Milk and potatoes? You know you want to...

Sorry folks, had a bit of writer's block recently (hence the lack of blogness) but inspiration arrived on my doorstep recently.  When I was little, I was fascinated by a book called Everything Within that my mum had.  It's a book from around the 1920's/1930's that is packed with tips on pretty much everything (hence the name).  I loved the stuff in there about fortune telling and superstitions and the beauty tips were fascinating.  Fast forward a good few years and this wonderful book, the exact same edition as the one my mum had, crops up on ebay for 99p!  I ordered it for a bit of nostalgia and I can't put the thing down!


One thing I never noticed before were the diet tips in there.  For those not lucky enough to own this delightful read, I've included some of the gems for you:


The woman who would have a clear fresh complexion and a slender figure must remember that diet is of the greatest importance.  Nothing whatsoever should be taken between meals, and those who would lose weight should make the chief meal of the day the midday one.


Seems pretty sensible to me.


Brown bread is better than white, both for the complexion and the figure, and wholemeal is best.  Butter is not fattening, and is essential for the nervous woman.  In fact, butter is a nerve food and should not be omitted from the daily menu even when a reducing diet is taken.


OK so the bread thing is still talked about today with GI Diets and what have you but butter being essential for the nervous woman?!  What the hell?!  I must remember some Lurpak for my next job interview.


The stout woman should take tomatoes and grapefruit.  A glass of hot water, to which the juice of a lemon has been added, taken first thing in the morning in place of early tea will help.  At least a pint of hot water should be slipped before going to bed.


This one is still in use today, although I'm not sure about the obsession with tomatoes and grapefruit.


Milk and Potato Diet
This diet was at one time considered excellent for reducing, and for those whom it suits it certainly is.  It consists of taking nothing but milk and potatoes on two days a week.  The allowance is 1lb of boiled potatoes and 1 quart of milk for the whole day.


The first 1/2 pint of milk is taken at the usual breakfast hour.  The second at eleven in the morning.  The third is taken at lunch with 1lb of potatoes, boiled and eaten without butter.  The last 1/2 pint is taken at six in the evening.  Nothing whatsoever may be taken on the milk and potato days except what has been mentioned.  On other days, the usual foods are permitted, omitting those regarded as flesh forming.


Milk and potatoes?!  Really?!  Who knew?


There is no doubt whatsoever, that the most fattening meal is the one taken in the evening, and it is becoming more and more the rule with women who are keen on reducing to have only a light meal of eggs, cheese and fruit at night.


Interesting.  Eggs cheese and fruit for tea?  At once?  What a culinary delight.


All spirits, sweet wines and cocktails, and beers and stout must be avoided by those eager to lose weight.  Lemon and water, or lemon squash may be taken but best of all drinks for them is plain water from the tap.


Damn, I'll have to give up my evening pint of stout (do women drink that?  They were lushes in those days from the sounds of things!)


The latest slimming diet from Hollywood consists of hard-boiled eggs and tomatoes.  For this 3 days are set apart on which the chief meal of the day consists of 2 hard boiled eggs and 2 tomatoes.  This is the midday meal.  The tomatoes and eggs are eaten without condiments of any kind, with a little rye bread and butter.  For breakfast on those days, tea and a slice of thin toast is all that is allowed, and for the evening meal only fruit such as grapefruit, apples or a couple of tomatoes.  No afternoon tea is allowed.  This diet has been found to be very successful, and has the advantage that on other days, anything that is fancied may be taken


This is amazing.  Comforting to know that first of all, Hollywood has always been full of wacky ideas and secondly, I can have anything I fancy on the other days!  Surely that is a comfort after living on egg and tomato for 3 days.  No?  Oh.


It's interesting to see that despite all the stuff in the media these days about, ironically, the media being responsible for making women obsessed with their appearance, it's completely untrue.  The stuff in this book is immensely crazy and it's nearly 100 years old!  I love it though.  It's endearing.


Coming up soon...old school guide to exercise.  You don't want to miss it!

"The Wobble"

Nope, not wobbly bits, the wobble everyone has now and again.  Am I good enough?  Can I do this?  It doesn't even have to be a wobble about weight loss, it can be about work, relationships - almost anything.  I'm quite confident that everyone has it, no matter how thin, successful or happy they may be.


The last 2 weeks have seen me suffer from "the wobble".  I've no idea why or anything like that but all I know is that I'm no longer losing weight and I'm sabotaging all the progress I made by eating crap and not bothering with going to the gym anymore.  I think it's a panic reaction but at least now I know the signs I can make sure it doesn't happen again.  February has been a rubbish month for weight loss it really has.  I'm actually back in the 15s again when I was hoping to be out of the 14s (the other side though!) this month.  I have one week left so as long as I don't finish in the 15s I'll be happy with that.  Not ecstatic don't get me wrong, but happy.  Current weight, sigh, is:

15st 1lbs

  

 It's always good to treat yourself now and again and my new rule is that treats will not be food related.  To cheer myself up, I decided to get a new haircut and some new clothes and I must say, the effects of that far outweigh the happiness of tucking into a Big Mac.  I've had loads of comments at work about how different I love and it's really boosted my confidence.  Non-food treats are definitely the way forward.  

I've seen so many nice clothes that I would have usually dismissed outright because of my size but now I know I can do it, I'm actually using them as an incentive.  I have loads of clothes in my wardrobe, most still with tags on, that I bought with every intention of losing weight to fit in them but never did.  If I get another stone off, I have pretty much a whole new wardrobe of clothes to wear!

Went to a My Chemical Romance gig on Friday and was intrigued by the clothes everyone was wearing.  It's made me realise that I've never actually had a time in my life where I've worn what I really wanted to wear.  Well no more, I WILL wear the clothes I want to wear before I leave my twenties behind for good.  On a brighter note, the gig was ace.  Check out me and the lovely Julie in the VIP box, because that's how we roll!

That's it for now from me folks, sorry it's been a while since I've blogged.  I guess you have to be in the right frame of mind.  Remember we all have the wobble, it's how you get over it that counts.

Progress?

Well what a few weeks.  Those who know me really well will know that I'm sort of suffering after the breakdown of my relationship with my fiancé and he moves out at the end of next week so I must say that looking after myself emotionally has been more of priority than the physical side of things.  I overdid it at the gym and stuff so I've not really been able to do as much as I'd like either.  I also chickened out of weighing in on Monday!


I have weighed in since my last blog though and my current weight is...

14st 13lbs

That was 7lbs on one week.  Really chuffed with that!  Great to see so many other people who have signed up to the January challenge on Facebook doing so well too.  Looks like I'll have to get my thinking cap on for a February challenge too so that we keep this up.

Here's how I'm doing with my "goals".  Great to see one of them ticked off the list already!  I think getting back down to 14st 7lbs is one of my massive ones though.  I really need to get back there as getting out of the 14s won't seem so far away as at the moment it seems miles away.

Weight

• Get to 14st 7lbs

Fitness

• Be able to run for 5 minutes solid without stopping

Clothing

• Be able to fit into my size 16 jeans again.
• Be able to fit into my polka dot pencil skirt

Fresh Starts and Fresh Goals. General Freshness!

I can't believe I didn't post my starting weight for this year!  Last weeks weigh in saw me still being in the wrong side of the 14s but I'm determined that won't be for long.  Start weight is a whopping...

15 st 6lbs

Oh dear!  I don't weigh in until tomorrow morning but I'm quietly confident as I've been working out loads and been really good food wise.  My clothes feel looser so hopefully the scales will give me the number I want.  Aiming for 8lbs off this month.  If you're on Facebook then feel free to join Shrinking Violet's January 8lbs Challenge here to get some support and motivation as there are a few of us doing this.  Being the competitive wee soul I am, I obviously intend to lose far more than 8lbs but if I only lose that then it's better than nothing.


Of course a new year brings with it new goals.  You may remember my goals were divided into three: weight, fitness and clothing.  I intend to follow the same trend this year and actually revisit them this time.  Here are my short term ones for the time being - my long terms ones are still up for debate!


Weight

• Get to 14st 7lbs

Fitness

• Be able to run for 5 minutes solid without stopping

Clothing

• Be able to fit into my size 16 jeans again.

Yes folks, Team Lauren is back and this year I can't be stopped!

wow so much change!

Well tons has changed since my last blog.  Sadly, me and my fiance parted ways just before Christmas so the festive period hasn't been quite as festive as I would like.  We're still on speaking terms which is good but it's not the most amazing thing in the world.


This sudden development means that 2011 will be filled with even more change than I have anticipated.  Not only will I be adapting to life as a single lady, I shall be finding a new home too.  Scary but exciting at the same time I guess. 


I've been using the gym as a distraction from the crappy feelings and it's been going OK.  I plan to really step things up now, and make sure I eat right too.  I'm doing the Great Manchester Run in May and plan to be slim enough to RUN it and run in shorts!  That's a massive challenge for me!  Looking forward to it though.


Not much to report at the moment but just wait and see what I have in store for you all in January...CHALLENGE!!!  


Happy New Year to you all and thanks for your support this year


Lauren xxx

A Stitch in Time Saves...?

So you all know my trials and tribulations with my weight (when will they ever stop?!) and I know many of you are facing your own battles.  Many of you share those battles with me which is great as it's comforting to know I'm not alone.  One of my friends from work, Gaynor,  has been kind enough to let me share her story with you all so here it is:

Gaynor - the story so far

Gaynor's "before" pic

"After having my son, having 4 operations since his birth where I have not been able to even lift a kettle, I finally admitted defeat. 

I've tried to lose weight over the years but will totally admit that it was always half-hearted. Don't know what made me change my mind but I began to HATE what I saw when I looked in a mirror, I would either avoid them or go and cook a pizza cos of the image staring back at me. Probably the same image i'd been looking at for a long time but something made me look different. It also changed my personality as well, I no longer looked forward to going out, not only to pubs but even to peoples houses. The though of going to a big party like the O2 Awards had me in a blind panic as some of my friends well know.

My friend had had an acupuncture stitch a few weeks before, she told me that no food was off-limits and it seemed to be working so I thought I would try that. I rang Morningside Acupuncture Clinic in Hebden Bridge and got an appointment for a couple of weeks later. I was very apprehensive about it, was I wasting my money (£120 is not cheap but its 6 months Weightwatchers or Slimming World), would it hurt, would it actually work or was I just fooling myself again.

I was very surprised to find out that it didn't hurt at all, it was a very sharp shock but not painful. There are a few rules that you have to follow, Dr Landale explained them all very clearly:

1. you must rub the stitch for 30 seconds between five and 45 minutes before eating, the longer you leave it, the better

2. You need to reduce today's meal by the amount you left yesterday but you must always leave a little on the plate. Basically you eat until you feel comfortable, not stuffed but content that you have had enough

3. Take 3oz protein and one multi-vitamin with minerals each day

As I left, I was still a little apprehensive, could I follow all these rules, would I remember to rub the stitch before I ate and did I really have the willpower to actually leave food. No time to think, I couldn't start with the stitch until the next day so it was off home to pig out, eat what I wanted and to drink some cider for the last time!! (you can drink cider and lager but its advised not to as it won't work as well due to the sugar content)

I was surprised at how easy it actually was though, I weighed myself as soon as I got up the following day (Thursday) and rubbed my stitch whilst doing that. After I had had a shower and got dressed, it was 40 minutes before I was able to eat my breakfast and I was surprised at how little I could eat. This carried on with every meal. On an average day, I now have 3 small meals, porridge for breakfast, soup only for lunch and usually chicken with potatos for my evening meal. I'm not hungry enough to snack between meals. I used to take a punnet of strawberries to work every day but the tubs got smaller and smaller to the point that I have now stopped taking them.

I did start off by carrying around a little bottle of washing up liquid and occasionally squirt my food as soon as I had finished eating so that I couldn't pick!!

I now find it so so easy, i'm really surprised and really happy with the results. I weigh myself as soon as I get up on a Thursday morning (naked so there is no excuse that my clothes this week are heavier etc)

I'm pleasantly surprised with the results. So far I have lost 17lbs in 5 weeks. I still make homemade pizzas on a Saturday night (my bases have just got a lot smaller ha ha) I still go out for meals and I still have a glass of wine when I want one. My confidence seems to be a lot better and I actually feel better about myself.

I've still got a long way to go but hopefully I will carry on the way i'm going. I know that if I didn't go out for a meal, always ate healthy food only and didn't drink, I would lose weight a lot quicker but i'm only human and I now have a life again so i'm gonna live it!!"

I'm sure you're all with me when I wish Gaynor tons of luck and can't wait to check in again in a few months time.  The acupuncture stitch is by far one of the more unusual methods of weight loss and I'm really pleased it's working for her.  I may even save up for one myself!

Groundhog Day, C210K and Loser Calendars.

Well it's been a little while since I've blogged, mainly because I've been doing absolutely nothing diet and fitness related.  I mean nothing.  I'm the biggest I've ever been and not amazingly bothered which is worrying!  I do need to do something as the scales now shout at me.  I'm out of the 14s though which has been an ambition for a while, sadly it's the wrong side of the 14s.  I didn't think having a goal of getting back into the 14s would exist!  Alas, the scales read...

15st 3lbs

I've signed up for the Great Manchester Run next May and whilst I say this every year, I'm determined to actually run it this time.  So where does a girl with excess baggage, boobs and a bad knee start with training for such an event?  Well I've come across this little app (oh yes, I'm an iPhone girl now) called Couch to 10K which looks like the perfect starting point for me.  It breaks you into running gently and builds you up.  It's a 13 week programme which seems like a lot but the thought of running 50 minutes constantly seems like the impossible!


Have a look at the schedule, you may want to use something similar yourself if you fancy getting fit, or even training for a run like me...I like the first week personally, 30 seconds running is just fine for me thanks!

Schedule

Week	Day 1	Day 2	Day 3
1	Run :30, walk 4:30, 7 times.	Run :30, walk 4:30, 8 times.	Run :30, walk 4:30, 8 times.
2	Run 1:00, walk 4:00, 9 times.	Run 1:00, walk 4:00, 8 times.	Run 1:00, walk 4:00, 8 times.
3	Run 1:30, walk 3:30, 10 times.	Run 1:30, walk 3:30, 8 times.	Run 1:30, walk 3:30, 10 times.
4	Run 2:00, walk 3:00, 11 times.	Run 2:00, walk 3:00, 9 times.	Run 2:00, walk 3:00, 10 times.
5	Run 2:30, walk 2:30, 12 times.	Run 2:30, walk 2:30, 10 times.	Run 2:30, walk 2:30, 10 times.
6	Run 3:00, walk 2:00, 13 times.	Run 3:00, walk 2:00, 10 times.	Run 3:00, walk 2:00, 11 times.
7	Run 4:00, walk 2:00, 10 times.	Run 4:00, walk 2:00, 9 times.	Run 4:00, walk 2:00, 9 times.
8	Run 5:00, walk 1:00, 10 times.	Run 5:00, walk 1:00, 8 times.	Run 5:00, walk 1:00, 9 times.
9	Run 7:00, walk 2:00, 7 times.	Run 7:00, walk 2:00, 6 times.	Run 8:00, walk 2:00, 5 times.
10	Run 10:00, walk 1:00, 4 times.	Run 20:00, walk 1:00, run 20:00.	Run 22:00, walk 1:00, run 22:00.
11	Run 25:00, walk 1:00, run 25:00.	Run 30:00, walk 1:00, run 25:00.	Run 40:00, walk 1:00, run 10:00.
12	Run 45:00, walk 1:00, run 20:00.	Run 50:00, walk 1:00, run 15:00.	Run 44:00.
13	Run 50:00.	Run 40:00.	10K Run.

The great thing about this app is that you can play your music and a little voice interrupts and says "run now" when you need to run and "walk now" when you need to walk.   No more clock watching (that was why I've given up before, I just couldn't bear seeing how much running I had left to do)

screenshot of C210K app

So the app looks like the above on your iPhone, and the best part is, you get to play your own music!  Usually these things involve listening to some awful dancy type music with bleeps when you're supposed to change your speed.  With this you can train along to whatever you fancy.  Metallica, Paramore and Foo Fighters make up the majority of my C210K playlist.


I've been paying for the gym now for 2 months and I've been once.  Appalling.  I sat and thought about why I don't go and various reasons came up such as "I'm tired", "I don't have the time" etc.  Yet I have the time to sit and watch garbage telly.  I have the motivation to go to the MacDonalds Drive Thru.  Therefore these are not reasons at all, just excuses.  In a desperate attempt to force myself to go, I've started scheduling it into my calendar, the same way I operate at work.  Geekiness rules.

My geeky calendar!

Wish me luck folks.  Again.