Day 3/112

Calories in - 1376

Calories out - 0

Still frustrating that my back is too sore to workout. It gets painful even after standing for anything longer than ten minutes.

It is what it is...

At least I have my food under control and working on improving my choices from one meal to the next. Planning ahead is key.


Tomorrow is an early start. I'm taking Cassie and one of her friends to IMATS in Sydney, so we are leaving the Mountains at 6am. She has been planning this for the last two years, she's so excited :-)

I will walk around as much as I can, and then just find somewhere nice to drink some coffee and the girls can visit some stalls and check back in with me from time to time.


Proud of myself tonight because Hubby and I were invited by a couple of his band members to go with them to check out a local club that they're playing at in a few weeks' time. I made sure we had dinner at home (so did the others) and then drank a diet soft drink instead of an alcoholic drink. It was tempting after the stressful work week I've had, but that soft drink was my "treat" for the week...


Over and out.

Day 2/112

Calories in - 1290

Calories out - 0

Feeling very frustrated as I felt 99% recovered when I went to my osteopath on Tuesday but after his treatment the pain has returned...I know, I know...patience, and at least I am standing up straight again :-)

It didn't help that I did some "quick" grocery shopping yesterday and instead of a trolley I grabbed one of those plastic baskets...of course I ended up with at least ten more items than were on my list and ended up having to carry the heavy basket around...my back was not happy last night. Ahh, have you ever been to a better pity party? I throw the best around ;-)


I've seen a drop in the scales the last two mornings, but only want to share a weekly weigh in on here. We all know how annoying those daily fluctuations can be.

The one meal I've been struggling with is Lunch. I'm not a sandwich/wrap person, and it's still a touch cool for salads around here...and let's face it, I'm just plain lazy. So I've decided Smoothies are the way to go for me when it comes to lunch.




Does anyone have any links or recipes to some power house smoothies? Lorna Jane has an awesome one on her website (and I think it's on youtube as well). I've tried it and it's great - keeps me going for hours (I usually have a late lunch at around 1pm)

I'd love to build up a list of smoothies that I can have as my go-to quick, lazy girl lunches.

See you tomorrow :-)

Day 1/112

Calories in - 1580
Calories out - 0

I put my back out about ten days ago. Those of you that know me know it's a chronic thing with a couple of discs in my lower back and this can happen at any time without warning...

I was in excrutiating pain for a few days and could not straighten up. Saw my osteopath two Tuesdays ago and began to feel some relief to the point that I was almost 100% by the time I saw him again last Tuesday. His treatment always leaves me a bit sore, and he advises no exercise for about 24 hours after the treatment. I'm still a bit sore but I know it will pass.

Not happy with my calorie intake...and let's face it, all calories are not equal.

It may well be time to put a bit more thought into what my calories are made up of and play around with that.

I've let sugar sneak back in a couple of times since going sugar-free a couple of months ago and it isn't easy to get back off it...

Cassie has cut back almost all wheat products and is feeling so much better for it. I am very similar. When I eat a lot of processed refined carbs my body reacts in ways that make me feel *uncomfortable* eg bloating, swelling in the joints and fluid retention and of course it stalls my weight loss.

Sorry if I'm rambling...I think this was a "thinking out loud" post but I did warn you yesterday.



Have a great day xx

Warning - this blog is about to become a boring food and exercise record...

Hello!


I have booked our family in to our (almost) yearly camping by the beach holiday in Port Stephens.






Hubby and I have been going there since before we were married. Yep, it was the destination of our very first *dirty weekend*...we have stayed at the same spot for the past 20 years now, and we have seen it change from a place lined with rows of caravans to a lovely resort where you get your pick of cabins in every size to camping sites with ensuites...

This place is across the road from a beautiful calm beach and we have been taking the girls there since they were babies...many happy memories and if we ever dare suggest a change of scenery for our yearly break away we are met with much disapproval from the girls...


We are spending ten days there in late January - which means I have 16 weeks to get some of this blubber off for good. Sure, I have an event that I want to look good and feel great for, but I don't want to welcome back these extra kilos any time soon.


Hence the title of this post.

I have been doing a lot of reading of blogs of people who have lost weight and kept it off, and I've been reading blogs of people who struggle to keep weight off and even put most of it back on.

One thing I've decided to take on board is that those who track their food are the most successful.

So apologies and goodbye to those of you who will be (understandably) bored by my stats, but this is a better way for me to record - too many bits of paper/diaries etc only clutter my life more than it needs to be at the moment, so this is what I've decided...oh, and if you're lucky I may even post some lovely pics ;-)

So let's call this Day 1 of my very own 16 Week Challenge!

I'm sure the format of my updates will change and evolve over the next 16 weeks but I will come here every evening to record my progress...


Wish me luck!


S

It's been *a while*...

If you're still popping in here - Thank You, and apologies for being absent...


Nothing much happening that I need to write about. Which leads me to admitting that I'm feeling a little bit...


BORING

I've been feeling like there is no direction in my life...there hasn't been for a while now.

In retrospect, our house move of almost 12 months ago took a huge toll on me (and I daresay the rest of the family) and I'm only just recovering from it all...the house is beginning to feel like our home and so I find myself with this lack of direction...


Sure, we all know I have a weight loss goal but it has gotten zero attention for a while now, and the fitness side of it has also taken a back seat...



My Blog has almost been replaced by FB, although I'm beginning to understand that the two are not really the same - there is stuff I can say here that I would not say on FB...and the longer I'm on there, the more people I barely know or know through Hubby are sending me friend requests...so I accept but then what I post on there becomes less personal and more guarded...




********************************************


I've been *cruising* for far too long now, I need to set some concrete goals and start working towards them.

Life goes on and we cope with what comes our way, but I'm wanting a little bit more at the moment and the only one who can make it happen is ME.


I hope this isn't too criptic - if I had more to tell, I would.



Stay tuned.


xoxox

Feeling good

Since I last posted, I've...

Given up sugar. Today is my 14th day *sugar free*. I still eat two pieces of fruit a day. One day I just felt like doing it (as you do) and said good bye to the stuff.

It wasn't easy. Day 4 was one of the worst days...I nearly fell asleep at my desk in the afternoon, and I had a massive headache. I didn't make much sense, felt all foggy in the head.

Day 7 I woke up with a sore head and blocked nose etc...I commented to Hubby that I thought I was coming down with a cold, and he told me he'd read that it was just another symptom...he was right. No cold.

A couple of days ago I could have murdered someone for a chocolate bar. But I didn't, and obviously something must have distracted me because I haven't touched the stuff. Didn't know I had so much will power.

And Hubby has joined me. He has been sugar free about nine days, I think.


I have so much more energy now. After only 14 days, I no longer need that 4pm sugar hit. I've lost 1.8kg without even trying. And here is the best thing - I don't have stiff sore joints when I get up in the morning...


I've also been ...

Uncluttering the garage because Hubby is going to convert it into my office space. It will be so good to have a space that is away from the house to work from. So excited. Cannot wait. Am planning a gorgeous garden just outside it, it will be the main thing I see from the window near my desk. Lots of colour, Azaeleas, Agapanthus, a couple of Japanese Maples...


I've started to ...

Read "Lucky Bitch", it's an e-book written by Aussie girl Denise Duffield-Thomas and all I can say is do yourselves a favour and download it. I'm loving it and drawing inspiration and insights from every page. Warning : if you didn't like "The Secret", then it's probably not for you.


I'm going to ...

Hobart at the end of the month. It is just a three day conference with all my work colleagues from around Australia. I originally wasn't going to go this year, but my friend Kaz was feeling a bit fragile about running into an ex with his new girlfriend, so I decided to go along and be her date...should be a hoot.



And when I get back...


I can feel a bit of a challenge coming on...I may or may not share.



Feeling calm, focused, motivated and happy with my life.


Maybe I AM a "Lucky Bitch" after all....?

I've been thinking so hard about a title for this post but cannot come up with one...maybe it is just that I cannot put a name to my rants and rambles, and maybe I truly don't want to offend anyone, because what I am about to say is very much a personal observation (of myself)


I have in the past written a couple of very long posts about my weight loss dilemmas and won't link back to them now, most of my regular readers friends have read them and know my story well.


2002 - I found myself a little overweight (10kg) and joined Weight Watchers to drop back into my comfortable Size 10, which is where I feel attractive and confident. I'm sorry if it sounds shallow, then again I'm not - time to act like the big girl that I am and stop apologising for being me (wise words from Hubby on the weekend...another story for another post).
*** I achieve my Goal Weight in 3-4 months. I am full of energy and on top of the world. Then I fall pregnant with our third child. Over the moon as we always wanted a third baby, the last thing on my mind is weight gain, it will come off after the baby is born...

2008 - five years after giving birth to my still-born baby girl, I realise I've well and truly let things slide and I'd like to get not only thinner (I'm now about 12kg over my "size 10 number") but I want to re-shape my body and increase my fitness and strength. I connect with IBO online and follow Sue's programs for about a year. The gorgeous Hilary and Kristin are my "coaches/mentors" and I love the weight training and nutrition programs.
*** The lowest weight I get to is around 63kg, but looking back at the photos I look toned and slim, I can fit into anything size S, so I'm sitting anywhere between a Size 8-10. Happy days.

2009 - I hurt my lower back walking/running on an incline on the treadmill...I am immobilized for weeks and then I decide that seeing as I am not training or lifting heavy weights, I am going to try something I've been reading about - Intuitive Eating


B.A.D.   M.O.V.E.

For someone like *ME*, this does not work...You see, if you asked me to "intuitively" choose between a bunch of grapes and a slice of cheesecake...it's a no-brainer. The cheesecake wins every time. And it did. Yes, I *know* that the grapes are better for me...but hey, I've given myself a *choice*, so I go for the taste experience and eat the crap...


Six months of fooling myself that I didn't need to keep track of what I ate, or weigh myself, or even take measurements...because I work from home, I swapped jeans for elastic waisted trackie pants "because they are warmer"...

My "Intuition" told me I would hurt my husband's feelings if I didn't have a bite slice of banana cake with him every day...and my *Intuition* told me my kids would think I was a bad mother if I wasn't in the house the minute they woke up but was on my way home from the gym instead....and on it goes, you get the picture.


WHAT C.R.A.P.


Three years later I am overweight and unhappy...most of my clothes don't fit me, but my stubborn streak won't let me buy bigger sizes. NO WAY.

And please, before you start analysing me...I wasn't abused as a child. I wasn't bullied or victimized. My husband has never cheated on me, and in spite of me pointing out my physical faults to him daily, our sex life hasn't suffered...I have two normal teenage daughters who drive me crazy but there are no hidden agendas there...yes, I have big issues with having to look after an invalid parent, but honestly - I doubt that it can be used as an "explanation" for my STUPID behaviour with food...


WHAT COULD I HAVE DONE DIFFERENTLY...?

OK, I had a legitimate injury...I needed to take time off heavy lifting and running/walking was not possible.

I *should* have made sure at this time OF ALL TIMES, that my diet was 100% on track. If I had paid extra attention to my diet while I was immobile, then by the time I was able to work out again, the "damage" done would have been minimal...a couple of kg's gain if that, and get right back into it.

By doing what I did, I never got my mojo back....it all just slid downhill and the more weight I gained, the worse I felt about myself and just kept on eating crap...vicious cycle...?

So in saying all of that, I have come to realise that *I* need some sort of structure. I am a "lists" girl. My work day flows ever so much more smoothly when I have my "to do list" with me and I can see what I've accomplished.


I gained 10kg over the last three years because I ate whatever I felt like on a regular basis, sure I still ate the good stuff, like fruit and veg and lean protein, but I also allowed myself to eat rubbish on a more than regular basis, and that my friends is where the buck stops.

This is where I need to get strict with my food again...I wholeheartedly agree with those who subscribe to the 80/20 principal....diet is the most important factor in the weightloss equation.


So here is where I start - Diet/nutrition.

My weight NEEDS to come off. I don't want to travel down the path of Type 2 Diabetes (and I have the family history of it) or even worse a heart attack (I have the family history there too). So the first step I am taking is to clean up my diet, and by that I mean cut out the crap. Simple. I know many of you hate the term "Clean Eating", but I am taking it literally here.

Clean = Remove Rubbish


That's all for now.

It's been a while...a friend's recent post hit home and inspired me to write again.


Thanks for reading.