The Body Confidence Program - Week 6 & 7!

Apologies for missing a week - what can I say? My organisational skills are below par! I have had two good weeks though and this post is all about positivity to balance out last weeks miserableness; I reduced by 3 inches in week 5 and 4.25 inches in week 6 which gives me a total reduction so far of 29.5 inches!!! This is absolutely incredible and here are the good things I have noticed and positive changes I have made while on the program:

• Clothes that were previously tight and uncomfortable are now looser and much more comfortable.
• I have voluntarily exercised at last once a week, sometimes two, for the last few weeks. I aim to increase to three sessions a week but this is already such an improvement on before and highlights the increase in my energy levels.
• I rarely crave sweet things and often pick nuts and fruit as a snack even on treat days!
• I am now happy to eat the last meal of the day and then not eat again until the morning - I had got in the habit of always having something sweet after dinner and then picking at snack food until bedtime.

I have two weeks left on the program so I need to stay focused and keep going all the way to the end. I plan to get back to using the meal planner as I have been making up my own meals from the food list, My main goal now though is to actually be nice to myself and be proud of what I have achieved without letting my negative internal dialogue win and set me on my usual self destructive dieting cycle!

The Body Confidence Program - Week 5.

I had a much better week than I expected and lost 5.25 inches, giving me a total reduction of 22.25 inches at the halfway point. I am obviously delighted by this but I am also feeling a bit low this week for these reasons:

1. I have lost more inches than the program promises but I certainly haven't lost any dress sizes. My clothes feel like they fit better but I am not going to fit in a smaller size any time soon.
2. I don't feel any different,no one has said that I look any different and I can't see much difference in the pics I took to compare with the start. I guess I just set unrealistic expectations for how I would look by the time I had lost 16 inches.
3. The number on the scales hasn't changed at all. I know that Ru-Tee doesn't like you to weigh yourself until the end of the 8 weeks but it is a hard habit to break for me - I have managed to limit myself to one weigh a week though which is a great improvement. I was just hoping to have lost actual weight by now, especially as I have 8 stone to lose, there is no way that I will drop dress sizes without losing weight.

So all in all I am going into week 5 feeling very unmotivated - I will need to sort my head out, and quickly if I am to avoid throwing away my good work up to this point.

(Apologies for no pics - technical issues I'm afraid!)

The Body Confidence Program - Week 4

Week 3 has been my most difficult on the program so far. I have returned to work and got a dental abscess which has greatly reduced the types of food I could eat- anything cold was too much for my already sensitive teeth. I picked at off plan foods on everyday because I wasn't sticking to the eating every 4 hours rule so my blood sugars were fluctuating and I was drawn to easy, sugary foods. But, after saying all that I still reduced by 3 inches! My total after 3 weeks is 17 inches so I am looking at week 4 as a new week, no more rubbish excuses.

I am becoming a little disheartened that even though I have reduced by the 16 inches the program promises I am not feeling any different. I am definitely not 2 dress sizes smaller, I suspect this is because I am much bigger than the average program user so have much more to lose. I think I will do an interim before and after picture at the end of week 4 to try and spot the differences.

I have purchased a treadmill - or a run-miller as Casper calls it! I have started the couch to 5k program using an app on my phone and it hasn't been too awful so far...so it is all positive and I must have more energy because I wouldn't have managed to motivate myself to even try a few weeks ago.

The Body Confidence Program- Week 3

So, this post is rather late because of night shifts and dental abscesses! But at the end of week 2 I have reduced by 10 inches!!! TEN FREAKING INCHES! Understandably I am very pleased, but I am getting impatient that my clothes don't really feel any different yet, but as The Man keeps telling me - just keep going, it's all going in the right direction.

I have been enjoying the food and am even eating tomatoes - I have hated tomatoes my whole life! I have struggled more to be really strict with the rules which is an ongoing pattern with me and diets, so I need to try really hard to keep my head in the game going in to week 3.

My other goal this week was to get more exercise in to my life. So Casper and I have been on some lovely walks when it has been sunny and I have purchased a treadmill for rainy days. I have noticed that my energy levels have been improving but I am unsure if this is because I have been on annual leave so haven't worked a night shift for two weeks....

I am back to work this week so I will have to up my organisation game to ensure I stick to the meal plan and don't slip back into bad habits. Wish me luck!

The Body Confidence Program - Week 2

So I've reached the end of week 1 on The Body Confidence Program, and I am very pleased to report that I have lost 4 inches in total! The weekly goal is 2 inches a week so I am very pleased with 4. I now need to keep focused into week 2, I often manage to be really good for the first week of a diet, have good results then let it all slip for the second week.

I have generally found the first week easy - I haven't felt hungry or really craved sweet things. The food has all been delicious and simple to prepare, although I do feel a bit like all I do is shop for food, prepare food and cook food - I'm hoping that this will feel like less of a chore as the weeks go on! What I particularly like is that it is all food that the whole family can eat, I just add a carbohydrate for The Man and HC. When I have done diets like The Cambridge Diet I get quite miserable because I am only drinking milkshakes while everyone else has proper food, so it is nice to still feel normal, and not having to cook food that I'm not going to eat - there really is nothing worse!

Things to work on for next week:

• Keep drinking enough water - I find plain water very boring and struggle to drink a lot of it. I would usually add some squash to it, but this is not allowed on this plan, so I just need to put my big girl pants on and get on with it! 
• Try to do some exercise - I have been very unmotivated with this for a long time now.
• Get organised with my food prep as I go back to work next week - I have had 2 weeks annual leave. If I am to be successful I will need to make sure I have prepared all my meals the day before a shift.
• Don't let treat day affect the days either side of it! I find myself thinking at 8pm the day before "well, I'll be eating this tomorrow, so why not now?" and at 8am the day after "I ate this yesterday, it will be OK to eat it now too..." 
• Keep a check on my 65% protein/35% everything else proportions. It is easy to pile the plate high with all the veg! 

The Body Confidence Programme - Week 1

So, on Saturday I started an eight week diet and lifestyle programme called The Body Confidence Program. It is basically involves a gluten and dairy free meal plan - which has helpfully been devised by Ru-Tee who has loads of relevant experience. There are also rules designed to instill healthy habits such as getting enough sleep and drinking enough water. The course costs £450 for 8 weeks of daily email support and a weekly phone call along with the meal plan and resources in the members area of the website - I have been lucky enough to be offered a free place in return for regular blog entries. So here we go!

I was really excited to start and the meal plan came through on the Wednesday before we stared which put many of my fears to bed - Would it be complicated? Would I like the food? Would I be hungry? The most exotic ingredients so far are a pea protein powder and coconut oil, both of which I purchased before hand via Amazon for a reasonable price. The meals are all super simple to prepare and cook and the menu has been thoughtfully arranged so as to use up leftovers. The food is also so filling, I can honestly say that I have not been hungry even once in the last 2 days - infact at least one I have had to make my self eat so as to avoid big gaps between meals - one of the tips to stabilise your blood sugar levels through the day. But most importantly the meals are so tasty, even The Man and Casper have willingly ate them!

Things I am finding easy:

• Eating yummy, fresh food.
• Preparing and cooking the meals.
• Drinking lots of water.

Things I am struggling with:

• Going to bed early - night shifts really ruin a sensible routine.
• Not eating after 7pm - I often don't get home from work until 8.30, also night shifts are an issue again. I plan to bring this up at next week's conference call.
• Chewing my food 35 times - you really wouldn't believe how hard this is when you have been used to rushing meals and not concentrating on eating! I am getting better but it will definitely take some practice.

Little Party Parcels Review

A couple of weeks ago we were sent a box full of products from Little Party Parcels to try and review. They are a company that sells pre-filled party bags as well as items to put in party bags if you'd rather pick your own.

There is a huge range of party bag fillers to suit every budget- they range from 4p for sweets to £7.50 for a magic set. There are toys, games, craft and construction kits and lots more to choose from - I'm certain that you could find something to please even the most discerning kids (and parents)! Included in our box was a set of pick up sticks (90p) and a metal pencil case (90p) which I think is very good value. I particularly like that you can buy the exact amount that you want instead of packs of 5 which often leaves you with lots of leftovers. Obviously you get what you pay for and some of the cheaper items seem like they wouldn't stand up to much wildness - but I personally don't expect expensive items in a party bag so it's entirely up to you how much you want to spend and what items you think your crowd would enjoy.

You can also purchase pre-filled bags, which are also very reasonably priced and range to suit all tastes, ages and budgets (60p - £2.90 per bag).Some arrived already packed in sealed cellophane party bags; others came packaged with paper bags which you need to fill yourself - I actually prefer the paper bags - they look and feel a better quality than the cellophane ones. If you are short on time or inspiration these are great, and there's still enough room for a slice of cake in the bags too! You can purchase empty bags as well, it really is a one stop shop for party bags - no more rushing around the local shops at the last minute!

Casper particularly liked the construction kit- he loves anything involving tools and this came with a screwdriver and a spanner! Under supervision and with a lot of assistance we completed the crane, the whole activity kept him interested for quite a long time - a real achievement! The sweets were also a hit!!!

The products came well packaged and in perfect condition. P&P is £3.95 or free over £30, delivery was quick and also trackable if necessary. Little Party Parcels comes highly recommended from me, I can't think of any where that provides such a good choice for party bags. They also do a range of wedding activities and bags which I shall definitely be looking at if we ever get married!