Let's lose a bit of weight.....

[donnakebab]

I'm going to join in guys. Want to loose some weight before I have knee surgery which should be in a couple of months or so. Target to loose is 10lb+

Start weight 10st. Should be able to achieve that.

[Jax]

ok so I really need to join in with you guys. I am at 11st 10lbs Hopefully it will help with my back. My doc has told me absoloutley no excercise so that will make it harder. Any suggestions welcome as I dont know where to start. I lost about 3 stone 2 years ago on the colon cleansing diet, the trouble is as soon as I get down to eat I have a stored up bank of food I am dying to eat. So I am planning on healthy eating through the week and allowing myself a treat at weekends? Whether that is a good idea or not I dont know but I reckon that way I wont crave the naughty food as much.

[Hazel at the Hill]

ok so I really need to join in with you guys. I am at 11st 10lbs Hopefully it will help with my back. My doc has told me absoloutley no excercise so that will make it harder. Any suggestions welcome as I dont know where to start. I lost about 3 stone 2 years ago on the colon cleansing diet, the trouble is as soon as I get down to eat I have a stored up bank of food I am dying to eat. So I am planning on healthy eating through the week and allowing myself a treat at weekends? Whether that is a good idea or not I dont know but I reckon that way I wont crave the naughty food as much.

Well, each of us is different, Jax, and anything you do would have to be under the dr's supervision because of your back, I think. I'd go back and ask him if (a) stretches or (b) swimming were allowed as I think that both of those will increase your mobility and help your back probs.

Of course not lugging around those extra pounds will make you feel much better, as you say. With regard diet - are you the sort who can eat a treat (biscuit etc) and then leave it at that, or do you have to demolish the packet? Although a little of what you fancy does you good, I'm so keen on butter (with everything) that I am safest without it in the house at all to keep temptation out of the way. Rosemary Conley says that your tastes change and you re-educate your palate and butter will just taste greasy - but this is a lie, in my view.

I think if I were you, before I started on anything faddy, I'd keep a food diary of all you eat in a week and that might point out 'easy' areas for you to cut down. My glaring example of excess used to be a slice of bread and butter (or so) as I cooked dinner as I was sooooo hungry. Now I try not to wait till I'm starving before putting my pinny on, so there's less chance of me snacking.

It might be a case of just cutting down your meal sizes by 10%. Use a smaller plate and you will fool your brain - it won't know you're not having the same portion size as before.

Mind you, with portion sizes, what doesn't help is that the 'norm' meat portion has gone up since I was a lass - a chicken breast is a portion, or a pork chop, but they weight 6-8oz now and it used to be 4oz. A pound of mince used to feed a family of four in a cottage pie, but that looks really measly by today's standards - and 'a pound of mince' in a pack is actually 500g which is a 10% increase in quantity too.

I also find that if I am keeping a food diary on this thread is useful, I am less inclined to stray if I have to account to the world at large - although it bores the pants off everyone else. Tough!

Good luck to all who have a bit of weight to shift - let's raise a glass (of water) to good health!

[Ananke]

Thought i'd come in and join you

I hadn't planned to try and lose any weight until i'd been off the cigs for a few months but I could feel the pounds piling on again and I'm quite overweight as it is. So I started using a website called calorie count and have a limit of 1500 calories a day to work with. It was really hard getting into it and I chucked it in after a day or two but went back to it 2 weeks ago and stuck with it. Weighed in today 8lbs down so over the moon wi that

I've not had a chance to read though some of the posts on this thread yet but it's good to have somewhere to come where you can relate to others on the same road.

[donnakebab]

[QUOTE=Hazel at the Hill;954054

Mind you, with portion sizes, what doesn't help is that the 'norm' meat portion has gone up since I was a lass - a chicken breast is a portion, or a pork chop, but they weight 6-8oz now and it used to be 4oz. A pound of mince used to feed a family of four in a cottage pie, but that looks really measly by today's standards - and 'a pound of mince' in a pack is actually 500g which is a 10% increase in quantity[/QUOTE]

When I got married 1975 the normal meat portion for a meal was recommended to be 4oz. I think we eat too much meat generally and given the cost of it I try to make it go as far as possible. For example more veg on the plate (not necessarily potato though). We are a family of 3 adults now and a medium chicken can provide a Sunday roast and a curry, hearty soup or pasta bake the next day. I bought 2 packs of 500 gram steak mince the other day but I've split them into 4 packs before freezing. They will make a chilli con carne, a cottage pie, a lasagne or spag bol and a stew (OH likes stew made with mince like his mother used to make. He was one of 9). All you have to do is bulk the recipes up with more onion, grated carrot, grated parsnip, pearl barley, lentils, beans, tinned tomatoes, peppers, mushrooms...the list is endless, it just depends on what you are making. This way you are cutting down the fat and calories and increasing your ability to achieve your 5 a day .

Last night we had home made carrot and coriander soup with cheese on whole grain toast. I called it that but the soup actually had carrot, parsnip, swede, marrow and onion in it. (Yes I still have marrows left from my lottie). So no meat at all.

[Hazel at the Hill]

Here we go, then...

Week 1, Day 1

Breakfast: special k
Lunch: 2 x bacon, 1 x egg, mushrooms
Dinner: skinny bolognase & pasta

Extras: cups of tea throughout the day, 1 biscuit, 1 pt bitter

Exercise: run 3.4km, Rosemary Conley toning exercises

[Hilary B]

I usually add Bulgar wheat to mince recipes. It makes the mince go further, has virtually no fat, and you never notice the difference, because once it has absorbed the liquid from cooking the mince and onions, it has the same texture as mince, and some of the taste. I also always include carrot and other veg in the 'meat' layer of a cottage pie, so I can use half the mince to give much the same overall impression. Can't give a quantity guide, I do it 'by eye'.

If I have time I cook the meat with onion etc until the fat runs out, then drain it through a seive, let the liquid get cold and the fat lifts off, put the rest of the liquid back in and use that to soak the bulgar (cous cous would probably work just as well).
The other advantage is that it soaks up the liquid.
I then use Clapshot instead of mashed spud for the topping, equal weights of swede and potato, cooked thouroughly and mashed together, just as filling as mashed spud, but a good deal lower in calories, and doesn't need anything added apart from seasoning (I use lots of freshly ground balck pepper), but a dribble of skimmed milk doesn't hurt.
The bulgar trick works as well for spag-bol.

[Mikey]

Tonight is a good night for me, its the last night before weigh in, so I tend to do a little extra exercise on the bike, about 2 hours, as opposed to 1 1/2.

Tonight on the telly we have Supersized v Superskinny, followed by The Biggest Loser. Thats perfect exercise tv in my opinion. PMA.

[Jardiniere]

i've not posted on this thread before ..but I have lost over one stone over the last three months just by cutting out most carbohydrates and drinking less wine.There was a small blip at Xmas and when I had surgery in January but otherwise a constant loss of a few ounces a week....i hope to reach my target weight (not saying what that is)by July as long as I am not diverted by radiotherapy (starting next week) and medication starting in April.
Just thought I'd share.......

[Hazel at the Hill]

I usually add Bulgar wheat to mince recipes. It makes the mince go further, has virtually no fat, and you never notice the difference, because once it has absorbed the liquid from cooking the mince and onions, it has the same texture as mince, and some of the taste.

That's a good idea! I've never used bulgar wheat before - do you get it in the 'pulses' section in the supermarket, and do you have to soak overnight or anything like that?

[Hazel at the Hill]

Thought i'd come in and join you

I hadn't planned to try and lose any weight until i'd been off the cigs for a few months but I could feel the pounds piling on again and I'm quite overweight as it is. So I started using a website called calorie count and have a limit of 1500 calories a day to work with. It was really hard getting into it and I chucked it in after a day or two but went back to it 2 weeks ago and stuck with it. Weighed in today 8lbs down so over the moon wi that

Well done on both counts!

[Madasafish]

Over the past 4 weeks upped my weekly running mileage from 15 to 20 miles (running every second day).

Lost 2kgs.

Eat as usual although I have cut back a little on choccie biscuits..to one a day.

[Sprocket*]

Hey I need to join this thread, and have found my inspiration. I was diagnosed with two blood clots in my lungs at the start of December after collapsing in agony on the way home from work. There were no risk factors as up until that point I was training hard up to 5 days a week and being tortured reglularly by my personal trainer, in addition to dog walking of two energetic slightly wild Spaniels. All that had to go out of the window other than gentle walks and I have gained a massive amount of weight, not helped by the fact that I had a really bad resistance to the rat Poison (warfarin). I now have to inject myself daily with another medication but I am determined to get some of the weight off before I am well enough to get exercising again. Any help appreciated but I am cutting down the portion sizes and cutting out the junk.....2 stone plus to go.

[Mikey]

I remember when the OH was on Warfarin last year, her sister (oci health) mentioned there was a much better alternative, but the doctors don't prescribe it because its more expensive. For the life of me I can't remember what its called.

You can lose weight without exercising, it just takes a little longer. I'm a big fan of non load bearing exercises, such as swimming, aqua aerobics, cycling, rather than running/jogging. Its best to do a little of something everyday if you are losing weight rather than more impact less often, as that tends to builds muscles, which is heavier than fat.

[donnakebab]

I never do running or jogging, I'm not built for it (ankles hurt) and my knee won't take it anyway. When I'm at work I do a lot of lifting and carrying, no sitting down. Used to walk daughters dog every morning but they've moved up to Warrington now. Once my knee is sorted I just want to bit fit enough to do my job, some decorating, my allotment and my garden.

I can swim but choose not to because it aggravates my exzema. Ok in the sea though but don't live anywhere near it.