Sugar challenge Day 1

The dietician was happy with my progress yesterday - a loss of about 3.5 kilos in 4 weeks.
I'm happy with that too and can see how this slower weight loss and new way of eating, could eventually lead to goal.
I don't feel like I'm on a diet (perhaps because I've been cheating a little but also because I have the odd glass of wine) and generally feel good.
It just makes me wonder how much better I could have done if I hadn't eaten all the sugar that has slipped in there.

Yesterday, after the appointment with her I had a sugar binge, the same as after the last appointment. I don't know whether it is just a reward thing that I don't want to get into the habit of doing or whether it is just a deeply ingrained behaviour.
I was definitely hungry but mostly because it was time to eat.
I went straight to the shop and bought two millefeuilles (custard slices?) and a pack of three skinny toblerone bars. I ate these around my healthy dinner of salmon and veg. Plus two glasses of wine....well it was a bank holiday here yesterday....me? excuses?

Anyway, so here's my plan. My next dietician appointment is in a week and a half (25th) and in between now and then I have two weekends, to include my sister's wedding in the Uk - think booze, food and more importantly cake.
With the exception of perhaps the cake, I plan not to eat any sugar between now and then.
I think this is going to be hard but I'll definitely write how I get on here.

Mini binge

I've been following the dietician's suggestions for nearly three weeks now and this morning I was thinking I hadn't binged for those three weeks. Yes, I have snacked unecessarily on chocolate and other sugary treats but no bingeing.
Then I remembered this morning, a mini-binge I had after the dietician's appointment last week. I had been working in Monaco all day which was quite stressful and had started thinking about sugary treats when the Dairy Milk was wheeled out after lunch. Conscious I couldn't have any before seeing the dietician, I resisted. My thoughts moved on to millefeuille cakes and by the time I was driving towards her house (some 6 hours later), I just knew I was going to try and find something suitable after the appointment.
I found mini almond tarts (think Bakewell tarts without the icing) in a 6 pack and ater four in the car. The remaining two got munched when the boy went down to the car for something and I didn't even feel sick!
Strange how this got shoved away and forgotten about so quickly.

I guess this isn't so bad compared to times past. I'm not supposed to be eating sugar or white flour, so in that sense it was bad. Plus it was that whole thing where I get something in my head and it doesn't leave until I satisfy it - even when the thing I obtain isn't the same as what I was craving in the first place.

This week seems much better. My eating has been cleaner (not yet perfect) and I am feeling positive and determined today.

This morning I was still 85.5kg (13 stone 5lbs) which I guess isn't bad considering the boozy weekend in the Dam and the mini-binge.
I have one more week to try and shift some more off....fingers crossed.

D(ietician)-Day

So last Thursday, I finally met up with the dietician that I've been going on about. She ended up coming to the office after work as both our cars have broken down at the moment.
Despite shutting all the doors to my office, she seemed to be shouting out lots of embarrassing facts about weight loss, that made me cringe thinking my two bosses could hear in the office next door. Particularly as I had told my boss that I needed the office to meet up with a trainer about running the Great North Run half marathon in September. I am actually running it but the trainer part was a complete lie.

I was pleased to know that I do make the right choices food-wise and that I actually know quite a bit about nutrition already. However I eat too much (portion sizes are an issue), drink too much wine at the weekends and generally eat too much crap at the weekends...although am good in the week.
Í learnt quite a bit and the plan seems quite flexible as such but I will be avoiding alcohol (as much as possible), white flour products and items with a high G.I.
No treats but I shouldn't feel hungry.

The meeting was not ground-breaking as such - I guess everyone hopes for some sort of miracle answer - but I am feeling reasonably determined and accepting that this is going to be a long process. The alcohol is going to be the tricky one for me and although I have just managed a wine-free weekend (highly unusual for me), I feel there will be challenges ahead in this department.
I like the idea of the accountability and feel like I need the dietician to keep on track. I have asked her to weigh me in two weeks time so we shall see.
I have pledged to see her every two weeks and have had to do some measurements. Next time, we will work on a goal...but personally I am hoping to lose at least two stone by the Great North Run - that is 5 months today. Totally do-able.

This morning I was 85.5 kilos, so the wine-free weekend seems to have paid off so far. I know I shouldn't weigh myself often - I guess once a week would be fine, but I'm so curious and sneaky peeks seem so harmless when the scale is going down....

GNR

I am running the Great North Run in September - so excited and nervous at the same time. I know I'll need to be a couple of stone lighter to do it and I'm hoping the training will help achieve this goal, along with some healthy eating and help from the dietician :)

There are 22.5 weeks to go and the Training schedule for beginners takes 12 weeks. I can already run 6/7km so need to gradually up this to 21km in order to complete the course. My biggest fear is that the training will have to take place over the summer, in temperatures of 30 degrees or so. I can see a lot of early mornings coming up to beat that heat....

I don't particularly enjoy running and I HATE the thought of going but the feeling afterwards is undeniably awesome. I look forward to my body getting stronger and hopefully smaller over time but I also know there are going to be some hard times ahead. Not only in terms of training, but also in terms of holding back on food. I hope to challenge my binge foods and find out exactly when I'm driven to eat mindlessly.

Healthy lunch destruction

Yesterday wasn't a terrible day. It wasn't a great day either but better than some I've had of late. The good was fruit breakfast, tomato bean salad with balsamic and veg curry. The bad was three chocolate biscuits (those fox's crunch cookie numbers - the devils work!) and a packet of Minstrels...damn the mothership's Easter package.

Today I was ok bar nibbling on leftover easter egg in the kitchen but then I bastardised lunch and made my tomato bean salad, a fat bastard salad by adding creme fraiche and cheese. Ugg.

In a fit of desperation, I texted the dietician and we start on Monday :)