Dolly's Daily

[Dolly]

Hi All

I've been lurking and reading for a while and breaking myself in, slowly, to this new WOE....it's really quite inspiring to have these forums to read and learn from but now I feel that I really ought to get started properly!
Guys-if you could see how much money I have spent on diet books and products over the last 20 or so years......well I reckon it would have paid my mortgage by now. And, no prizes for guessing- I'm heavier than I have ever been. Now, I'm not obese, and that is mainly due to the fact that I do exercise, but despite THAT I had my health assessment done last week and:
The good news: resting HR 55 (way to go!)
BP 94/58...hmm..good but on the low side; need to watch that I think
The OK (ish) news from a health perspective: weight 159 lbs and BMI 24.8....so JUST within the healthy range (only just though!!)
Bad news:
1) the weight is accumulating around my middle, which I know is very bad healthwise and catastrophic from an aesthetic perspective!! Yikes.
2) My fat is 36%. That is too high.
I have been trying to go without snacks since last week and have largely succeeded, but I can't put my hand on my heart and say that I have been 100 % doing no S as per the rules. My biggest issue is mindless nibbling, especially when cooking- before I know it something has just fallen in to my mouth- I reckon there must be hundreds of calories that I haven't even enjoyed eating going in there! Does anyone else struggle with this and do you have any tips? I would be very grateful!

Today my day looked like this:

Breakfast: small bowl of wholewheat cereal with skim milk and a toasted crumpet with jam.

Lunch (at a pub) was a ham and tomato panini, no mayo, with a side salad and a few chips

Dinner was a large greek salad with olive bread.

However I did eat a few extra olives and I also had a low-calorie chocolate drink....those artificial flavourings aren't good are they? Does anyone allow them or are they off menu?

And I did a three mile run- very short for me but it's that TOTM and I really do struggle so I don't fight it.

My goal is to get to 30% fat first of all, a BMI of 23 and a weight (I am more concerned about the other two first though!) of 147 pounds.

I want to share that I did something very cathartic today
I went through all my bookshelves and removed ANYTHING to do with diets. OMG there were loads of the things....but they are now in a sealed box and they are going to the charity shop in the morning. I don't want these misery tomes in my life ANY MORE!!!

Feels a lot better already

Looking forward to getting to know everyone on the forums. I hope I don't have too many stupid questions but if I do, maybe someone will answer them anyway. I have been really spurred on to do something about yo yo ing and basing my life around food so, her we go......!

Dolly

[gratefuldeb67]

Hi Dolly
Congrats on chucking your "ex's" (diet books) in the donation bin!
I'd just wait for S days and have a nice *real* chocolate shake.
Good luck!
Debs

[Dolly]

Thanks- that's a nice thought- I can't recall the last time I let myself have a real, proper, chocolate shake. That's the crazy thing isn't it? Depriving yourself for days/weeks/months and then going absolutely mental bingeing on the stuff that had been "banned". That mindset of good/bad/evil foods is going to be a tough one to break, I think!
I'm in a hotel room a long way from home today as I meet my soon-to-be boss (I start a new job in August) for dinner where I'll be meeting a few of my new colleagues. They are all men- not sure there will be many females in this new organisation- and although I'm normally pretty good with meeting new people I have to say I'm a tad anxious at the moment! I've thrown the biscuits hovering by the kettle in the loo and at least I won't be drinking very much - I don't tend to do that at work or with people I don't know anyway so we'll see. I'm going to have to virtual-plate tonight but as I don't tend to go for puds as a rule I'm hoping that will not be too much of a problem!
My plan is not to eat anything unless it is properly plated, to prevent me from snacking in the car, on the run or eating mindlessly! I don't suppose I have chosen the best time to start this as I go on vacation for a week this Friday- but there's no time like the present and I can't keep putting things off!
I'll check in later with today's verdict
Dolly x

[Dolly]

Well, it is nearly the witching hour so time for a quick check in before bed!

Today I had:

B- a small bowl of cereal with skimmed milk and raspberries
L- a ham sandwich with side salad
D- Sea bass with small amount of risotto, steamed veg and a small dinner roll; three gin and slimline tonics (don't actually like the ordinary stuff, too sweet), black coffee.
And guess what- I didn't eat most of the risotto- I didn't feel like it or need it.
As we say over here- blimey

Got a long day tomorrow so have a good evening everyone; I'm off to bed!
Dolly x

[gratefuldeb67]

I've thrown the biscuits hovering by the kettle in the loo

Wow!!
Well done!!
Yes, Carpe Diem! No need to put off starting NoS!
You sound like you are off to a good start!
NoS is actually *very* vacation friendly, and it gets easier with time.
Just pick a few "S worthy" moments on your trip and enjoy them as S's, without it turning into a non stop excuse to snack, drink, etc...
Your vacation includes two S days already, and I'm sure it will be okay to make some conscious choices if there are really special restaurants etc to try, if you want to give yourself an extra S day, or "S event".

Debs

[Dolly]

Hi all, just back today from the small Greek Island of Paxos, which was blimmin' expensive due to the strong Euro but other than that was a great way to spend a week chilling out. Didn't get a single run in due to the heat and terrain but walked a fair bit and went out swimming so I wasn't a total sloth!
On the food front, for a vacation I think I did OK- not great, but OK. Four got days out of seven I stuck to three plates of food, and two were a bit more off the rails, and one evening of way too much wine and food- so back on the straight and narrow now! It was mainly alcohol that weakened my resolve and I got a major attack of the munchies BUT it was a holiday, it was just a week and I had a good time, ate lots of good healthy stuff as well and loads of water.
Hope everyone else has had a good week and I will be back on line on a daily basis again from today.
"Speak" to y'all soon
Dolly

[Bushranger]

^ Are the Greeks still eating that famous Mediterranean diet? I had heard that they are falling the way of the west these days and a lot of packet junk has taken over in recent years.

[Dolly]

Hi Bushranger
Interesting point. On Paxos it is only 19 square KM in size so time stands still- it is very much a traditional mediterranean diet there although leaning towards Italian influence as it is a destination of choice for Italians for some reason. They do serve potatoes with everything (fries or roast) but they always did- the Greeks like a potato! However to reach Paxos you have to come in via Corfu to catch the boat across-and certainly in Corfu Town the Golden Arches were in evidence, and there were far more kebabs (not the healthy souvlaki but Doners and gyros which tend to be very fatty) but you still had the choice. My downfall was drinking wine and the dips- taramasalata etc, which I can avoid when sober but tempts me when I am tipsy!
I ate a lot of greek salads and fish- that was all very readily available but VERY expensive. The euro is so strong that eating healthily and cheaply is damn near impossible, so it would be tough for those on a tight budget.
The Greeks love their baklava and pies though- not good for the waistline!
Dolly x

[Dolly]

Hi All, had my S day today and although I haven't exactly binged it has been rather (very) carb heavy. I have been feeling a bit tired and low today as though I am coming down with a bug so hoping it will go away quickly as I start my new job a week tomorrow! This often happens to me when I have a vacation- as soon as I stop to take breath as it were, any passing virus sees me as an easy opportunity! Also, I notice that I turn to refined carbs when I am tired. I think it is partly because they are easy to grab, provide a quick lift and also because I don't think straight when I am tired, and my brain is still in diet mode which means I am inclined to binge when tired....so I need to think about how I deal with this one as it is a big problem for me.
Too much bread and cereal today. I think that even on S days this needs to be limited a bit.
No exercise today as not feeling well, but hope to tomorrow.
By the way, does anyone respond in the same way as I do when I try clothes on that are still a bit tight (evidence that I need to get myself in gear and get the KG off).....1) feel miserable that I have backslid and then 2) eat more? What a ridiculous thing to do. It's like I am self-sabotaging....and I don't know why. Is it just me?
Dolly x

[LoriLifts]

Welcome back!
OK, here's the strange behavior I have with clothes.
If they are too tight, I'm discouraged and eat too much.
If they're loose, I'm elated and eat too much.

Either way, I'm eating too much!
The same thing happens when I step on the scale.
My brain is a mystery sometimes.

[Dolly]

Ah, not just me doing that then! That's a relief!
Was really hacked off today as I appear to be expanding rapidly around the middle- I really think there is something hormonal going on here so am going to get checked out later on this week by my MD. In the meantime, a successful N day:

B- one slice of wholegrain toast, fruit and eggs
L- a wholegrain baguette with wiltshire ham and salad
D- chicken and beef fajitas with salsa and no cheese or cream; salad veggies (home made with two medium tortillas)

Still very bready but all wholegrain at least, and no snacks today.
See you all tomorrow!
Dolly x

[Dolly]

Time for a check in...
Old habits die hard don't they? I caught myself about to taste a gooseberry crumble i had made for my hubbie and his son and friend this evening. Thing is, I was really full from my three meals today and if i had had some pudding I would have been ready to explode I think- and this is with relatively moderate plates of food...

Today I had:

Bacon sandwich, no butter or ketchup, and on wholegrain bread- two slices

Lunch was a picnic by the castle at Dunster; on one plate I had some salad, one sandwich and some crisps

Dinner was roast chicken with home made stuffing wrapped in a piece of parma ham with lots of roasted veggies using olive oil and rosemary out of the garden. All very yummy and i didn't really miss the pud as i said.

I am struggling again on the exercise front this week. I don't know why.....need to get a short run in tomorrow and hope that will kick start that side of things again!

Dolly x

[~reneew]

Welcome!

[Dolly]

What can I say other than today was a big fat (literally) failure!!
I posted this on the general discussion forum under "why do I keep ruining things?" so I won't go in to it again! The only good thing is that I see my husband, stepson and his friend with chocolate and cake crumbs round their faces like five year olds looking very happy and I can see that my cake-making touch hasn't disappeared- although for reasons that are obvious for anyone that read what I did today- I don't bake chocolate cakes often as I tend to want to eat half of it....!!!!
I have this thing where I want to feed everyone up- my hubbie, who was always athletic and a rugby player, is now putting on a few pounds and I'm not helping him by feeding him up BUT at the same time I don't want to mention the D word either, so I think I should sneakily try a no-S approach
with him and leave the cheese and puddings for weekends only
Well anyway I ate my weight in chocolate calories today but I am just going to draw a line under it and move right on.......
Dolly

[Dolly]

Well, thanks to everyone's brilliantly supportive comments yesterday I was able to draw a line under yesterday's chocolate incident and did much better today in terms of 3 meals and no snacks although I suddenly realised something really blimmin' obvious today- a real "Doh!" moment. I have been eating toast for breakfast most days and tend to have that with jam or marmalade......which is a sweet, right? I mean it's at least 60% sugar content...I'm wondering if that is keeping my sweet cravings going, I hadn't even thought about it until today!
I think I will try something else tomorrow
I met a friend tonight for dinner at a pub and had a really yummy bit of halibut with garlic prawns with salad and veggies. Didn't even feel like anything sweet, which is unusual for me as I do like a sweet biscuit or chocolate to finish off a meal (not a cake or pudding usually but just something that signifies an end to a meal). Too busy chatting and enjoying the company. I do enjoy food more when it's social!
D x

[Thalia]

That sounds like a really tasty dinner!

I don't think a little jam or marmalade violates the No Sweets rule, but it makes sense that it might keep your sweet cravings going.

[Dolly]

Hi- I'm doing the August challenge so I'm going to post in that subject for the next month, and in the general Q section if I have an issue I would like to discuss! See you all on there
Dolly