Starting again, again

I am a self-confessed habitual starter-overer.  My record for keeping to any meal plan is now a wopping 5 days. (Then the weekend came, and with it, junk food!)

But today is a new day (again), mostly prompted by my checking my diary and discovering with horror that my next trip to the dietician is on Monday - a mere 5 days away.

I can tell my dietician that I've lost 1.5% of body fat, according to the machine at the gym, but no weight I'm afraid.

So the plan for the next 5 days, starting today.....
1) BREAKFAST - very important!!  I binge at lunch time if I don't eat breakfast.
2) DRINK - lots of liquid. This helps with digestion, as well as making you cope with gym better.
3) GYM - missed this morning (lazy!) but committed to Friday and Monday. Should be doing at least three times per week.
4) No Doritos!!!!!!!!! This is important.  I went shopping yesterday and bought Vita Snacks, for heaven's sake. What is my life becoming??
5) Try to eat for one instead of for two.  (aka When the meal is for 4, put half away before you start eating)
6) Low GI everything. Do not even look at anything high GI or it may become fat by osmosis.
7) VEGGIES - lots of low GI veggies - green, white or yellow, never orange.

Well, 5 days is my record, so let's see if I can beat it.

Bitter Sweet

Yes, I know, I am meant to be blogging at least twice a week!!  Who has the time?

Well, after a 4 days of very very good eating habits and then 3 days of very very bad eating, I discover the following today at....wait for it.... gym!

1) I have not put on any weight - sweet! 
2) I have not lost any weight - not so sweet.
3) I can in fact get up in the morning and go to gym!
4) I can even walk to gym (2km downhill) and not pass out on the way back (2km uphill)!
5) I must I must I must try to stick to my eating plan!

So, my aim for the next 7 days, starting today, is to stick to my eating plan, go walk to gym 3 times, and drink loads of liquid (and ginger tea) to get rid of that puffy feeling.

Here goes.....

The wonders of Ginger Tea!

Well, I had fully intended to blog every day, but I'm not really sure what happened to the last week.  But today is yet another new day, and I'm feeling good about it.

I started the day late - 05h00 instead of the usual 04h00 - but started quietly with some Ginger Rooibos tea which I am still sipping.  I guess that is a lot healthier than coffee, and I went off coffee yesterday. Don't know if this will be permanent, or whether because of the large quantity of allergy meds affecting my taste, but I looked at my cup of coffee and wondered why I was drinking it.  Now I drink my coffee with milk and sugar, and my Rooibos tea with nothing, so already my cup is healthier, even before I added a couple of slices of fresh ginger.

Ginger, by the way, helps with circulation issues, and digestion.  And apparently helps soothe morning sickness, something I know absolutely nothing about.

So I need to put on an egg to boil, and start getting ready for the day.  Eggs for breakfast today, as I was so full of sinus yesterday I could not stomach my normal breakfast shake and went to work with one plain provita. Today, I must to better!  Breakfast is important.

Have a good day.

A new day

Well, despite my good intentions yesterday, the day was a disaster food-wise.  Breakfast went well, and then the rest was a disaster.  Note to self: When you are starting a new eating plan, DON"T park near the food court in a shopping centre.  *sigh*

Anyway, rather than dwell on the past... today is a new day.

I started with the same breakfast as yesterday:

3 provitas, one hard boiled egg mashed with a teaspoon of low fat mayo, three slices of tomato and a sliced gherkin.  And of course, my morning cup of coffee - with a dash of low fat milk, and ONE level spoon of sugar (as opposed to the usual two heaped).  I cannot stand sweeteners, so am simply cutting down on the sugar.

I was about to have my second cup of coffee for the day, but my sister, Sam, phoned and said she's coming round later, so Andrew will make filter coffee then.  I'm giving myself two cups of coffee per day, so saving my second for the "real stuff".  Instead, I have a large glass of Low Cal Oros.

Despite Sam saying she would bring something nice for tea, I have great expectations for the day - anything will be better than yesterday, and I am feeling emotionally strong enough to make GOOD CHOICES today.  Hmmm.

Anyway, the Low Cal brings me to the question of liquid intake. I hate water - it is after all, just a mixer.  I can't have more than a few sips of water at a time.  My admin assistant Melissa has a 500ml bottle of water in her car.  She fills it up in the morning and on the way to work she drinks at every traffic light, and makes sure the bottle is empty by the time she arrives at work. She then does the same on the way home - and takes in one liter of water per day this way.  I don't have this opportunity, as work is around 7 steps away from home - 8 or 9 steps if you're not quite awake.  So how to take in this dreaded water stuff?  With Low Cal. With Rooibos Tea.  I was told once, that consuming any low calorie drink is the same as consuming water. So I take in my water with Low Cal and the odd cup of Rooibos Tea infused with a slice or two of Ginger (which aids circulation).  This I can drink.  Water on it's own, I think not.

And that is my two cents for today.  Have a good one.  I'll report on my progress again soon.

Uninspired

A very uninspiring breakfast this morning... hard boiled egg mashed with teaspoon of low fat mayo, on 3 provitas with slices of tomato and gherkin to top it off.

I will need to make more effort with lunch.  I also need to find out how to add photos to my new blog!

According to Andrew the "diet" should start tomorrow as he is not ready.  But while I flip through loads of healthy recipe books (feeling hungry), I feel I must start now, as tomorrow never gets here, no matter what your intentions are.  So I have started

Why Change?

Why change now when I haven't changed in the past?

I suppose I have to blame my family history and awful blood test results on that. Recently I went for a batch of tests, none of which gave excellent results.

I have about 35 kgs to lose. My cholesterol test was on the "high end of normal range", when a couple of years ago it was really excellent - well below normal. My glucose test showed that I was on the road to Diabetes, but not quite there yet.  So basically, change my habits and I might be diagnosed as Diabetic in 20 years (old age onset like the rest of my family), or don't change my habits and be diagnosed in 5 years.

So that's where I am at the moment. The logical side of me is screaming Change Now! and the emotional side of me is just quietly screaming.

Getting Started

I decided to reinvent myself today.  I have abandoned my old blog and started a new one. I have also abandoned myself as I was.  I am no longer an unhealthy overweight person with no energy. I am a healthy, fit person just waiting to prove it.

I have talked about losing weight, getting healthy and getting fit for years. I am not starting tomorrow. I am starting today, now, this minute. No more excuses.

As my mom often says, I know all the rules about what to eat when, so why am I not following them. Today I have the opportunity to do just that - follow the rules, make healthy choices, one meal at a time.

I hope that publishing my journey here will inspire others to follow in my footsteps.