To compliment or not to compliment

I had my family get together last weekend and I for most of it enjoyed the experience. Caught up with some cousins I hadn't seen in a little while.
Was really secretly hoping someone would notice my 9.4kg loss ... but was disapointed with nothing. My food intake was really good all weekend. I had prepared with a few saved points up my sleeve. I ate lightly during the day and had a 19 point dinner which was alot but still within my allowance for the day. I even declined having desert (something I have not done in a very very long time) Especially good since it was an 'all you can eat' deal. Normally I would have wanted to get my money's worth.
The next day was a lunch thing and I managed to just pick at vegetable sticks and dip. Then with half a piece of birthday cake to finish off. Even finished the weekend with another spare point saved .... yay me!!
I have my suspicians that my mother is also on ww and not telling me. She served up a very point friendly lunch when we arrived on Saturday. And showed me a cake she made with no sugar and no butter! (very nice btw) My mother is known for her lovely (unhealthy) cakes. So this was extremely out of charactor for her. We must be both as proud as eachother with not saying we are on a weightloss programme. Stupid thing is... if she is on ww then we could be motivating eachother. I didn't want to tell any of my family I was doing this so they didn't feel abliged to compliment me. Then when I got any compliments I knew it was for real. So far I haven't heard a thing except for one ...
After everyone went home on Sunday my cousin and his wife stayed for dinner. He made a comment about me making him feel bad about himself with me losing all my weight (his way of saying youre doing fantastic) After thanking him I said I was surprised he noticed as no one else has noticed (or at least said anything) "How could they NOT notice???" He said. "You look fantastic!" So that was my head swellor for the day. Thanks cousie!
I'm off for a walk this afternoon. Mum has my toddler so it's just me and baby while the older two are at school. Makes a nice change for a week.
We have no water at the moment (the water pipe blew as we were leaving on saturday morning and the plumber is yet to arrive) so my water intake has been hard. Every drop of water we have is critical. Hopefully the plumber will be here this afternoon, I'm getting impatient.
Should be interesting this weigh in. My food points have been good, however I haven't been eating much during the day with big dinners twice. And water and exercise have been down a little. Hopefully remedied this afternoon :)
Till tomorow, thanks for reading!
Lyn :)
SW 107.4kg
CW 98kg
GW 65kg
9.4kg lost in 11 weeks on weight watchers

Hark! I am slim!

I woke up this morning feeling slim! Don't really know why. I only lost 500g this week but for some reason (I'm not complaining) this week has made a real difference to how I feel.
I am planning on wearing a jacket I haven't been able to fit in a couple of years this weekend at a party we have been invited to. Even when I bought it, it was tight on me. I wore it at the consultation I did last night and Bill was drooling over in the corner. As soon as the client left he was all over me like a bad rash, trying to drag me off to the bedroom (okay, okay enough details) I think this has alot to do with my sudden burst of positive energy today :)
Went for a 7.5km walk yesterday and then came home to do the vacuuming so definately a few points earnt there. I'm hoping to save 4 points a day on my eating to use this weekend. As well as my exercise points if I need them (although I really don't like doing this)
I have no work on for the business today and the house is tidy (well except for our bedroom but that's never tidy) Even if I did tidy it up, it would be messy again by tomorrow. (there is a male that shares the bedroom, need I say more?) Can't do any washing as it's pouring down with rain outside so guess I will have to just sit and relax all day. Not many days I get to do that :)
Bill is off to the rugby tonight so it will be a night in for me and the kids.
We are off to Hamilton tomorrow for dad's 60th and then back to Auckland Sunday for a party lunch, then my sister is coming to stay Sunday night/Monday so busy, busy, busy! Hope I can still keep focus!
Found a great forum yesterday... www.slimmingforlife.com.au
I won't be able to update till Monday night or Tuesday, so have a great weekend everyone!!
Lyn :)
SW 107.4kg
CW 98kg
GW 65kg
9.4kg lost in 11wks on ww

500g loss ... yay!

Weigh in went well last night with 500g lost. Bringing me down to 98kg exactly.
My pants arrived that I ordered on the Trademe site last week. They are a little on the tight side but it holds my tummy in great ... hehe! I'll just wear a baggy t-shirt over the top for now.
I also ordered some size 16 jeans. They are way too small for me but I bought them for an incentive to get there. I am in between an 18-20 at the moment. At this stage I can only get them up to my thighs. Think I will try them on once a month.
Still no one has noticed my losses, I have a family get together this weekend for my dad's 60th birthday so we shall see then.
Money is tight this week so that puts pressure on my eating. Means I can't have lots of healthy snacks in the cupboard. Also going to Mum's might work out quite a challenge. Take it as it comes I guess.
Bit hard to go for my walk today, it's raining all day. If it was just me I would go anyway but with 2 young kids, makes it a little difficult. If it clears up this afternoon I still might go.
I have a consultation (business work) on tonight so I have to have the house tidy. Although I tidy it daily it still ends up as messy the next day as when I first started ... don't know why I bother!! Well I better get started on it.
Thanks for reading,
Lyn :)
SW 107.4kg
CW 98kg
GW 65kg
9.4kg in 11wks on weight watchers

new bonus buddy

Was feeling a little down this morning so I went for a long walk. Wanted to really try out my bonus buddy. 9km later I reached home. Taking me 1.5hrs I was pretty happy with myself. Set me up in a far better mood for the day. Earning myself 8points well actually I think it would be more due to the pushchair and two kids I was pushing around as well. But Im happy with the 8.
Tonight I was extra hungry after dinner. Don't normally get hungry like this. Im presuming it was the extra exercise. 9km in one day is a start to my training schedule for the half marathon in August. Long way to go yet but I feel like I'm definately getting somewhere.
I have a school gala to go to in the morning. Im sure I will feel tempted with all the fatty fast food they will have on offer there. The kids are taking their pocket money but I think I will leave my wallet at home so I cant buy any food. Then its off to a church picnic for the afternoon. Potluck dinners are not my forte when it comes to food choices. If I go over my points a little it shouldnt be too bad, I still have plenty of time to work it off before weigh in on Wednesday. Think Ill take a healthy salad so at least I can pig out on that if there isnt anything else healthy to choose from.
Well my eyes are getting heavy so off to bed for me.
Thanks for reading,
Later :)
Lyn
SW 107.4kg
CW 98.5kg
GW 65kg
10wks on ww

Yay Me!!

Well I did it!! I walked and RAN the Round the Bays funrun on Sunday. 8.4kms in 1hr20mins... a record time for me. Infact I was the first female in from my group (out of 10 females) I had only planned to walk it but got up the courage part way through to run a little. Quite a weird feeling really. In school I hated running so much I left school because of it. Now I am actually doing it by choice!
Since Sunday I have been very keen to up my level of exercise. I did a 6km walk this morning and a 4.5km walk on Monday and Tuesday. I am really looking forward to weigh in tonight... I'm hoping it will be a good one. I feel slimmer but you can never tell what those scales will say. I always get nervous on Wednesdays. Hopefully this week will be a good loss. Fingers crossed. Just finished my period too so that should count for a bit of a loss too (I have high fluid retention during TOM)
Busy day with work today ... but cant seem to get motivated to get it done.
Jeserun had us all up at 4.30am this morning. Daylight savings has just finished and he doesnt seem to be able to get into the new ruitine of sleeping in later.
Bill is heading away for the weekend so I am a bit aprehensive how I will handle it all. Can be a risky time food wise when he is not home. Just have to keep myself busy I guess.
Dad's 60th birthday is a few weeks away and mum has asked me to bake a cake. They still don't know I'm on ww yet so I'm going to try and find a low fat recipe. Makes it a little difficult with dad not eating chocolate (gets headaches). Might try find a ginger one. His favourite. I'm a little aprehensive about that weekend also. Mum's house is a shocker for unhealthy food. Not a peice of fruit in sight and everything is fried or covered in sugar. Since they don't know about my lifestyle change (and I don't want to tell them yet) it may prove to be a difficult weekend. Aparently we are also going out for dinner to a restaurant. I have no choice in the restaurant we choose and mum said it will probably be a buffet one (which are usually high fat choices) AAArggghhhh!!
Well I'll let you know how it goes with weigh in tonight.
Wish me luck! (finally getting my bonus buddy too ... yay me!)
Lyn :)
SW 107.4kg
CW 99.7kg
GW 65kg
9wks on ww

busy, busy, busy

Weigh in on Wednesday was a winner!! 600g lost taking me below the 100kg mark. Im going to purchase a bonus buddy as a reward but they have currently sold out. I will get one when I can... cant wait!
Today has been a successful day so far. Was a little weiry of how I was going to cope with a full schedule ahead.
Had to finish a set of Thankyou cards for a client this morning, tidy the house, vacuum, clean kitchen, hang washing out and set off to plunket all before 11am. But I did it. I walked to plunket this morning instead of taking the car. Was very pleased I did so, it turned out to be a great walk. About 30mins there and back so another 2 points earnt ontop of the walk to drop kids at school this morning.
My afternoon clients booking has been rescheduled to 3.30pm instead of 1.30pm so this should be interesting how I am going to juggle kids and having a client here. 1.30pm would have been far better as both Jordan and Jesse would be in bed and the older two still at school. I have also promised Lauren she can have a friend over after school today *groan* why do I do this to myself?? I am hoping to make them all play outside to have peace and quiet with the client. Jesse hopefully should still be asleep by then.
Jordan is driving me up the wall at the moment. Can't wait till he gets over this 2yr old naughty thing... it's driving me crazy!!
I'm doing the 'Round the bays' 8.4km walk this Sunday. Im really looking forward to it. First time I have entered a funrun. Wish me luck. I just want to complete it... not worried how fast I do it.
Well gotta go pick up kids from school... till later ...thanks for reading
Lyn
SW 107.4kg
CW 99.7kg
GW 65kg
9wks on ww

weekend away

feel like I have this 'healthy living' thing under control now. Although I know complacency is dangerous.
My exercise is something I need to concentrate on.. it doesn't seem to come naturally but does it for anyone? I am really looking forward to joining that gym. Still cant afford it just yet. I am wanting to save up for the years membership rather than paying by installments as most people do. That way it is no extra burden on our already tight finances. My part time business is my pocket money (which we don't live on) so when I gather enough together I'll be running there as fast as I can.
Been a busy week for work this week and we have finally got our finances in order ... yay! All our outstanding bills paid and a pantry full of healthy food. Last week was a struggle with not being able to do the grocery shopping. Meant we had to eat what was left in the cupboard and freezers. I am a very structured eater and like to eat from a written plan. If I don't have in the cupboard what is on my plan I start to panic and would prefer not to eat at all than eat unhealthily... which is not good either way.
We went away last weekend and I went totally off the bandwagon. Way too much wine consumed and a bit of chocolate here and a few crackers and camenbergh there. Was sure I would have a gain this week ... but hello!! nope a loss of 600g ... yay!! This was the first time I had over indulged in the 8wks I had been on weight watchers. I actually think for the first time in many weeks I had eaten all my points which must have been the contributing factor.
I only have 400grams to go to break the 100kg mark. (my next goal) Hopefully next weigh in will be the winner. I am rewarding myself with a bonus buddy, a cute little contraption that measures the distance you walk and calaries burnt with every step you take. I am really looking forward to that one. That will be number 3 goal met out of 18 total. I am by far on track to slimsville. Yay!
My period is late and I am starting to worry a little. I cannot be pregnant again. We already have four kids and another would send me over the edge. We didn't take any risks this month so I can't think for the life of me where I could have possible gotten pregnant ... we shall see. My period is often late (sometimes up to two weeks late) so I'm not going crazy yet. And I haven't had any other signs like sore breasts or nausier. I am wanting to send Bill off as soon as we have the money to get get a vasectomy. Bill is keen too but as usual it is a matter of money.
I am selling a baby chinchilla today so that will give me $60 to go buy an exercise dvd in the meantime while I save money for a gym membership. I have kept up my walking too. 5km 2 days a week and 1.5km 5 days. Next weekend I am going to walk the 'Round the Bays' walk. 8.4km event held once a year. This is the first time entering. It should be a good challenge as the most I walk in one go at the moment is 5km. With 70,000 other people also doing it, should make for a good day.
I have also decided to do a half marathon 21.5km in August at Taupo. So the walk next week should be a good build up to that one. Bill and I are going to do the half marathon together. By the way we are walking it not running .. hehe. I should be able to get my walking distance up to that length in five months.
Well that's about all for today. Till next time ... happy losing!

struggling with diary entries not weightloss

It has been a little while since my last entry. That is totally in my character tho ... to start things with full enthusiasm and fall off the bandwagon pretty quickly. A trait I have tried to change but can't so figure I have to live with it and just work it into my lifestyle.
As far as my weightloss goes I have been doing really well ... I am up to 6 weeks on the weightwatchers program and am still not sick of it. Infact I seem to be getting more motivated as I go along. I have made sure I saved things for along the way to keep me excited. Alot of people go all out buying all the 'gadgets' at the start and then come to the 'now what' point pretty quickly. I am normally like this but stopped myself. Awareness is 90% of fixing a problem.
I did up a goal sheet the other day and have it hanging on the wall beside my computer. I can see at a glance what the next goal is, what weight I need to be to get to that goal, how much weight to lose before the next goal, total loss to date, the date I want to achieve that goal (on an average of 500g/1pound loss per week) and the reward I have promised myself when I get there. There are 18 goals all up to achieve and only 2-3kg (4-6 pounds) between each goal.
My final reward (number 18) is 65kg(143 lb) (my personal goal weight) making a total loss of 42.4kg (93 lb)... all by 30 September 2004 and a reward of a DIAMOND STUD in my bellybutton!! WAHOOOOO!
I have started doing aerobics once a week with my first session last Thursday. I really struggled to get through lasting only 47mins of an hour class but I was proud for the amount I actually did get through. Next week I will aim for 50mins.
Along with the aerobics I am still doing my walking. Mainly through walking the kids to school and back twice a day, 5 days a week. (20mins walk per day) Seems to be going well, I don't want to over push myself just yet, will gradually increase that.
I still find the weight watchers website incredibly motivating ... well worth checking out for anyone who's interested. www.weightwatchers.com
I am currently averaging just over 1kg per week so far so as long as that keeps happening I won't be complaining... infact I only expect 500g per week ... so ... YAY ME!
Till next time, thanks for tuning in :)
Lyn
SW 107.4kg
CW 101.2kg
GW 65kg
6wks on ww

stroll turned into a half marathon

Well I went out for a 10min walk today to take my son to a birthday party. We got lost and 1hr later we finally got home. Guess it was a good thing for my exercise. I got lots done. I was so hot and tired when I got home (mid summer here) I jumped straight in a cold shower.
Everything is going real great points wise... I am still motivated to eat healthy each day. The weight watchers website has been a big help with this.
Not much else has happened since my last entry. Really busy with work still but I am managing to balance it all.
Lyn
SW 107.4kg
CW 103.8kg
GW 65kg

Well I had my first hard few days this week...
All the stresses you could think about hit me in one week ... I was sick, had my period, financially stressed, kids starting back at school, baby teething (lack of sleep for me), work going crazy (I work with stressed out brides), no healthy food in the house, and trying to lose weight .... WOW is all I can say.
Actually now that I analyze it and see it in writing I'm amazed I came through as well as I did. When I am stressed and busy I don't eat. This is a big no-no on ww. Normally I can go all day and not eat until late afternoon/dinner, choosing to stay focused on getting my work done. And since the ww meals (or anything healthy for that matter) takes time and preparation to make I found myself putting eating off until I got to the end of the day and had 15 points still to use. As soon as I got busy I found myself flipping back into my old habits. I very seldom have a problem of overeating but in fact have the opposite... I don't eat or drink enough. I tend to put myself last on the priority list. This lack of eating actually slows my metabolism so much (along with the lack of water) till its virtually at a standstill, then when I finally do eat at dinner time I am so hungry I eat a large meal, only to go to bed with it going nowhere.
It's funny, I know all the rules and that what I am doing wrong and on a good day I am fine and concentrate to get my eating and drinking right, but as soon as my focus has shifted onto work, kids or whatever else I can't seem to do it. I see this is something I am going to have to really work on.
No one at ww seems to understand my dilemma. They say to have instant healthy snacks to nibble on during the day, but the problem with that is, they are expensive and we are on a very tight budget too.
After having 2 days of nearly starving myself and my period due anyday I was not looking forward to my weigh in ... 400gm loss. At first I was disappointed as my exercise had been up and I had not gone over my points but after having time to digest it, I am very pleased. Given it was the TOM for me (Time of the Month) I seem to retain water then. So I have had a sleep on it and ready to tackle my bad eating habits again with a fresh new day. It's funny what a good nights sleep does to a huge dilemma. I heard a saying once... "The best way to make your dreams come true ... is to wake up!" So true, each day is a new day and a good one if you can get yourself out of bed.
Today went very well, I managed to track and eat all my points wisely, drink all my water and for the past 2 days have started walking my kids to school and picking them up from school. A total of 45mins walking each day. This is working out well for my exercise and gets me and the younger kids out of the house twice a day. The only problem is the organisation of it all. Making sure the younger two aren't having their sleep at that time of the day and fitting it in to my business work. It worked great today and yesterday but I am not very busy with work at the moment, so we shall see. The weather is great at the moment too to will have to reassess the situation when winter comes along. One day at a time tho... for now it's working great.
I did my measurements today ... yay! I have lost a total of 16cm around my body. 2cm off my upper arm, 2cm off my waist, 1.5cm off my hips and wait for it .... 10.5cm off my thigh (I find this last one a bit suspect ... but hey who's complaining not me! lol
I am only measuring myself once every three weeks so this was a nice surprise and comfort considering my slow weightloss this week. All in all I am very happy with how things are going. I have lost weight every week since I started 3 weeks ago.
I did grocery shopping last night when I was tired, hungry and had just had my terrible weigh in (not a good decision... lol) hence I spent up large!! But all on good stuff, made sure I had the pantry stocked up with healthy snacks and lots of low cal sugar substitutes (I crave sweet things at my TOM) The only problem being the poor budget, I feel sorry for the ol' budget at times like this, he takes a hammering... oh well... tomorrows another day.
Till then ... chow
Lyn
SW 107.4kg
CW 103.8kg
GW 65kg

This lifestyle is becoming second nature now .. that is both good and bad. Very easy to slip into laidback gear and slip up but at the same time also not so intense ... being able to carry on with other parts of the day without my 'diet' being the centre of attention.
Yesterday also went well but I am struggling eating all my points still. I have been told not eating all my points could be detremental to my overall weightloss. I have come to the conclusion that the reason I find it difficult to consume my daily points is purely psycological. I am scared of getting to the end of the day, having no points left to use and still being hungry. I am becoming a compulsive points saver! (maybe I should start a support group) lol!
This is only a minor point and something I need to work on.
Bill has taken the kids out for a few hours so giving me some peace and quiet here by myself (oh the bliss)
My sister may be coming up for the day (public holiday here in new zealand today) and we may head of to an art exhibition in the city, then for a game of minigolf. Shouldnt be too hard to stick to my plan (she also is on ww) and a good healthy bit of exercise too (if I run around the course .. lol) I will have to do a bit of planning tho to organise lunch while we are out.
I'm finding finances a little tough at the moment. That was the reason it took me so long to join ww. It actually costs a lot more to eat healthely than it does to pig out on junk food (ironic isn't it?) So far we are keeping on top of it ... just.
Our grocery bill has gone from $150 per week to $200 per week ... tallying up to over $200 extra per month. Combine that with the $20.00 per week meeting cost and it can certainly but a big dent in the ol' wallet. My sister gave me a generous birthday present a few weeks back of 10 sessions of ww meetings. This has definately helped us out... thankyou Trish!
I managed to get out for another half hour walk last night ... yay! I'm starting to find areas in our neighbourhood I had never noticed before. We live 2 mins walk from the water here and as crazy as this sounds .. In the 2.5yrs we have lived here I have never walked along the waterside!! (until last night that was) I am normally a closet homebody, choosing to potter around the house rather than venturing out in the big scary world. This is partly due to my consious feelings of my weight and wanting to hide from the world, partly from having a home run business (need to be here to answer phone) and having 4 kids. It's a huge effort to go out, pack all the kids up, let alone my lack of energy from the excess weight I carry around with me. It is so much easier to sit in my little chair in my little house and ignore the world around me.
I am noticing as I start to lose weight, my energy levels rise, my psycho becoming more positive and my confidence starting to rise. It's only early days yet, but I can see myself on the way up ... yay!!

Yesterday was a good eating day, but very stressful with 4 kids home on holidays. They nearly sent me round the bend.
I ended up going for my planned walk as Bill arrived home early from work. A good brisk 30min walk, so I was very proud of my efforts.
I ran out of points after dinner and was in a 'picking' mood. The ww menu was only 1 piece of pizza and salad which didn't fill me up so an hour later I was lookin round for something else to eat.
I decided to cook up the leftovers from the night befores meal so felt a little bad having 2 dinners, but good in the fact that I had 7 points saved to be able to use of which I only needed to use 3. So all in all I think I had a successful day.
This afternoon should be interesting due to Bill being home ... we tend to pick at food when we are bored ... so we shall see.
It is also coming up to the time of the month and I usually crave sweet foods so I will have to be strict with myself.
I will update you tomorrow as to how I went.
Lyn
SW 107.4kg (236lb)
CW 104.2kg (229lb)
GW 65kg (143lb)

Well today is the start of a new chapter or new book even. I have been on Weight watchers for 3 weeks now and have found incredible insight and motivation from reading others weight loss journals ... so ... have taken the plunge to start my own journal counting the ups and downs through the progress of my journey to SLIMSVILLE.
In the past 3 weeks I have been really satisfied with my results with 1.6kg loss both at my first and second weigh-in ... giving a total of 3.2kg total loss. I have a long way to go I know (with over 40kgs to lose) Along with my positivity I am also aware that my weight loss progress wont be as astounding as 1.6kg every week. But as I have heard many a time ... any loss is a good loss!
I am half way through my week so far and all is going good... been tracking and doing water properly. Although I find my exercise very hard to fit in. With a family of 4 kids, a husband who works long hours and a home run business... there are not many minutes left in the day. And I often find myself exhausted by the end of the day ... too exhausted to contemplate a half hour walk. Bill is working late again today (till 7.30pm) so I may try and get out after he gets home if it is still light by then ... if not, then it will have to be left for another day.
Spent the whole day reading someone's weight loss journal ... wow what an inspiration. Although she had good days and bad days I commend her for being honest to herself and writing her downfalls as well as 'upfalls'. I too hope to be as honest with myself as she has been.
My plan is to write in this journal every 2-3 days or at the least once a week and I certainly hope I can keep that up to keep myself honest, focused and ultimately nearer to my goal of 65kg. This process of losing 42.7kg I expect will take from 18mths to 2yrs (well thats the plan).
The scary thing is I have done it all before ... 10yrs ago I lost 40kg on Jenny Craig, back when I was single, rich and had all the time in the world to put 100% concentration into my goal of being slim. Now my life is alot fuller (no pun intended) I am trying to keep myself motivated with sites such as ww forum and others journals. I have heard that the second time round is alot harder for the weight to come off ... I am certainly going to have to work at it. The first time it just fell off (1 - 1.5kg loss everyweek for a year most weeks) took me just under 1 year to lose it ... this time however i expect a bit more of an uphill battle.
But in saying this I have found the ww programme incredibly easy to follow. On Jenny Craig I was often hungry but haven't found this to be the case on WW. Occasionally I have felt a binge feeling coming on but have been to override it with jumping online to inspire myself again.
Well hopefully this day will be the start of many more entries to come.
Lyn
SW 107.4kg
CW 104.2kg
GW 65kg