Comfort Zone

I'm in my comfort zone - if I don't try to lose weight then I can't fail BUT it is now at the point where I NEED to lose it!

In my adult life I have never been this heavy: 12 stone 5lb (approx 78.5kg, 173lb)
I'm 5'2" (1m58)
I'm 44 years old
My BMI is: 31.6 (Obese category)

Healthy Weight range: 7st 3lb - 9st 11lb (I would look awful at 7st 3lb - aiming for 8st-9st)

I grew up in Cardiff, Wales which is quite a small city, I've worked in London and Brussels and walking around those cities at night is less scary than the journey I'm going to be starting! 

My biggest fear = failure again! I know people who are so discouraging - they say - oh no not again. You were supposed to be on a diet (insert time here) and it didn't work etc etc! Being this weight puts me in my comfort zone and the biggest step I can make from this day is to step out of this comfort zone and start on a journey which would change my life for the better!

I think dieting is 1% healthy eating 99% mental attitude! 

I know I can do it - I went from 11st 4lb after having my eldest son to 8st 7lb in about 6 months! OK I'm 20 years older - but it can still be done!

"putting on my climbing boots [mentally]" Let's get going...

xxxx

39 steps? years? puppies? NO...

...39 weeks before I go on the church holiday I'm organising (I usually organise one every 2 years).

I need to lose: 

47lb - to be 9 stone 0lb

54lb - to be 8 stone 7lb

61lb - to be 8 stone 0lb

My weigh in today: 12 stone 5lb 0oz! (I've lost 1lb from last week - whooo hoo) 

47lb loss = 1.2lb per week
54lb loss = 1.4lb per week
61lb loss = 1.5lb per week

This is do-able folks!  

My eldest son said to me - "Mum you've done it before so you can do it again!" Bless him - he's going to encourage me!

It's easier to be focused when the weather is good, but it's the winter which is the hardest,,, OK mustn't moan - have to take ownership of my life/eating AND I'm fed up with being blobby and unfit!

Anybody reading this who needs to lose weight - you CAN do this! Really you CAN!

Have a good one folks!

xxxx

Taking Ownership

In work that's the buzz phrase of the season - TAKE OWNERSHIP! What does that mean? Well stop making excuses and get on with what's supposed to be done with your particular section! 

How does this relate to losing weight?

Well ask yourself this - who made you overweight? Did someone force food into your mouth? Did someone beat you up if you didn't eat everything on your plate? 

Come on people (I'm actually talking to myself here and no I don't have multiple personalities ;) ) - no one has made me fat other than myself! 

Did I HAVE to buy that massive bag of crisps after work and eat the whole lot? NO!

Were the biscuits in the cupboard forced down my throat? NO!

Was the extra portion of food forced upon me? NO!

COME ON who made me FAT? ME - let me spell it out again M-E - however difficult this is to admit to myself - I MADE MYSELF OVERWEIGHT! Nobody else made me FAT! Nobody else turned me from a size 12 to a size 16! Nobody else made me gain 56lbs and about 50 inches!

Right NOW is the time to grab the bull by the horns and take ownership/ responsibility for my losing weight - no more hiding behind excuses and blaming others!

Have a good one folks

xxxx

After...

...my last post about counting lost pounds and not stones - I'm not doing too well! Apathy inc. has set in! I am so apathetic it's Pathetic! 

Exercise and drinking more water are my mental blocks - if I exercised and drank more water I think I would do better! I really should stop talking about it - and do it! Oh well ONWARD!!

Any who read this - I hope you're doing much better!

xxxx

Stone and Pounds verses just Pounds

I have been wondering if I may have more of a clear focus if I concentrated on just thinking of my weight loss in pounds (or am I thinking this through too much?)

I'm around about 12 stone and I want to be 8 stone 7 pounds (again)! Working this out:

12 stone = 168lb
8 stone 7lb - 119lb
That's 49 lb to lose - I don't know, that seems an easier way of focussing on it rather than 3 stone 7lb!

Oh well, I could give it a go... Nothing to lose - except pounds [hopefully ;) ] and inches!

xxxx

PS Weigh-in tomorrow...

Nada

No loss but no gain either - a huge PHEW! Not been sticking to anything lately - so tired, thirsty and undisciplined! I so need a life coach and professional organiser by my side 24/7 (well, maybe not when I'm asleep!) >grin<

OK any who read this - hope you're doing well (whether you're losing weight or not!)

Take care and watch out for a Youtube update (something else I need to be disciplined about!)


xxxx

Ooops

After all my losses - I gained 2lb! Mind, it's hardly surprising as I haven't been totally focused! OK things to change this week:

Eat sensibly
Drink more water
Exercise consistently

Here's to a new week!

xxxx

What a loser

8lb gone so far - that's over half a stone (something us Brits understand :) ). I have hardly exercised and I've not been totally good, but I have been trying to keep within my calorie allowance (even eating some naughty things!). This week I am hoping to be strict with myself and exercise to see if I can shift more than 1lb this week! 

Here goes! I will also try and update my Vlog (had a piano exam last Friday so was concentrating on that). 

Bye for now, folks

xxxx

WEIGH-IN

Weighed today and I lost 1lb 14oz - yay! Happy with that as I had a migraine last Sunday and ate for Britain on the Mon and Tues and also didn't feel up to exercising (although I did walk to and from work - up and down a steep hill). 

Onwards and downwards towards a slimmer, healthier ME 

Have a fantastic weekend folks!

xxxx

Video update 5th March 2014

This video can also be found on my DietingDizzy YouTube page :)

3rd March 2014 Fat before photos

This is what I look like today and I am disgusted by it - considering I now look like a FAT middle aged woman! Would rather look like a slim, toned middle aged woman lol!

Weight: 12 stone 2lb 6oz

Bust: 43"

Waist 37" 

Hips 44"

Thighs 22"

Knees 16"

Arms 11.5"

  

The Temptation Tin

Take a tin (or box) if the tin contained sweets or biscuits etc - give those away, really you don't need them!

This tin will become your temptation box.

Every time you feel the urge to stray from your weight loss plan - go online, or look through magazines or catalogues and find something which will inspire and encourage you to stay on your plan! e.g. if you're going on holiday and you want to shed some extra weight - cut out pictures of swimming costumes or if you're slimming for your wedding - cut out the wedding outfit of your dreams! Put the pictures in the box! Look at it every so often to remind yourself why you are wanting to lose those pounds!

Put in there whatever works for you! 

All the best for your quest for a healthier and slimmer future 

xxxx

Days of the week diet

Someday - have some treats but don't go berserk

Mundane (day) - don't stick to boring salads, pep them up with low fat dressings, add fruit too!

Chooseday - choose healthy low fat options from the menu when out

Spendsday - spend time planning your menus and allow for those times when you have to stop your diet for a day e.g. a day out with friends!

Thirstday - make sure you drink plenty of water

Fryday - keep off those high fat oils and dry fry things!

Statureday - don't forget to exercise!

Have a good week

Xxxx

Bags of Sugar

I was thinking about the number of Kilos I want to lose - it works out at 22 bags of sugar (1 Kg bags)!

loser!

Ok it's only 1lb but I lost again this week - so far I've lost 5lb! Onward to losing more! (Mind, today I've probably eaten more than I should)! 

My calorie allowance this week has gone up from 1,200 to 1,400! Let's see what happens :D

xxxx

9th Feb Diet Update YouTube Vlog!

What a loser

I weighed myself to day and I've lost just under 4lb - happy with that! 12 stone 0 lbs 8oz! Onward and downward!

Have to admit, it has been a struggle - been so tempted to give up and eat the wrong stuff, but I've stuck with it and it's paid off! 

I need to drink more water this week
'step-up' the exercise

Focus focus focus!

xxxx

A word from a Life-Storm survivor

In life there are many storms - trials, difficulties etc - those storms can either drag us down and make us weak or we can rise above them and come out stronger than ever! 



To get pure gold, the furnace has to be hot hot hot - the hotter the fire, the purer the gold. Putting this into context - the harder and more difficult the trials (if we are determined to learn through them), then the stronger we become!



To climb a mountain - we may have to overcome many hurdles, difficult hurdles, annoying hurdles, but if we persevere then we overcome those - we reach the top.



I was thinking about my High School's badge - it was a phoenix rising out of the flames, because out of the ashes can come beautiful and stronger things (in some parts of the world for plants to grow stronger each year, they have to be burned up with fire). 



Let's not let our present situations discourage or hinder us from our ultimate goal - let this help us to become stronger and more determined people!

xxxx

Article from BT.com called 9 ways you're making your skin look older

9 ways you’re making your skin look older

Guilty of heavy-handed exfoliation or forgetting the SPF? You could be ageing your skin…

 

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  By Carla Challis 

  Last updated: 28 January 2014, 17:10 GMT
  From going to sleep in your make-up to forgetting to moisturise, we all know the little habits that are bad for our skin.

  But were you aware of these nine other skincare crimes? Jill Zander, founder of theJill Zander Skin Rejuvenation Clinic, tells us where we’re going wrong…

  1. Too much moisturiser
  The more the better, right? You could be doing more harm than not applying it all. If a moisturiser is correctly suited to your skin, it should feel comfortable; the wrong one could leave your skin dry or greasy. And never apply your skin moisturiser around your eyes, as the skin is thinner here and can easily become overloaded with products. That’ll be the cause of those little white spots, you know!

  2. Over-exfoliating
  Scrub-happy people must stop now. Over-exfoliation can lead to redness and irritation and constantly stripping your skin can actually make it become greasy as it over compensates for the lack of oil. Try a non-abrasive scrub that uses AHA, BHA and fruit acids to exfoliate, rather than grains which can tear the skin. (We loveMurad’s AHA/BHA Exfoliating Cleanser, £17.)Twice a week is all you need.

  3. Rushing serum application
  Skincare products need to be carefully layered, like you would your clothes. When using an anti-ageing serum, like Botanics Triple Age Renewal Super Serum, £10.49, it’s important to let it sink in and dry before applying your moisturiser – otherwise you dilute the concentrated anti-ageing formula with your moisturiser in one fell swoop.

  4. Squeezing spots
  Step away from the blackhead! Not only can you cause the spot to become infected but you could make it leave a scar if you’re not careful. Use a spot gel (likeNo7 Beautiful Skin Rapid Spot Rescue, £9.95) to help it fade on its own or leave it to the professionals.

  5. Skipping the SPF
  It’s grey out there so need for the sun cream, right? Wrong! The sun is the biggest cause of wrinkles and you should wear SPF come rain or shine. Many moisturisers and even make-up contain SPFs like IMAGE Skincare’s Prevention + Daily Hydrating Moisturiser SPF 30, £39.95, which moisturises while protecting. Genius.

  6. Slapping on creams
  Somewhat slap-dash when it comes to applying your creams? Stop. Vigorous rubbing can age the skin; instead, apply from the neck up using semi-firm upward movements, so you’re working against gravity. Drag downwards and you’re literally ageing yourself every morning.

  7. Skimping on sleep
  It’s called ‘beauty sleep’ for a reason. Skin repairs itself at night so if you’re regularly sleep-deprived, your complexion will give the game away.

  8. Anti-ageing before you need to
  Until you show signs of ageing, step away from the anti-ageing products. If you use potent anti-ageing products before you need them, your skin can become fragile and thin or immune to their powers.

  9. Using face wipes
  When using a face wipe, we tend to rub our skin quite vigorously, especially around the eye area. This is a big no-no as it can cause irritation, redness and even strip the skin of its essential oils.

Dieting and music?

I posted this on the forum of Rosemaryconleyonline.com!

I weighed myself this morning and I'm 12 stone 4lb [I think that is about, or just under 80kg!! about 172lb] (the heaviest I have ever been as an adult)! I am 5' 2" (1m58). 

I was thinking about confidence and how many of us seem to feel as if we have failed totally if we gain for the umpteenth time BUT this is self-destructive and totally not true! So what, we've had one or two (in my case more) gains and it would only be a failure if we didn't think anything of it, if we threw in the towel completely and stopped climbing that hill (I go on about quite often lol)!

Am I a failure for gaining nearly 4 stone over the past 20 years? Not really because here I am wanting to change and today is a new day! I'm not a total failure in my life anyway! Dieting is only ONE part of my life! 

Why not take up a hobby or do a course because this is an area where I was thinking about just now - am I a total failure in my life? Nope because, after years of being scared to sit my Grade 5 flute exam in 2010 (I'd never done any grades in music at all, so Grade 5 [out of 8] was a major step), I passed, but to do Grade 6 flute I needed Grade 5 music theory, but again, I was too scared. With a lot of coaxing and cajoling my singing and piano teachers helped me through those fears and in 3 months, after never doing a lot of theory before I came out with 88% and now I'm doing Grade 6 [which I haven't got a clue about lol] THEN in November last year I took Grade 5 singing and thought I'd failed but I was 5 marks off a Merit - I got 115/150. Did I have blips? Ummm yes - in my Grade 5 flute I lost my place in my B piece and had to pick up the piece again later on in the music, in my Grade 5 music theory - I made a few silly mistakes, but I still succeeded, in my Grade 5 singing I forgot the words of my first song for a while, but pulled it together and got a much better mark than I was expecting! I have to admit that these successes have given me the confidence to sit Grade 1 piano in March-April time - I'm not good at reading the Bass Clef, but I'm giving it a go! 

Why did I tell you this? Well because I have thought "I've failed!" where dieting [and music] is concerned - BUT I haven't! Playing the piano is difficult [for me anyway, as all the instruments I've ever learned have only used one clef - the Treble] but I'm determined to succeed and I WILL learn those pieces of music! Come on don't look at your dieting 'failures' Look at your successes and if you've only just started - think success - yes you might have hurdles, but as we overcome them we gain much more confidence! Back to music, again, I'm thinking of taking Grade 5 Descant Recorder (as I've been playing since I was about 5) and Grade 5 Treble Recorder - why? Because I KNOW I can do it! 

I've also signed up to do a writer's course - but I won't bore you with that as well lol! 

Wishing you all every success in your weight loss adventure - you CAN succeed! 



xxxx