In a new weekly feature, Her.ie newbie Liz is going to share her weight loss journey. She’ll be filling you in on fighting temptation, her willpower struggles with the cocktail menu and taking painfully slow steps towards regular exercise. All in the name of a dress.
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Hanging on the wall at the end of my bed is the constant reminder I plan on shedding nearly two stone this year. I also plan on marking the trials and tribulations of ‘trying to be good’ – the favourite saying we all tout, and quickly replace when a cake is put in front of us.
Week 23: Five Extra Meals…
I’m writing this week’s update at 3.00am. I’ve never been the best sleeper. Even when I was little I used to read under my duvet at night, long after bedtime.
When flooding affected the area, my grandmother (the ever practical woman that she was) bought us all flashlights for under our beds. My insomnia gig was up when my dad caught a flashlight half-muted under bed-sheets while I made my way through Harriet The Spy. My torch was taken and I went back to counting down the hours until I fell asleep.
Needless to say, nowadays when I can’t sleep, it’s a lot easier to find a distraction. Thank you internet. Although, one of the greatest effects of sleep loss?
Weight gain. OF COURSE IT IS.
I learnt a long time ago that although reading relaxes most people before they hit the proverbial hay, I on the other hand get sucked into the story. I over-think it.
My sleep-free nights tend to creep in whenever I’m mulling over decisions. Don’t worry, I’m not about to give you a run-down of my various life situations, but this week, one thing I realised was midnight thinking leads to midnight snacking. Hear me out.
Working on a later shift for part of my working life, means that my brain switches off later. I may be tired and come home to kick off my shoes, but chances are I won’t be falling asleep within a matter of minutes.
What I have started doing is watching TV to unwind, and then doing a food plan for the next day. This all sounds pretty normal in the Weight Watchers way of life except for the fact that I make myself so hungry with planning out my points that I start dreaming of the food.
And because I have no willpower, I go and make the food.
Which means over the past week I’ve eaten every night.
That’s five EXTRA meals.
There was scrambled eggs Monday, an avocado Tuesday, soup Wednesday, sausage sandwich Thursday and Friday saw me embracing the weekend with a toasted cheese sandwich.
Hey, if I was the only person who did this midnight stalk to the kitchen, there wouldn’t be a light in the fridge. Leave your judgement at the door.
Here’s the best part.
I went to my meeting this week, in FEAR. I honestly considered just giving up the whole plan this week. I hadn’t been back since my weigh-in the week of the big reveal and then when I had clocked the scales, they’d decided to ditch our friendship and start adding on the pounds.
So taking a deep breath, I sucked in and stepped on.
To a loss. Of a pound.
I actually got teary. Teary at the scales.
Yes, I’m an emotional person, but I actually felt sorry for my leader. She couldn’t work out if I was standing in front of her happy or sad, and she looked around the room with a look of confusion. I wasn’t even on my period. I didn’t have my usual chin spot that sets base as a beacon warning that I’m suffering from my mind-blowing cramps week.
It was like the time my mam brought me to see Toy Story and I wouldn’t stop crying.She pulled me outside to ask what was wrong. I was devastated to see that Woody got left behind. (Yes, I was a VERY sensitive child.) My point being my body’s reaction can (to my frustration) react with a bursting into tears. Good if you need to express yourself.
Not so good if you’ve ever said goodbye at an airport. You don’t look like an extra from Love Actually. You look deranged.
I was just relieved though. I couldn’t work out how, when I turned my back on the plan, I had managed to lose weight. Cross examining my leader (I really would make an excellent lawyer), I started asking how this was possible.
I had spent weeks on treadmills, eating steamed fish and I wouldn’t have a loss. Why now?
She suggested I looked over my food diary and see if I could identify any patterns.
So want to know my secret?
It’s really not that magical or fantastic. It’s pretty simple actually. Without realising, I was following the plan. Bar Thursday night, I’d stayed within my points or plan depending if I was more a Healthy&Filling or a calculating loser (loser as in dropping pounds. Clearly) And with 49 points to play for on the weekend, my work binges of afternoon cocktails or a Moro bar weren’t finding a place to stake out on my thighs.
I’m not going to say it’s easy, or that I sailed through the week with a loss, because that’s just not true. Maybe thinking takes up extra calories, but either way, my sleep loss didn’t affect my target this week.
But just in case, next week I’m planning on pulling Liam Neeson week part II. There will be no prisoners, and I will be spending a large part of my Sunday cooking and planning meals while doing a rapid search for my runners.
And that’s ok by me. Sometimes your cheat week is the motivation you need to keep on going.
But I’m tired of the summer holiday. There’s only so much lounging on a couch your body can take… (said no one ever, but we’ll ignore that for the time being)
This week’s stats go a little something like this –
Height: 5ft 8
Starting Weight: 174 lbs
Current Weight: 157.5 lbs
Weight Loss To Date: 16.5 lb
Goal: 148 lbs
Feeling: Relieved
The Dress in Question… NOW FITS!!
