I'm Still Here, I Just Keep on Keepin' on... Just!

Hey Dudes and Dudettes,

I've been working hard for a grand total of 20 days now. It's pretty tough physical work but I'm no longer suffering pain. I also have self respect now, no matter what any one else thinks about the pecking order!

I've flippin' well missed my blog and my (imagined?) readers. LOL.

I've been struggling a bit with WW. I lost 5.5lbs over the past two weeks but since then the off button has stopped working. I think it is (very limitedly) due to working hard lately and consequently feeling so hungry. I'm sure things will level out soon as I'm a million miles away from giving this up! It's a forever thing for me.

This post sounds like a pep talk to myself, and prolly is, but I sincerely hope everyone else is feeling good whatever's goin' on :-).

Love and peace
Angela x x x x

Hello :-)

Hello and Good Evening to you all.

I feel really, really good. What a difference a year and two months make, eh, lol? I was indescribably lonesome, depressed and heading for ruin fourteen months ago this touches on it mildly! But now I feel so good and full of joy and promise. I'm even looking forward to going to work tomorrow. I would never have even contemplated getting a job back at my biggest and most depressed. Even though my back has tried to seize up on me and is saying, 'Oi, you're not cut out for this mega (now there's a word from the nineties I thought I'd never use again) cleaning work. Hard manual labour? Pah, you're a pansy!'. I'm actually, genuinely, happy and raring to go. I'm really enjoying it and feel a sense of pride that I'm back 'out there' working and a part of the real world once more. Just saying: 'I'm off to work', or, 'when I get back from work' and the many variants gives me a little boost.

Anyway, back to today. We (me and me mum) went for an eight mile walk today and took Paul's (my brother) Staffy pup with us. He was a little delight, bless his baby heart. On a collar and lead he's an absolute nightmare but we went and bought him a new harness and lead before we left and it was like walking a new dog. It's funny but sometimes problems have the simplest of solutions! Oooh, how philosophical.

So, WW is going well. I did go a bit mad yesterday but I'm eating very well and am sure all the walking and hard work will counteract it. I'm planning on losing a stone for Christmas and the lovely Karon has joined me on my quest. WE WILL GET THERE!

I'd also like to say thanks to everyone for all your lovely and inspiring comments, I sincerely love you all and you all keep me going. Thank you. X X X

Pain, Lord, the Pain!!

Hello,

Well I started a new job yesterday. I'm now a cleaner at my sons' school. Glam I know! And it's four hours a day of pretty hardcore cleaning. Therefore today I can barely move, my back is in agony and I can't stand up straight at all. I feel like I'm walking in an S shape and I have the strangest gait.

I'm not giving in and complaing, though, as it feels good to be earning money and paying the bills all by myself, haha. I'm going to dose up on pain killers and push on through the pain. I am assured it will get better after about a week, humph!

Trouble is I have to walk there and back which is half an hour each way, I just hope I get there on time, LOL.

No don't laugh Angela it hurts!

Will report back on broken self later x x x

Pastry...

Yes, well, despite sounding like a tart in my last post, yodelling and all (Swiss -Yodel!?!) I'm not really as bad as I sound - hehehe!

Anyway, I have decided to make a vow to lose a stone by Christmas. Anyone want to join me? You're more than welcome. I'm going to post my losses on here each Tuesday afternoon starting next week. I also vow not to booze alone but only socially drink. Wish me luck!




Much love to you Tina. I know exactly where you're coming from, X X X X

Back to the Future!

Oh My Word, it has been a long time since I've been on here.


I've really missed my blogging and reading other's lovely and inspiring blogs. But, my, have I had a good time lately. LOL. I've spent the last three weeks accidentally (herm) forgetting about WW, and the last week on holiday in Ibiza with my parents and sons. The whole episode was a hugely enjoyable, flattering and confidence boosting experience.

Bear in mind that I'm a 34 year mother of two teenage sons - who are a joy and I love them immensely - but I've been stressed and burdened with a lot of responsibility for a very long time, since childhood, by other family members (and despite appearances have felt rather downtrodden and due to weight gain, lacking in confidence for quite some years).
So on this premise; I landed in Ibiza looking for sunshine and peace.

HA. Instead I got joyful chaos!
 
Upon arriving at the resort I strolled around the exclusive beach, hotel and apartment area only to discover it was full of bronzed lovelies and happy families. I felt kind of frumpy and out of place, which is not a new feeling. However, on my second evening there, and after spending five hours in the sea swimming - which I hadn't done since being a bronzed and lovely teen myself - lol - I met a lovely man! He was a beautiful young man (Swiss, 23, with black hair, huge green eyes and perfect teeth) and he was smiling at me from across the bar (what a cliché). I wanted to check behind me in case I was mistaken. But no, amazingly he was actually looking at me! Cue the rest of the holiday me leaving my boys with the parents in the evenings and learning to yodel! Oh that sounds wrong but dagnammit you only live once!!!

He's been emailing me loads since I got back.

Back to reality, I've only gained one and a half pounds in the last three weeks and am in the WW zone again. Whew what a week! LOL

Equalibrium

Things are returning to normal again. Paul is out of hospital and back home with his pup. He's still not well, but is much improved. He's been having dialysis and treatment ,so, he's not feeling or looking as bad as he was. I'm so releived it's like a massive weight has been lifted from my shoulders, knowing he's getting help and attention. I think I'll retire the brotherly tone of my posts for a while and get back to WWing etc.

We've been on one of our long walks today (me and Mum) - a six miler today, round Kessingland in Suffolk. I feel quite tired now and am going to go and have a jacket potato and chicken tikka with salad. Yummy.

Hope everyone is well.

I must say THANK YOU to Twinkle Eyes for my lovely blog award and I will get round to passing it on to others soon. :-)

X X X

Memories :-)

Evening all,

Good news is on the horizon. It seems that my brother may be - in his own words - 'released' from hospital tomorrow. YAY. Good news on two counts, no three counts...

Firstly, it means my brother's blood levels have stabilised and he's not as seriously ill as he was; secondly, he can take control of his five month old lunatic Staffy, hehe; and thirdly, erm, I can't remember what the third reason was now but I'm sure it was good or amusing at least - let's wait and see if it comes back to me.

I thought I'd share a couple of pics of me and my brother when we were but mere whippersnappers. The first one is circa 1979 when he was two-and-a-bit and I was nearing four:

This one was taken in the summer of  '82, the year our half brother Stuart was born. It was only a week or so after poor ol' Paul scooped the underside of his big toe out while playing in the river with me and our step-sister V. Poor accident prone bugger. LOL. I remember he had to be wheeled to the school in an ancient, rickety old pushchair. Look at that face, though, cute as can be:

(click on piccies to enlarge)

Finally, I thought I'd share the revelation that I now have cheek bones appearing for the first time in years - without having to suck in the fleshy insides of my cheeks and angling a camera from way high above. Woo-bloody-hoo.
LOVE AND PEACE XXXXXXXXX

ps: that third thought still hasn't come back. lol

Back Again.

What an odd day yesterday, aptly shown in yesterday's strangely happy post. Sorry it was a bit of a country ramble! I just needed to get it all down and I'm sure some of you will be glad to know he's getting the help he needs finally.

Anyway, I think I missed out loads that I wanted to say yesterday as I was sitting here in my living room but my mind was still in L****** ward!
I didn't say that for the past week I've also had to put up with my ex partner staying here (to visit his sons). If I don't let him stay here he just doesn't bother seeing them. Wanker. LOL. So, I do it for them. I must admit I do get resentful of him being here, eating my food and doing nothing after a few days. I do make an effort to get on with him though, why cause hassle for myself and those around me by being negative - what would be gained from it? Nothing! Happiness and positivity is the way to go methinks. :-)

Right, I'm now going off to have a nectarine and a glass of water, then I'm taking the pup for a long walk round the park - I hope he doesn't roll in fox poo this time, LOL. Have a great day everyone. I will. X X X

(I'm still within points by the way - I haven't turned to food from the stresses of the week)

Hope! ... :-)

I'm feeling particularly good after a funny old week of major stresses and strains! ...

As some of you may know, my beloved brother is having a VERY, very hard time lately. READ ABOUT MY BRO HERE FIRST (second long paragraph)

Anyway, he finally realised how ill he is because he was going downhill FAST. He was feeling extremely weak and couldn't function properly with the simplest of day to day tasks. I could see it creeping, like a slow poison, all over him for months and months, in his actions, skin, eyes and voice. I got to a point where I couldn't bear it any longer - despite constant prompts and gentle persuasion to see the doctors or get to hospital he still hadn't been. As per earlier post, I knew how ill he was before his denial would let him believe it! Our mother was the same and wouldn't see the wood for the trees.
After a very bad few days he bravely made an appointment with his doctor and he went and had his blood tested at the hospital (and considering how bad his head space is and what he's been through, it was a very brave thing). This was about a week ago...

So, Monday morning he went to the hospital to get his results and they told him to get his arse in there immediately! With shaking voice and brave demeanour my dear Paul arrived at my house with his (mental) five month old Staffy pup and said, 'here's Buddy, he's come to stay for a couple of days'. I knew straight away what was going on.

To cut a very rambling story short, they found his red blood count was depleted by more than half because of severe anaemia and that he is suffering kidney rejection. It turns out that I'm the only one not surprised by this! This is the second time he's suffered rejection of this kidney (they managed to save it once before, some years back, as it wasn't in such a dire situation as it is now, and it actually performed better after intervention then because he was nowhere near as ill, nor avoiding medical help). God, I could witter on for hours about his clinical ups and downs but I mustn't.

He was very close to death this time, as I feared, and the doctors gave him an (educated) ear bashing. Laying it on the line they say they will not give him another kidney.

But… I think if he can prove he’ll look after himself better and we, as a family give him better support, they may change their minds in the future - we’ll BUILD that bridge when we come to it!

All is not lost though, because after three units of blood, a scan and a session of dialysis, his skin colour has changed for the better (from a grey-yellow to a pale normal!) and he felt himself coming back to life during this treatment which ultimately saved his life. However, they have stressed that it is unlikely to work this time, by that I mean saving the kidney, as the proverbial chips are not just down but have been scoffed by some hungry bugger! (Yes you can joke about these things if you've been hand in hand with them since birth OK, lol.) The most likely outcome is that he'll have to go back on regular kidney dialysis sessions but myself and our mother will fight for a place on the transplant register when, not if, he needs another transplant. WE HAVE MADE A VOW TO HELP OUR MAN-CHILD REGAIN HIS LIFE AND MIND.

It's not complacency that has led him to this point, more naiveté and depression.

They've given my baby bro’ a huge dose of Prednisilone (a steroid) in a last ditch effort to save the Olympian style organ - thus far it has survived four major illnesses - and as I watched the drug being pumped into him he visibly changed to a long-lost pink glow. Also, while visiting him in hospital today it was like it's always been since we were born - the fug of pissed-offness vanished from his dear face and a slow happiness, accompanied by a reassuring smile, spread across his face as soon as he saw me and he waved away through the pain. (He had a kidney biopsy today, which involves a local anaesthetic and a television aerial style needle.)

Well I think I’ve run on enough for tonight. I will write more tomorrow. I’m shattered after babysitting a puppy that needs monitoring like a baby who’s constantly got his fingers poised to poke into an electrical socket! (Oops. Please don’t take offense at this comment anyone. I’m incapable of thinking straight, only about Paul, his situation and his puppy - not to mention my newly established sixth-former, my thirteen-year-old baby and everything else folks deal with day to day.)

Hey, I’m happy and smiling broadly. Everything is in its rightful place tonight. In safe hands..

Love and peace, Angela X X X

Long Time No See

Sorry I've not been updating much, it has been a really hectic week here in my world!
Will write a full update on this tomorrow night when I have a free moment. Brother family and everything included!!

I lost 1.5 pounds this week at weigh in. Whoop whoop.

Take care and check back tomorrow night :-)

x x x Love and peace, Angela x x x

Arse!

Hello everyone :-)

I've been trying to give up smoking lately and it was going OK for the first week - BUT the second week, arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrgggggggggggggggghhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! I just couldn't stop eating and went way over my points every day. I'm really peed off about it and am just going to smoke and try giving up again when I reach goal, as at the moment I personally think I'd rather be a smoker and continue to lose weight steadily.
I know that sounds like a cop out but I am more concerend with getting to goal weight at the moment to be honest. Then when (not if) I get there and I try again, a bit of a gain for a few weeks won't be so bad. That's the theory anyway, and I'm sticking to it LOL.

I tried using the nicotine gum aand it was really horrible, the taste of the actual gum wasn't so bad, but the feeling of the nicotine sliding down my throat was disgusting, all burny and tasted like chewed up wet butt ends. Ick! It also gave me really weird hiccups.

Anyway, I've managed to stick to my points today so I'm back on track but I couldn't face getting weighed today, so, I went to the meeting but didn't get on the scales - LOL.

Hope everyone is well

x x x Angela x x x

YES!!! Re: previous post

Lewis just got back and he did it!

Six Cs
Two Ds
and an E an F and a G.

I cried, I am soooooo proud of him :-)

Nervous!

My elsest son, Lewis, is at school as I type collecting his GCSE results. He needs five Cs to get his place in sixth form. He's been gone an hour and doesn't have his phone on him so I'm having to wait to find out how he's done.

If he gets the results he needs were going to go and get him a laptop tomorrow.

FINGERS CROSSED LEWIS X X X

Tickity Boo :c)

This is me at just over five years old wearing my most favouritest dress in the world ever.  Bless.

Oh I wish I was still this innocent, lol.

(click on pic to see better if you're blind like me)

Weighed In...

And am very pleased to inform you, blog, that I lost three-and-a-half pounds of English lard. All that walking paid off and I am finally in the sixteen stone bracket, which is a hell of a lot better than the tewenty-three stone bracket let me tell you.

Total loss to date: six stone six-and-a-half pounds.

Woo hoo.

I forsee a happy day today, lol.

x x x Angela x x x

Sun Kissed, Hmmm...

...Sun-slapped is more appropriate. My poor little cheek's are all pink and sore - oops, double entendre there, oh dear, lol!!! I mean my poor face is sore.

Anyway, the reason I'm here yet again is that I'm feeling kind of philosophical and want to share my thoughts about how things have changed for me over the past fifty-three weeks of WW...

Last August ('08) I was reclusive, depressed and at the end of my road physically and mentally. I felt cloaked in a dark cloud and I couldn't breathe, let alone feel the light on my face.
To put it bluntly I felt like I was on a fast track to death! Yes, it sounds dramatic but that was my life then.

Everything was a struggle: walking or any physical/social activity, getting up in the morning, washing, brushing my teeth or opening the curtains even. Leaving the house and answering the door or the phone was a myth. They were all non-existent because it was way too painful to face life in any shape or form.
I was drinking heavily and couldn't see my future, just a sad and lonely broken death, where I should have been thinking about a future - my life!

But here I am fifty-three weeks on and light years in leaps and bounds. Try keeping me indoors now and I'll batter you to get out. I scroll through my phone book to see who I can summon to an escapade. I'm clean and healthy and dare I say it HAPPY, I look and feel like a new person. WW deity I hail you. LOL.

Well, I think that's short and to the point.

x x x Angela x x x

Wibble, er... Nope - Just Wibble. LOL ???

That's the only title my frazzled and sun-dried brain can summon at present. Hee hee.

It's been almost 30 degrees here today and Mother and I have just completed an eleven mile walk!! It was a toughie with lots of hills and gravel - I'm just waiting for my legs to fall off. LOL. This epic walk earned me a mega 21.5 points though.

Overall I've had a bloody good day and week. I've walked at the very least for two hours every day - mostly three plus - and have kept within points. I really hope the scales reflect my effort - but sod's law tells me they won't and I'll have to wait until the week after. So, no expectations for me - I've been doing this a year now and have learned that our bodies do not always act accordingly or do as they're told! Naughty little monkeys (well, naughty big ol' gorilla in my case - ha ha).

I'm now going to relax and put my feet up with a book and an ice cold vodka and diet coke - just the one, honest :-)

x x x Angela x x x

:-) 'Ello (-:

Hello, hello and thrice hello!

Well here I am, and no, I haven't slipped off the face of the earth, lol. I hope everyone reading this is feeling great and happy, like me today!

I lost half a pound at this week's WW weigh-in :-), which was a mega-bonus as I was expecting a gain (as mentioned in an earlier post).
I did have a few drinks on Tuesday night after WI, but I didn't go mental and I only went over by a couple of points, which I made up for the next day. The rest of the week I've eaten brilliantly and within points.
Also, I'm still walking loads everyday, so, I'm hoping for a good loss next week. Time will tell, eh!

I'm feeling really positive still, regardless of the familial stresses and strains - the kids are being good - it's just the other family members really, brother, mum, etc. But I don't really want to dwell on them at the moment as I'm feeling really happy and don't want to ruin the mood! Families eh, who'd have 'em? LOL. Nah, I love them all really.

On another happy note, I'll be going on holiday in five weeks and one day. We're going to Ibiza and it's the first proper holiday for me in twenty years. I really am looking forward to it - and I'm not even letting the thought of the flight get to me, haha, go me.

Right, I'm now off to make some pasta to go with my very low fat bolognaise.

Love and peace to everyone x x x Angela x x x

Hero to Jellyfish!

Evening.

I'm sitting here sun kissed and worn out. My eyes are red and everything. Not from crying but from sunny, salty sea air.

My mum and I went for an eight mile walk today in a place called Dunwich, then onto Walberswick/Southwold harbour and back again. We walked through reed beds, tracks and fields and back along a shingle beach. It was very tiring but great fun. I earned about 16 bonus points for this walk but I won't use them - and I've eaten healthily and within points. So, all in all a good day.
Oh yeah, while walking along the beach I saw a few jellyfish that were drying out in the sun. I thought they might die, so, I blatantly disregarded all danger to myself and my hands and picked them up and put them back in the sea. I'm a hero - lol.

I'm feeling all happy and back to my normal self again now, things are looking up and I feel very positive. :-)

Today's menu...

Breakfast - Sugar puffs and milk - 4.5 points

Lunch - Leftover stir-fry - 8 points

Dinner - Jacket potato and reduced fat chicken tikka deli filler. grapes and clementines - 9 points

Total 21.5/26 - don't feel like eating anything else :-)

Feeling Very Happy Today

Morning everyone.

After the post the other day it felt good just to get some weight off my shoulders - but I think it's gone to my belly, lol. I was doing really well all week with my food but really messed up yesterday. Chinese food, ice cream and general rubbish! This really isn't like me!!!

So, I've given myself a good talking to and know I've come so far that I don't want to have to do all of that again. As of today I'm on normal points (26) and I've planned out the next few days food and I WILL stick to this and get back on track. I'm expecting a bit of a gain on Tuesday WI but it's to be expected and I am very determined and motivated to keep going.

I feel like I should apologise for messing up again because it doesn't usually happen. How mad is that? I thinks it's guilt or something talking in my ear but I'm just going to be positive and stick with it 100%.

Today's menu...

Breakfast - Omlette with three eggs and teasp. of oil - 5.5 points

Lunch - 2 x wholemeal pittas with chicken and houmous, cucumber, lettuce and spring onions. Grapes, orange and apple - 9 points

Dinner - Turkey stir-fry (with turkey breast, olive oil, soy sauce, garlic, chillis, courgette, onions, red pepper, baby corn and egg noodles) - 8 points

Total 22.5/26 points left over for emergencies lol

Rollercoasting :-))-:

Hello,

Well, here I am, back again :-) I'm having a funny ol' week with highs and lows - like everyone does I suppose. I'm feeling pretty chipper, though.

Tuesday night I went to see an old and very good friend of mine - Alan - who was kind of a surrogate father figure to me while I was growing up. (I'm 34 and he's 50.) Him and his wife took me into their hearts and home when I literally had nowhere else to turn. I lived with them for three months after turning up on their doorstep at midnight, aged thirteen, having just run away from home (not alone but with my mum and brother too - a violent stepfather situation). The person who took my mother and bro' in had no room for me, in spite of wont! Anyway, it's been quite a long time since I saw him (eight years in fact) due to becoming very reclusive as I hit the height of my weight problems/depression/self consciousness etc.! However, the second we saw each other we fell into each others arms and the years just melted away. It was magic. We had a few drinks (not too many point watching Angel, lol) listenened to old familiar (familial - heehee) songs and before we knew it we'd been talking for five hours! T'was a real lift. :-) and I'm still smiling thinking about it.

On to a more serious note... I'm having a bit of emotional turmoil in the form of my dear brother, Paul, unfortunately. He's close to me in age and soul (20 months younger) and due to our upbringing we're the closest people in our family, always having been there for each other, seeing each other as often as possible, spending lots of time together and not being frigid (with feelings) like the rest of the dispersed 'clan'. In fact he's got my eldest son with him as I type and he's been the only real father figure to my sons, as their own father is periodically present but incapable.
I love my brother dearly but he's being a complete twerp at the moment. I think a bit of history is needed here. (God this is turning into an autobiography - sorry, I just need an outlet and I s'pose a blog is the best place)...
As my brother was being delivered to my tiny mother he got stuck upon his entry to the world and as a result suffered severe oxygen starvation which caused kidney failure and very mild cerebral palsy.
His kidneys held out until he was fifteen and he had to go on kidney dialysis, followed by a transplant at 18 and again at 24. He's now 32 and due to not looking after himself properly (as in food, medication, check-ups and much else) his health has deteriorated greatly over the past year.
A year ago the doctors told him there were signs of rejection and he needed a biopsy of the transplanted kidney - but having had one before he decided there's no way he'd lay still for 12 hours, as required, after the procedure and hasn't been seen by a doctor since. (He needs regular 3-monthly blood tests based on usual results). He's reached a point now where it's live or die to be honest and he won't listen to me or anyone. He's now run out of anti-rejection steroids and other required medications and is looking pretty bad. I fear he'll not survive much longer without medical intervention.
How do you make a thirty-two year old, very stubborn man - who's in denial - face up to this, when he's liable to bite your head off and stay away from you when told what to do??? No matter what I say he just giggles at me or changes the subject. He's in major denial.

Sorry to upset anyone but I just had to get it down and I've no more to say on the subject right now apart from I'm thinking of organising some kind of intervention.

On a lighter note I had a STS (stay the same) at my WW weigh in which was very kind considering last week's chocolate fest. So, happy happy.

I'm sure things will work out and sorry for the tone of this post.

Love to all from the still within points Angela x x

Oops, Forgot to Blog!

Oooh, I've been so busy the past couple of days that I forgot all about my blog! There's so much I want to write about on here but again, tonight, I haven't got the time. I will make a big effort to update in the morning 'cos I still want to write a bit about my poor bro' and about my night out on Tuesday and about how I'm doing food and exercise wise and just generally witter on a bit.

So, any followers who are still reading, hang on in there my loves, I'll be about with more news etc. tomorrow.

x x x

Today's menu...

B - Sugar puffs and milk

L - Roast veg cous cous and salad

D - Jacket potato and chilli (made with meat and loads of veggies)

22/26

Still Sticking At It :-)

Evening all,

Just a flying visit today as I'm very busy at the moment. I want to write a bit about my brother tomorrow night when I get back from seeing a mate. Things aren't going well for him health wise and it's kind of hurting the whole family... Anyway, can spend more time on this and other topics tomorrow. Bye for now x x x

I've had another good day food wise and drank my two litres of water. I'm on fast start so have eaten 22 points today. Lots of chicken today as I had two cooked breasts left over from yesterday. Waste not want not!

Today's menu was...

Breakfast - coco pops and milk - 4.5 points

Lunch - Chicken breast, wholemeal pittas, lettuce, spring onions, cucumber and low fat mayo, grapes - 9.5 points

Dinner - Chicken breast, baby potatoes, broccoli, peas and gravy - 8 points

Scary Cows and Achey Legs!

Well, do my legs ache or what? Today my mum and I drove to East Ruston in Norfolk and following our old, walkers manual, done a six or so mile trek round fields, marshes and country lanes.

I got stuck in some mud, which Mum found extremely amusing, bogged down in the marshes, threatened by a herd of massive, dark-looking cows and had to walk with a weird marching gait through long grass for miles. To top it all off, I got stung by loads of stinging nettles and all the while the sun was beating down. It was bloody brilliant! lol
It took us a while to find the start of the walk - two false starts in the wrong locations - but we got there in the end. I really enjoyed it. We're doing an eight-miler next Sunday, should be fun.

I've managed to stick to the fast start points today and drank my two litres of water, so, all in all a good successful day.

Todays Menu was...

Breakfast : Coco pops and milk = 4.5 points

Lunch: 2 x wholemeal pittas with ham, low fat mayo, lettuce, spring onions and cucumber. 100g of grapes and an apple = 8.5 points

Dinner: Jacket potato with cottage cheese, a chicken breast with salad and a dribble of olive oil = 9 points

Total = 22/26 points

All the Best Laid Plans...

After starting the week and my blog positively and raring to go, I've gone and ruined the last couple of days, big style! I'm not angry or upset with myself - just a little disappointed - as I know these things happen and in the words of the inimitable Baldrick, 'I have a cunning plan'. LOL

I have been eating my usual tasty, healthy meals but have supplemented them with about thirty, yes thirty! Point’s worth of chocs and ice-creams.
Big WHOOPS!
I don't usually eat chocolate or ice-cream so I'm wondering if it's an emotional thing, or stress related (as in teenager stress). I've had to deal with my bored sixteen-year-old acting like a bit of a plank, through boredom mostly and probably his own worry about exam results, which are due soon.

So, the plan is to get lots and lots of exercise in - this is walking for me as I can't afford a gym membership and don't own a bicycle or wii fit thingy. I started a couple of weeks ago by getting an hour of walking in each day and have progressed to a couple of hours about three times a week and an hour a day for the rest of the week. Usually this is a brisk walk into the city centre and back, round the UEA grounds (University of East Anglia) or a circuit or two round my local park - which is conveniently just across the road.

A recent shake up to the routine has been that me and my mum are now using an old book we found in my grandmother's possessions when she passed away. It's called Norfolk Pub Walks and we choose a walk every Sunday (they vary in length and flat ground/hilly ground) are anywhere from two - eight miles long and we try and work our way round using the dubious drawings in the book. Also, as the book was published in '93 we keep waiting for our map to suddenly lead us into a shopping mall or something. That would be funny. It's always great fun and myself and my mother are getting closer as a result. Last Sunday was a five mile trek in Horsey, around steep dunes, beach, conservation land and meadows. I really enjoyed it. Tomorrow is a six mile walk but I can't remember where, I'll post where and what it was like tomorrow when I get back.

Ooh, back to the plan... I also plan to write my menu and points on here every day, sparing no details, and am starting as of tomorrow (I will be on fast start too).

Till then, then x x x

Summer and social situations!

Morning! It's such a grey but hot and very humid day today (again) it makes it hard to get much done because the minute you start moving you get all sticky and shiny. Oh well, I'll just plaster on the deodorant and go for it anyway. lol.

I was having a think about summer and the inevitable invitations to drinks and outdoor picnic-cum-party get together style things! And was thinking how this kind of sabotages my weight loss efforts because once the drinks start to flow it's much easier to say yes to that cake/choc/burger/hotdog... (insert favorite naughty treat here). But on the other hand after a few years of being reclusive and depressed and not doing anything with anyone, I now relish the chance to be with people and smile and enjoy myself again. So, the dilemma (if you can call it that) is, do I go and meet friends for drinks and not drink? Do I avoid these situations? Or do I, er, can't think of another alternative! lol.
I think I'll just have to be better at controlling myself. I'll do the outings, get-togethers and nights out but will only have one or two drinks and steer clear of all temping foods. Yes, that sounds like a plan to me.
I have a couple of opportunities to test my resolve next week when I'm meeting an old friend for a catch up and few drinks at his house, so, hopefully that won't be too difficult as I can eat at home before I go - I just need to watch how much I'm drinking! Also, I'll be going out for the evening with my best friend from high school. Same as before I think I'll eat before I leave and stick to vodka and diet cokes.

I'm planning on being totally honest with myself and the blog readers and will post about how I get on with friends, drinking, food, exercise and points. I'm hoping to be really, really good and stick to my points perfectly for a whole week and get a good loss.

Wish me luck! lol x x x

Hot, humid but happy :-)

Well, here we go. This is my first post on my new blog and I'm wondering, as lots of people probably do, if I'm going to have enough witterings to pad this thing out and not sound too boring, haha.

I've been doing Weight Watchers for just over 51 weeks now and that is my main motivation for starting up the blog. Also, I think it will be a good place to get down any feelings that need venting - happy, sad, indifferent - you get the gist. And to record the memories and struggles I've faced in my life thus far. I'm planning on giving up smoking satan's evil weed (tobacco) soon, well the 19th of August to be precise. I have an appointment with a smoking clinic and aim to be rid of this horrible habit as soon as possible. My thinking is that as I'm already well into my weight watcher's journey, I'll not gain weight like lots of smokers do upon giving up.

Anyway, I've now lost 86.5lbs with weight watchers and that's a grand total of 6 stone and 2.5 lbs, so as you can probably imagine that's a hefty chunk of buttock and belly gone forever. It's not always been easy and I do struggle sometimes as I really enjoy having a drink and this can lead to overeating if I'm not careful. I'm going to make an effort to not drink unless I'm out socially or having friends over - I will relate my progress on here every week after weighing in on a Tuesday morning.

Here are a couple of pics of me one at the start of my WW journey and one from a couple of weeks ago (click on an image to view in full size - if you dare, lol):