Radical life change needed!

[MarieAnne]

angeljenny - I'm so excited for you, good luck! I highly recommend The Heart Scan Blog for diet and nutrition information. Low carb is the way to go! I've never felt better and it cleared up my skin Be careful of protein shakes; make sure you get the low carb variety and you mix them with water. Did you know that very dark chocolate is low carb? My favourite treat!

As for exercise I love BeachBody. Their website is free and offers tons of support. The workout dvds they sell are fantastic. Let me know if you join the website, we can be workout buddies. Yay, for accountability:eusa_clap!!

Another fantastic, considerably cheaper option is www.bodyrock.tv. Access is free, the workouts are short and they are done at home with simple equipement. Just pick any workout, based on the equipment you have. On days that I am pressed for time, I do a bodyrock workout instead of P90X.

 

[angeljenny]

angeljenny - I'm so excited for you, good luck! I highly recommend The Heart Scan Blog for diet and nutrition information. Low carb is the way to go! I've never felt better and it cleared up my skin Be careful of protein shakes; make sure you get the low carb variety and you mix them with water. Did you know that very dark chocolate is low carb? My favourite treat!

As for exercise I love BeachBody. Their website is free and offers tons of support. The workout dvds they sell are fantastic. Let me know if you join the website, we can be workout buddies. Yay, for accountability:eusa_clap!!

Another fantastic, considerably cheaper option is www.bodyrock.tv. Access is free, the workouts are short and they are done at home with simple equipement. Just pick any workout, based on the equipment you have. On days that I am pressed for time, I do a bodyrock workout instead of P90X.

Just subscribed to The Heart Scan blog - looks interesting!

I will have a look on the exercise site too. Accountability would probably be a good thing for me!

I have dusted (and it really needed dusting! :shocked the Wii and Wii fit board and found my weights (tiny pink ones!) and exercise DVDs. I have Tracy Anderson which I like, a Jillian Michaels one which I don't really have room to do and a kettlebell one which I bought on sale and never used!

Back to work tomorrow which may be a little stressful as everyone is so interested in what each other is eating and people comment a lot. Part of working in an office of mostly women!

 

[Viola]

Water, water, water. It really does help with hunger pangs and you feel much better. Also, lots of veggies. It really helps me, because I don't eat that much junk, I just have issues with portion control. But nobody ever got fat from spinach, or broccoli, or pretty much any vegetable. I DO count calories, but I don't count green veggies' calories - as long as I haven't put butter/dressing on them.

I also like green tea with stevia, which is a natural herbal sweetener. I admit I will also use Equal or even Sweet N Low, in a pinch, though natural food people get really peeved about that.

This has been a weird year and I have to get back on the diet/fitness bandwagon so I am cheering for you and also getting a bit of inspiration for myself.

But, I gotta say, I don't like your books.

According to the first I should be a hundred lbs even. (Well, I haven't measured my wrists but let's carry on) Which I haven't weighed since I was ten. Before you just write me off as an embittered butterball, I was a size 3-4 last year and I was still 127 lbs then, at the lowest, which peeved me mightily from a vanity standpoint but suggests that getting down to 100 would be rather extreme. Some willowy women are built quite lightly, but that's not a function of height.

Now, I know I tend to skew somewhat heavy for my measurements.. My point is I don't think 100 lbs. is purely a mechanic of height, but also build. I am short but not a waif, even when I am lean and mean.

The second book - is that in foundation garments, or naturally? I could buy 22 inches as assisted by a girdle/spanx/what-have-you. But I think it doesn't adjust well for figure. Also I had a bust "over my limit" when I was 12 (I'm a 36D at this stage of my life) and if I suddenly had a 33 inch bust NOW I guarantee you that light you'd see on the horizon would be my husband burning that author's house down.

 

[djd]

Those 'ideal weight' charts are nonsense. I think at 6 foot I should weigh about 12 stone. I did used to weigh 12 stone and that was really skinny! I've weighed as much as 16.5 which would put me in the obese category... At 16.5 my bofyfat was still around 12% and the rest was muscle. Bf percentage is a much better guide than simple weight but you need to measure this properly rather than have it guessed by a simple BMI calculation. Muscle weighs a lot more than the same volume of fat. That's why it's better to judge by how you look in the mirror, whether your waist is getting bigger or smaller and how your clothes fit

 

[Idledame]

Viola, as for whether you can get fat on vegies, my dad used to say, "ANYTHING can make you fat if you eat enough of it...look at cows: all they eat is grass!"

On a weight loss show a while back the doctor said he had a patient who couldn't understand why he wasn't losing weight because instead of his high fat snacks he was having a 10 lb bag of oranges every day. So maybe my dad was right.

 

[W-D Forties]

Can I make a suggestion angeljenny? DON'T DIET! Start counting those calories and you will end up miserable and obsessed.

Start eating lots of fruit and veg, don't worry about anything else, if you are eating tons of fruit and veg you will naturally end up eating less cr*p. Ditch those diet shakes, would you really want to eat/drink one of those normally? No. Drink lots of water. Walk more and as djd suggests, find an exercise you really enjoy, zumba, bellydancing, whatever. Don't weigh yourself, ever. What the scales say doesn't matter, it's how you feel and look that does.

A friend of mine did the LighterLife thing. It was gruelling, expensive and she was miserable. She lost shedloads of weight, looked haggard, and put most of it back on when she stopped. If you are contantly 'watching' what you eat you will be unhappy, the aim surely is to not have to think about it, so keep it simple. Make lots of healthy home made food and freeze what you don't need so you don't need to resort to takeaways when you're too tired to cook.

The Paul McKenna book 'I can make you thin' also has some good, commonsense advice about lifestyle and food. Sorry for going on, but I really feel strongly that dieting is the road to ruin and having to think that much about what you can and can't eat can't be a good thing!

Very best of luck!

 

[angeljenny]

Viola - I am upping my water intake significantly! It is super hot here so I need to anyway plus I have to drink at least 2 litres per day with the shakes.

I like meal replacement diets as I don't have to count calories! Also I am learning portion control which is a big weakness of mine.

I like the books a lot - just not the measurement and weight pages! It doesn't say of the measurements are with foundation garments or not. I love the other parts though about voice, poise and beauty.

djd - The ideal weight charts don't seem to take account for people with muscle. I am planning to just lose weight until I feel healthy and happy - that will be my ideal weight.

Day one is pretty much done - no diet slip ups at all. I didn't have much in for snacks so am shopping tomorrow for things like celery and chicken.

I walk 20 minutes to and from work, did 20 mins on the exercise bike, a bit of yoga on the Wii fit and a few exercises - too hot to do much more!

It helps that I really like the shakes and soups - they taste lovely!

 

[sheeplady]

Also I am learning portion control which is a big weakness of mine.

If you do like to eat out and have problems with portion control, I've had luck with my new strategy. When my meal comes I ask for a box (I've been known to bring bags on my own). I immediately (before I start eating) portion off half to a third of my meal into the box. Then I eat what remains on the plate. I don't wait until after I am done eating to put it in the box, because then I eat most of it. If I do that, I get too full, and I feel sick. My leftovers are my breakfast the next morning- so I get to enjoy the yummy food the next day too, which is my incentive.

The only problem with this is that you'll get weird looks, at least here in the US. But they also give us two meals worth of food at a meal in typical restaurants, so I don't feel too bad. I do the same with things like takeout- immediately portion off what is for the next day.

The other thing I've done is look up the calories for my favorite dishes and sides online. In the US most restaurants have nutrition calculators or guides, I don't know if they do that in the UK. This is helpful in making good choices for me when eating out, and there are some surprises out there.

I've also had a lot of luck with eating my veggies first and ensuring that I drink a glass of water or tea before I eat. I always get any dressing on the side, otherwise they smother my lettuce with dressing, which I don't like.

 

[Viola]

Viola, as for whether you can get fat on vegies, my dad used to say, "ANYTHING can make you fat if you eat enough of it...look at cows: all they eat is grass!"

On a weight loss show a while back the doctor said he had a patient who couldn't understand why he wasn't losing weight because instead of his high fat snacks he was having a 10 lb bag of oranges every day. So maybe my dad was right.

Well, fruit has a lot more sugar than veggies do. I will give myself no limit for spinach, broccoli, cauliflower, asparagus... stuff like that... but when I'm track I only have a piece or two of fruit a day. It works for me. You can't really eat that many calories of, say, raw spinach, without doing yourself a serious damage.

Fruit is a moderation thing for me, though.

 

[angeljenny]

Enjoying the diet and exercise so far - bit difficult to settle into a routine and fitting around work and such but good!

According to the Wii fit I have already lost a couple of pounds so the water weight must be coming off - I have never drunk so much water!!

Craving chocolate a little but there was a birthday at work today so there was cake everywhere! Hopefully the cravings will wear off - not sure how much is food and how much is habit really.

W-D Forties - Lighter Life looks super tough! Really low calorie - far too low for me! I don't count calories - I don't want to see food like that, just as numbers.

I really like the shakes and soups and would probably keep having a shake for breakfast even when I get to the weight I want as I struggle to have breakfast most days. The soups are lovely too - full of flavour.

Sheeplady - I am trying to eat my least favourite thing from my plate first - generally the lettuce as it fills me up but is low calorie.

I don't really eat out often. My problem is working in an office where there always seems to be either a birthday cake or someone eating! Plus the vending machine which is full of crisps and chocolate. It is a bit tempting.

I will try drinking a glass of water before each meal though!

 

[Gracie Lee]

One thing I've found that helps me stay on track is dark chocolate bites. I like Dove. Dark chocolate is high in antioxidants and lower in calories than milk chocolate. When I pack my lunch, I toss 2 or 3 individually wrapped pieces in. Then, after my (hopefully healthy) meal, I eat them a nibble at a time. It only amounts to 50 or so calories, but it gives me the feeling of indulgence and kicks my cravings. A strict diet is made to be broken... allowing yourself a bite or two of something you love won't hurt you and ultimately makes it easier to stay on track, in my experience.

Oh, and that 22" waist bit is baloney I'm 5'4", and even when I was a varsity athlete, running several miles each morning and training for a couple hours at night, I didn't have a waist that small. I'm not even sure I could have corsetted to that waist size. "Healthy" is my goal these days

 

[1961MJS]

Hi

I would say you should avoid any discussion of weight. Muscle is more dense than fat, so you might be smaller and more healthy, but heavier. Eat veggies, fruit, some meat, and try and stay away from Coke etc and Carbs like French fries.

Later

 

[AmateisGal]

One thing I've found that helps me stay on track is dark chocolate bites. I like Dove. Dark chocolate is high in antioxidants and lower in calories than milk chocolate. When I pack my lunch, I toss 2 or 3 individually wrapped pieces in. Then, after my (hopefully healthy) meal, I eat them a nibble at a time. It only amounts to 50 or so calories, but it gives me the feeling of indulgence and kicks my cravings. A strict diet is made to be broken... allowing yourself a bite or two of something you love won't hurt you and ultimately makes it easier to stay on track, in my experience.

I am a HUGE fan of Dove Dark Chocolate. I can't even eat milk chocolate much anymore. The dark tastes so much better now.

 

[ThePowderKeg]

I don't really eat out often. My problem is working in an office where there always seems to be either a birthday cake or someone eating! Plus the vending machine which is full of crisps and chocolate. It is a bit tempting.

For some reason, when I remind myself that I can have the stuff in the vending machine any old time and that it's probably been sitting in there for ages, it becomes a lot less tempting. Same with birthday cake...I remind myself that it's not special if I eat it all the time, and that I'd rather enjoy a taste of the fantastic chocolate deliciousness my friend made by hand than some hit-or-miss storebought cake with questionable frosting. I enjoy food, and try to focus on quality of experience/things I really like rather than eating something just because it's there. If something tastes good, you can enjoy it by having 5 bites rather than 10 and not feel stuffed afterward....overall contributing to a more enjoyable experience.

 

[Viola]

When I was in the US, I was at my all-time thinnest and fittest when I allowed myself a couple of the tiny individually wrapped (this was important! individually wrapped meant I could pack them easily AND never had the temptation of a started bar!) Hersheys' Special Dark candies. I'd get the big economy bag at the grocery store but only take a couple to work with me.

Dark chocolate isn't bad for you in moderation.

I actually have to get back in the habit of doing that. I found it killed cravings and it's a false economy to go "I shan't have any candy" and then end up drinking a big creamy-sugary Starbucks or a big yogurty-fruit smoothie or any of those silly things that are five times as many calories. But I've been very silly this year and given up my daily chocolate - and gained weight to show for it.

 

[Rudie]

If you REALLY want a radical life change for the better I advise you to find a qualified hypnotist and learn to reprogram your inner mind. The reason why habit change and overcoming unwanted behaviour and neurosis is difficult when you try to will yourself to do it is this: The critical faculty of the conscious mind protects the programming that is inside the subconscious mind. Incoming suggestions are stopped, evaluated and, if not in line with the programming already inside, rejected. It doesn't matter, if the suggestion is positive or negative. The critical faculty protects ALL the programming that is inside, even the bad programming. The subconscious is enormously powerful. In fact, it is the single most powerful goal achieving agency known to man. It achieves ANY goal it is programmed for, good or bad. But the subconscious itself cannot judge. It cannot decide which suggestions should be allowed in and which shouldn't.

As a child you don't have a critical faculty yet, because there aren't enough experiences to judge incoming data. That's why children are the most vulnerable. Until the critical faculty has formed a lot of bad programming has entered the subconscious. And now it is protected by the critical faculty. In order to get effective and permanent change for the better you need to reprogram your inner mind. Get rid of all the crap inside and get in positive suggestions for the change you desire.

Hypnosis is bypassing the critical faculty of the conscious mind and establishment of acceptable selective thinking. This means that during hypnosis the critical faculty is suspended, so that the suggestions you desperately want to work for you can actually get inside and give you the change you want. That's the difference to trying to achieve change as an act of will or through talk therapy. Those modalities use functions of the conscious mind but you need to make the change in your subconscious mind. Messing around with the conscious mind is ineffective.

You know all those people who go on a diet and after a few months or even weeks have a yo-yo effect, don't you? That's because the subconscious programming kicks in at a certain point and overrides your conscious efforts. Your willpower doesn't stand a chance against the bad programming in your subconscious!

Food for thought.

 

[C-dot]

You know all those people who go on a diet and after a few months or even weeks have a yo-yo effect, don't you? That's because the subconscious programming kicks in at a certain point and overrides your conscious efforts. Your willpower doesn't stand a chance against the bad programming in your subconscious!

Co-sign! Because of all the information that is swilling around today aswell, I don't see how even our conscious minds stand a chance.

I'm all for losing weight and changing your life if its what you really want. But to work so hard to look a certain way? Never! Especially when you don't have to!

Beauty is an illusion. If I didn't dye my hair, paint my lips, draw in my eyebrows, tattoo on a beauty mark... I would look like a 13 year old ginger. The same goes with the figure. I would love to have a 22 inch waist, but it ain't gonna happen. So I wear clothes that create the illusion that I have one (waist cinchers help loads too!) Don't ever change your body for this reason, its unnecessary and terrible for your confidence. Instead, take pride in creating your ideal appearance the way you would paint a painting, or frost a lovely cake

 

[angeljenny]

Did my hair and make up in a sort of vintage attempt - felt really pretty in a skirt and with a flower in my hair! I haven't felt pretty for a long time but I have been working on how critical I am of myself - seems to be working! When I noticed the odd person looking at me I didn't immediately think they were wondering what such a monster was doing out in daylight as I would normally do.

Gracie Lee - what a fab idea! I don't think I would feel deprived if I had just a little bit of chocolate - the first taste is always the best any way. Not convinced I will ever have a 22 inch waist (not sure where my organs would go! ) but so long as it is in proportion to the rest of me I will be happy. Well not in proportion with my feet as they are way too big for my height!

I think I need to train myself into liking dark chocolate - generally I eat milk chocolate.

Rudie - I hadn't thought of hypnotherapy - not sure how available it is around here but is certainly sounds interesting. I am attempting to "train" myself at the moment. I have an elastic band around my wrist which I ping whenever I catch myself being self-critical. At the moment my wrist is red a lot but this method worked when I wanted to stop my nervous hair twirling habit. The mind is a very complicated thing!

C-dot - Although I am not the biggest fan of how I look right now most of the reason for the change is for health. My weight is (well) over the healthy range so even if I don't have issues with it now I might in the future and I want to be fit!

My aim is to work on my confidence while getting fit and losing weight otherwise there is no point. If I lose weight and don't work on my self image I won't ever be happy with how I look!

 

[Rudie]

No Jenny, actually the mind is pretty simple, like an organic computer. It can't judge, it must use the programming it has and the outcome is highly predictable.

If you want to know more about thought-cause-alignments, how chronic illness and disease develop and how they can be healed effectively I highly recommend you check out Steve Parkhills website http://www.alfcentral.org

When looking for a qualified hynotist you have to be very careful as the vast majority is poorly trained and, not realizing this, pass it off as state of the art. Don't fall into the trap of believing that Ericksonian hypnosis is the holy grail. Its effectiveness is very limited compared to hypnotic modalities that utilize deep trance phenomena and regression to cause. Find someone who's trained by Jerry Kein of the Omni Hypnosis Training Center or by Cal Banyan. Another instructor known for highly effective change work is Mark Cunningham.

If you know how the mind works positive change is actually very easy.

 

[angeljenny]

No Jenny, actually the mind is pretty simple, like an organic computer. It can't judge, it must use the programming it has and the outcome is highly predictable.

If you want to know more about thought-cause-alignments, how chronic illness and disease develop and how they can be healed effectively I highly recommend you check out Steve Parkhills website http://www.alfcentral.org

When looking for a qualified hynotist you have to be very careful as the vast majority is poorly trained and, not realizing this, pass it off as state of the art. Don't fall into the trap of believing that Ericksonian hypnosis is the holy grail. Its effectiveness is very limited compared to hypnotic modalities that utilize deep trance phenomena and regression to cause. Find someone who's trained by Jerry Kein of the Omni Hypnosis Training Center or by Cal Banyan. Another instructor known for highly effective change work is Mark Cunningham.

If you know how the mind works positive change is actually very easy.

Hypnotists don't seem common here - there are only two I can find within an hour of here and neither sound overly appealing! The elastic band thing is working for me at the moment. Maybe I need one on the other wrist for when I want chocolate!

Something to read up on I think.