h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Hi there chick, how ya doing? It seems that you have not been on here recently so i thought i would send you a message, to kick ass yoyu into using it again. I miss not being on the H N site, but still do not have any regrets leaving. I am doing great with my weight loss now, but i did go through a stage whereby i felt i was on a plateau for longer than i deserved. But hey i got through it and now it is coming off again. Got my pre op medical on Thurs so not looking forward to that, but it has to be done. I will be weighed and measured and my body photographed yuk! Oh well its all in a good cause. Speak soon Diane

Hi Diane,

How funny you just posted me, I was just reading your entry about how well you've done, thanking everyone for their support!

I know what you mean about the NF site, it's been part of my day for a while now, but I've not been posting there much myself of late. I'm bored of the same discussions but the arguing also gets on my nerves a bit too. But to be honest the people I've become fond of are all over here so I don't feel the need to be on the NF board as much these days!

I must say well done you on your weight loss, it's such an acheivement and I know how hard it is to do! I hope you feel bloody proud of yourself!! I don't know whether you read my posting on my Polycystic ovaries, but I was recently diagnosed with this and am seeing the Gynie tomorrow to see what's what. I'm aware that I'm in need of a lifestyle change not only in terms of my diet but also in the way I think about eating etc. and I can really relate to how daunted you felt when you started out.

Not only do I need to lose weight but more than that, I need to change my lifestyle. It's the old thing of bad habits being a bit too comfy and changing them can feel a little scary. I'll get there though!

any words of wisdom would be much appreciated!!

xxxx

OK Ruth i will see if i can help you. I don't know what type of diet you are on, so you will need to tell me. I also need to know what are your weaknessess,eg choc % etc.
How much do you weigh and what do you want to lose?
What type of diets have you done in the past what were the results and did you enjoy them?
I teach healthy eating, so no fad diet advice here but i can help you with the choice of food and portion size etc.I can also help you to find true low fat food if that is the route you wish to take.
If you do want to do low carb all i can do support you and try to keep you motivated honey.
Come on Ruth don't throw your dummy out the pram now you know you can do this, ok so it ain't going to be easy we all know that, if it was we would all be slim!
There are no rules when it comes to how the weight will come off and in what quantities but as you go down the steps it will lead you to a path and all you will have to do is walk, and who says you can't stop for a while and admire the scenery once in a while.
Diane xxx

I'm not on any diet at the moment. The first proper diet I ever did was Weightwatchers this year, I lost a stone in four months. I was a skinny kid til I hit puberty then I put on the usual puppy fat which was gone by the time I was 18. I'd also picked up a nasty smoking habit by then too (40 a day or so) and when I kicked it the first time put on 2 and a half stone. The not smoking didn't last that time unfortunately but a few years later I lost two stone, only to put the majority of it back on again when I quit smoking for the second time round (this time successfully). Since then I've lost about a stone and a half of that, but would like to lose the same amount again. So figures wise I'm currently hovering around the 11st mark, (5'7") and would like to get down to 10st/9&1/2st.

As I say, I lost a decent amount on WW but I came off the pill in April and hormonally I have been allover the place since, thanks to the old ovaries, and suspected insulin resistance. I have no doubt that I'm trapped in the vicious cycle of eating sweet food, which makes me want to eat more sweet food. I also feel that I have a large amount of psychological problems with this stuff too, it's the classic dieters curse of being able to think of very little else besides food that happens once you start telling yourself you can't have any.

Luckily, as I do so much exercise I've only put on a few pounds since falling off the wagon in April, and I've just got myself back on the pill so I'm hoping that things will become calmer again (must admit, feel better already!) so that I can re-focus on getting my weight down again. I'm not keen on following any 'diet' as such, as it messes with my head a bit too much. Having said that I found WW useful in that it made me look at the calorie/fat content of food, so I think I make better choices when buying food now, I had no idea how many calories were in some things!!

I tend to veer between being really hard on myself for not eating like an angel, and going easy on myself as my diet a few years back was truly appauling (only solid meal I had was breakfast, the rest of the time I ate nothing but crap). Nowadays I eat three square meals a day, have 2/3 pieces of fruit a day, drink tons of water (I love the stuff - can't stand tea and coffee!) and make sure that I get enough good quality protein, and try my best to eat the best quality carbs that I can.

I think in a nutshell whilst I very much want to lose weight I don't want to do it at the expense of my sanity, as I've found diets just make me totally obsessive about food and not having things that I want. So really I'd like to change my lifestyle and just try and work at thinking 'eating three chocolate bars on the trot just isn't something I do anymore' rather than, 'I won't do this now as I'm trying to lose weight, but just as soon as I do you can bet your arse I'll be back on them!'.

So bearing this in mind what do you think is a reliable and healthy way of monitoring weight loss? I do have some body fat scales but have a sneaking suspicion that they're actually rubbish, so shall I just measure? If so how often do you think?

But in answer to your question, no, I don't want to low-carb, I want a balanced diet! Having said that I want to avoid sugar as much as I can, with my PCOS it's important that I keep my blood sugars level so I need to stick to the complex carbs as much as I can!

blimey, I can't 'arf waffle eh??

xxxx

Diane,

just saw your post about your op, wanted to say how sorry I am, I can imagine how gutted you must be!! Chin up me dear, thinking of you xxxx

Thank you for your reply. I teach in exactly how you would want so maybe together we can crack this hard shell of yours for good.
The one thing you do which i can't appaluad you enough is that you exercise, this you must keep up with, its a life saver.
Firstly take measurements and forget the body fat scales. Ask someone whom you are close to to measure you. Now to do this properly you need to take the length or height as well as the width so the tape is always put in the same posistion. So for eg if i were measuring your upper ar, i would measurefrom the end of your middle finger tip to the centre of your upper arm say 21"/22" is normal for a woman then take the tape around the arm itself. Measuring should be done about every 5 weeks or so then you will see a difference.
Right you say you eat 3 meals a day, what ever you do don't go over 5 hrs without something to eat.......here is me being a hypocrite....but i still suffer from side effects of eating disorders but hey don't worry i am fine.
Right you need to have about 2 pieces of fruit a day. 1 Yoghurt. A piece of protein about the size of a bar of soap daily, 4 portions of veg or salad. And a good source of carbs, brown this and that is great but not to everybodys pallete. You can also include about 150/200 cals on treats and don't feel the remote bit guilty about having those either.
The way to find true low fat food is to allow 3grams of fat per every 100 cals. so for eg a product you buy contains 200 cals you would be allowed 6 grams of total fat etc etc.
% should be limited at about 4 units per week if you are wanting to lose weight and this would be 4 glasses of wine.....normal glasses Ruth not buckets ha ha ha ha.
If you struggle with sugar cravings you ma find that taking a supplement of chromium picolinate from holland and barrett may help as it helps to regulate the blood sugar levels, but you may need extra advice on this one, but it really has helped me. It is about £4 for 100 tablets.
See what you think of my ideas and let me know if this may help you. Diane. p.s. heard from hospital and the surgeon is coming in early yippee

Well, there's no chance in me giving up on the exercise lark, I've been at the gym every week for nearly three years now, and also do Yoga and have some good exercise tapes at home. (Karen Voight is my own personal Jesus!) I just love it! What's great is I feel I've already won half the battle, as everyone always bangs on about (and rightly so) diet and exercise being essential, and so I'm already half way there!

I'm going to measure up as you suggest and then try and relax about the whole thing, it's a little effort every day that will get me where I want to be after all!! Funnily enough I tried to get some Chromium in Boots yesterday but they didn't have any. I already take B6 and a calcium/magnesium supplement which I get from Solgar on-line, so I think I may well just add Chromium to my next order as they are very good quality supplements.

I'll let you know how I get on, and please let me know who your op goes too! Will be keeping fingers and toes crossed for you!!

Oh and thanks so much for your support with all this Diane, it makes a real difference - as you know!!

xxxxx

Hi Ruth, well i think you are now getting into the right frame of mind. Rome was not built in a day, and it certainly wont be knocked down in that time either. Unlike me i have had to lose my weight by a certain date, which then leads to its own problems too. If every change you make you make it a lifetime one you will lose your weight and permanetly. Try each week to make a change eg having veg and salad daily, changing milk, etc etc you will get there.
I am so pleased you are enjoying your exercise, i always say exercise should be enjoyed not just endured!!
Like i said i get my supplements from holland and barrett see if you have one nearby. Good luck Diane xxx