Weight Goal: 8st 7lbs
Morning Weight: 8st 8lbs 4oz
Loss: 3lbs
Total Loss: 13lbs 12oz
Left to Lose: 1lb 4oz
Bum Goal: 34½" - 36"
Bum Circumference: 37"
Total Bum Loss: 2½"
Left to Lose: 1" - 2½"
What can I say? I am overjoyed that I am only 1lb 4oz away from my 21 year old weight! I feel like I've been dieting, on and off, for the past ten years, and am elated (but equally frustrated) that I only seem to have cracked during the past two months (from October 11th onwards).
I was looking at some of my older blog posts, and when I started this weight loss plan I was counting calories using
Livestrong. I can't believe the sheer amount of food I used to eat, purely because a spreadsheet said I was "allowed" to. Despite the fact I was eating such large mounds of food, I would still
think I felt hungry (and I say "think" as I believe the word "diet" translates automatically in your brain as "restricted"). The fact that there were a finite number of calories (and it could have been 1500 or 30,000) meant that in my mind I knew I was
supposed to eat within a "limit", and therefore I would want
more than that limit, and this would lead to me "cheating" and going over my calorie limit for each day. I never for one minute actually listened to my body or what it needed or wanted, and instead put all my trust in a numeric system that I am certain my ancestors would have looked at with suspicion, derision and disbelief.
Using this Paul McKenna system, I never let myself go hungry. I am constantly aware of how my body feels, and therefore how little food it actually takes for me to feel satisfied. I also completely trust what kinds of foods my body is asking for when it's hungry, rather than what I think I "should" be eating. It has saved me so much time and worry, especially in tracking foods and inputting data. It's also wonderful being able to have a cupcake for lunch if my body feels like it, and not feel at all guilty — absolute bliss!
I stumbled across an old notepad in the cupboard from when I was following the Weight Watchers plan earlier in the year, and I thought I would share my stats from then, and compare them to today's...
Monday 21/06/2010
Morning Weight: 9st 7lbs 12oz
Upper Arm: 10½"
Waist: 28"
Hips: 40½"
Upper Thigh: 23"
On this particular day, I also did 55 mins cardio at the gym, plus a set of weights, and all in all spent about 2 hours there — all that for a 3½ inches bigger arse! That day for breakfast I ate two slices of wholemeal bread with Pure and Marmite for 4½ points. For lunch I had an M&S Rice, Lentil and Aubergine Salad with two Nairns Rough Oatcakes for 9 points. At dinner I had 50g wholemeal pasta, 50g Neal's Yard veggie mince, aubergine and tomato for 5 points, and another slice of wholemeal bread with Pure for 2½ points. I can't believe how obsessive I was with weighing and measuring everything I ate, and that I let the weighing and measuring justify my eating it all, regardless of whether I was hungry or not.
I decided to measure the other parts of my body today, to compare with six months ago.
Saturday 04/12/2010
Morning Weight: 8st 8lbs 4oz
Upper Arm: 9¾"
Waist: 25"
Hips: 37"
Upper Thigh: 20.5"
I cannot believe the difference from six months ago, when I was putting SO much time and effort into losing weight and getting back into that gold dress, compared with the past few weeks when I have been relaxed, eaten whatever I fancied and done NO exercise whatsoever. I am really not proud of the fact that I still haven't done any exercise (apart from a little Just Dance session last Saturday, and busting some moves at the indie disco), but I really hope I can find the inspiration to do some soon as I think it is so important to keep your heart and bones fit and healthy. I really don't want to end up like my Dad who has every ache and pain known to man, and difficulty walking for longer than five minutes at a time (he's only 66).
The best surprise of this week is that I wore my gold dress last Saturday when I went out dancing! I just thought I'd try it on to see how I was progressing and it fit perfectly! My thighs could actually move freely without any knicker flashing. Also some of my other dresses are now really baggy on me, so I'm tempted to take them to the charity shop (so I have no safety net and would have to go naked if I ever dared have a miserable, regrettable binge ever again). Maybe I'll take them in as I'm absolutely brassic at the moment, plus as I'm so near to goal I'm thinking of changing my blog to a sewing one. I made a couple of dresses last weekend so I'd like to keep it up and learn some new skills.
I'll leave you with some pictures of the mammoth soup making session I had today. I'm hoping they will last me for the next two weeks at work, and have made ten portions: five "Garlic and Greens" and five "African Sweet Potato and Peanut Stew", both from Colleen Patrick-Goudreau's amazing book, "The Vegan Table". I've also made 4 portions of Thai Green Curry with chickpeas, butternut squash, aubergine, carrot and mushrooms. I actually ran out of my take-away containers so have had to freeze them in ceramic bowls (hope they don't crack...) As per usual I forgot to take any pictures when my soups were being prepared, or looked all steamy and satisfying. Instead, what you're getting is a picture of the two batches of frozen rectangles nestled close to each other in the freezer...
Well hopefully the next time I post I'll be at goal! I'm so excited to actually be getting smaller as it Christmas approaches, and to have non of my usual anxiety that "weight gain is inevitable" that I usually have at Christmas. Instead I feel calm, satisfied, and excited at the prospect of starting 2012 happier with my body than I have been in years. Til next time!
