Step2 810kcal Rohanya's Diary

[Rohanya]

Hello everyone!

I'm back to MiniMins after a failed attempt at weight loss this time last year, on Slimming World. I'm back, and this time on Cambridge which I hope I will have much more success on... cause something has to change!

Slimming World worked for me and it didn't at the same time, if that makes sense. I enjoyed the freedom of choice with food, I could find things I liked and I lost just shy of 2 stone when I did it. The problem was trying to fit it around family more than anything. It was getting difficult to fit what I could/couldn't eat around what they wanted to eat and when there's two/three sets of meal making going on at dinner time it soon got easier to give up and eat 'normally' (not unhealthily for the most part, but not totally healthy either!).

I currently weigh about 20st, with 9-10 to lose so I have a very long way to go. I don't have a goal weight in mind right now (though my CWPC has suggested to aim for about 10 and a half), but I know I need to aim for around half my body weight lost, which is terrifying to me! I don't know what being slim means - I've been chunky my whole life from the minute I started having freedom with my spending/lunch money and just filling up on ten types of crap from about the age of 13. I'm now 25, so I think I've gone just long enough being a chunky monkey and want rid now. I have no idea how I'll feel, how I'll look, how other people will see me and I find that the scariest part, not the actual task of losing the weight in the first place.

So here I am giving CWP a go. I'm currently on Day 2 and feeling pretty good, although I imagine I might be eating my words over the weekend as I've been told to expect days 3 and 4 to hurt. I've started on Step 2 as my BMI is too high to do SS. My plan is 4 products and a pint of skimmed milk, which touch wood suits me. I don't want the small meal just yet as I feel like I need to switch off from food for a few weeks to, as my CWPC says, restart my system.

This week is definitely all about trying a decent selection and seeing what I like/dislike. Next week will be much better in that I'll know roughly what I like and will have yummy all the way through. I've got a bolognaise and a tikka to have at some point and after the mac and cheese I'm dreading those a little bit. Fingers crossed I'm left pleasantly surprised.

I've also managed a whopping 4 litres of water today (thank YOU water flavouring) which, for someone who would normally just not bother drinking anything if nothing other than pepsi max or diet coke was available, is pretty impressive if I do say so myself.

This will work. It has to. I got this.

-Erin (Rohanya)

 

[Rohanya]

So these are the products I've had so far and my verdict on them!

1 - Butterscotch shake - smells lovely but was a bit disappointed by the taste and texture. It was, however, my first shake so I might have made it too watery and not blended enough, hence the texture! I've got two more of this and I'm certainly not not looking forwards to them, I'll have one this weekend and try a) making it with my milk allowance rather than water and b) blending it for a bit longer!
2 + 3 - Strawberry and Banana Tetras - they don't taste as good as the make your own versions, but for what they are they're fab for lunch at work where I don't particularly want to mess about making my own shake or a soup. Will definitely have one of these every weekday.
4 - Mac and Cheese - GROSS. It tasted like someone tried to mix super strong Quavers flavouring (crisps I love) with proper Mac and Cheese. Overpowering and too synthetic. Never again.
5 - Vanilla Shake - Again, a little powdery but only the second I made myself. Tasted nice blended with ice, though!
6 - Strawberry shake - YUM. I loved this. Just what I needed this morning. Bit gutted I only picked three for this week. Will definitely have more in my order next week!
7 - Chicken and Mushroom soup - MORE YUM. Again, I only picked two so I'm gutted but these really are fab. The only product I've tasted so far that doesn't taste like a diet product, if that makes sense. Will definitely have more of these, especially as a hot meal for dinner.
8 - Banana/Toffee and Walnut shake - Saw the idea for this on the CWP facebook so I figured I'd give half-half a go. Best texture turnout so far and tasted pretty good too. Don't think I could have toffee on its own, but it's certainly nice with the banana!
9 - Water Flavouring (Berry) - This stuff is fantastic. I hate water and this has made it EASY to drink my water. It says 1 teaspoon in a litre per day but I find a quarter or even an eigth in 500ml (so half or quarter strength) is perfectly palatable to me so it means I can flavour the vast majority of my water for now until I get used to drinking so much water. Eventually I'll try to only have it in a litre as directed but for now it's working a treat.

End of Day 2 now and I can definitely sense the bad breath trying to make it's unwanted appearance. Time to get some sugar free gum or some breath spray... :/

 

[Wigglybunny]

Sounds like you are off to a great start. You'll find your tastes change, too...stuff you love now you might hate in a few weeks and vice versa. It's hard to explain but it's what I've found. Although I've never been able to stomach the strawberry tetras....just vile!! I like the water flavouring too. I often put just under a teaspoonful into a 2 litre bottle of sparking water...then it lasts longer and isn't too strong. Just if you try it, make sure you pour out a glass first or it bubbles over the top!! (I forgot and did this about an hour ago!)

4 litres of water is about my standard on cwp and I can really feel it if I don't drink that much. I honestly believe it helps the weight loss too, as I've always had pretty good losses.

Kate xx

 

[Rohanya]

Wiggly, I think the best thing about the tetras for me is that even if I don't like them (they're okay but as I said they don't taste the same as the packet ones and the texture isn't quite right either, bit...gritty?) is that they're soooo small you can just neck them and forget about it. I do like that.

So Day 3's just about over and I must say I'm still feeling pretty good. Was told to expect this weekend to suck as the diet hits my system but nothing other than a couple of tummy rumbles today!

I woke up this morning feeling ever so guilty. I'd dreamt that I'd eaten some jelly cubes (before you make normal jelly - those...) and some cake and woke up not quite realising that I hadn't done it and that it was actually a dream. It's weird because I'm not one to remember dreams at all really... I think my mind is messing with me a little bit.

Also, my sister ate a realllllllly nice smelling pizza for tea and my parents had bacon and egg butties with cake for pud. Jealous didn't even cover it. It's quite sweet though because they all apologised to me. Told them to stop it cause if they apologise every time they eat something I'd normally shovel down my gob without even thinking, they'll be apologising for (hopefully) the next ten months or so! My willpower will win this battle, not apologies for being normal humans eating whatever they feel like!

I'm finding it a lot easier knowing that all I have to do is blend my shake, drink it and move on with other things, rather than think about food (what to have, can I be bothered making it? No, okay, takeaway it is then...).

Products:
1) Strawberry shake - Still yum, but not quite as yum as the first one!
2) Butterscotch shake - As above, really. Would like to try this one with the mix-a-mousse though come wk3!
3) Bolognaise - Not as bad as the Mac and Cheese and did manage to eat all of it. Was nowhere near tomatoey enough for me though, it tasted like herb... as if the herbs are in it to mask something rather than compliment it. Will probably get one more next week before I can get the bars.
4) Chocolate Mint shake - For someone that really doesn't like chocolate flavoured things (unless cake.), this was surprisingly good. It smelled better than it tasted, but that's definitely not to knock the shake as a whole. Definitely add a couple in next week for something a bit naughty feeling.

And I'm currently on my 3.0l water. Will have one more before bed to get me to 3.5l but I'm happy with that considering I put more fluid (milk/water) into my shakes than directed so there's extra there.

Till tomorrow!

 

[Wigglybunny]

Well done! You're not meant to do it, really, but the tetras are lovely frozen (even if they do take about half an hour to defrost enough to get a spoon in!) xx

 

[NunuD]

I second the frozen tetras! They are lovely and creamy. I had a luxury meal yesterday of tetra block ice cream with sparkling water and flavouring over ice with a sprig of mint. I tell ya, it's the high life.

I found the spag bol really sweet till I started customising it. Dry herbs and spices are fine , so depending on my mood I swap up the flavour profile . So I add coriander, cumin, paprika and cayenne for a chilli style dish, some rosemary , oregano and a bit of chili for a richer spag bol and I keep a little tub of cajun mix on hand too for a quick flavour add. You can do this with all of them. I add extra garlic to the risotto, a bit of chili to the mac and cheese and extra spices to the tikka. I love cooking and really missed getting to enjoy all the different flavour profiles till I did this and it's honestly made a huge difference. I'm all about spicy food! Give it a go see if it helps.

Also hot choc mint shakes are wicked at totm when you feel crap.


You are doing so well and your family sound lovely! Stick to it and you'll feel fab in no time

Nadia x

 

[Rohanya]

I can't believe I'm about to place my first order for my next set of products already! Day 5 now and it's flown by with none of the side effects I was dreading or anything!

Had a rotten day today though, one of my guinea pigs (love em, I've got 31!) passed away just after I got home from work after spending the last two months nursing her and giving her her medication in the hope that I'd get a little bit longer with her. Normally I'd deal with this by way of a takeaway but nope, I'm feeling miserable with only a shake left for the day... I sense an early night on the cards tonight.

Other than that though, I'm feeling quite positive about the diet. Felt proper hungry today though which hasn't happened the last 4 days! Tummy rumbling all the time, though I suspect it's because I had to have two tetras today (I normally just have the one for lunch at work) cause I was running late this morning and couldn't do a 'full size' shake. My CWPC dropped off a couple of smoothies that I was missing so I had one of those when I got home and that was VERY nice. Definitely altering my order to fit a few of those in for next week!

-le sigh- I'm glad my willpower has beaten my urge to comfort eat today. Tomorrow will be better, then we're already at my first weigh in! :O

 

[Wigglybunny]

Great to hear time is flying for you and you're feeling great. I tried the smoothies today for the first time too. Yummy.

So sorry to hear about your Guinea pig. xxx

 

[Rohanya]

First weigh in completed and I couldn't be more thrilled. 8lb down in my first week and I'm already out of the 20s and into the 19s! Been told to aim for 3-4lbs a week from now on but may well do more. If so, I'm only looking at 3 weeks for the first full stone to disappear!

Motivation levels well and truly topped up today. Don't even care that I still feel like I could eat a horse!

 

[Wigglybunny]

Awesome!! Well done you. Keep at it and it will go xx

 

[Blubell._.0422]

Well done!That's brilliant!

 

[Rohanya]

Thank you!

Still feeling a little hungry today but I think it's starting to go away again now. Still can't quite believe I'm into week 2 already, I'm feeling pretty good about this! Treated myself to a few different Palmers moisturisers to aid me on my journey and I keep looking through my clothes for things that WILL fit me soon. Pulled out a really nice pink dress (supposedly a 22, but the majority of 22s are big on me but this thing I have no chance with!) that I hope to get into in the next few weeks. Taken my before picture in it cause it's tight and shows off all my unsightly bumps that WILL NOT be there in a few weeks time when I can put it on and enjoy it for (hopefully) a few weeks. A few pairs of jeans/jeggings that I've never been able to fit into, too. SOON.

Also, these water flavourings are great. I got the Orange one this week and while I don't rate it as much as the berry one, considering I can have them at a quarter strength and enjoy them it's meaning I can flavour all my water. Drinking 3-4l a day is a breeze now. One of the proudest things so far is that I've now been off the diet coke/pepsi max for two weeks now. I complained yesterday to the parents and said I REALLY wanted some (but wouldn't cause I want a few more weeks without it before I start having a glass here and there to help me kick the habit for good). They said that if I get so desperate I'm climbing the walls there's a few cans of diet coke somewhere in the house (hidden) that they'll let me have if I want one. I'm more pleased that I haven't asked yet now I know it's here somewhere. Though I might have one over the bank holiday as a little treat to me for how well I'm doing. At least I know I can't get at the rest of them if they're hidden.

Little things.

 

[Rohanya]

Bad day today. Stuck to plan 99% (I ate one cocktail sausage...not going to beat myself up about that considering I'd normally scoff loads) but felt like all I wanted today was food. Found it very difficult to come home to a milkshake when my dad was eating a curry and ended up taking myself off to bed at 7pm... needless to say I'm now wide awake and probably won't be able to go back to bed for a few hours yet... -sigh-

Feel better after sleeping those feelings off though. Had I stayed up I know I'd have secretly raided the fridge for something I could eat and then felt seriously guilty afterwards. I had my 4th shake quite a lot later than normal but if I'm honest I'm finding it more difficult to have 4 products than I would do if I was limited to three. I simply don't want the fourth most days.

Ah well, get myself under 40bmi and I can drop down to three (when sods law dictates I'll want 4)... I might talk to my consultant about replacing a shake with a small meal which I know I can do but didn't want to for the first few weeks on plan. See if that helps me feel like I can manage four 'meals' rather than three. Bars next week should help too but yeah... it's tough going at the moment.

 

[Wigglybunny]

Sorry to hear it's tough at the moment. Push through...you will get there. I find sleep is the best solution. This diet gives you so much energy, but it is exhausting as your body is working so hard in a different way. I saw your earlier post about moisturisers too and I think it's a great way to give yourself some tlc, but avoid the calories!! xx

 

[Rohanya]

So I'm now reading in the 19s on my scales (in clothes)! Sounds like such a small thing as according to my WI last week I'm already there but to see it there on my scales (which I think put me 3-4lbs heavier than my CWPC's!) is such a motivational push in the right direction - cause I know I'm probably now closer to 19.8! Roll on wednesday, really hoping for another big one after being 99% on plan and with the amount of water I'm drinking (now closer to 4l than 3, go me!). I won't be disappointed if it's not a huge loss though, as I already know I'm still moving in the right direction.

Feeling very good today!

 

[Wigglybunny]

Awesome! Fingers crossed for a great loss xx

 

[YollyRounder]

Been having a read through your diary and I have also got like half my body weight to lose (about 10/11 stone) I just finished my first week! I seen your review of the mac and cheese and now I am afraid to try it as I got 1 today to try
Will be nice to keep up with your journey as you almost have as much weight to lose as me... WE CAN DO THIS Good luck for your weigh in tomorrow!

 

[Rohanya]

Been having a read through your diary and I have also got like half my body weight to lose (about 10/11 stone) I just finished my first week! I seen your review of the mac and cheese and now I am afraid to try it as I got 1 today to try
Will be nice to keep up with your journey as you almost have as much weight to lose as me... WE CAN DO THIS Good luck for your weigh in tomorrow!

Everyone's taste is different! I've seen quite a few people in various groups raving about it but it just wasn't for me at all. You might love it!

We certainly can do this!

 

[nicknick]

Really enjoyed reading your diary, stuck so many cords with me. I too have been overweight my whole life and have about 10st to lose.

Keep going, you are amazing!

 

[Grover]

Hope things are still going well, for you. Lots of familiar things in these posts that have really struck a chord. Hope you're still winning the battle with the little voice in your head telling you to give in and cheat. This really is a bit of an all or nothing diet and you get out what you put in!
I am currently motoring through week 9 and feeling good. 30lbs down so far with a weigh in tomorrow when I hope that number of pounds lost will grow again. Fingers crossed! I've also reached a point where people have started to notice and comment. Rather unfairly when you have a lot to lose it seems to take longer to get to this point but there's nothing like it for keeping you motivated. That and the aspirational clothes. I like to get something inexpensive (because I'm hoping the sizes are going to be temporary for a while!) And then try them on a weekly basis. Few things have made me feel better than an 18 being comfortable for the first time in years!
Good luck this week!
We can totally do this!