Scrumbles' diary...life after losing a third of me...

[ladyfelsham]

OMG a seven year old! That is such a great way to visualise the weight loss

I must say I am really struggling to get around at any speed with the heat and humidity at the moment - but then carrying around three seven years olds' worth of fat doesn't help!

 

[Alpaca]

Morning Scrumbles... You sound perfect on cals and carbs so it will slide off soon... Well done on the focus and well done on the 50! Xxx

 

[Scrumbles]

OMG a seven year old! That is such a great way to visualise the weight loss

I must say I am really struggling to get around at any speed with the heat and humidity at the moment - but then carrying around three seven years olds' worth of fat doesn't help!

I feel for you - my knees were crumbling with the excess weight by the time I arrived at 17 stone. They were both making alarming clicking noises going upstairs (which I tried to do as little as possible, I might add!) to the point where I was worried something was about to give out . I know that weight gain is insidious and creeps up on you over a long time, but still, I can't quite get my head around how far I'd let myself drift over the years given the sheer awkwardness and discomfort of it.

If and when I reach my ultimate goal of 11 stone, in total I'll have lost the weight of an average 12-13 yr old boy - and I'll be very glad to have dumped him, I can tell you!

Morning Scrumbles... You sound perfect on cals and carbs so it will slide off soon... Well done on the focus and well done on the 50! Xxx

Morning Di, thanks! I think "slide off" might be pushing it for me, lol. I seem pretty resistant to dropping weight at this point - I reckon I'll probably have to resort to all sorts of dirty tricks to con my body into letting go of it . I might even change plans completely as a bit of a shock tactic - a couple of weeks of eating Curly Wurlys and low-fat-everything on WW might do the job, lol.

Yesterday's food came to 1580 cals and 20g carbs. I'm not posting menus at the moment because frankly, they're too boring. I'm not an imaginative cook at the best of times, and being limited to Induction foods doesn't exactly help! It's basically loads of eggs, fish, chicken, leafy greens, butter and cheese for now. Bit boring but I'll be throwing berries back into the mix next week, so that will perk things up

Hope everyone has a great day!

 

[ladyfelsham]

Thanks love

Touch wood, my joints aren't too bad - but it's the breathless thing, and having to stop all the time. Keep reminding me of this when I waver

 

[Kat1e]

Hi scrumbles, i'm with you on making the weight real. My DD is 23kg and just almost 8 now - and i stopped lifting her at about 2/3 because she hurt my back....so not quite sure how i managed to cart those 34 extra kg around

I definitely have more energy now!

 

[coffeelover]

I might even change plans completely as a bit of a shock tactic - a couple of weeks of eating Curly Wurlys and low-fat-everything on WW might do the job, lol.

!

Or SW lol.

That's some great analogy with the seven year old.

Your doing great!

 

[Scrumbles]

Thanks love

Touch wood, my joints aren't too bad - but it's the breathless thing, and having to stop all the time. Keep reminding me of this when I waver

Will do!

I hear ya on the breathless thing. About 4 years ago, when I wasn't particularly overweight, I was up to walking 6 miles a day - sometimes jogging as well - and my stamina was probably the best it's ever been. Then *life* happened, things started to slide and I ended up 6 months ago barely able to climb one flight of stairs without gasping for dear life. Bad enough at home, but a nightmare out in public - I absolutely dreaded going somewhere with no lift or escalator because of the sheer embarrassment of being a total mess after climbing a few poxy stairs . I'm still not particularly fit - would help if I actually did some cardio once in a while - but it's definitely getting better.

Hi scrumbles, i'm with you on making the weight real. My DD is 23kg and just almost 8 now - and i stopped lifting her at about 2/3 because she hurt my back....so not quite sure how i managed to cart those 34 extra kg around

I definitely have more energy now!

I like to visualise - I think it helps me understand how far I've come much better. It's like on these health/diet programmes when they show obese people a dirty great table displaying a week's worth of their (terrible!) food intake - you can see by the disgust on their faces that that's when it really hits home. Just noting down what you eat day by day has nothing like the impact of actually seeing it all laid out in its glory!

Or SW lol.

That's some great analogy with the seven year old.

Your doing great!

Thanks Val! Isn't SW the one where you eat unlimited pasta, or something?? That would be quite some change from Atkins, lol!

Had a sneaky peak at the scales this morning (not due to weigh until Monday) and I'm 192.4lbs - down a whole 0.1lb, lol. So I'd put money on a sts this week, which isn't at all surprising after my big loss last week. Tbh, I'm just glad that loss appears to be sticking - didn't want to find it was just a temporary down-swing.

Yesterday's food was around 1580 cals and 17g carbs - must get a few more carbs in today. I had a bit of a wobble when OH made me a nice big mug of tea and, in a moment of absent-mindedness, put milk in it! I so wanted to drink it, but I asked him to chuck it down the sink, and he did. It may or may not be milk that stalls me, but I'm certainly not prepared to gamble with it yet!

Hope the sun is shining wherever you all are, and that you're enjoying this lovely long weekend!

 

[Scrumbles]

Had another sneaky weigh-in this morning and I'm 191.8lbs - finally, officially 50lbs lost!

Soooo relieved that things are on the move again - April and May were very frustrating months. Apart from my Xmas break, I'd never gone a week without losing something since starting the diet, even if it was only half a pound, so to get completely stuck when I considered that I was still being so dedicated to the process felt like a slap in the face. (I know it happens, but it ain't a good feeling!)

Going back to strict Induction was probably the best thing I could have done because it made me realise just how many things I was eating that could potentially have been stalling me: booze, milk, peanut butter, artificial sweeteners and yoghurt all made regular appearances on my menus and any/all of those could have been to blame.

I've decided that I'm not re-introducing milk until I'm practically at goal - that was a silly thing to mess with. I thought it was okay at the time, but it probably wasn't. I'm not going to have artificial sweeteners either - if the natural sweetness of a food isn't palatable to me, then I'm not going to eat it. That will make it easy to dispense with yoghurt as I hate the sourness of it when it's unsweetened.

As for booze, I've given myself a stern talking to regarding that. There is no shortage of it in the world. It's not like it won't still be there when I get to goal. If I can't give it up for a matter of months to achieve something that means so much to me, that's a pretty poor show. So it's out, completely. No arguments, no excuses.

Bottom line is that I don't want to be messing around at this this time next year. I want to be in maintenance by then, having acquired all the knowledge and tools that I need to stay at my ideal weight (whatever that may be - don't really know yet). And the harsh reality is that I'm not going to get there if I keep kidding myself that "a sip of this is okay" or "a bite of that won't hurt" - it's not, and it will! Go hard or go home.

Oh, and now I'm properly into the 13's, I really can't keep exercise-dodging. No point getting skinny if I still can't walk round the block without thinking I'm dying! I'll get back on the exercise bike to start with (stopped during the hot weather because I'm a total wimp in the heat ), then start a walking programme in a week's time.

In spite of all this, I will no doubt stall again, at which point I will have to re-evaluate. I'll probably try the diet break again - jacking up the cals and carbs for two weeks. I do believe it helped, even if it might have been mostly psychological. I don't think there's any harm in changing the game now and then, as long as you know you will go back on plan.

Phew...epic post! I feel better for it, though!

Yesterday's food came to 1620 cals and 22g carbs, so I did better on the carb front. Haven't yet planned for today, but it will look very similar, I'm sure!

Hope everyone's having a great weekend!

 

[sammy1]

Hi, I have been reading your diary, very interesting experiment. I do believe that a change of diet is good for us when we stall, it gives the body a jolt and also allows us to eat different foods. Long term I think atkins is a lot easier than other diets as you don't feel hungry and have very few if any cravings.

I lol at your paragraph on alcohol, I must remember the line, that there is no world shortage........wine is my main downfall.

 

[ladyfelsham]

Well done on the post Scrumbles - so easy for these things to sneak in.

Going back to basics and keeping it simple is an excellent call - and I also smiled at the wine comment!

 

[Alpaca]

Evening Scrumbles... I really enjoyed your post - clear and thoughtful! I look forward to hearing Jo you progress ! xx

 

[Scrumbles]

Morning all, just weighed in officially after two weeks back on Induction and I'm 191lbs So that's a loss of 6.5 pounds (or thereabouts) since my diet break, and I have to say, I'm pretty chuffed with that! Obviously, I'm not going to lose that much on a regular basis - would be rather worrying if I did! - but I'm hoping I'll be back to my steady 1-2lb per week loss that I enjoyed pre-stall. I do want the weight loss phase to be over, but at the same time I'm in no special hurry (if that makes sense!), and consistent small losses would suit me just fine. If I'm down in the 12's by the end of July, I won't have hit my original target, but I'll still be over the moon!

@sammy1, thanks for reading! I agree - I think our bodies just get too darned comfortable with what we're doing after a while so it pays to shake things up every so often. I know what I did wasn't any part of the Atkins plan, but I think we all have to find our own way through this process, and I am fully on board with low-carb for life - it seems to me like the only sane way to eat now.

@ladyfelsham, yup, clearing out all those "extras" really seems to be paying off at the moment. And actually, the food is never going to be that boring when you can have bacon, sausages, mayo, cheese, cream etc. It's just the wine and gin that are a wrench - still, I guess my liver says "Thank you!"

@Di, thanks - I think all this oily fish I eat these days must be doing wonders for my brain, lol. I'm wondering how long I could keep going at this level of cals/carbs before my body adapts to it, and I'm thinking I may do another week since I'm on a roll. But then, those berries are calling my name...decisions, decisions!


Yesterday's food was 1610 cals and 24g carbs and was actually rather nice! At least, dinner was: smoked gammon with broccoli and shrinki's cheese sauce...yum! I have more broccoli in the fridge so I'm probably going to have exactly the same again today (see...no imagination, lol).

Have a great day, Atkins peeps!

 

[Scrumbles]

Yesterday was a little sobering.

I've been successfully avoiding having my picture taken for years, but I finally decided that perhaps I ought to have a photo of myself at this weight for comparison when I get down to my ultimate goal (probably about 11 stone, but we'll see), so I put on some clingy clothes and had OH take some snaps of me.

All I can say is that it's amazing what you don't see in a mirror. It was just awful, even though I deliberately angled myself in the most flattering way for some of the shots. I hardly want to step out the door now . I can only imagine how ghastly I must have looked at my peak weight of 17st 4 - and there I was kidding myself that I carry excess weight pretty well...ha! I must be the Queen, nay, the Empress of Denial

Still, on the plus side, I guess if I find myself getting complacent I now have an extra something to spur me on! I ought to print the worst ones out and stick them all over the kitchen...should deter me from eating anything let alone anything illegal

Anyway, I resisted the immediate knee-jerk impulse to starve myself (would be very silly!) and ate my 1600 cals and 18g carbs. Would have been good to have a few more carbs, but those I'm having are practically all Induction veg, so I'm okay with that.

(Btw, I think TOTM approacheth, so don't pay any mind if I seem a bit moody or down - it's quite normal!)

 

[ladyfelsham]

Oh sweetie big cuddles, we all have those mirror moments, but you are doing the right thing by following a plan that will get you where you want to be - just look at Katie and Di! xxx

 

[Scrumbles]

Thanks Susie - think I was having a bit of a ropey morning.

I know this is the best plan there is, and I know it works for me, but when I'm PMS'ing I can start beating myself up for very little reason, and those photos were never going to help! (I've told OH to find some eggshells to walk on for the next wee while, or I'll probably start on him!)

I just have to remember that I got him to take them for a reason, and that, yeah, I look horrific in tight lycra, but then I'd never walk out the door like that anyway, so it's not like I will have been giving the neighbours nightmares or anything!

I shall put it to one side and move on...and stuff my face with some more lovely, legal Atkins food - makes everything better, lol

 

[ladyfelsham]

Thatta girl! Just keep them filed away somewhere, and then you'll have a fab reminder of how things were, once you've got to the weight you want to be xxx

I get dreadful PMS, but find it's really a lot better if I take evening primrose - I become almost human, with barely a snarl

 

[Alpaca]

Evening Scrumbles... You are probably your own worst critic - as we all are!! You're going brilliantly well - it won't be long before it all comes off xxx

 

[coffeelover]

Morning Scrumbles, Well done on the fab loss. I give myself the same talking to about crisps and wine how they'll be there when I'm at goal.

 

[Scrumbles]

Afternoon, all!

Thatta girl! Just keep them filed away somewhere, and then you'll have a fab reminder of how things were, once you've got to the weight you want to be xxx

I get dreadful PMS, but find it's really a lot better if I take evening primrose - I become almost human, with barely a snarl

Those photos certainly aren't seeing the light of day until I get to my goal weight. Not a chance, lol.

I used to take EP many years ago but I can't remember that it made me any less...um...barking! Being on Atkins seems to improve matters in some ways, but it varies from month to month. Hey ho.

Evening Scrumbles... You are probably your own worst critic - as we all are!! You're going brilliantly well - it won't be long before it all comes off xxx

Oh, I'm definitely my own worst critic. I can look at other people's "big" photos and think "Hey, you didn't look that bad!", but then I'll see a picture of myself at half their size and think I look like the worst beached whale ever .

I think I'm put out mostly because I was feeling fairly chipper about how things were going, then I kind of went and spoiled it by showing myself just how far I have to go. Still, onwards and downwards...

Morning Scrumbles, Well done on the fab loss. I give myself the same talking to about crisps and wine how they'll be there when I'm at goal.

Thanks, Val! Nearly half a stone in two weeks, so I really shouldn't grumble!


Yesterday's food came to 1620 cals and 27g carbs. I managed a whole 24g carbs from Induction veg, too - probably a record for me, lol.

Strawberries are back on the menu today - hurrah!

 

[Alpaca]

Yum strawberries! You're doing brilliantly! You must be really chuffed xxx