Week 4 Challenge Wrap Up

This week of the Challenge the motto was “Confidence comes from success. Don’t give up”.  My 2 personal goals were in line with this motto, 1) Don’t doubt yourself and 2) Go hard in every training session.

My meal planning and actual food went like this.

Mon – Grilled fish with sweet potato salad
Tue – Beef and vegetable lasagne
Wed – Salmon and sweet potato
Thur – Chicken and bean enchiladas (Actual meal – homemade pumpkin soup)
Fri – Homemade Pizza
Sat – BBQ Calamari Salad (Actual meal – Homemade Pizza.)
Sun – Herb Crusted Lamb

As for my goals I was fairly confident in my meals and planning, I did, however have a couple of bouts of reflux so I didn’t feel like eating much and I struggled to eat 5-6 times a day, hence pumpkin soup instead of my planned meal. I also had to take my little man to the doctor and got myself checked whilst I was there and she diagnosed both of us with a Virus, mine was ear and sinus related and she told me to hold off exercise for a while which was tough considering my 2nd goal this week. I really had to focus on the food and not get myself down and hit the chocolate or junk (not that there is any in the house).

I took 4 days of rest and then tried to go hard with a road run which I haven’t done in about a year. I was aiming to run as much as I could of a 5k circuit, after a bit of a warm up walk I started to run and managed to continue (very slowly) for 32 minutes. My previous best post baby was 14 minutes on the treadmill, so I was pretty happy with my overall progress. I will be back to 5k non-stop running in no time.

I have been busy this weekend with my big girl having a little surgery and my meal planning for this last week of the challenge has been put out a day or 2, I did however order my groceries online and took a trip to the fruit shop and there are still no bad choices in the house. I also have a fairly severe case of OCPC Obsessive Compulsive Portion Control, I am weighing almost everything I put in my mouth. I know I won’t have to do this forever but it is great to give yourself a reality check every few months to get any overeating (even if it is good food) under control.

I’m scared but excited for my final weigh and measure this coming Thursday and I will report back with the results.

I will leave you with these wise words from the EnVie Challenge booklet:

“It’s not what you do now and then that shapes you, it is what you do every day”

Gaining Weight – The Horror Story

For the last 22 years (all of my adult life) there have been many many many attempts at losing weight. Multiple times for some things.

So I am a hoarder, especially when it comes to weight loss programs, I have drawers and cupboards full of programs. I found a few of my Weight Watchers weigh-in cards and this is where the Horror Story begins:

And here I thought I was fat.

And here I thought I was fat.

Feb-Jun 1995 (age 22)
Starting weight 87.5kg
Finish 83.1kg
Total Loss 4.4kg

Aug-Oct 1999
Starting Weight 109.2kg
Finish 106.8kg
Total Loss 2.4kg

Apr-Jul 2004
Starting Weight 108.7kg
Finish 106kg
Total Loss 2.7kg

Jun-Aug 2005
Starting Weight 129.3kg
Finish 128.1kg
Total Loss 1.2kg

1994 - One of my major horse riding acheivments competing at Sydney Royal Easter Show.

1994 – One of my major horse riding acheivments competing at Sydney Royal Easter Show.

Wow putting this down on paper has been really scary, the thought that in 10 years I put on 45kgs is horrifying considering my attempts were all to lose weight not gain it. I can see how if you average it out 4.5kg per year can just creep on and you just go up 1 size in clothes and voila 10 years later you are hitting size 24-26 and 45kg heavier.

Some other things I have tried over the years have been; Tony Ferguson (shakes), Hypnotherapy, Online weight loss, a variety of other shake programs, Dietician, The Biggest Loser Club, the Cabbage Soup diet, Calorie counting, low carb, no-carb, Light ‘n’ Easy and Sure Slim. These are just the memorable one’s, memorable because all of them were epic fails. I will admit now that it was never the plan or program that I was on that was a failure, it was all me. I could never stick to anything for any decent length of time or I would be the Weekday Angel and Weekend Devil. Basically all of my adult life I have been on 1 diet or another. Monday “Begin Again Girl”, that’s me.  

I was every Gym’s dream member, signing up so many times and then not attending, I have bought fitness equipment off late night Infomercials that later got sold in a garage sale or didn’t sell and therefore the Ab Sculpter is still under my stairs 15 years later.

At my blossoming best.

At my blossoming best.

I had an epiphany (just now) as to what key factor happened in 1995 to start the uphill weight climb, in 1995 I sold my beloved horse, I had ridden horses since I was about 9 and competed at a fairly decent level. So going cold turkey on the only exercise I had every really known I would say played a big part in my weight gain.  

Not to mention I had my driver’s licence and fast food outlets were booming and popping up conveniently (with a small detour) on my way home from work.

So all these years later I may have just discovered where my Horror Story began, do you know what triggered your weight gain and how successful have your weight loss plans been?

Here I am the fat funny person.

Here I am at my heaviest (excluding pregnancy) still the fat funny person.