Back On Track

Happy Birthday

2006-07-02T17:29:00.000+09:30

Well it's almost my birthday. Tomorrow I'll have to update my "About Me" bit and say I'm 45. I have been putting off having this birthday, as you do!!! Before I reached 40 I freaked about that and of course as soon as I reached it I realised that yes, it is just a number and I felt exactly the same. The next 4 birthdays were just fine, I just didn't care and I genuinely used to "forget" my age. I'd often say I was 44 when I was actually 42. I just didn't think it an issue until the last couple of months when I've made a big deal about still being 44- not yet 45. Totally silly but I really felt once I get to 45, I'll be closer to 50. I know that in fact it just doesn't matter but it has been bothering me, silly or not. I think it's because I'm so aware of how healthy I am right now and I just want to make the most of it. I've wasted so much of the last 20 years when I have been so unhealthy and haven't been able to really enjoy a lot of things. That's not to say being slim and healthy makes you happy. In fact when I was at my slimmest 7 years ago I actually had a breakdown and went through a terrible time in my life. I just mean that if everything else is OK it is so much better being happier with our size and appearance. I am very conscious that I've been given yet another chance at this "healthy" life stuff and I really want to make the most of it while my body is able and willing. I am very lucky that I don't have any issues with body pain or injuries to impede me. A good friend of mine that is 10 years older has always been so active but she has had lots of niggling things in the last year or so which have really impaired her. I know that won't necessarily happen to me and that there are lot's of people enjoying exercise in their 70's and 80's and sure hope that that can be me. I know I love food so much, I would find it so hard to keep my weight under control if I couldn't walk etc. Anyhow I'm 45 tomorrow and I'm happy, healthy and at goal weight so what more could I ask!!

I had a small party at home last night to mark the occasion - I thought I should do something seeing it was such a big thing in my head! DH couldn't work out what the big deal was but as long as I organised it, that was fine by him. I had a lovely night with about 20 friends and got some lovely pressies, just love pressies!! Of couse I prepared much too much food. I had asked people to bring drinks but said I would put on supper. I always over-cater but last night was crazy, heaps of food left over. You'ld thing everyone was on WW's or something! It's funny though, I am very consious of eating in front of other people especially when it's grazing type food. I had not eaten dinner and had been very good all day so it was fine for me to eat what I wanted last night, especially cos it was my party!! I was hungry and I did nibble a lot but I was aware if anyone was watching me I had to give them the explanation that it was my dinner! Does anyone else do this? Will I ever get over thinking that people are watching whatever goes in my mouth and thinking that I am risking putting it all back on again. I know it's very self obsessed and maybe when I do reach 50 I won't be quite so self conscious!!

I will be getting my presents from my boys tomorrow but DH is always happy for me to choose my present(s) from him myself. I am very hard to buy for especially when even the most blatant hints are just not heard in this house. I got a heart rate monitor which I am really enjoying to ensure I am keeping in the 'zone'. I know feeling stuffed should suffice but I like seeing the numbers on the screen - I'm a gadget girl. It's just a basic one so it wasn't too expensive. I also got my nails done which is a real biggie for me. I have always been a nail biter but for some reason when I lose weight I usually grow my nails as well! This time I had grown them and they were doing OK until a few months ago when they started breaking a lot. If I took care of them they would be fine but I'm very lazy with that type of thing. Anyhow I've now got acrylic nails with french tips and I love them, really love them. Easily pleased aren't I - shame I'm going to have to keep paying up to keep them looking like this.
I'll leave you with a picture of me blowing out my candles on my birthday cake - yes it's a chocolate mud cake, my favourite. It was yummy and I know cos I had a piece last night and another today!!! Check out the huge cheeks, it looks like I was actually trying to get enough puff to blow out 45 candles not just 9!! Also check out the nails - aren't they great......
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Undo the Button!

2006-06-26T19:52:00.000+09:30

Don't you hate that feeling when you sit down after tea and you are so full that you have to undo that button on your trousers!!! That used to happen all the time but until tonight I haven't been that full for a long time. Just goes to show you can't have nibbles while tea's cooking, twice as much dinner as you'd planned and then dessert. Nothing was particularly bad, just much too much and now I'm paying for it. Luckily I've been to curves and had a walk - the pedometer is reading nearly 14,000 so I should be OK.

I have added a section on my side bar for my weight watchers monthly weighin. Last week I was .4 below goal which makes 6 monthly weighs now back at goal so I am very pleased with that. Earlier in the month I was contemplating not bothering because this time I did it without the support of meetings but I realised that knowing I have to be accountable once a month is a big motivation for me.

I had to work very hard for a few days as I have had a few more indulgences than usual. The biggie was a fantastic day out we had with some friends on the long weekend. We live about 20 minutes from one of the main wine growing regions in SA called Mclaren Vale. It is not as well known as the Barossa but it is a beautiful area with many excellent wineries. Each year they have a festival called Sea and Vines where many of the wineries team up with selected restaurants and put on food, wine and entertainment. This was the first time DH & I had been and we were lucky enough to go with very suitable friends . The hubby is a wine buff and his wife doesn't drink so she was happy to drive. We had a really great day. The food was great, wine wonderful and really good entertainment. I had downloaded the menu options before we went and knew there were lots of yummy savoury things but my sweet tooth( I have a really big one!!) was totally tempted by "Billy Bunker and The Chocolate Daiquiri" The ingredients were listed as Frangelico Mousse, Whipped Cream, Grand Marnier Fudge, White Chocolate Shards, Toblerone Chunks, Scorched Almonds and Belgian Chocolate Sauce. Wow, I just knew I had to have that! Luckily it was a fairly small serve as it was very rich. Very yummy but I have to say the anticipation was better than the eating!! Anyhow we had a great day but boy did I pay for it with my tummy the next day. My system certainly isn't used to all that rich food any more.
Although I try and make sure I do exercise each day, I have my big walk I do most Sunday's around the cliffs near our house. It's a great walk with hills and some steps with fantastic scenery to keep me inspired. It usually takes about an hour or so depending on what extra bits I add in. I often do it on my own but if DH is not playing golf he comes with me. We have had a bit of an about turn lately with our walks as he now says I go too fast for him! His legs are much longer than mine so I have always struggled to keep up with him( that's a good thing - makes me work harder) but now I'm going faster than him. I add a few step climbs in and he usually waits for me at the top. On Sunday I got down to the rocks and before I climbed back up I noticed a group of 4 seals lolling in the water. I yelled like mad for DH so he could come down but my voice didn't carry up, so I had to climb to the top and cajole him to come down. It was fantastic sitting on the rocks just watching the seals but then of course we had to climb back up again!! I only had my phone camera so that has no zoom but I thought I would still post the picture. I think it's awesome when we are lucky enough to spot something like this so close to home. Have a great week.....

Bloglines

2006-06-06T21:22:00.000+09:30

Just a quick post to rave about bloglines. Briony had mentioned it ages ago to me but when I checked it out it looked too complicated so I didn't bother. After being amazed on Sunday how quickly Briony commented on my new entry after I had been dormant for so long, I thought I would investigate it. I now have it set up and I love it. Thanks Briony :-)

Now - How do I do this blog stuff again??

2006-06-04T16:32:00.000+09:30

If there is anyone out there still checking this blog, I'm really sorry for not updating for so long. I won't go into all the excuses but I do know I've been a slack friend. You all inspire me so much and I know if I notice someone not posting it always worries me that something is wrong.

Thanks to Briony and Margaret for their comments recently which were prods to get me started again. Thanks girls for missing me :-)

I have been maintaining which I am very happy with. I still have to monitor every day but as long as I keep up with the exercise and make up for any overindulgences I am doing OK so far. I fluctuate within a couple of kilo's but whenever I see 66 on the scales I try and havc a couple of extra good days to get it back down again. So, so far so good but I am so conscious that I could get complacent like lot's of other previous attempts. I know that's why the blogging is so important - no one understands what we go through like those of us in the same situation.

We had a great time in New Zealand, although it was very unsettling as always when we got home as we miss all the family so much. Maybe if we could win lotto and I knew we could go over every year it wouldn't be so hard to say goodbye!!!!

On a very exciting note, I did manage to get my Robbie Williams tickets to his Adelaide concert on Friday afternoon. Now that was one stressful few hours!!! It was so hard to get on to the Ticketek site and when I eventually did, it kept kicking me off. When I was eventually able to secure tickets, my hands were shaking so much, I had great difficulty keying everything in. As it took so long to get them, although I still got Gold they are not as close as I was hoping for. I'm toying with the idea of trying again on Wednesday when the the next lot go on sale to see if I can get better ones. Hope DH doesn't read this as I think I will be in deep S*** just for thinking about this.!!!!!!!

On a light note, I have found an unexpected inconvenience to being a size 12! My DH is the ironer in our household - I know I'm very lucky - but he does suffer the general male malaise of not really looking at stuff closely. Our youngest DS3 is 12 so of course lot's of his clothes are size 12 too. I just don't get that DH can't tell the difference between my stuff and DS3's just because they both have labels that say "12" in them!!!! My already overcrowded closet keeps getting boy clothes put away in it - gotta love him. I guess I should be glad he doesn't take too much notice of who's wearing what so I can sneak new things in that I, just have to have!!!

Have a great week.

Happy Easter

2006-04-12T10:18:00.000+09:30

OK, is this enough to put you off chocolate eggs!!! I did a google search looking for a yummy looking chocolate egg to start my post with and this cartoon was the first hit I got - had to go in instead!!
Thankyou so much for your lovely comments on my “skite” pictures. It’s really great having the on-line support to brag to.
Life got a bit tough in the last couple of weeks with DS1. Without going into the gory details, he has left home again and the rest of us are getting back to normal - whatever that is!!!

I do have exciting news though that I don’t think I’ve mentioned before. On Friday we (DH, DS2, DS3 and me) are going to NZ for Easter – yippee. DH’s Mum is having a big 70th birthday on Sunday, which is the main reason for the trip. We have a large family on DH’s side in Auckland whom we miss so much so we are really looking forward to spending time with them. My boys have 16 cousins over there and I know they will have a ball with them. Poor DH is only going for 5 days, he’s coming back for work on Wednesday. I offered that I would come back and he could stay and I really, really meant it ;-) but he said he needed to come back. I am staying for another 5 days and returning with DS2. He’s in Year 12 this year so he better come home and do some study – yeah right!!! DS3 who turned 12 last weekend gets to stay the full 2 weeks of the school holidays and come home by himself so he is wrapped. In my extra couple of days I am going to stay with my best friend over there and really catch up. It has been over 15 years since we left NZ but her and I are just as close and talk and e-mail lot’s. This will be the first time since I left that we will get to spend ‘quality’ time together so that will be fantastic – can’t wait.

I am a little concerned how I will manage for 10 days with my food choices when we are staying with other people but hopefully I won’t put on too much in that time. My scales have been creeping up just a little in the last week or so. I went to WW for my April weigh on Monday and was actually .2 over goal so I wasn’t impressed. I was determined to be ‘good’ for the 4 days before we leave, to get back to where I was a few weeks ago. DH was reassuring me that I looked just fine and he couldn’t ‘see ‘ the extra kilo or so but I know that if I don’t keep vigilant and get that little bit off, next month it will be another little bit in the wrong direction and as we all know it just keeps on going up!!! It’s been hard being really strict again, after being more relaxed. It does really P*** me off that I can’t even have 3 pieces of Pizza and a small piece of Mud Cake for DS3’s birthday without the scales going the wrong way. On Sunday DH & I had a really strenuous1 ½ hour walk up and down steps along the coast which I felt sure would make up for the indulgence but no it didn’t seem to. I know I’m obsessive with the scales but they really seem to be my key for helping me monitor how I’m going. Anyhow on a positive note, after 2 days of being super careful I’m back to 65 and with 2 more days up my sleeve I should be 64 something when we go.
Now I’ve got the hard part of deciding which of me new slim clothes I get to pack – oh what tough decisions!!!

Congratulations to all the Melbourne bloggers who did the walk/run last Sunday. You all did so well – way to go!!!! It was the Melbourne bloggers talking about their 1000 step trail that inspired me to improvise with our own Adelaide one on Sunday. I used to hate steps and hills but now enjoy the challenge if I’m in the right mood. Some days I can only manage a flat walk!!! I am getting a few odd thoughts lately!!! Well very odd for me – I’m wishing I could run!!!! I love walking but sometimes I wish I could just take off. All I can ever manage is a few hundred yards and then I’m stuffed.!!! I have read a bit about starting off slowly with walk/run intervals so maybe, just maybe I will try that when I come back. I have always said I would never be able to be a jogger but so many of you are doing it so there may be hope for me yet – we will see. It would be easier with a treadmill but I don’t fancy my chances of talking DH into that. I had a treadmill previously but sold it when I lost enthusiasm a couple of years ago. It was electric but didn’t have any programmes or anything. Do many of you use a treadmill? I love my bike but I can’t run on that!!!

Biggest Loser
I am going to miss this while I’m away but I will record it so I can catch up. I know we are coming to the end but exactly when that is I don’t know. I’m having a real love hate with the show. It often drives me crazy but I never miss it! I loved last week when they were at Camp Eden. When Adro was clinging to that tree and Bob was trying to get him to jump was really inspiring. I was getting really excited in my lounge room!! I’m not sure I like the other contestants coming back. It looks like it’s just going to sink to a real catfight, which is not what it’s all about.

My car broke down last night, which wasn’t nice. I am such a girl and do not like any thing going wrong with my car. I’ve had my little Excel since new 8 years ago and she has never given me a spot of bother. I got stuck in a traffic jam with a temperature dial off the scale. Luckily the other traffic let me through to get off the road and the RAA got me going again eventually. Turns out my fan is stuffed and will need replacing. He’s got it going now but I will have to get it fixed when I come back. DH has my car today and I have his. I can’t afford the time today if something goes wrong. I lost a couple of hours yesterday afternoon so I have to catch up today.

I know this has been a long post but as I won’t be around at all for a couple of weeks I wanted to give you something to read!!! If I don’t get a chance to get around to your blogs before I go I will catch up when I come back. Have a great Easter break, enjoy the Hot Cross Buns but before you pop one of those little yummy eggs in your mouth think of the cartoon above!!!!
Added Later
How could I forget to mention this bit?!!! On Sunday it was 12 months since I started this journey again and was "Back On Track" Here's to the next 12 months.......

2006-03-21T20:02:00.000+10:30

It’s been a while, I had been blogging most weekends but we went away for the long weekend and this past weekend was full of family drama so no time for the computer. I’ve finished my ‘jobs’ for tonight, my pedometer says 12,121 so I think I can finally fit in a couple of hours to do an update and catch up with some of you.
On the long weekend DH and I flew to Port Lincoln on the Eyre Peninsula (still in SA but a long way) to visit good friends of ours that are currently working over there. It was lovely to catch up with them and enjoy a kid free weekend. We were a bit unlucky with the weather as although Saturday was beautiful it poured all day Sunday and we couldn’t get out of the house. I was mortified that I only clocked up 2000 steps for the whole day!! Monday was fine although lot cooler. Our friends took us to some great deserted beaches where we were able to do some snorkelling which I really loved. At one small reef very close to their house we had bread in our fists and the fish were all around us – really awesome. Now for the best bit!!! They had a spare wetsuit which they use for their grandson that they told me to put on. It was too small but with much cajoling I got it done up and it sure did pull everything in very nicely. DH wasn’t impressed that I totally lost my boobs though!! LOL I knew I had a picture at home from my last venture in a wet suit last January at Sea World. At the time I had lost a few kilo’s and thought I looked OK but when I compared the 2 pics the difference was quite noticeable. I have done a poster for my fridge headed up “What a Difference a Year Makes” and both pictures on there. When my Mum saw it yesterday I think she was a little surprised that I was “showing off” again. That’s why I really love blogs; you guys understand how important it is to always be proud and aware of what we have achieved. That’s not to say Mum is not proud of me, she is but I know that know she thinks the jobs done and I don’t have to keep on about it. I know I do and that weekend really highlighted it for me. Staying with someone else for 3 days, I did certainly relax and ate and drank more than normal but I certainly didn’t go crazy and with the exception of the wet Sunday I did a lot of exercise. I felt like I had been in control and after all I had only eaten what my friends had eaten too. Tuesday morning brought a shock when I weighed in 1.5 kilo’s heavier than before I went. What the!!!!
I was very very good last week to get back down again but then I totally blew it on Sunday when I had a major stress with my DS1. Lot’s of wine and handful after handful of nibbles. I knew I was doing it but just couldn’t stop. That hasn’t happened to me for a long time and I think it probably highlighted that I only really got “Back On Track” last year when DS1 had moved out of home and a lot of stresses were removed. Well he’s back for while now so I have to learn to manage things better and not let the stress give me the excuse to lose control.
I love being slimmer and healthier again. I like feeling like I am in control of my body and I know that if I am healthier and happier I will deal with DS1 and the rest of my family better. I’ve kept to one glass of wine and no unplanned nibbles for the last 2 days so I’m doing OK.
I’ll leave you now with my skite piccies – thanks for indulging me :-)

PS. No news on the concert yet but at least I haven't heard that it's someone else at Adelaide Oval on the 9th December!

Please let it be Robbie!!!

2006-03-06T19:51:00.000+10:30

In the local Sunday paper yesterday there was a small article about the Adelaide Oval being booked for 9th December for a major concert. As yet the artist has not been announced but I am keeping everything crossed that it is Robbie Williams. I know he has said there will be a tour here later in the year but I didn't dare hope he would actually do an Adelaide gig. When my alarm went off this morning the radio station was speculating about who it could be. They had no idea but then received a number of calls from listeners suggesting that yes it could be Robbie. Oh dear, I don't think I would be the only one at the concert would I!!!! Anyone else heard any rumours in their cities?

It's been a fairly quiet week, everything fine on the food and exercise front so another few hundred grams was lost. Can't complain at that though!!

Katies sent out $20.00 gift vouchers which had to be used up by Sunday so I had to go shopping didn't I. I just love trying on clothes!!! I was very good though. I put the voucher towards a lovely midnight blue pair of cords so I only spent another $20.00. Very clever Katies. Now for the best bit. I saw a really nice skirt in Target, I was just walking past, I just had to see what bargains were on the clearance rail, marked down to $21.00 from $50.00, just had to try it on. Took a size 12 and a size 10 in and the 10 fitted me. Wouldn't have mattered what it was then, I had to have it just to look at the label now and then!!! I know I'm crazy with clothes but boy I love it. I've hung the skirt up with the tag on - when I get over the rush I may even take it back and look for the next bargain.

Have a great week and please keep those fingers crossed it is Robbie!!!

This weeks catch up

2006-02-26T21:04:00.000+10:30

Hi everyone
I don't know how you regular posters do it. Each day I think about things that I really want to blog about but never actually quite get around to it. In the same way I try and read all your blogs almost every day but am never disciplined enough to actually make a comment there and then meaning I have to reread a few days worth when I actually make the time to write comments. I have decided that the rest of you never sleep and just stay on your PC all night, oh and maybe you don't work and you don't watch TV either. I'm not a huge TV person but with the new shows that have started that has eaten in to what used to my PC nights.
I'm still going with Biggest Loser. After the crazy losses they had in week 1, I was pleased to see that last Fridays were more realistic. I don't know about anyone else but I found Wednesday night the most emotional so far when they were able to call their families. I was a real blubber puss especially with Wal calling his Dad and Wal is not one of my favourites!
Last weekend I went along to the Jacobs Creek golf tournament that Adelaide was hosting with DH and DS3. I am not into golf at all but for some reason they really wanted me to go with them. At first I was bored but after a while I really got into it. It was great exercise following the players around and I never realised there were so many cute golfers out there - LOL We were out all day and then out again at night so I logged up nearly 25000 steps without any actual dedicated exercise.
I think that helped me get over the line this week as I have now got under the morning weight goal I set myself of 65 kilo's. I weighed 64.8 on Friday - yippee. I am still aiming to get to 63 but I don't really care if it takes months or if I don't actually get to that. I think that by saying, I'm not actually finished it may help me not to relax too much and lose focus, cos I sure know what happens when I do that. Although when I've lost weight before I have got lower than this I think that I look healthy at this weight and I really just want to try and tone up some more. I have started to try and do a new exercise I saw on TBL where you lie flat holding on to something heavy to stabilise you and then lift your legs up. I'm sure lots of you know what this is actually called but I had never done it before and boy can I feel it in my tummy, Gotta to do some good - I sure hope.
It's funny because even though technically I'm there I still don't think I am. When I was walking past the health food shop the other day I saw a promotion for some new slimming thing and automatically went to start checking it out before I pulled myself up and thought, I don't need this, I am slim. Weird, weird,weird. In the same vein I got a message on the answering machine the other day from a friend asking me if we wanted to go to a "Food and Wine festival" that was being held today. My first thought was OMG, food and wine, I can't go to that. I'm crazy I know but I am so scared of undoing all my hard work and falling off the wagon again like I have so many times before that I try so hard to avoid temptation. I feel like an alcoholic avoiding the bottle shop!!! We went and had a great afternoon. I ate, I drank both in sensible amounts and I don't think I'm fat again yet!!! :-)

This pic was taken today on my new toy. I have never been interested in a mobile with a camera as most of them seemed such poor quality but last week I discovered a new handset that had a 2 megapixel camera built in. It's not as good quality as my proper camera but at least I can take pictures now when I don't have my camera with me. It's called a Sony Ericsson K750i for those that may be interested. It's actually been around for at least 6 months but I hadn't seen it before. My handset was out of contract so I just had to get a new one!!! I'll leave you with a rose from my garden that I took yesterday. Hope you like it. Have a great week and I hope you all achieve the goals you have set yourselves.

Oh, I forgot this important tidbit. I had my February WW weigh last week and I was .9 below goal. Very happy little camper. Special thanks must go those yummy golfers that I just had to keep following around last Saturday, they really helped!!!

Biggest Loser

2006-02-17T12:16:00.000+10:30

Well I don’t know about you guys but I am getting totally hooked on this show and boy it’s frustrating. I am not generally into reality TV. I was an avid watcher of the first series of Big Brother, actually I was really a BB obsessive but after one series I was very over it. I only watched the American version of Biggest Loser for one episode and I thought it crazy and never watched it again but as this one was home grown I thought I would give it a go. I didn’t get as emotional as some of you have mentioned during the first episode. I guess because they all knew exactly what they had signed up for it made me a little sceptical of their shock/ horror etc. Not that I can’t empathise, anyone with weight issues can and I know part of me was oh so grateful that I had never as large as some of those contestants. I am really interested to see what they eat and get a lot more info on their exercise routines. Any tips and new ideas are always welcome but so far we are not seeing much actual factual stuff which is a shame. I did find it really off when 2 of the contestants had to eat the hamburger and chocolate cake on Wednesday. It really brought it home to me that this is primarily a TV show, as if they were really concerned about them losing weight why have that type of thing in their challenges. My frustration is with all the repeating they are doing within each episode. Do Channel 10 really think we are going to forget what happened at the end of each segment so we have to have it rehashed 3 minutes later. I sure hope they do have the first weigh in tonight, the promo’s have been so deceiving with it appearing like there was going to be weigh in’s for the last 2 nights. Having never watched the USA eliminations etc I have no idea what will happen with that side so I will watch with interest next Monday. What I don’t get is how they will (hopefully) lose all this weight within 10 weeks. All the diet literature tells us that we should be aiming for ½ to 1 kilo per week so I don’t know how these people are going to lose tens of kilos in such a short time. It is going to be very interesting and hopefully there will be some very successful people on the show. What will be great is if it does have the effect of inspiring some people to try and lose weight and become healthier. I know I have been trying to ride my exercise bike when I am watching so that’s a big plus!
I got a bargain in the op shop today. I was looking for winter trousers and found a nice pair that looked in very good condition. I was surprised to see they had a $7.50 tag on them which I though a bit on the high side until I saw they still had their original $49.95 store tag on them. Tried them on and aside from being miles too long they were perfect – very happy camper was I.
I’m supposed to be doing housework so I better post this and make a very strong effort not to get stuck here reading blogs. Have a great weekend.

Body Image

2006-02-12T16:45:00.000+10:30

Hi everyone and thanks for your comments regarding me getting back to my WW's goal weight. Now I just have to get rid of another couple of kilo's but seeing as this weeks loss was a "huge" 100 grams I think it may take me a while to actually get there. That leads me to my body image bit. As women ( I don't think any men read my blog) we are so hard on ourselves. I know I am and I do read on other blogs how so often we are dissatisfied with bits of our bodies. Now that I'm almost where I want to be I do feel heaps better and generally think I look pretty OK. That of course is when one stands face on to the mirror or even sideways when I am conscious of standing straight and holding myself in. My body has toned up but there are still bits I would like to improve. Well one really big bit in particular which is my stomach. In clothes it passable but I know it is flabby and no where near washboard flat. Realistically, I know that at 44, 3 kids later and many years of yo yo diets it is not going to improve much more no matter how much more weight I lost. Surgery is the only thing that probably would help it and that is one avenue I am not going down. If money was no object and I didn't have adverse reactions to General anesthetic well that might be different!!!! LOL . have recently become so much more conscious of looking at other slim women's tummies!!! This started after a doctors appointment last week with my really skinny female GP who has been really supportive of my weight loss efforts. She commented how good I looked in my skimpy Summer clothes and instead of just accepting the compliment gracefully ( do we ever?) I of course had to point out the rolls I still have around my middle. She laughed and said that she too had them and in fact most "real' women have them and then she showed me that she actually did. I had never ever noticed, I had always just looked at her and saw this slim woman - the whole woman! I was really shocked but rather encouraged that maybe it wasn't just me that had the rolly bits. So of course now I have turned into quite the voyeur looking at other slim women and checking out whether they too have wobbly bits around their middles and surprise surprise lots of them do. It's just that generally when we look at other women unless you're doing "research" like I am we generally look at the whole picture and don't hone in on one bit. I have to learn to accept compliments gracefully and realise that we are real women and not in fact Terri Hatcher. I mention her because I was stunned this week when I watched Desperate Housewives at how stick thin her arms were, never mind there's not much else either. I thought my arms were toning up nicely until I saw hers!! This time last year I just thought she was slim and gorgeous but now I'm really analyzing her and Nicolette Sheridan. I hate to think what they must have to do to get their bodies that skinny and boy it's role models like them that give us so many unrealistic expectations.
For a fantastic "real" role model check out Sue and her incredible effort today. Now that's one awesome woman!!!!!

I'm free again

2006-02-01T20:54:00.000+10:30

No, I haven't divorced DH and the boys - I am "free" at WW's again. Yes, I've made it back to my WW goal weight so I am pretty stoked about that. As I've said before, this time around I haven't been going to meetings and all my weights I post on my blog are my morning naked ones!!! :-) I knew that 65 on my scales should see me safely under my 68 kilo WW goal weight. I went to my first meeting in 12 months just before Xmas and was just over goal. I weighed on Monday for my January weigh and I was 67.8 so I am now back to monthly free weighs. In September 2004 they weighed me at 92.2 kilo's so on their scales I have now lost 23.9. Just another couple of kilo's so I can have a bit of leeway. I hate stressing each month whether I'll make it or not and previously if I have been over I didn't go and then a few months later I would be kilo's over. GRRRR!!!

I don't know how I'll go with my home weigh this week as we had a friends anniversary dinner last night - a Chinese banquet which was very hard to resist. I said no to all the deep fried stuff but yes to everything else. It was yummy but I know I have to be extra good for the next couple of days to make up.

Last Saturday night DH & I went to the movies to see Brokeback Mountain. We used the Gold Class tickets I had bought him for his birthday last May!! I kept putting it off as I knew we would want to order the food and drinks that they serve in Gold Class. We had never been before and we both really enjoyed it although it was difficult to see what we were eating and I missed 2 x 5 minutes of the movie when the food came out. I loved the movie, anything that makes me cry, is a good movie for me. DH wasn't so impressed with the movie but he liked the food - what a surprise!!

Todays daily inspiration is "Look at things not just as they are but as they can be."
I don't think this time last year I really believed that I could get back to goal but I have and so can anyone. Visualise, plan and work your butt off and it can happen. Oh and clothes shopping for reward and motivation along the way sure helps too!!!!

Have a great week!!

Don't take the box with you

2006-01-26T17:02:00.000+10:30

I'm sure I'm not the only one that does this but I would have thought I had realised the dangers and would stop testing myself this way. My worst time of day - food wise has always been late afternoon, as with so many of us out there. I was doing pretty well and recognising this, always make sure I have a planned afternoon snack. Usually a cup of coffee and a couple of Paradise Light biccies. Then when I'm preparing tea I have a glass of wine and a few almonds or cashew nuts. I have actually amazed myself that I can take a "few" put the lid on and walk away. That's pretty major for a picker like me. Sometimes instead of the nuts I have a small bowl of rice or corn crackers instead. There are so many yummy varieties out there but my absolute favourite is the Apero, Honey & Dijon Mustard. Earlier in the week instead of filling my usual little bowl I grabbed the new box, a glass of wine and my book and settled down for a good read and a small snack. Haha - 20 minutes later and the whole box was gone- DH & DS3 did take a few but it was me that had the majority of them. Every time I would seal the box I left it sitting beside me so of course I just kept eating. Oh and did I mention that before I took the box I also had TWO of my normal portions of nuts!!! I am glad that my binges are on "low fat" treats (nuts are good fat so that must put them in the low fat category!) but boy it shows me how easily I could break out. I have been frustrated that I am see sawing between 65 and 66 kilo's and just can't shift that last couple to get down to 63 but it's easy to see now that I am being honest that all those little extra's do add up. If I am serious about getting there I know I have to address this and really make an effort to stop nibbling. This week I went back to my lowest of 65.6 but really this means I have only lost 0.3 in total this month and I've lost that 4 times!!! February is going to see me crack this - watch me - kick me if I don't please! LOL

We did survive the heat, unlike some of the poor families that were without power for 24 hours, that would be awful. We had a fantastic day at the beach last Saturday. It was so hot but we had a ball and the water was just beautiful. When DS2 was younger he & I used to snorkel a lot but now he's 17 he doesn't want to come to the beach anymore. DS3 has snorkeled a lot off the beach but Saturday was the first time he and I went to the end of the jetty and snorkeled. It was awesome and we both loved it - one of those special memories - why can't they stay 11 for ever???!!! Poor DH though, near the end of the day we were having a walk along the beach when DS3 challenged him to a race. DS3 won the first but DH wanted another shot - not a good move!! He really pushed, he really wanted to win but his hamstring didn't co-operate and went on him. He won't be doing that again. It's still playing up 5 days later.

I hope you are all enjoying your Australia Day holiday. We are hot here again with 39 but it will be cooler tomorrow. I had promised DS3 that we would have fish and chips on the beach today. We used to do that a lot but of course deep fried fish and chips is not something I like on the menu these days. Anyhow I made the decision that we could all have them and I would have to be an exercise demon to make up for it. I have ridden my bike 2 x 45 minutes, done 1 hour of beach walking and 40 mins walk after tea. This has meant a total today of over 23,000 steps - wow. It's amazing really how some days the exercise is easy, today was one of those days and so I don't feel as guilty about the fish and chips which really weren't worth it anyhow!!! DS3 enjoyed it though and that's what it was for.

Now it's off to bed and hopefully I won't suffer tomorrow from the exercise today.

I'm melting

2006-01-20T21:42:00.000+10:30

For those of you that don't take much notice of the weather forecast, it's hot in Adelaide. Very, very hot and it's going to get worse. So far this Summer I was doing just fine with lot's of beautiful days in the low 30's. I was actually feeling very smug and thinking that as I was so much slimmer it was so easy too cope with the heat. I was wrong!!! Now we have had a few days of very hot, around 40 I have had enough. I am sitting on my lovely leather computer chair and my legs are really sticking to it. Maybe it's not real leather???? Tonight is definitely the worst it's been. We are lucky in Adelaide that we mainly have a dry heat which I much prefer to the more humid cities. I am not moaning too much as I know I am lucky that we do have air con albeit evaporative cooling that doesn't cope too well when it gets muggy like today. Goodness knows how we will sleep tonight. It's forecast for 42 tomorrow and we are probably going to give the beach a go - surely it has to be cool in the water. I'll let you know.

On the weight front I was surprised to see the scales go up again this week - just a little bit but I have been good. I think my body is quite happy around this weight so I am going to have to really push to lose the last couple of kilo's. I will join the WWA 'Africa' challenge - maybe this will help.

Have a great weekend. Think of us at a birthday party tomorrow night at a house with no airconditioning!!!!

Happy New Year

2006-01-14T16:30:00.001+10:30

Happy New Year to everyone – if there is anyone still checking my blog after I went AWOL!!!
Reading my last post it looks like I went to the mall to do my Xmas shopping and never came back. In reality that mad hecticness( is that a word) of pre Xmas organisation just took over everything so I didn’t get a chance to do a wrap up like lots of the more organised bloggers did. Over the holiday time I spent very little time on the computer and am now only just getting back to normal life – whatever that is!!!
I hope you all had a great holiday season and wish everyone the best of luck with their goals for 2006.
We didn’t go away over Xmas but spent 2 weeks at home having much needed R & R. We work in our own small business so this is the only time DH & I get to have holidays together when the business is closed. The weather was kind so he got his wish for lots of golf and I got my trips to the beach. Although we only live minutes from our local beach it is very rocky so when we want to swim we go this one which is about 15 minutes away. It’s really beautiful don’t you think? This is DH & DS3 playing beach cricket.

The real highlight for me was a morning boat trip that DH & I went on together. Although we have lived here for 15 years we had never been out on the water along the coast. We went out on a Catamaran that conducts dolphin cruises along the coast. We had a fantastic 4 hours in beautiful conditions. The boat sails past the area where we live so that was really great but of course the best part was the awesome dolphins close up. We were the only locals on the trip, everyone else was from overseas!

In the background of this shot below you can see smoke in the sky that was from a grass fire that was burning as we were going past. It looked like it was pretty bad but as the vegetation was low there was nowhere for the fire to go thank goodness. Within 30 minutes the firemen had it out.

In this next picture you can see Hallett Cove (where we live) in the background. This area around the cliffs is a conservation park and there are some great walks that we regularly do. The council have built boardwalks and steps up and down the ravines which are really challenging.

Usually I tend to walk to the beach and back which is not too bad but today DH & I did my normal 1 hour walk and then continued up and down the ravines for another hour. We were knackered and boy can I feel it in my legs this afternoon. For the first time ever we saw a brown snake on the path – that freaked me out as you can imagine. We are going to friends for tea tonight so we had to earn lots of bonus points!!!
I actually have been pleased with how I did weight wise over the holidays. My aim was to reach goal by Xmas but that didn’t happen –close but not quite there!! I did relax over the break but didn’t go totally crazy. I did discover that a couple of ‘bad’ days would put the weight up but then a couple of ‘good’ days would drop me back again. I can sure see how I get out of control and how easy it would be to revert to bad habits but that was why I started this blog – to hold me accountable – and hopefully help others on their journey. DH has now decided he would also like to shed 10 kilo’s so it will be good to do it together. I am nearly at my goal and then I would like to try and lose a couple more to give me some leeway so I will keep on trying.

I’m looking forward to continuing this year with my blog friends. I certainly won’t be a daily poster but I sure will try and update at least weekly. Good Luck everyone and have a fantastic year.

Added 16/1/06 - I eventually got the photo's loaded after heaps of attempts. The only way they would work was by selecting no layout option. I will certainly look for a better alternative as that certainly wasted so much time - I could have been reading other blogs instead!!! Anyhow hope you enjoy. :-)

I'm still here

2005-12-12T22:27:00.000+10:30

I can't believe how fast the days are going and I haven't updated or read blogs for a few days. Thought I 'd better do a quick post tonight and hopefully catch up with everyone tomorrow. I had a small loss of 400gm last week which I was pleased with. I have had a Xmas dinner and a lunch and was able to make sensible choices as well as keep the exercise up. Now this weekend might be different as we have 2 "functions" that I am really looking forward to. At least I have a weigh in before that. I have finally started Xmas shopping and have the day off tomorrow to try and get it finished. I will be at the mall when they open and don't want to leave until I've crossed everything on my list. Think of all those steps on the pedometer!!! Yesterday was really hot and we went to the beach for a couple of hours. I love the beach, really love the beach and am so hoping we get nice weather for the holidays so I can spend lots of time there. My DH loves his golf and is not so keen on the beach but we've done the deal that he can play as much morning golf as he wants as long as he comes to the beach with me in the afternoon. Now all I can hope is that the sun stays out and we get to go.

I have had a few requests for a picture of the lights so I did try and get one the other night. Very hard to keep the camera still. In the picture you can't see the little Xmas trees on the grass as the bulbs in them aren't very bright. It's certainly not as fancy as those you see in the paper but we are enjoyng it and hopefully will add to it when the sales start.

I added this picture 2 of DH & DS3 with the offending ladder. Note to self - Next time do not let son go on red tile roof wearing cricket whites, they now have a lovely red mark on the bum!!!!

A bit of effort can be worthwhile

2005-12-05T20:49:00.000+10:30

Well the weekends over and it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas. I wasn't feeling very Xmas'y this year and was not very enthusiastic about putting up the decorations. Now that my youngest is beyond the Santa belief stage and with our other family issues, I was finding it hard to drag up much enthusiasm. It all seemed too hard and I was hoping that DS3 would be happy if we didn't go to too much trouble. Luckily for us he kept asking and insisted we put everything up both outside and inside. As it all turned out we had a busy weekend with all the decorating but our efforts have produced a very good result and we now have a lovely front garden complete with lots of flashing lights, candy canes, Xmas Trees and of course Santa Claus. DS3 had a wonderful time being the only one brave enough to get on the roof and attach the lights to our 3 gables. Then of course he had to get me to the shops yesterday to buy a few more lights. If he had his way we would have bought most of the display but luckily he was quite happy with our couple of purchases and the promise of more if there are any good specials. He desperately wants to get back on that roof!!! Now we won't win any prizes for the best decorated house, but as the only one with outside lights in our street we are doing our bit to brighten up the neighborhood and bring a little cheer.

There is a weight loss moral to this little Xmas story as thinking back to my reluctance that it all seemed to hard, I could compare it to starting a diet or fitness programme. It can seem so difficult and so much effort we often don't even begin let alone continue but if we do boy are the results worth it. My sons face and our front garden are testament to that so if you are thinking about starting again, go on, the results really can be worth it.

There's also a male tale to this Xmas story, well it could also be a female tale too!!! We have one of those big ladders that folds in many positions. Usually it is doubled over and although heavy I can manage to move it around. On Saturday it was fully extended to about 10 feet for the first time. DH & DS3 were inside untangling lights and I thought I would be helpful and move it to the other end of the house where it would be needed. I had no idea how top heavy it was in that position and within 2 paces I was unable to support it and the ladder came back at me leaving my head partially through 2 rungs and the ladder weight on my shoulders. I was very stuck and in great danger of toppling backwards and God knows what else! I was trying so hard not to fall, I could only manage to call out softly "Please help me" a couple of times. Luckily DH heard me and came to investigate. Did he rush to my aid??? Not likely - he just stood there and asked what was I doing, how had I done it, why had I done it??? All these questions and I was very stuck and very scared. Then he rescued me and of course lectured me. I won't do that again!!! Next day I couln't work out why I felt like my shoulders were badly sunburnt when I had had a T-shirt on. Then I discovered they were nicely bruised and boy today they are a lovely colour! Last time I touch that ladder and hopefully last time DH won't actually rescue ne first B4 asking for all the explanations!!!

Have a great week everyone.

Onward & Downward - Fingers crossed

2005-12-01T10:57:00.000+10:30

Well I'm happy to report that the scales were very kind today with a loss of 0.9. I will have to go away more often!!! I wish. Let's hope that the plateau has broken and it's onward and downward from here. I so wanted to be at goal ( my first one of 65) by Xmas but I would have settled for New Year. If the last month is anything to go on, I don't think that's going to happen. So be it, message to self - "You will not stop until you get to where you are happy and comfortable"
I got a great compliment yesterday from an ex work colleague who exclaimed " Wow you look good - trim, taut and terrific" It was only later that I realised that the last time I had seen him was at a wedding in 1999 when I was at my lowest weight, low 60's. Interesting then, that he had no idea what had gone on in between and still was able to be so complimentary. Whatever, I'll take it - don't we love the ego boosts, they sure make it worthwhile and help me stay focused and "Back On Track"
Have a great day :-)

I've dried out

2005-11-30T13:40:00.000+10:30

Well we're back and we had a great time. As all you Sydney siders know the weather last weekend was rather shocking but because our main aim was a family catchup it didn't really matter. I love taking photographs so luckily I had Saturday afternoon that was absolutely beautiful for a few hours and that got the picture taking out of the way. My SIL has a fantastic view from her apartment so that was pretty awesome.

She took me on a ferry into the city on Saturday afternoon and we had a good wander around for a few hours. I was surprised how warm it felt for 26 degrees - the humidity makes a huge difference. It's certainly a beautiful city but I don't think I would enjoy the hecticness(is that a word) of the lifestyle.
It's funny cos even though I had given myself permission to relax food wise it was hard to actually do it. We had an early tea B4 our flight on Friday night and I took a box of Snakata's to nibble on the plane with my wine. Saturday morning there were 2 cooked breakfasts to decline as my SIL cooked one lot earlier on and another mid morning when the rest of the family arrived. Can't say DH didn't enjoy both though - LOL!!! Cathy-SIL, my niece and I had lunch in a little cafe in the Rocks area and although my choice was reasonable it was certainly strange not being really sure of the points I was eating. The side of chips was requested in a separate bowl so my niece could have them and I wouldn't have to to touch them! Paranoid aren't I. Later in the day I was desperate for an icecream to cool me down but there were no familiar places around. I had never had Gelato before and thought it was healthy until I saw Fresh Cream as the main ingredient. I gave that a miss. Our last choice was the Royal Copenhagen Ice Cream Co in the ferry terminal. I was amazed as all these type of places usually have their low fat versions but not this one. Now the old me would have had the biggest one you could get with the richest flavours but the new me had a kiddy cone in what I hoped was not too sinful a flavour!!! The crazy thing is when I used to have the huge ones I'd always feel sick b4 I finished them and thought I'd never do that again but I always did. The kiddy size was so much more enjoyable.
The real relax bit came later after the drinking started - LOL. A couple of bundies and my will power just goes, that's why I generally avoid the stuff and of course the Bailey's I had later didn't help matters. We had a great night at a lovely Italian restaurant, oh and the Italian waiter was lovely too - wink!!! When we got back to SIL's there was a huge storm going on so I spent ages on the balcony trying to get the perfect lightning shot - didn't happen but I guess that helped me not drink as much. Anyhow here's the best one I got out of about 100!!!

I was really conscious on the Sunday that now I had broken out I could just keep going and while in reality I wasn't that bad I nibbled on things I would normally avoid. Later in the day when we were at a NZ Icecream shop that had the 99% stuff I almost caved in and ordered the "real" stuff again but I had a lightbulb moment and reeled myself in thank goodness. It really highlights to me why I am so careful most of the time. Some may think I'm too strict but is really is like any addiction, expose yourself to too much temptation and it's very easy to give in.
The scales showed a little gain but that has gone again now and I'm back to the round 20 down. Official weigh tomorrow so hopefully that will be sustained. I'm so pleased I took the pressure off and reduced my step target, It's certainly been one less thing to stress about and I'm back to enjoying my exercise again.
DH & I are both feeling very flat which always happens after we spend time with his family. We always enjoy it so much and it just highlights what we miss out on by living away from everyone.
Hope everyone is having a great week. Looking forward to catching up with some blogs tonight.

I've piked!!

2005-11-24T21:03:00.000+10:30

Firstly thanks so much for the lovely comments some of you have left me. It's very nice that as a new blogger you have still taken the time to pass on your support - it is very appreciated and I hope that over time I will be able to reciprocate. Not that I want anyone else to be miserable of course!!!

Now a strange thing has happened since I started blogging. Last week I stayed the same weight and this week I have put on 500gm. I know it's not much but it's really odd that in the 32 weeks I have been "Back On Track" this is the first time I have had a plateau and then a gain. Not impressed but on the bright side I'm glad it didn't happen in the first couple of months as the habits weren't formed yet and I might have thrown the towel in. I haven't done anything wrong food wise, oh yeah, you're probably saying, but I really haven't. The only thing different is I've increased the exercise for the WWA Xmas challenge. It's funny because over the last few months I have been really enjoying my exercise and pushing myself a lot. What I have discovered over the last 2 weeks is by setting myself the target of 15,500 I was finding it very difficult to reach that on work days. I had to go the gym, have a long walk and ride the exercycle which was starting to wear rather thin. When's a girl going to relax?????!!! Yesterday I decided that this was crazy. I felt under so much pressure and who was putting the pressure on - ME! Probably if I was seeing great results on the scales I would have persevered but as I haven't, I have thrown in the towel and downgraded my daily step target to 10,000. Oh the relief, now I can exercise because I want to not cos I have to! I know it all sounds a bit silly but I don't like giving up. We are often our own worst enemies aren't we.

As I said we are going to Sydney this weekend and I am going to relax with my eating. With staying with family a lot of it is out of my control but I am going to try not to be too paranoid. For 32 weeks I have been positively saintly, a right little goody too shoes in fact!!! Maybe my body needs a shakeup so we will shake it up. OOh maybe I'll have a Bailey's or a Tia Maria or a few Bundies. I'm excited now. Only joking, I will relax but hopefully I won't go too crazy. It's only 2 days, I can't do that much damage can I? LOL

Next Monday it will be back to normal again. I am always so scared to relax because that's when I find it so difficult to be careful again. This time will be different cos I've got my new blog friends watching!!!

Have a great weekend everyone. I'll see you next week.

Sorry, this one's sad.

2005-11-22T21:33:00.000+10:30

It's been an emotional couple of days in our household and I was trying to hold off posting until I felt in a better frame of mind. As I have been reading other blogs in the last couple of months I was often struck as to how honest people were and thought it very courageous that they were able to share with such openness and candor. I decided that this was my "healthy lifestyle" blog and I would keep it very focused on that. While I was walking tonight I thought it was probably a bit silly that I wasn't posting. If I am really doing this blog to aid me to keep "Back On Track" as well as hopefully help other bloggers if I am not honest as to where I am at, then it's not really serving it's purpose. That was a bit of rambling there but I am just trying to get this right in my head. Last week when I was very excited that I had started my blog it was very hard for me to keep my mouth shut and not tell all and sundry what I was doing. I decided that if I was aware lots of people I knew were reading then I would be a lot more inhibited in what I write. My DH is aware ( otherwise he would be getting worried as to what on earth I am doing rushing off to the PC whenever I can!!) and I also told my best friend who lives in NZ as there is nothing I keep from her. Is this how most of you have handled this?
Ten days ago one of my DS1's best friends died in a carcrash and it has been very difficult coming to terms with his loss and our sorrow for his Mum who only had him. My DH has been very affected as the young man in question got on really well with us and looked up to DH as a father figure. The funeral was yesterday and of course it was extremely traumatic. He was Indian and although the majority of the service was a traditional Catholic funeral there was also a Hindu component which was very different to what we were expecting. Our sorrow is compounded by the difficult relationship we have with our DS1. He is 19 and has not lived at home for most of this year. This was our choice as our family was so broken down it was just not possible for him to continue to live here. That's as deep as I want to go into that one at the moment. The wonderful young man who died had a wonderful relationship with his Mother. Their love & respect for each other was so evident. In that she was very lucky but as to how she will now cope - we can only pray for her and try & offer support if we can. In the last week our DS1 has really turned to us and I was hopeful this could be a real turnaround. Unfortunately yesterday, which was probably one of the most difficult things he has ever faced, we had suddenly become the enemy again which was very, very hard for us. I know we all want the best for our children but it sometimes so very hard to keep putting ourselves out there to be hurt again. I wanted to call him today to see how he is going but I felt it better to hang back for a day or so till both of our emotions calm down. It was so difficult to see the other young men from his school year who look so "normal and adjusted with normal lives" while he is still struggling to find himself. We just want our son back.

I'm sorry to be so maudlin but that is where I am at today. I know that tomorrow will be a little better and in a few days things will be back to our kind of normal. On a positive the stress hasn't made me overeat so that's something. I am finding the pressure to get my 15500 steps a day for the Winter challenge getting a bit much but I will persevere through this 3rd week and then possibly reassess. I love my exercise but I don't want to be doing the extra when I just haven't got the time. I wanted to get on the PC tonight but I knew I couldn't come & sit down until I had reached target so I wouldn't feel too guilty. The things we put ourselves through!!

I have been left some lovely messages which I really appreciate. I am trying to get to everyone's blogs but it's taking me a while as I just can't stop at one post. I was up until 1.00am on Sunday reading and by then I think I was too tired to leave many comments. I just don't know how some of you find time to write most days and leave so many comments on others as well. Do you sleep - LOL??

We have got something to look forward to this weekend as DH & I are going to Sydney. It was organised just a few weeks ago - my first reaction was "Oh no I won't be at goal yet" - Get a life Lesley!!!!My DH's family are all from Auckland but his sister & her husband are currently on contract in Sydney. His 2 brothers are flying in with their wives as well so we will be able to do the family thing which is a rarity for all of us to be together. It will be short but it should be fun and hopefully not too damaging diet wise!!!

Hope I didn't make anyone else miserable. I will try & post again B4 I go away.

Take Care - hug your children.

xxxxx

That's heavy!!!

2005-11-19T21:43:00.000+10:30

A funny thing happenned this afternoon in the carpark at Bunnings. Well this will only be funny to those fighting the weight loss battle. DH & I had to get some bits and pieces including some bags of sand. When we got back to the car, while DH was lifting the first one into the boot I picked up the next one to hand to him. I struggled to lift it a few inches before exclaiming how heavy 20 kilo's was. As I said it we both realised that was exactly what I have just lost over the last 8 months and I was quite blown away. I know people often say think of a bag of potatoes etc but I don't make a habit of picking up 4 bags of potatoes in the grocery store - LOL. That was probably the first time I had handled 20 kilo's in that form and boy it was a great motivator to envisage carrying that around with me. We had a lovely walk in the early evening and I was bounding up the hills ( well as much as I can ever bound anywhere) very pleased with myself that it was 20 kilo's less to carry up.
We had one of our favourite dinners tonight that we have been having for a few years. Everyone likes it which is good in our house. I will post it here for anyone that may like to try it. It's actually from WW Simply The Best 2004.

Satay pork and noodle stir-fry
Serves 6 for 5 points per serve or 4 for 7.5 points per serve

440 grams Udon noodles
400 grams prok fillet, thinly sliced
2 tsp minced garlic
2 medium onions, thinly sliced
3/4 cup vegetable stock
1/3 cup crunchy peanut butter
1/4 cup sweet chilli sauce
2 tsp lemon juice
2 tsp soy sauce
500 gram pack of frozen Asian style veg

1. Place the noodles in a large bowl. Cover with boiling water and, using a fork, gently separate them. Drain well. 2. Coat a pan with cooking spray, heat and add the pork. Cook, while stirring, until pork is well browned and tender. Remove from the pan. 3. Add the garlic and onion the the same pan and stir-fry until soft. Stir in the stock, peanut butter, sweet chilli sauce, lemon juice and soy sauce. Stir in the vegetables and allow to simmer for about 4 minutes or until vegetables are cooked. 4. Stir in the pork and noodles and cook until all ingredients are hot. Serve.

The above is exactly from the book. I don't bother to soak the noodles. I find there is enough sauce to add them before the meat at the end and they soften up fine. I always add more vegies to make it go further. I use smooth peanut butter and try not to have a spoonful for me too! The pork fillet is beautiful but I also use chicken or prawns. It's really nice and well worth a try. It also reheats really well for leftovers. Let me know if anyone already makes this or tries it.

I'm off to read some of my visitors blogs. I doubt I'll get through them all in one night as it will be hard not to read the whole lot!!!

The Best Laid Plans

2005-11-18T22:17:00.000+10:30

Hello to all my new blog friends and thankyou so much for the lovely comments you have been leaving me. It is so encouraging and does really make you feel part of a very supportive community. I was really looking forward to a few hours of PC time tonight to update my blog, add some links etc and explore the blogs of those of you who had left me messages. A bit sad that it's Friday night and I was excited about a night in but never mind!!! Anyhow while DH & I were having a walk after tea one of our friends called to say they were going to call around for coffee. DH couldn't understand why I didn't seem to keen until I explained what I had been planning. He laughed and quite rightly pointed out that it was important not to forget my existing friends too! I know he's right and I do tend to get a bit obsessive with anything new I do. We ended up having a nice couple of hours with our friends and I've got a spare few minutes to do a small update before bedtime. My blog visits will have to wait until tomorrow - hopefully.
I do my official weigh Thursday or Friday depending on which figure I like best - LOL This week I didn't like either as I have stayed exactly the same!! Typical I start publishing my weight and then it doesn't move!!! I know I've been good and I have done lot's of exercise so hopefully there will be movement next week. I can't have hit a plateau now - not allowed at this stage!!
I have been working really hard to meet my step target this week. It's amazing when you're being accountable how much you don't want to not succeed but boy this is going to be hard work to keep this up for 6 weeks. If anyone is struggling with their exercise I would encourage them to check out WWA. It's a really great motivator for a very small outlay.
I've got two new dogs in the house tonight - not really but it sure looks like it. We have 2 Lowchen puppies( Most people have never heard of them) that are small and fluffy. I usually keep their coats long but had them clipped today to get rid of the knots and keep them cooler for Summer. Now I look like I have 2 overgrown rats - not a good look - poor puppies.
Have a great weekend - hopefully you'll see me on your blogs soon.

Before and Almost There Piccies

2005-11-16T20:21:00.000+10:30

As promised I am adding a couple of photo's of before I started this LAST attempt at Getting Back On Track. It's amazing how much we hide from photo's when we feel so uncomfortable with where we are at. Makes it hard to find pictures when you want them. Anyhow these 2 are both from last year.

And these next ones have been taken in the last few days - suddenly it's not so bad on the other side of the camera, especially with the magic of the digital age so we can just discard the ones we still look too fat!!

I was very excited tonight to recieve my first couple of comments. I've had visitors!! Can anyone tell me whether you have to get permission before you put links to other blogs on your own blog. I would like to put them on but I'm not sure if I have to ask everyone first.

I had a yummy tea tonight. I tried the new McCains Healthy Choice Pumpkin & Eggplant Pizza. It was 7.25 points and worth every one!!! The other 2 varieties of it are also nice but this would be the nicest. I would really like to stay and "play" blogs all night but as I am trying to average 15500 steps a day on the WWA Xmas challenge I had better go and ride my bike for a while. I am still nearly 5000 short so I better move myself. Have a goodnight.

The story so far......

2005-11-16T13:28:00.000+10:30

My second post – how exciting!! I thought I better give some info as to where I am at with all this WW stuff and where I have come from. I am another life-timer who has put my weight back on again and again. This time I am trying to lose it forever by realising I am not on a diet but am changing to a permanent healthier lifestyle both with food and exercise. I know you’ve heard this lot’s of times before but I really am going to try to conquer this for the last time!!
I have yoyo dieted since I was in my early twenties. When I had my first son at 25 I did “Jenny Craig”. I lost 5 stone in 5 months, which was incredibly fast and with no exercise at all! Since then I’ve gained and lost many times. I seem to keep the weight off for a year or so and then suddenly I am “fat” again. When I look back I don’t remember it actually increasing, I think I just go into denial until I get so big I can’t ignore it anymore. I first achieved Lifetime with Weight Watchers in 1994 – the day I got to goal I discovered I was pregnant with son # 3 so I didn’t get a chance to stabilise that time.Good excuse though don’t you think? I rejoined again in January 1998 at 95 kilo’s and the “Points System” just clicked with me. By August I had reached my WW Goal of 68 and then went on to lose another 8 kilo’s by December. I had lost 35 kilo’s and was sure I knew how to stay there. I was featured in the WW magazine and thought I was so successful! Little did I know. :-( Since then I have gone up and down, never back up to my highest but never down under 70 kilo’s either.
Last year I decided enough was enough and went back to meetings. I find it so hard to go back – I feel such a failure – to have been so successful and then to stuff it all up. I was doing quite well and then Christmas and Summer holidays came and I had a break for a couple of weeks. That lasted 4 months and I put last years 8 kilo loss all back on again!!! Grrrrrr !
Dr Phil’s quote, which I modified, for me, really got me thinking. “At this time next year my weight will be higher or lower than it is right now. It will not be the same. The choice to reduce it or let it pile higher and higher is entirely and unquestionably mine”
I started again on the 9th of April and was really determined. I have not gone back to meetings yet. I have spent so much in previous years and know that if my resolve started to slip I would have the meetings to fall back on. I am following the programme as I know it works for me and with the motivation and inspiration I have received from reading the WW forum and more recently some great blogs, I have managed to stay on track for 30 weeks so I am very happy with that. I am 44 now and I certainly have to work much harder than previously to lose.
I am now on the downward track and know this is the hardest part. It’s so easy to get complacent because I know I look and feel so much better than I did. I don’t want to stop now, I really want to get back to goal and learn to stay there. I have worked out with what I have lost so far, if I keep losing at this slow but steady rate I should be back at goal by December. What a Christmas present that would be and what a New Years resolution, to be able to continue the lifestyle changes and finally learn to maintain my weight.
I was considering becoming a WW leader next year as I know I have to do something different from previous times to ensure I can maintain. Perhaps blogging may be the answer instead. I will post some before and nearly there photo’s tonight. Have a great day even though I know nobody is actually reading this yet!!!!

Lesley

A New Blogger Has Landed!!!

2005-11-15T21:51:00.000+10:30

Hello to everyone in blogland - I would like to join your ranks. For the last few months I have been back on track trying to get back to my goal weight by following weight watchers. I have got most of my inspiration from reading the messages on the Weight Watchers forums and more recently have discovered blogs written by some amazing ladies. I have been a closet reader/lurker, thinking oh no I would never get motivated enough to actually have my own but after some encouragement from Margaret I have decided to bite the bullet and add blogging to my interests and learn how do it! Boy do I have a lot to learn. I read a few blogs each day so I feel I know quite a few of you but at this stage of course you have no idea who I am. I hope that will change soon. It's taken me a while tonight to get this far and bed is calling so my story so far will have to wait for tomorrow.