The Game is Afoot!

Hello, my name is Helen (hello Helen). It has been four weeks since my last confession, on my honour! Or may I be chopped up and made into soup.

In the words of Sam Beckett oh BOY!!! Yes my friends, these are indeed exciting time!

First a re cap since the last posts. Tomorrow marks my next blood test encounter , interested to find out the numbers as frankly I feel no different, but hey, let's see what the numbers say.

Slimming World is going ok - I would say great, but frankly I would have liked to have seen bigger numbers by now. I know what I am capable of, and I know where my weaknesses have come from on several occasions. That aside though, I am pleased to announce that in just four weeks I have lost a whopping 13lbs!! (whoop whoop!!). Very pleased as this means I am well on target.

On target for what? Um, well ok confession number two, other half and I have actually booked a holiday for the end of the year! If that wasn't enough, I have also brought myself a size 12 (yes, that is a 12) Bikini (yes I said the word Bikini!!). Am aiming to be able to slim down and wear said Bikini on said holiday! Have worked out if I can lose on average 3lbs per week, I will be well and truly at target by the time said holiday comes - which will be nice!

On a semi related topic (I'm saving the absolute zinger until last ya know), aforementioned fella and I have also been discussing potential dates for up and coming tied knot! I've said we will start looking seriously at venues around May / June time, gives me a chance to shift another couple of stone before a date is actually cast in one! Very excited, have already got shortlist of first dance songs, disco songs, pre ceremony classical tunes, style of dress, overall colour scheme, nominated maid of honour (ta Jen!) & bridesmaids, the beginnings of a guest list, various dance routines to attempt at aforementioned disco and roughly what we'll be doing day before, on the day, and where we'll be going on honeymoon! (Not that I've been thinking about this or anything!) Really excited, but again, it is all weight dependent, as I refuse to walk down the isle looking like a beached whale - pre wedding beauty health & fitness regime officially starts here guys & gals! I think that calls for another whoop whoop!

Aaaaaaaaaaand finally!! NLP course & Life Skills course remains ongoing, HOWEVER! have discovered that I have enough qualifications to apply for SHTC membership, which is like a governing body type thing for coaches, so today I have applied, and initial feedback looks good! Waiting for payment to clear naturally, but barring that, I could be a fully fledged (associate) member!

Once membership is approved, there is literally nothing (I don't think) stopping me from turning around and screaming to the world "Hello, my name is Helen, and I am a certified coach!!!!!!!!!"
 omg omg omg omg omg omg omg omg omg and breeeeeeeeeeath!!

If I could do back flips then seriously right now I would be! Four years it has taken me to get to this point, and finally a dream today has begun to be realised, I am so so happy! Of course now the hard work (and the fun) really begins! Whilst I am polishing off my remaining courses, I can legitimately market myself and try and get some clients in!

I'm off now to run around the garden screaming yipppiiiiiiiieeeeeeee!!

Coaching - part 2

oh my goodness!!!!

Life has certainly got a little more interesting to say the least! Following on from the last post, I eventually did manage to get hold the the coach, she actually emailed me back from Kathmandu (of course! where else!) and said she wouldn't be in the country until after the 20th Nov. Not as bad as you first may think because in the mean time I was given my first 'task', which was to listen to Paul McKennas hypnosis CD consistently every day and keep a log of the date / time CD was listened to - which I did!!

With me it's all about consistency - in that I never used to be, so making a point to listen to some hypnosis every night for the past three weeks (I'm still going ya know!) is quite an achievement for me!!

So that was then, let's skip forward three weeks to now.

Yesterday I had my first one to one with Life Coach Dawn - let me just repeat my sentiments at the start of the post - oh.......my.......goodness!!!!!!

I was more nervous about finding the place then I was about the actual coaching itself, but thankfully the journey turned out to be a very straight forward.

Have to say, it wasn't too long into the session before I 'knew' that 'this' was 'right' - I wont go too much into detail regarding what we discussed etc, but needless to say after just over an hour of info dumping from both sides, I have come away with my plan of action for this week, as well as a log sheet to tick off when said tasks have been done! At one point I had to look her right in the eye to convince her I was going to follow through with a couple of the items on the list - scarily hilarious experience I can tell you, but at least she could see at least in that moment I was certain of success!!

The key for me really is consistency in following through with basic actions. This week, some of the items on my focus list is: getting up at 6am, taking tablet, having breakfast, walking dogs twice a day, listening to hypnosis track. AS you can see it's not difficult stuff, the point is more about taking consistent positive action so that you carve out good solid habits.

Last night, I did take the dogs on their first evening walk - I don't know who exactly was more shocked, me or them! But at least that was another tick in the box.

This morning I awoke at 5:50am, so that's one more tick, and any second now I shall embark upon breakfast so that'll be the 3rd tick for the day!!

Weight Loss Result - Week 1

Last week I made a promise to myself - that for seven days I would get my head down and actually start losing weight and really see what I was capable of.

So every day I got my behind on the wii fit, and did between 20 - 30 minutes (almost) every day, a combination of yoga and just simply stepping up and down on the balance board for 10 minutes. The one day I didn't go on the wii, I was actually away at the in-laws, so instead took the dogs for a very nice long walk.

My diet has been a combination of food replacement bars & milkshakes, and small portioned dinners (by small I mean half the size I 'usually' have).

I haven't touched a packet of crisps, or drunk a single drop of alcohol (despite an over night stay at the in-laws which would normally mean plenty of both), and monitored quite closely what 'additional extras' I have with my food (i.e. table sauces, butter on bread etc).

So the result then - well, I am very pleased to report that this week I have lost a total of 7lbs!!!!!!! A definite whoop whoop me thinks!

Very pleased, and quite amazed that it didn't take as much effort on my part to achieve than previously perceived.

This week I will of course be following the same routine as I haven't felt deprived, or hungry at all. So fingers are well and truly crossed for another weight loss for next week! :D

Slimming World Catch Up

1st week on the Slimming World 'plan' went relatively well! Got on the scales Monday night and low and behold I'd lost 4 1/2 lbs! That my friends is what I would call a result!!

However. Yes unfortunately there is a however. My joy at such an accomplishment wasn't evidently shared by others. In group I received a round of applause and thankfully managed to escape too much of an autopsy on the week - I find my confidence in these situations lacking and I go into 'shy mode'. Hey ho. I came out of group simply buzzing and to be perfectly honest, expecting some form of enthusiasm / encouragement from the collective. I got the usual response from significant other - i.e. not too sure how he should respond but making very best efforts (well done by the way). Other responses did unfortunately include just 'oh'.

It was this latter that got under my skin for most of the past week. In fact, it was this latter that smashed my self importance into a million pieces. As a result I spent the rest of the week 'moping' and doubting myself and my ability to achieve this weight loss. I mean hello where is my so called support people!!?

As far as the 'diet' was concerned, last week was a little up and and down to say the least. I have days of eating fruit and salads and drinking lots of water. Then there would be the days where I'd over dose on Crunchy Nut Cornflakes, Magnums, Ryvita Minis and Lemon Sorbet! Not in the same session I very hastily add!!

I went to yesterday's meeting really unsure of what results I'd have achieved. Honestly with what I had been eating, I could have lost weight, but then again, I could have very easily maintained or gained! I really had no clue!

Stepping on those scales turned out not to be so bad after all 2 1/2 lbs lost which makes half a stone lost in 2 weeks - very happy chappy! In addition to this, group went really well - had lots of fun. It was great catching up with the neighbours, asking about others progress etc.

During group our consultant, Elaine, gave us each a party bag. In it she had given us:
A balloon - to remind us of Slimming World
An elastic band - to remind us to be flexible with our diet and ourselves
A single Malteser - to allow us to have something sweet for emergencies (I gave mine to R as I'm not really into sweet things!)
A small golden miniature clothes peg - to remind us to 'hang on in there'
and finally, which has actually turned out to be my most favourite item in the bag
A Stone - to remind us that Elaine / Slimming World are always there for support when we need it. In fact Elaine said that anytime we needed support just rub the stone and think of her!

What I have learned over the past two weeks is above all else, I personally just need support and positive encouragement without strings. What do I mean by that? well I'll give you an example. I can't remember which one of the collective said this to me, but when I told of my results for this week, the response I got was:
'Oh that's good! Just think what you would have lost if you hadn't of eaten the other stuff'.

It's like giving a compliment in one hand, but then snatching it straight back again with the other. It's like teasing the dog with his favourite toy, letting him to snap at it, but never actually giving it to him 100% to play with.

What would have been better was if the person in question just simply said 'oh well done!'. That's it. End of story. Say no more!!

Hey ho, on with the next week. I'm looking forward already to next weeks weigh in. I'm fired up now. We've already had the Slimmer of the Week and Slimmer of the Month awards.

Next week my goal is to be Slimmer of the Week. And oh yes, I will also be getting that Slimmer of the Month award by the end of December too - just you watch, and wait and see!

xxx

Weight Loss Diary - 6th Sept 2010

Did I ever tell you how much I am loving life at the moment? Oh I did? Ok stuck record alert!

So yesterday then, can definitely say yesterday was fabulous! Firstly, other half was out selling himself at a wedding fair for most of it. Usually when he's out, that's my subconscious cue to eat like a pig and over stuff myself. Ah ha! but not this day! For breakfast I indulged myself and had cheese on toast. That's 1 slice of bread, 3 very thin slices of cheese, and nada else. I enjoyed every single scrummy bite, and about half way through I started to feel full, so put my knife & fork down and stopped.

Yes it taunted me, 'ah go on, just one more bite, you know you really want to'. But actually no I didn't, I listened to my body, and ignored that silly little voice inside my head that always wants more. To ensure I didn't get tempted into finishing it off I quickly put the rest of the toast in the bin - I didn't fancy eating cold cheese on toast later in the day! :P

What a buzz! Sounds daft that, getting a buzz from knowing when your body has had enough, and simply listening to it, and stopping.

In other news, yesterday I also started to go through my pc and have had a bit of a clear out. Bit random? no, still on topic I promise!!

You see, on my pc, I have created for myself so many diets, weight loss thermometers, weight loss records, and excel spreadsheets working out if I lost so many pounds then I'd reach my goal weight by such and such a date. I literally did a day by day weight loss forecast. These have all been deleted, and my goodness, not only did it feel weird doing so, it felt quite therapeutic!

Like I said before DOWN WITH DIETS!! ah ha! To follow through on that philosophy I get to free up quite a lot of computer disk space!! (as well as head space). So what was for dinner? Steak and chips ta! Served on a tea plate so yes it was a much smaller portion that I'd usually have, and yes I ate every last bite - and yes I kept double checking with my body to see when I was getting full. It was just by luck I think that the portion size I gave myself was just enough to satisfy the physical hunger.......Score!!!

This morning I will admit, a tiny part of me wants to hop onto the scales, I mean it's been three days now since I freed myself from the evil that is fad dieting! Thankfully that little voice was silenced almost as soon as it was raised. Tut tut little voice you should really know better than to interfere like that!

I can tell you now that the part of me with 'the little voice' is actually curious to see whether this new way of doing things will work, and in the very back of my mind probably thinks this is just another 'fad' and I'll end up my biggest yet.

However, the more dominant 'voice' (let's call it my inner coach), is somehow able to scream over little voice, and know jolly well that if I carry on the way I am doing, then not only will I be happy, and living life as full as I want it to be, but I'll also be losing weight and WILL reach that healthy weight / body shape that is right for me. In fact the coach voice is so strong inside my head, I have little choice but to listen and believe it!! And I can't even describe how good that feels, how good that makes ME feel about myself.

I think success is quite addictive, although to be perfect honest I'd rather have that as an addiction than getting on the scales every single day and getting depressed because the magic weight loss fairy has yet again failed to make me 9 stone over night.

So how do we start experiencing success? Well you have to start somewhere, so why not start by doing something small.

I challenge you today to seek out success, no matter how small. You've been putting off doing the ironing, but you've got off your bum and finished it - SUCCESS! You ate two slices of toast for breakfast instead of the usual three or four - SUCCESS!! You decided you would by pass the bakery and not have your usual mid morning sausage roll / cake / packet of crisps etc - SUCCESS!!! (one less spoon of sugar in your tea, making that phone call or sending that email you've been meaning to, paying that outstanding bill, turning off the TV and doing something else with your spare time this evening - all adds up to success!! BUT it HAS to be what YOU really want and what is relevant for YOU!(and not because someone else said that you 'had to'))

It doesn't matter how small it may feel at the time, if you have been able to do something that you have either been putting off, didn't think you had the will power, or just something you don't usually do but have now done - mark it up on the chalk board and give yourself a well deserved pat on the back for a job very well done!

There is another part of this challenge - once you have achieved that first success, don't brush it under the carpet. You have GOT to take a step back, and really appreciate what it is you have done - even if it's 'only' getting the vacuum out and vacuuming the carpet! The point is that this is YOUR achievement, YOUR success and you should not only feel proud of yourself for achieving it, but you ARE ALLOWED to bathe in the shiny glory that is your brilliance!

Because believe it or not, you are brilliant - you just may not have realised yet.

So go on - how are you going to be brilliant and achieve your own success today?

x-x-x

Weight Loss Challenge - Day Twenty Eight

When they were up they were up, and when they were down they were down. Oi vey! Right now I guess you can really say that all positivity has gone right out of the window.

Yesterday was a slip up, I'll admit that right now. Had 2 slices of toast for lunch, and didn't eat them consciously. If I had of done I would have stopped half way through the first slice and chucked the rest in the bin. Consequently I felt bloated and quite sluggish afterwards. Dinner was exactly the same as I didn't chew the food slowly enough, and then I had the cheek to have a couple of slices of toast for supper. Ok, so my daily food intake is in reality less than what was the norm, but still, it doesn't take away the fact that I over filled my body unnecessarily.

The key to my self presumed failure yesterday I believe was actually not drinking enough water. Usually I'm sipping all day, but yesterday I only had one 750ml bottle. No where near enough! I'm used to having two or three of these! And on that note, I've just gone and grabbed my bottle and had a couple of sips.

On top of all this, I didn't fill in my success journey either - arrrgggghhhhhh what is going on with me!! I refuse to let myself self sabotage as I am doing so well!! I've lost almost half a stone already and it's only the 1st week! Breathing deeply, and getting a grip now.

When you're down, your brain really does start to come up with some crazy stuff. For example, I told myself that I had lost control over the house and haven't 'settled into country living as well as I hoped to'. More precisely, I'm not spending nearly enough time in the 'farmers wife' roll. You know, wearing my apron, baking, pottering in the garden, chasing the dog up the garden waving my rolling pin because he's stolen something freshly baked off the window sill whilst cooling. I have quite a romantic ideal of country life, and now I'm here, I don't find myself living it! It's not life how I imagined it to be, but that being said, It's up to me to live and take those actions which is in keeping with the life I want, and at the moment, simply I am not.

When a negative thought or emotion comes your way, you must grab your rolling pin and bash back a positive one. Sort of like the saying, when life gives you lemons, make lemonade!

As I am here, I may as well deal with my own demons!

1. Yesterdays slip up. Ok, so bread intake was a little higher than normal, but that's ok. PM did say we were bound to have slip ups. The thing to do is to forgive ourselves, and move on. Well, ok. I have forgiven myself for yesterday, and am now more determined to keep on the right track. Just keep in mind that my first YouTube weigh in is in three weeks and I want it to be phenomenal! Besides which, I am feeling a huge difference in my eating habits, and portion sizes now. I don't need or want to eat so much, and I feel fuller and more satisfied a lot quicker. I have begun to actually enjoy food and think of it in a positive light. It has begun not to be in control of me, which frees my mind up to concentrate on other things - the void is a wonderful thing! We know what we did incorrectly yesterday, which is great because at least we really do know! Today, we just get back on the horse, and ride of into the sunset once more :D

2. Didn't drink enough yesterday? This is an easy peasy one! Yes ok so you didn't, just make sure you always have a bottle of water to hand again today and hey presto! problem solved :D

3. Didn't fill in the success journal - do it now then!...... Done!! Well that was easy. Oh and just remember you DID listen to the CD, so you haven't fallen off the wagon by any means!

4. The country life. So what do I really want from it? This isn't one for the blog, this is something I need to do on pen and paper, which I will do after I've finished blogging.

As you can see, the process is actually quite a simple one. Identify the negative, turn it into a positive and take the necessary action. Ok, so I didn't fill the journal in, BUT I listened to the CD, AND I can fill the journal in now (and I really honestly did! I put the laptop down, went upstairs and grabbed the journal, came back downstairs, filled it in, then carried on blogging). It really is that simple!!

Hey I'm feeling a lot better already :)

Weight Loss Challenge - Day Twenty Four

When I said I wasn't a slave to the scales any more, I lied! Oops! Maybe it was because I didn't listen to PM's CD yesterday, maybe my 'craving' to hop onto the scales is too great. Whatever you call it, this morning I could resist them no longer I had to just very quickly have a preview as to how I'm doing. After all, this morning I don't feel any different, and couldn't believe that what I had been doing over the past couple of days had made any difference what so ever.

So the results? Well I had to do a double take as the scales have shown me to be 3lbs lighter than when I started PM's programme! Great result, so maybe this thing does work after all!?

One thing is for sure, I know I have an unhealthy obsession with the scales, which must STOP. After all, I really enjoyed the mental freedom from thinking scales? PAH! don't need them every day, I'm fine as I am thank you very much!

I don't know what changed in my psychology this morning. But, what I do know is that PM has provided a couple of techniques in his book regarding cravings, and despite this being more directed at certain foods, I think it's about time I gave it a bash for the scales, hey it's a craving right!?

The other thing I am determined to crack today is no longer being part of the 'clean plate club'. Whether I can detect whether I am full whilst eating or not, I am determined to leave something at every meal, even if it's only a mouthful. Why? apparently it helps you to keep in control of your food, and not the other way around. I can see the theory behind this, but unfortunately I am still well and truly part of 'the club', and very aware that leaving things on the plate will be frowned upon.

Hey ho, for these occasions I must keep telling myself 'I'd rather be slim and in control, than a fat person with a clear plate'.

Priorities for tonight really have to be to listen to the CD, and try out the mirror test (which I haven't even looked at yet and basically involves lots of looking at yourself in the mirror (funny that!)trying to connect with the slimmer you, and produce feelings of love and well being (or something)).

Any how, it's on my list of things to tick off in the 90 day journal, so I really should give it a go.

Right, it's almost time I should be making a move, busy day at work calls so let's just get it over and done with and so I can get onto the fun stuff! (you know, ironing, housework, cooking the fellas tea, you know, the really fun stuff! tee hee).

Weight Loss Challenge - Week Three

Last week was a major set back. Illness, no exercise, and eating habits going back to almost what they were.

Cruise is just over two months away and I am scared senseless. If I had started on January 1st to eat and exercise sensibly (as was the intention), I would have reached my goal weight by now. Instead, I am right back to where I started from, with the possibility of a dream not quite turning out how I would love it to be.

And who is to blame? Only myself.

So what's the plan this week then. Well, for starters I am going to make real efforts to stick to slimfast plan for breakfast and lunch, and have a weight watchers meal for dinner, combining at least 2 litres of water and as much exercise as I can stand.

The crazy thing is, working out the figures, if I lost 2lbs per day I'd still reach my goal weight well in time. So technically it's still possible.

I say technically, because to lose that amount of weight in such a short space of time isn't healthy. I'm not going to kid anyone here, it's not.

BUT, I've personally come to breaking point with my weight. I am so sick and tired of it just being there I just want rid of it once and for all.

Mood this morning - Frustrated! Yet strangley hopeful, determined, and if I'm honest a little headchey. Now I know that isn't technically a mood, I'm just throwing it out there.

Ok, back to being sensible, this week I wont blog every single day. Instead I'll do a weekly weigh in / weekly review blog instead for the time being, as I really feel I need to concentrate on my actions outside of this computer!

Weight Loss Challenge - Day Sixteen

Ok so bright side, I haven't obsessed over the scales yet and my eating habits are starting to evolve into something a little more sensible. Not perfect, but I'm getting there.

I'm fully aware that exercise has lapsed over the past couple of days, however, and I'm not really sure how much of an excuse this is, but I've not been feeling 100% health wise, I think I have a summer cold or something. Anyway, the combination of headaches, sore throats, nausea, dizzy spells, and the occasional all over shivers and lack of a proper nights sleep are quite enough for me to call a stop to my workout and rest.

I did some work in our front garden yesterday. Basically before we moved it was all covered in shingle, and I am trying to removed the shingle, and the matting they placed underneath it, and break up the soil so it looks like soil and not solid concrete, which is not an easy job when you are doing it on your own.

Anyway, several wheel barrels full of shingle later, I had to stop as I was literally feeling like I was going to pass out. Now, I know I'm not fit by any stretch of the imagination, but I am not that unfit! I've shovelled that shingle plenty times before, and yes got a bit hot and sweaty, but other than that I was fine. But yesterday, was completely different.

This morning, same story again, bad nights sleep, have woken up all bunged up and headachey and as I have said, some completely 100%. So as you have guessed it, no exercise this morning.

That being said, I am absolutely desperate to get back on the tread mill and do something, so I have made my mind up that tonight after work, I will do some treadmill stuff, even if it is just a much slower walking pace than I usually do.

Weight Loss Challenge - Day Twelve

Wow! what a difference a day makes! As mentioned yesterday, I completed my 'mood form' (not it's official name, it's a work in progress!), and I have to say, I did find that the dark cloud lifted slightly.

As the day progressed, I ate sensibly, eating treated myself to a couple of cups of coffee (this happens once maybe twice a year), and went to bed in a timely fashion.

Consequently I woke up this morning feeling refreshed, motivated and as determined as ever! Hurrah!!

You see, this is the effect that a weight management coach can have!

As seems to be the habit I had another 'unofficial' weigh in this morning, (I really must put those scales away until Monday), it would appear that another lb of flesh has somehow disintegrated from my body somewhere. Which makes so far this week a weight loss of 3lbs, and 5lbs since I first started twelve days ago. I think that is what you call slow but steady progress :)

Not only that, but I managed to wake up before the alarm, get my toning workout done with a couple of extra moves and incorporate a small amount of jogging into my treadmill exercise.

Very happy bunny - it just goes to show that life is really all about perspective. Yesterday glass was half glass; what do you mean I've 'only' lost 2lbs so far! Today my glass is positively over flowing!

Word of caution. I do realise that today is Friday, and that ahead of me are now three days where I could potentially undo all this hard work. Main aim of the game now is to keep this momentum and focus up until Monday.

One thing that is in the forefront of my mind, is that my other half has a busy weekend ahead of him, which consequently means I'll be spending quite a bit of the next two days on my own. As an emotional eater, it is usually at this time I take the opportunity to indulge in a little comfort eating, call it loneliness, boredum, or simply because I can be 'naughty' and nobody will know (except for the scales!).

So how do I get around this little obstacal? Well the logical thing would be to plan ahead what I will be doing over the next couple of days as a good distraction. As I do literally have about a millions things I could be doing, ranging from working on my own business, the garden, housework, baking, or enjoying other hobbies I enjoy such as singing, tapestry, watercolour, reading, taking the dog out for an explore etc - I really need to sit down and have a serious think about what I fancy doing this weekend.