Four Days of 96.2

It's so frustrating when your weight just won't budge and you have been working hard to make sure that it does. 

I knew another plateau was coming, but it is still challenging to deal with. It makes you question 'Am I doing the right thing - am I eating too much, have I got the nutritional balance right?  

I have had lower energy levels the past few days, I suspect it is because my 'monthly bill' is almost due ;-( I'm so close to turning to comfort eating, it's driving me crazy.  I've had as many safe option snacks as I can and it still has not satisfied me.  I'm experiencing old eating habit withdrawls, for the first time in 6 weeks! What is wrong with me? 

I've hit another low point on the journey. I know that things will improve - it's a matter of trying to stay positive and focused on the goal. My next goal is only 1.2 kgs away, it is going to take longer than I hoped to get there, but at least I know that in the meantime I am looking after my body one meal at a time. 

I just really hope that there won't be too many more days of 96.2...

Insanely Good Thai Stir-fry Lunch

I had been struggling with what to make for lunch today. I don't have a strong protein option other than eggs and bacon to use and with bacon and egg pie planned for dinner, it seemed silly to have that for lunch.

I opted for a nutrient rich lunch of pumpkin, carrot, beans and zucchini stir-fried in green curry paste, with a little chopped kafir lime leaf for extra flavor.

I can't get enough of our home grown beans, they are so fresh and delicious. The zucchini, also home grown are really versatile and the nutrients - particularly in the skin, make it a worthwhile addition to the meal.

I had my usual hot cacao drink (I used 50/50 full fat blue milk and water) to wash it down and some walnuts, a little extra protein and great for heart health.

I am not as focused on the Paleo philosophy as I first was, more about balance and getting my nutrients from a range of foods. I am still working on low carb (including potato, rice and pasta), low dairy, low sugar (including too much fruit), high vegetables (especially greens) and moderate healthy fats.  My treats are, my hot cacao of course, the occasional red wine, dates and raw nuts. Other than that it is not typically on the menu. I'm not perfect, but I'm committed to the plan and hubby is getting on board too which is great!

 

Kid Friendly POA Template

I have taken my obsessive need to organise and plan a step further and create a daily POA for my 8 year old daughter to use.  I've called it 'Coral's Daily Planner'.
I used the basic template from my 'Motivation' POA - keeping the 'how I feel today', 'things to be grateful for' and 'my reward for today' components and added a simple to-do list, 'what's happening' section, morning and evening routine checklists and some space for sticker rewards along with a fun background.  Here's the result:

It is a big ask to expect an 8 year old to complete one of these independently (well at least initially), but the idea is that I can help her complete the to-do list and 'what's happening' sections the night before to give her a heads up for the following day.  That should help us to make sure that we have got everything we need together ready in advance.  It is teaching her to become responsible for herself and learn planning and organisation skills.  I plan to use a regular monthly calendar in conjunction with the POA and we can use the weekly school newsletter to update the calendar with up coming events.

There is no reason that she can't independently review the POA in the morning and begin completing the rest of the form, checking off her morning tasks and then reviewing the form again in the evening as she completes the evening routine.  I have tailored the routines to Coral's needs and have included tidying her bedroom in the evening routine rather than put it on a chore chart. This is something that requires daily attention!

As an incentive I have included the sticker reward section for successfully completing for routines.  There is also the 'my reward for today' section. I figure Coral can either think of a small reward for herself or I could complete this section for her if she finds it challenging.  Rewards along the line of having an extra chapter at story time or a board game with Mum or Dad rather than sweets or material things is what I have in mind.  Further rewards could be allocated for achieving 10 stickers, but sometimes a sticker and a sense of achievement is enough.  I will just have to see how it goes.

The 'three things I'm grateful for' section is there to prompt her to think of the positive things in her life as well as remind her she has a lot to be thankful for and that there are things ahead to look forward to and enjoy.   I expect that this will be a challenge for her initially.  It takes practice to put positive thinking into practice - I know from experience :-)  It is all too easy to become sucked into the negative aspects of our existence.  Wouldn't it be great if we could teach our children emotional intelligence from an early age?  Wouldn't life be that much easier?

The mood gauge is there to prompt Coral to think about her mood and emotions and where they come from.  It is an important skill to develop and with support Coral can work on understanding her anger, sadness or boredom and taking action to improve her mood.
I can use the gauge to prompt a discussion about her feelings.  How many times do you ask your kids 'how are you?' or 'how was school?' only to get the standard 'okay'.  Sometimes it is apparent when something is amiss, but sometimes it's not.  Perhaps the gauge will get a more honest reading than my questions.  I am interested to know about what is going on in my child's world and making sure that she is finding fun and happiness.

This is only a tool that I hope will be useful, it will not mean that I will stop asking Coral how her day was or stop reminding her to brush her teeth or withhold board games for special rewards. It is an idea that I had that I am keen to try out to see if it makes life any easier.  As we are heading into the end of term and there are only a few days of school left, I have decided to put the POA into action at the start of next term.  

The best thing about it being a printable template is that I can make changes at anytime to suit.  I can change the colours, fonts or background to switch things up and keep it fresh and interesting and I can also let Coral have input in this too.

The biggest challenge will initially be establishing this as a routine and consistently making our POA each evening.  I'm sure with the extra motivation I have worked into the system, that Coral will keep the momentum going

It's a Good Day

Today's a good day. It's good to have had a sleep in for the first time in about a year (thanks to kids being at their Aunty's for the night). It's good to have the sun shining into the house and enjoying the peace and tranquility while having my morning coffee.  It is also an especially good morning to be 96.2 kgs :-)

My next target of 95 kgs, set back when I broke the 100kg mark, now feels within my grasp.  I may even have a chance of reaching it by Easter, if I can avoid another plateau, but I'm taking each day as it comes.

There will be good days and bad days and plain frustrating days too, but I am in it for the long run. I want permanent weight loss and wellness and that means permanent change.  

My Weight Story - The Early Years

Research has shown that if you are obese as a child, you are more likely to be obese as an adult.

There are a number of nz websites that discuss the research and the link between childhood and adult obesity.  I found this one helpful: http://www.foe.org.nz/obesity-the-facts/health-risks/

I was an overweight child. From about the age of 5 or 6 , I remember being bigger than the other children at school and knowing that I was different. There were maybe only one or two children out of a school roll of 300 that were overweight or obese back in my day - I was special, but not in a good way. I had to be careful to fly under the radar to avoid being ridiculed or singled out.

I have noticed these days that there are more overweight and obese children around, a lot more. I don't need statistics to tell me this, I only needed to look around me. The FOE website discusses the 'obesity epidemic' and the University of Otago discusses environmental obesity, sighting a range of statistics on this issue. Here's the website: http://www.otago.ac.nz/profiles/environmentalobesity.html

If I were at school nowadays, I would not be quite so unique. I'm not sure if I am more saddened or just plain horrified by this.

So how did I become overweight at age such an early age? I must admit I have always loved my food. I guess some people have more of an affinity with food. I don't know if it is part of our genetic makeup, environmental factors or a bit of both, but food has been my constant companion, a comfort, an experience, a treat and a compulsion. My thoughts are never far from my next meal and it's been that way as long a I can remember.

I'm my youth, food was always accessible and I was encouraged to eat. I can't ever remember being told to stop or slow down - I probably was, but I can image I would have been pretty persistent. I would have done anything necessary to get want I fancied. I would become very agitated if I got hungry, I liked the feeling of fullness - I still do.

The food I ate was pretty typical of the time, regular meals, meat and three vege (boiled to oblivian), meat loaf, mac n cheese.  Looking back, the portions were probably excessive for my age and having seconds was not discouraged. Between meals I snacked on biscuits, crackers, bread, cheese and sweets whenever they were available and this was most of the time.  I helped myself more often than not and that included packets of jelly crystals and sachets of sugary juice concentrate. 

Celebrations, birthdays and Christmas were based around excess, more food than was possible to consume was laid out and the era of the all you can eat smorgasbord became all the rage. I regularly ate until I felt sick on these occasions and then would wait a while before stuffing some more food in. It was our culture, our tradition - we all did it.

I wasn't the most active of children and the heavier I got the less involved I became in sport and physical exercise. I took swim lessons, but my reward would be chocolate and junk food afterwards. I played netball and softball for a while but I was slow and uncoordinated. I didn't contribute much to games.  I spent a lot of time at home, on my own. I had a few friends, but I found it awkward to socialise and I enjoyed watching tv and videos where I didn't have to risk the possibility of being teased or ignored.

All of these things added up to a heavy child. By the age of 8-9 I was obese. I couldn't tell you what I weighed back then, but over the next 3 years the problem didn't get better. At age 11, I attended my first weight watchers meeting with my Mum. My weigh ins were somewhere around the 60 kg mark at 150 cms. It was the first time that I was exposed to the concept of balanced nutrition and portion control.  I went for a few months attending weekly meetings with around 20 other women, listening to their stories and goals their successes and failures. But my progress was slow - a few kilos came off, but I struggled to make progress and I had as many failures as successes.  I felt disappointed and a failure. My parents were equally disappointed. They tried to motivate me to lose weight with money, but it wasn't the movitation that I needed. I think I was hoping for something less tangible.

I started puberty at 11, nearly 12 and the realisation dawned on me, that boys are not at all interested in the 'fat girl'. One boy specifically pointed out that I would have been a really pretty girl, had I not been quite so fat. He didn't even put it to me in an awful way. It was a private conversation and he said it with such sincerety that although taken aback, I, after much thought could only agree with his comments.

Life as a pre-teen was only becoming more awkward, social outtings like discos and dances,  roller skating and school camps were torture. Being ignored, overlooked and teased were unpleasant but thankfully I never really suffered terrible bullying.  However, my weight was always ammunition should I run into conflict and it shattered my confidence. I followed the safe path and layed low to avoid drawing the attention of bullies.

Around this time my family gave me a nick name 'fatty'. I'm certain they would call it a term of endearment, but it was not something I found endearing. It was used to make fun of me or make me feel bad about eating. I'm sure they used it to try to motivate me to lose weight, but it did the reverse and I comfort ate to numb my shame and sadness.

My favourite after school snacks were brown sugar and butter melted in the microwave or hot chocolate sause made from milo and a dash of milk and microwaved into a thick, sticky sweet sause. I ate peanut butter in heaped spoonfuls from the jar and sometimes binged for hours on whatever I could find until my parents came home and then I sat down and ate dinner to finish off.

At 13, tipping the scales at 67 kg - a size 16 in women's clothing, I started high school and again I was only one of a handful in the school of 1200 odd pupils who were obese.  I felt like an alien - actually it was more like I was invisible, at least to the opposite sex.   After a few months, the motivation of getting the attention of high school boys and of proving the ultimate point to my parents, led me to make the decision - it was time to 'go on a diet'.

I had never been so determined. One school holiday break I armed myself with a set of bathroom scales and a calorie counter book and I went to war with my weight.  I restricted my calories at first to 1500 calories a day and I began to lose weight.   I kept this up and after only a few weeks the weight was dropping off. I had lost around 6-7 kgs and went down to a size 14. I felt great and my friends began noticing it. The comments about how great I looked felt so sweet - victory was mine. 

Here's my school photo at the start of high school (left) and one of following year (there's a big difference even for a head shot)

But I wasn't finished yet. I found that if I dropped my calorie count down to 1000 calories and upped my physical activity, I could lose weight even quicker. It wasn't so hard to deprive myself and I loved seeing the needle on my bathroom scales move down.  I dropped to 55 kgs within only a few months and went down another dress size. Mum bought me new clothes and I loved the way I looked. I wasn't the only one either, I started attracting the attention of boys that I had so desperately been seeking. 

Life was sweet, my parents were proud of me and praised me for my weight loss. I seemed easier to love with less weight.

Here's me at 55 kgs

But, I wasn't finished yet. I joined the local gym with a group of friends and became a gym bunny. I would go most days after school and on weekends for sometimes hours at a time. I did weights, circuit, aerobics, swimming and I still cut calories only now I began to massage my numbers a wee bit. I would over estimate the calories of what I was eating. I had dropped the calorie intake to around 800 per day, but my portions were so small, I wasn't probably anywhere near my calculations.  I dropped to 51 kgs rapidly, I was now down to a size 8-10 and loving it! 

At this point my parents began to get concerned about my weight loss. They felt I had lost enough and that I was doing too much exercise. They wanted me to increase my food intake and told me that if I dropped below 50kgs that I would no longer be allowed to attend the gym or do any exercise until my weight stabilised.

I didn't stop.  As I turned 14, my weight fell below 50 kgs and I was made to stop going to the gym. Even still, I felt such a sense of power, I was in control of my body. If I wanted to lose weight, I couldn't be stopped and even without the gym I continued on my campaign, even more determined to prove my point. I exercised in bed at night, I walked to school instead of taking the bus and snuck in as much physical activity as I could whenever my parents weren't looking. I hid food off my plate, spat out food in secret and refused offerings as much as I could get away with.  I dropped to 47 kgs, a slender size 8.

But I wasn't finished. I stopped menstruating and I began to feel weak and unwell. On one occasion I completely fainted.  I had horrible and nauseating hunger pangs, but I ignored them.  Then I dropped to 45 kgs - now I wore girls size 10 clothing. I had no breasts or hips to fill out women's sizes.  Odd that I always seemed to have the next size of clothing available as I lost more and more weight. But my mother obligingly bought them for me and I delighted in fitting ever smaller sizing.

My eyes began to look sunken and my hip bones petruded like the wings of a bird. I am surprised I had the energy to keep exercising, but I kept on. I began to feel numb, like a zombie, I didn't have enthusiasm for much anymore, including looking attractive or pleasing my parents. My hunger pangs disappeared, like they had given up on ever having a decent meal.

My friends began to comment on my drastic weight loss and someone who was concerned anonymously involved a school councillor for an in-school session. It didn't alter my perception, my battle was not yet won - I wanted to lose more weight. I reduced my calorie intake further still, I recall one day eating an apple and a cough lozenge as my whole daily intake. How was I able to function?

At 43 kgs, and 175 cms tall, I was a whisp, a shadow.  Not only had my fat tissue disappeared but so had nearly all my muscle tissue. My mother sewed me a skirt as nothing else fitted and the waist was so small I'm sure I could have put it on a toddler. My parents insisted I see a psychiatrist.  I felt insulted - was I officially a basket case? I didn't resist their intervention, but I felt determined that I would continue on my crusade regardless of what they had to say.

But, what they had to say brought home the cold, hard truth. The fact was that I had no more weight to lose. I was going to lose my life if I did not stop losing weight.  I needed to put my battle aside and look at the big picture and think of my health and wellbeing and not the numbers on the scale. I had achieved my goal and it was time to stop depriving myself and making food the enemy.

I walked out of that therapy session and I gave myself permission to eat again. I still calorie counted out of habit and I still stressed a bit about the numbers being so high (compared with what they had been) but I convinced myself that it would do me good to eat more to heal my undernourished body and I decided it best to avoid the bathroom scales altogether and work on what felt and looked good to me. I can't show you photos of this time in my life, there are none.  I guess it was before the time of the selfie and no one wanted to take a photo of me in that shape.

Over the next few months I gained weight and was allowed to return to the gym with my friends. I had a larger group of friends now that I had lost weight and felt more confident and at ease with myself. My health returned as did my menstruation cycle, some 9 months after it first disappeared.  I looked and felt fantastic.  I met a boy from school at the gym who became my first boyfriend and he became a bigger focus for me than my weight. It was like I had started a new life as a normal teenage girl. I no longer had to be invisible and I no longer worried about gaining the approval or affection of my parents. I had the love and attention of my boyfriend who adored me.

Between age 14 and 18 I slowly gained weight eventually settling at around 65 kgs - a healthy weight for my full height of 177cms.

 

I maintained this weight, through staying active and eating in moderation (with a few slip-ups and gains) up to around age 20 but then began to fluctuate around 70-73 kgs. It wasn't a horrendous weight, but it was the heaviest I'd ever been and I was unhappy with by body image (crazy huh?)

At 21 I began dating my now husband (this is our first photo together) and then my weight crept up further still to 75-76kgs. At this size I thought I was huge. 

What would my 21 year old self have said  if I went back in time at told her that she would one day reach over 110 kgs and wear a size 20! I think she would have been devastated, like I had told her she would get cancer. She would feel ripped off and want to know how I could do that to her. 

I guess she wouldn't have the benefit of knowing what her future holds - pregnancies and personal struggles , or that she is not the only person in the future who struggles with their weight (let's face it, there is an epidemic out there).  I would have to empathise with her.  I feel guilty for not doing something to prevent it, I did allow myself to get too big, I was border-line morbidly obese and on my way to joint issues, diabetes and heart disease.

All that is in my past now. All I can do to heal the damage I've done is make sure that I stay focused on my wellbeing and on course for the future.

My Weight Story

I am really looking forward to a healthy body, better energy levels and a slimmer figure.

Just looking nicer in clothes can give you such a confidence boost. I have been unhappy with the way I look most of my life. It's a hard pill to swallow, but it's the truth.

There were times that I have got my weight down for a short period, in between two pregnancies (the second a twin pregnancy), but it has always been an ongoing battle with only short-lived victories.

If I think about all the sizes I have been in the last 15 years alone and all the clothes I have bought and loved and then given away because I have gained weight and had to buy larger sizes - well I think of the waste - of money, of time that I could have enjoyed feeling good about myself and of my wellbeing and the toll that it has taken on my body.

I won't tell you the full story of my battle with my weight right now, let's just say that I have always had a battle with the scales. I'll start with the past 15 years. When I got married in 2000, I was a size 14 - 76 kgs, which I had maintained for a couple years prior.  For my height, this was a healthy weight and although I secretly would have liked to drop to a size 12, I would have been happy to stay a size 14 with a few curves and a a wide variety of stores stocking my size.

Then at some point over the next 4-5 years my weight crept up and I started venturing into size 16 territory. Occasionally I would get back down to a size 14, but I would always end up back at a 16.

After the birth of my first child, I had actually lost weight during pregnancy but quickly regained weight and in the first year I crept up from a size 14 to a 16 then to an 18 and then in 2008 / 2009 around the time my daughter turned two I reached a size 20-22. 

I am guessing (because I was too scared to weigh myself at that time) that I would have tipped the scales at around 110 kgs. That is 35 kgs heavier than 8 years previous.

At this point I realised that my wellbeing was suffering and I felt both physically and emotionally uncomfortable in my own skin, but it was when we decided to expand our family and I was required to lose weight to be elligible for fertility treatment that I was able to find the will to reduce my weight to 99 kgs. 

It took only a few months to fall pregnant following a successful fertility procedure and with twins on board I gained weight, but fortunately it was all baby related. 

Once the twins were born (8 and 6 pounds respectively) and I was breast feeding, the remaining weight dropped off and I was down to a size 16 within weeks following the birth.

I was thrilled to be so much lighter and was determined to keep my weight under control, but it was not to be.

Difficulties with breastfeeding and the demands of two new babies in the house lead to a switch to bottle feeding after about 3-4 months. I had been struggling to eat enough while breast feeding, but suddenly I wasn't feeding any longer and my hunger didn't seem to dissipate. I was comfort eating as well and I didn't seem to care anymore about how big I was getting or how hard it was going to be to get back the weight loss that pregnancy and childbirth had offered up to me a second time.

I packed on the weight and crept up to a size 18 and then on to 20 - again.  I sat there for a while, not appreciating the view at all. It is so hard to look nice in a size 20, buying clothes from the 'plus size' stores and feeling like everything in the world has suddenly shrunk around you. Spilling over the edge of chairs, needing an extender on your plane seat belt, not even recognising yourself in the reflection of shop windows and then being horrified once you realise it is you.

It is a scary place to be, a place where I swore I would never go back, back at size 20. I looked pregnant and I'm certain  people thought I was.

I was scared enough to ask for help - in 2013 I went and saw a Doctor, not just about my weight but my health in general. The Doctor's advice - to treat myself with food, the right food, fresh, organic, unrefined foods. Food that our bodies are designed to process - not refined and heavily processed grains, starches, sugar and dairy products that have over-fueled our bodies.  She told me to research the information, use my brain and make decisions about my nutrition based on recent scientific findings and logic - not advertising, brands, past ideas of balanced nutrition, or traditions which are based on excess and overindulgence.

This concept made sense to me. Our lives in the 21st century are much different to our ancestors one hundred years ago let alone 40,000 years ago, but our bodies are still very much the same.  We need to look at our lifestyles, our environment and unique physiological makeup to make an assessment of our individual nutritional needs.

I found an article online which had a new food pyramid to use as a guideline for healthy eating which aligns with my philosophy. 

Here is the link to the website so you can read about it: 

http://www.fitnessfirst.com.au/healthy-eating/the-new-food-pyramid/

Our bodies are very efficient and one thing I believe is that we can ALL probably not only survive but thrive on less. Over-eating is as much an issue as under-nourishment. If we can use the right fuel for our bodies in the right proportion we can maintain a healthy body and save our body systems from being overworked and becoming weak and ill.

After seeing the Doctor, I decided to go gluten, dairy and sugar free. I reduced my portions but kept the nutritional value of my meals high. I persisted for 4 months and it paid off. I started at a weight of 106 kgs and lost 13 kgs and 2 dress sizes. 93 kgs and a size 16 - it felt amazing.

But it all started to go wrong. I was going through a number of changes, moving house, issues with my new job and life with the demands of a young family.  At some point the gluten, dairy and sugar rich foods crept back in, the portion sizes grew bigger and I lost sight of my goals. My automatic response to the chaos in my life was to turn to food to fill the void and numb the pain with comfort eating. I began gaining weight again.  Over the next 18 months I crept up to 105kgs and my size 18 clothes began to get tight on me once more.  I took this as a sign that I needed to get back on track with my nutrition!

So now I try to look at each day as an opportunity to benefit nutritionally. I think carefully about each and everything I consume and what it offers me. I think about this in terms of taste too, because this has a big impact on my enjoyment of food and enjoying the foods that are of benefit to me.

If something has very little benefit to me, or worse will have a detrimental effect on my health, it is not hard to say 'no' to it. It just requires a bit of thought and logic when making choices about nutrition.

That is my weight story to date. I am currently at 97.1 kgs and enjoying the benefits of eating well - including the resulting weight loss.  I am still on my journey of discovery about how to heal my body with food, but I am happy to keep learning on the path to wellbeing.

 

Another Lovely Lunch

Today's gluten free lunch option consisted of tuna (half a $2 tin), basil and an egg topped with fresh chili and cherry tomatoes (all from our garden).

I added an organic hot cacao drink with a side of walnuts to wash down this feast. They were not cheap grocery items, but for the quantity I used it was less than a dollar added to the cost of my meal with lots of nutritional value.

All in all a satisfying lunch for under $2.

Lovely Lunch

Some of the meals I have had lately have just been so simple and delicious, I regret not taking photos!

Today we had fried field mushrooms with onion and garlic, a fried egg and avocado  on toast. You could do a gluten free toast option, but I was fine with one slice of regular wholegrain toast to soak up the mushroomy goodness. 

Another cheap meal too - field mushrooms from a friend's farm, eggs from our's and avos from a friends orchard. 

Simple is so good!

Back on Track Again

After a week with no movement on the scales, I have had two successive drops from 98.9 to 98.1 and again to 97.7. I'm pleasantly surprised, but it has taken some of effort. This brings my total weight loss to 4.7 kgs.  It is sadly not all that visible, but I am edging closer to that next target of 95kg and that is what I am focusing on.

I have been more strict on nutrition, with my main meal being lunch and then dinner being reduced by about half. I am still eating a good amount and good quality food but I have reduced the overall intake.  This is not something I would have been able to do when I first started on this journey, but after a few weeks, I have progressed to a point where it is now easier to commit to a stricter regime.

Mornings I have a serve of organic almond and apricot granola with Greek yoghurt, cinnamon and fruit. It is not paleo, but it is a lower carb option to regular cereal and has been a good alternative to eggs. The yoghurt also has good probiotic qualities. So while I am still reducing my dairy intake, I am not concerned about a few serves a day.

For lunch I have been having a large serve of protein with vegetables and a portion of nuts.

Discounted salmon steaks have been just delicious. This week I found a pack of two good sized steaks for $4.40. With the veges being from our garden, the cost of a lunch is pretty affordable and the nutritional benefit is enormous. I have definitely got my omega 3 requirements for this week.

The other key ingredient in my meals this week has been avocado.  We have a friend that has an avocado orchard who was kind enough to let us collect some end of season avocados which are now falling to the ground to be eaten by birds or rodents. I absolutely love avos - some people are concerned about the high oil content and calorie count of avocados, but they are nutritionally rich, tasty and really versatile. I am quite happy to eat a half to one whole avocado a day with meals. Their norishing oils are also great for skin and hair treatments. I have tried a face mask this week with avo, honey and coconut oil and it felt fantastic! I will definitely be trying a hair mask soon.

The Plateau

As expected the curse of the plateau has descended upon my weight loss progress.

I have been pretty dedicated to the nutritional plan, rather proudly I must admit, but I need another boost to keep me motivated and on track.  5 days of the same weight - 98.9 kgs... It does become rather disheartening.

As liposuction is probably not going to be an option, I need an idea and fast! I'm desperate for that downward trend, 100 grams a day is all I'm looking for, I don't expect massive leaps - I just want progress.

I knew exercise was on the cards- yoga, walking, swimming perhaps? It all seems too hard - not only physically and logistically but mentally. The best time for me to do any of these things is early morning before anyone gets up, the biggest barrier is that I want to be asleep at this time, like everyone else. 

The real question that I need to answer is: How dedicated am I to succeeding at my goal? and the answer is: I want to go all the way and not stop until I get there.

Gluten Free Zucchini Cake Adaptation

We have made an experimental adaption to the Zucchini Cake recipe we love so much.  When I say we, I mean my husband did the baking ;-)

'We' replaced the flour with almond meal and further reduced the sugar by half to half a cup. Then we also reduced the oil by half, replacing the canola oil we normally use with organic coconut oil. 

The cake does not rise during baking as much as the original recipe, but the taste is certainly there and it's not a bad looking cake either.

The only downside is the increased cost of the ingredients, but this is one area I think the extra cost is well worth the health benefits. You don't need to eat much for a filling snack.

When you reduce the amount of food you eat it is sometimes difficult to get all the proper nutrition you need in a day, this cake ticks a load of boxes for me.

The next cake I'm planning on for using our garden crops is a gluten free chocolate beetroot cake with avocado chocolate icing. I came across the recipe in a free gardening magazine from our local garden centre. Better get those beetroot plants in soon!

Planning Templates

I have been working on a few templates to help me better organise my time and priorities. I've called my series of templates 'POA' for Plan of Action. The reasoning behind this is that, for me, it's all about action / doing things / getting things done.

It's all too easy to make a list that doesn't actually involve the action needed to achieve the end result. For example 'lose weight' doesn't offer much insight as to the action that needs to be taken to achieve the result. Losing weight is a constant focus of mine, but my action points for the day might be complete 20 minute yoga session, or prep chicken and vegetable soup for dinner.  Getting things done is what is going to achieve the goal - not making lists or writing a plan - as nice as they may look or make me feel.

The first template I created was a daily POA. I thought about what I needed out of a planner and created something tailored to my specific needs. It has a to-do section as well as a time plan for appointments etc.  There are also sections for occasions, kids events, bills to pay, things to buy, our main meal for the day and a prep for tomorrow space. I keep the templates in a standard lever arch file binder. At the moment I don't use this everyday, more so if I have a busy day ahead that I need to be especially organised for, but it is my aim to spend 5 minutes every evening to plan ahead for the following day. This way I can be productive and make the most of each and every day.

Once I had created the daily POA, I realised that It would be helpful to have my projects / goals listed so that I could refer back to this to then plan my daily actions. So my next template was a Projects / Goals POA.

This is one I completed last month. I originally thought this would be a good weekly template, but I found after a week I had not gained a lot of traction with many of the projects / goals, so I figure I will change this to fortnightly or monthly.

The projects / goals are listed on the left, under four subheadings which I felt worked specifically for me. On the right is a corresponding list of planned actions. I use the list on the right to make my daily POA's.

I have included ideas for my blogs in this template as well, these are 'nice to dos' as the blogs are not a high priority, but I do see them as a motivational tool. I enjoy using them to document progress and if that helps me get things done then it's worthwhile for me to keep doing.

The next template is a monthly review. It's a bit hard to see. I've tried to colour code the templates to make it easier to find them in the binder.

I have used the same subheadings as the projects/ goals POA including the blogs and have added in a section for finances, each of the kids and a focus for next month area.  I thought it would be helpful to review progress on a monthly basis and then use this information to check off my projects / goals as they are completed or see if progress is being held back and work out how to get it back on track.  It is something that takes more time to complete, but it's only once a month and helps keep things on track.

These three templates make up the core of my system. The hardest challenge was not creating the templates but using them regularly. I'm the kind of person who needs to stay motivated to achieve consistency and sometimes a little help doesn't go astray.  The only person I feel I can rely on for this is - me! This inspired the creation of another template, the Motivation POA.  It is something that I can complete each day as I need to, to help me see where I might be falling down, to understand my moods and what I can do help myself. In effect it is a tool to try and cheer me up and make me feel good about my day and hopefully be more productive. 

It looks a bit different to the other POA's but it's meant to be a bit more inspiring and uplifting. I've crammed a bit in this one. The first section is 'three things I am grateful for today'. This is a challenge straight off the bat, if my mood is low it can be difficult to see what is good in the world - but it is important to focus on the positive.  Next is a mood and anxiety gauge, sometimes it helps to better understand my mood - actually ask myself 'how do I feel today?'.

The next section calls for information  'what's eating me'. Sometimes I have no idea why I'm in the mood I'm in, but in order to do something about it, I need something more specific to act on than ' I feel like sh*te today'.  Once I have worked out what is contributing to the mood, I make a plan to deal with those things in the 'how I can help myself' section. 

Next is another challenging section, 'three things I can be proud of today' I struggle with that, but it gets me thinking about the things I have achieved and that the day has the potential to be productive and fruitful. 

I have a self care checklist included, this is often a wake up call - it reminds me that I'm not doing everything I can to reduce stress and improve my mood. If I checked off more on this list, then I probably wouldn't need to be filling out form in the first place!

The POA also includes a reward for the day section, it can be nice to have something to look forward to. Lastly there is as motivational quote section. I really should have this completed as part of the template with a variety of my favourite inspirational quotes and affirmations - something to work on later!

That's my POA Planning Template System.  I'm thinking of offering it as PDF printable at a later stage. For now I will trial it and see how I go.

Slow Progress

I am now at 98.9 kgs.  It's slow progress, but I'm realistic, it won't happen overnight - in fact I am expecting that without upping my exercise I will plateau - but it will happen, I will make it to my next goal of 95 kgs.

My nutritional focus is low carb, low sugar, low dairy and making sure I have a good amount of protein, vege, good oils and a little fruit. It is challenging at times, but I am persevering.  This is something I plan to stick with long term. I am being strict right now because I need to shed some kgs, but eventually I will be able to ease up a bit and indulge in the odd treat.  One indulgence that I have been enjoying lately has been my husbands Zucchini Cake. He has adapted a recipe he found on line and I bet it could easily be further tweaked to a gluten free version.  Here's the link 

http://www.simplyrecipes.com/m/recipes/grandmas_zucchini_cake/

Now, we don't ice the cake, but believe me it is tasty without it and hubby only puts in half of the sugar in the recipe! Our other adaptation is the addition of pumpkin seeds and seasame seeds. I use organic varieties of both bought from our local Bin Inn.  About 2 tablespoons of each is a good quantity. The cake is moist and has a lovely texture with the raisins, nuts and seeds. It keeps well too.

I don't eat it in huge quantities but it is super filling and I find I don't need much to feel satisfied anyway. 

If you grow zucchini, it is an excellent way to make use of them!

Breaking the 100kg Barrier

I have finally managed to creep under the 100 kg barrier. A weight in the double digits feels so much more comfortable not just physically, but psychologically as well.  It's only the start of the journey, but it feels like I'm on the right track for success and I'm feeling positive about my strategy for my future wellness. So far I have lost 3.3 kgs and I'm looking foward to reaching my next goal of 95 kgs.

First Full Day on Paleo

Today I have made a more definite shift to a strictly Paleo nutrition plan. I opted for a poached egg on sliced tomato followed by a banana for breakfast. 

For lunch I bought a discounted salmon steak and grilled this with a good amount of salt, pepper and seasame seeds for extra flavor. To go with it I had green beans sautéed with onion, garlic and olive oil, again with salt and pepper and seasame seeds - yum!

Tonight I have planned spragetti bolegnaise - with minced beef in a standard tomato pasta sauce, but I am substituting the pasta with steamed carrot and zucchini ribbons and topping it off with some mushroom.

I have watermelon if I get hungry later or an apple.  It feels good to be eating so well and enjoying the benefits. Another bonus is that the egg, tomato, beans and zucchini are all produce from our garden and are essentially free.  

Week One - Nutrition Plan

It's been a week since I've been going Paleo (well not completely), but there has been a vast change in eating habits and portions. My starting weight was 102.4 kgs and to date I am 100.4 kgs. That's 2 kgs in week one - yes! 

I'm set to drop below the 100 mark in the next week. I'm not expecting another 2 kgs.  My main objective is to continue the nutrition plan and get a few yoga routines in.  

My biggest challenge has been keeping hunger at bay, but I have been managing. I choose my snack food wisely and eat when I feel hungry.  I'm not good at resisting food when I have a grumbling stomach and choosing to fill up on fruit and veges means I don't have to feel bad about eating.