foward to feeling in ketosis and fab!
xxx

 

[Bella Rose]

I started this diary 3 days ago on my day 12. I had my second WI last night and lost 4lbs again. I lost 4lbs the first week too. I'm not sure why but I'm quite disappointed. I thought id lose 6 at least. On the plus side I have lost 2 ins from my waist and 1 in off my hips.
I suppose that half a stone in two weeks is a decent weight loss, I wouldn't have lost it without CD. My short term target is a wedding I have in September but I know I wont reach target by then. If I lose 2.5 or 3 stone I'd be very happy.
I wonder if I need to step up my exercise, even though my CDC says nothing more than a 30 mins walk 3-4 times a week. I have a mini stepper at home and i aim for 750 steps a day in 150 step intervals throughout the day.
I was surprised when i realised that at the end of my 2 weeks SS (3meals a day) I had 7 shakes left over. Even though I don't leave home to work, my daily activities involve moving up and down 2 flights of stairs quite a few times a day. So not sure if lack of movement/exercise is slowing down my weight loss or if the fact I have survived on just two shakes and litres!! of water a day, with nothing more than a handful of red grapes, one cucumber and one celery for two weeks has something to do with my low weight loss. Or its simply down to the fact my body simply doesn't want (or can't) to lose the weight.
I probably shouldn't but I see the other ladies at CD WIs losing 6,7,8 lbs and am very jealous and am beginning to doubt myself
Will I feel different in a couple of days? I hope my will power holds out.

 

[ninajw83]

Hiya Bella rose and welcome to Minimins. Wishing you every success on your weight loss journey. R.e foods is it SS you're doing because grapes are full of carbs so will hinder your weight loss, i didn't realise until i'd had a handful a few months ago and read the packet as i tend to after eating something lol. Could very likely be the only having 2 shakes too because your body needs the 3 as a minimum calorie and nutritional intake too. 8lbs in 2 wks is brilliant so hang on in there and keep going and make sure you have all your products xx

 

[BethereforChristmas]

Well done for starting - thats a huge step in itself. Please don't judge yourself by others weight losses - it varies so much with everyone.
There is a great sticky at the top here about now judging by what the scales say - its worth a read.

CD themselves say you will lose a stone a month - with is just under 3 lbs a week - so to lose 4 is great. When I started I worked out how long it would take me based on 3lbs a week and focused on that - anything else was a bonus - I thought it would take me 10 months to get to goal, and by using that I didn't get fed up when the losses were less than I wanted! IN face I got there (well 4 lbs short of it) in just 6 months so that was great. Unfortunately I had to have an operation then so came off CD for the 3 months and just went straight back to my old ways. I am now back on it (taken another year and several stone :cry:to get back on it properly) and as my name says will (fingers crossed) be there for Christmas - Then I will work up the steps and learn from my mistakes!

Its difficult sometimes I know but please try to have all your shakes - you need them you make sure you are getting the right nutrients - its really important.Like nina says the grapes could well have been an issue as they are full of sugar - the cucumber and celery not so much as I think you are allowed them on SS+/810.

The lack of exercise won't slow your losses - I did it before on no exercise - Some people find exercise slows there losses - but there is no harm in maintaining what you were doing before CD as that is what you were used to.

Looking forward to sharing your journey - people on here are such a great support network

 

[GretaGrip]

Hello!

As others have said, if you are SS then make sure you eat/drink the correct amount of shakes/bars and drink your two litres. Do not self sabotage by eating grapes - they are full of fruit sugar, so although absolutely fine on a diet like SW or WW, they are a no no on the CWP.

 

[Bella Rose]

am I the only one who is quite touched by your interest in my diet? lol thanks guys

yeah I was confused by the red grapes too. the cucumber and celery is obviously mainly water, I just missed chewing something lol
on my first WI I asked my CDC loads of questions simply to confirm to myself that I was doing things right. The main reason I chose SS is because I have a back problem so am not very mobile, and when I am its not 'brisk' she told me that having 2 shakes is ok and red grapes are in my unlimited list even if i am doing SS. yeah it didnt make sense to me either cos i know fruit contains sugars. I have a very suspicious mind, maybe she didnt want me to lose all my weight too quickly lol
I am taking on board all the advice you have all given. no more grapes and i will make the effort to have 3 shakes a day even if not hungry
BeThereForChristmas - Well done for (nearly) getting to target. That a good way of thinking about it... I will mentally aim for 4lbs, only cos I know its achievable for me. Im gonna wet myself with joy when I lose 5lbs in a week lol
Grapes are off the menu for me as from right now! And I shall continue my exercise but without pushing myself just that little bit more.
ninajw83 & Gretagrip - thank you for your input. somehow hearing the same thing from all of you convinces me that I'm getting more help on here than from my counsellor.
I'm off to do my ironing now... that should be worth a few activity points... I feel happier now than I did this morning so that's a boost. i feel my willpower coming back.
Im still new to the site and finding my way around. I will look for the 'sticky' Keep strong

 

[ninajw83]

Hiys Bellarose, how are you getting on xxx

 

[Bella Rose]

Hiys Bellarose, how are you getting on xxx

Hi Nina, thanks for asking...
wow its been 4 weeks since i posted, didn't realize its been that long Ive been dogged with minor health issues. My back went again so was very immobile for a while, also been having bad PMS symptoms, migraines for 4 or 5 days beforehand, crippling back pain and migrtaines immediately after
I took a break for 2 weeks from the CD but kept away from carbs and drank plenty of water, so have managed to lose weight.
For the last week i have been back on the CD and haven't been for an official WI but my latest weight at home last night was 13st 9lbs.
The first of my planned events is tomorrow and whilst I haven't lost as much as I wanted I wont allow that to dishearten me too much.
Have been re-reading this and other posts to get my mindset back.
So tomorrow I will be eating food at the wedding but I will eat just the meat and veg (I hope they don't serve it with a carb loaded sauce)
Checking into this site at least every couple of days will help me too. I must think positively and even though I haven't lost as much as I originally planned for I realise that a 25 lbs loss over 2 months is still very good and something that I would not have achieved without the CD and Minimins :talk017:

 

[ninajw83]

Wow i think 25lbs is fantastic especially when you've not been feeling good. Lovely to see you back and i hope you have a lovely time at the wedding Are you feeling healthier now? xx

 

[Bella Rose]

Wow i think 25lbs is fantastic especially when you've not been feeling good. Lovely to see you back and i hope you have a lovely time at the wedding Are you feeling healthier now? xx

Hi Ninja, Im afraid Im not very good at checking in regularly. Feeling good this week lol dont get many good days what with a bad 4-5 days before TOM and 4-5 days after, thats half my month gone o
On a positive note this has been a good week, house has been cleaned from top to bottom, all washing and ironing up to date - theres gotta be a few calories burnt at least
and been upping the exercise. I do something different everyday. from Wii fit yoga, muscle and balancing exercise, and using my weights and a mini stepper machine. I finally saw some difference in my hip and waist measurements at my last WI. I have tried the Jillian Micheals 30 day shred... the exercises are ok, I can just about manage the repetitions but What I found difficult is moving quick enough on to the next one lol
Jillian is halfway through the next exercise and im still picking myself up from the last. I think I will keep practising when no one else in the house as Im sure they would be on the floor with hysterics
I know I shouldnt exercise too much on SS but I have a lot of loose flabbiness on my belly and tummy. My CDC enjoyed poking my jelly belly a bit too much on Monday ! I'll show her!
I mixed up my diet this week with a treat for hitting the 2 stone mark with a prawn lettuce and cucumber salad, with a bit of low cal 1000 island sauce. I think my stomach has shrunk tho. months ago I wouls have finished it in 5 mins, this time it took me an hour and two fag breaks to get through it lol