Slimming World Update – Week 75

Hellllloooooo!

I promised I’d update you this week. And here I go!

So last night was the final group before Christmas – Tuesday instead of the usual Wednesday and despite it being so close to the big day, it was important for me to weigh in. Partly to know where I am right now and partly so I can know exactly how I do over the next week or so. As last Friday saw me drinking my own body weight in wine and eating an entire bag of Metcalfe’s Salt n Sweet popcorn when I got home, not to mention “recovery toast” the next day, I knew this weeks result might be a bit of a shock. And was it ever.

I lost 3.5lb!

I can’t tell you how shocked I was. I can only put it down to all the dancing we did on Friday night (it was fantastic and I feel the need to go dancing again soon!) It means I have lost 6 stone 9.5lb (93.5lb), 2 stone 9.5lb since last Christmas! Get in! It was so unexpected and it’s MADE my Christmas. Already. And it’s not even the big day yet!

So the next few days I will be going fairly easy on myself syn wise and that’s my choice. Obviously there’s the main meal, but alongside that I have a BOX of cheese in my fridge (we plumped for Gorgonzola, Yarg and a Port flavoured one with a Stilton core I don’t even know the name of, this year) as well as two boxes of Hotel Chocolat chocolates (we decided to go for a small box of Christmas and a small box of boozy flavours). These next few days will be decadent for sure. But I also have the wherewithal to make proper meals. Casseroles, soups, proper wintry fare. Gone are the days when the Christmas holidays saw me existing on a succession of one snack food after another, all washed down with vast quantities of Quality Street. I mean what’s the point? Seriously? What kind of a gift is that to give myself? Heartburn, nausea, stomach cramps, not to mention the weight gain. No thanks – you can keep them for me.

It’s not all about the food for me. I’m excited about so many other things this Christmas. I’m excited for Ben to be at home with us for 11 days, the longest he’s had off work in bloody ages! I’m excited to see my baby open his gifts on Christmas morning and for all of us to play with them together. I’m excited to go for walks with my family, watching Oscar grow in confidence and understanding of his surroundings. I’m excited to catch up with friends, be that in person, or digitally (Skype soon Michelle?). I’m just excited for Christmas. A little peace and a lot of love.

I also wanted to take this opportunity to say a huge ‘Thank you so much’ for all your support this past year. I know lately things have been a bit hit and miss here on the blog (bloody life getting the way hey?!) and for that I’m sorry. But whether you’ve stuck by me from the beginning or are new to my ramblings, you have all been more of a blessing than you could ever realise. If I could give you all a gift it would be to have the Christmas you want. as full or as peaceful as you would want it. To taste every mouthful you choose to eat and to mindfully and thoroughly enjoy it.

I’m not even going to pretend I’ll be blogging over Christmas – I wont (although if you follow me on any social media I’ll be sure to make you sick of the sight of me – links are in the side bar!) My next weigh in is on 30th so I promise to check in after that!

HAVE A WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!

Big loves

Lisa

xxxxx

Merry Christmas from my little guy xx

 

 

Slimming World Update Week 70 something ish!!

HI guys

Yes it’s me, remember me? I’ve been so busy these past couple of weeks that I barely remember who I am. Blogging has taken a bit of a back seat of late and for that I apologise. Only when I start to think about it, have I really been that busy? Well I guess I have been out and about in the evenings a lot more than I usually am, but really the thing that’s changed is that Oscar is edging closer and closer to dropping his daytime nap. I know – abandon hope all ye who enter here!! I find it so hard to write, or at least write anything of any value, when he’s around, that it’s just easier not to try. But actually the thing I’m finding the hardest is the lack of ‘down time’ I get these days. I’ve said it before and I don’t mind repeating that I know I have only been able to stay at home with Oscar as long as I have because he has, until recently, been a good, consistent napper. I wish I could say I revelled in his company 24/7 and wish it didn’t bother me quite as much not to have time to myself, but it does. Something has had to give and of late it’s been this.

I don’t know about you, but I’ve never felt quite so much like I’m dragging myself towards the end of the year as I do this year. We’re all exhausted. The past few months in particular have been draining for all the family. Whereas last year I was excited to see what 2014 held, this year I can’t wait to get 2015 going, to make some changes. In some respects I feel nothing is still, nothing is constant and in other respects I feel like I’m static and somewhat stuck in a rut. Its the most bizarre feeling – like standing stock still in the middle of a storm.

I know my weight loss journey isn’t really a journey at the moment, more of a stop off. Like I’m taking a break at the motorway services of me. I don’t know, I think I’ve lost my mojo somewhere along the way. Don’t get me wrong I haven’t slipped into old eating habits, I’m just not moving forward anymore. I’ve maintained for the last few weeks and last week I gained 1lb (total lost 6 Stone 6 lb (90lb) ). And do you know what? I was fine with that. It’s not that I don’t care so much, just that I was fine with it.

I weigh in tomorrow for the last time before Christmas and I promise to update you on that on Wednesday, in between taking delivery of our Christmas food shop (Yay for Ocado and yay for me booking my Christmas Eve slot back in November!) and cooking our Christmas Ham. Oh and visiting friends and generally getting ready for the big day. Yeah, it might not be a long one on Wednesday 😉

Anyway, I’ll let you go – you probably have a tonne to be getting on with. I’ll just leave you with this picture. It was our Slimming World group party last Friday and boy did we let our hair down. Well, you know me, I don’t get out much, poor old thing!! We had a right old piss up riot and it was great to meet people from the other groups and to hear how they’re getting on. It was especially nice to have people who read my blog come and introduce themselves and tell me how much they enjoy my writing. It’s always slightly baffling but very flattering to think actual people are reading my actual words. And big thanks to the lady who couldn’t get over how I looked. She kept saying I was slimmer in real life than she’d thought I was from my pictures. How sweet!!! The dress I wore was gifted to me by our Miss Slinky, Sarah Jane, who wasn’t able to join us for family reasons on Friday. She was really missed. I wasn’t sure about wearing it, but I’m so glad I did. I felt fab all night. It wasn’t a size I’d have ever picked off the rail and it just goes to show, sizes differ so wildly that it’s not about a number but about what fits. So anyway that picture

Last year’s Christmas party outfit, size 22. This year’s, size 12!

Have a great few days and we’ll speak on Wednesday. Promise!

Xxx

Slimming World Update – Week 72

Hi guys

Hows you? I’m good. Surrounded by the colours and sounds and general excitement of the festive season and pretty much loving it! I’ve spent the last few days writing Christmas cards. I tried not sending cards one one year and just donated to charity instead. Don’t get me wrong, I fully appreciate the sentiment behind it, but it made me feel awful. So I’ve resigned myself to the fact that I’m a card writer and I get great cards every year, carefully chosen from charities that mean something to me. This year’s are Thomas the Tank Engine themed (for the boy) and come from the National Autistic Society. They’re just gorgeous! Anyway I did have an Excel spreadsheet as a Christmas card list that I’ve been using and regularly updating for years. Until this year. We bought a new PC in the summer and I forgot to transfer the list onto the new hard drive. Sat down to write the cards this week and I realised I’ve lost my ‘go to’ list! So at least one night this week has been just spent updating my contacts. I think I have them all now, but if you were expecting a card from me and you don’t get one, I might have just missed you off the list. Either that or I don’t really like you 😉

Christmas has also been making it presence felt in our house this week in the form of new pyjamas. If you follow me on any social media, you may already know this; to say I was excited was an understatement. Regular readers will know just how much I love shopping these days, how one of my goals this year was to ‘conquer Fat Face’ (which I think I can safely say I’ve done several times over 😉 ). However, something I really wanted from them, but had never been able to fit into before, was their Christmas pyjamas. They do such beautifully festive ones every year. So this year I decided to treat myself and ordered their Folkloric pyjama bottoms and tshirt. And I LOVE them. If it wasn’t a tradition to wear new pyjamas on Christmas Eve I’d be wearing them already! They’re just so pretty and Christmassy.

But the best thing about them is the difference I can see in my shape when I wear them. You may think I’m barmy, but I sometimes find it really hard to ‘see’ what I look like. In my mind I’ve been so big for so long that despite what the scales say or what I see in the mirror, I find it hard to know what I actually look like. That’s why I do comparison photos and why they blow my mind so very much. This one is quite hard for me to share. The first picture I have never shared as I hated it then and I hate it now. But I’ve got so few full length photos of myself that it’s the best one to use here, I think. This was taken in the Maldives in 2009. Its a few years ago for sure, but I was a similar size to this when I started SW (actually I was probably a bit bigger 😦 ) Basically a Size 26 to a 16.

Wowsers!

Enough said really.

This past week hasn’t always seen me make the wisest of food choices – nothing mad, just not the best and I’m not really sure why. So I was thrilled with a maintain last night, staying at 6 Stone 7lb (91lb) lost. And actually, this close to Christmas and the challenges it can bring, I think that’s sometimes all you can do. Protect the progress you’ve made. I have thought about it long and hard and I think expecting 7lbs loss in 3 weeks with all the parties and what not I have over the next few weeks is unrealistic and probably just setting myself up for disappointment (and lets be honest, feeling a failure is no gift to give myself this Christmas). That’s why I’m modifying my Christmas goal. And before you say, I’m not stopping or giving up or admitting defeat. I’m taking responsibility for  my choices and being realistic. I would like a lose a couple more lbs by the last weigh in, but as long as I don’t gain from this point until Christmas I’ll be happy.

Oh and update on the Fat Face shirt – I went in to my local branch to try it on again and they’d taken them all off the shop floor as they’ll be going in the sale after Christmas. I decided to chance my arm and wait until then and hope they have my size. I do love a bargain!

Have a great week.

xxxx