What's in my cupboard?

My gym membership is up and I've been too busy/ poor to renew. Have been to 3 circuit training classes though and they are tough going!
I have no idea where I am weight-wise- I'd say around 76ish hopefully! Clothes are fitting well generally and I'm feeling good.
Today was ridiculous though- I ate copious amounts of chocolate and popcorn for no good reason! I suspect it's because it's coming to 'that time of the month'! I learned I can't keep large amounts of chocolate in the house! And we went to the cinema so a huge tub of popcorn was a necessity!) Eurgh! I feel superbly ill now! Still, I've been doing well so won't sweat the extra 1000 calories or so ! ( :O )
In the mean-time, have a look in my cupboard. My posts have been boring so I thought some randomness might be interesting!

Bottom shelf: salt, herbs, seasonings (most commonly used= chilli flakes, black pepper), honey, soy sauce, stock cubes, malt vinegar, eggs, baby potatoes, chilli, garlic, soup mix, cornflour, extra- virgin olive, sesame and veg oil, low cal olive oil spray... oh and random Curly Wurly bars
Middle: soup mix, black bean sauce, egg noodles, wholemeal pasta and spaghetti, brown rice, basmati rice, rice cakes, pecans, pizza base mix, stir-in pasta sauce, curry sauce, low salt beef gravy, low cal chicken soup, tinned pink salmon, crunchy sugar-free peanut butter, salt and vinegar Snack-a-Jacks
Top: Pasta sauce, soy sauce, apple juice(for mixing into smoothies), 41 calorie/slice wholemeal bread, Time Out bars, brown pasta, egg noodles, plain flour
(Italics= most commonly used.)

On my soup diet

So I was meant to be on a soup and smoothie diet but I didn't buy my fruit so had soups and a W W frozen dinner as well as some snacks.
Today I ate:

*Veg and chicken soup: 115 cals
W W Spag bol 306 cals
1 slice Hovis Nimble wholemeal bread 48 cals
*Mexican chilli soup 135 cals 604
Half a packet of sugar free Polo mints 40 cals
Granny Smith apple x 3 198 cals
*Veg and chicken soup 115cals
Activia fat free forest fruit 58 cals

2 green teas**
2 peppermint teas
Double expresso
Water

1015- wow that's low! And I'm not hungry! I'm totally not doing this daily but I want to start changing my eating patterns. I 'm doing 2 days to kickstart a healthier routine and then might do a day here and there on the days I'm not working out. Any more and I'd start going crazy missing real food. (I'd also probably faint at the gym.) On my gym days I'll be aiming for 1300- 1500 ish.

*Soups are Tesco own brand. Half a carton is a portion and, although they're a little high in salt, they are really low in calories while being quite filling. They're chunky so I add a little water, pepper and chilli and puree them because I hate the chunks. I know pre-made soups aren't the healthiest but they're crazy handy, on special offer at the minute, taste good and there's no difficulty calculating calories.

Also plan to get a good workout in tomorrow. I skipped the gym because I was busy today and my muscles were sore from Tuesday's workout- think it was the fitness ball exercises with weights that did it. I'd a nice swim afterwards too, which I hadn't done in a few weeks. I want to get back into that habit so will be trying to get a swim in tomorrow as well as a good weight/ cardio mix.
** Throw away your condoms peeps- you're protected!(Click on the pic to read more.)

Pump IRON

I look good eh?!

So eating wise things are not quite ideal. But, on the other hand, exercise is going well. I've been at the gym 6 out of the last 7 days! Some days are more productive than others and I havent been swimming in weeks (which I miss but it's too cold and miserable to walk home from the gym with wet hair). Still, though, things are generally going well. I'm mixing cardio and weights and lots of stretching and messing around on the ball and with dumbbells. I also have the 15/20 minute walk to and from the gym which is usually brink because it's rainy as helllll these days!

It's less than 6 weeks to Chrstmas now so I really need to get back in the game. Diet is key!! When Kate Moss was quoted as saying "Nothing tastes as good as skinny feels." there was uproar with people saying she was encouraging anorexia etc.. Well, whatever about that, she has a point. You aren't going to look how you want to and eat all in sight. Balance is the key.

I'm struggling with my late evening snacking. I haven't even eaten anything too bad all week but I'm eating too much at night. I really want to get to goal by Summer and I won't if I don't kick my ass in gear! As it is, I definitely won't hit my Christmas goal. :( So that spells the end of my generous late night snacking.

That being said, I WILL still treat myself if I really want it but I DEFINITELY need to start questioning whether I do want it.

On that note, check out Suzi Storm's tips. I love her no bullshit attitude!

Feelin goooood

Weightloss is going well, though I weigh myself more than I should (at least twice a week). On Wednesday I had put on a pound but I lost it and another by today. So another pound down! :)

I only made it to the gym twice this week and probably won't make it Sunday so will only be 3 times and I have been aiming for 5. I'm not bothered though really. Going for quality over quantity and my two workouts this week have been great- sweaty and long and varied. (Haha that sounds really pervy!)

Also not beating myself up over diet. As long as I'm not overeating or existing on junk, I think it's healthier to eat plenty and not deprive myself and have a couple of unhealthy or calorific snacks if I really want them. I know what I'm like and if I went cold turkey on all the 'bad' foods, I'd end up binging and falling off the wagon or else I'd reach goal and then treat myself by pigging out and resuming bad habits. It makes a lot more sense to me to maintain an 80% success rate from week to week. As long as I'm losing weight, I'm doing something right!

Update: weightloss and goals

I'VE LOST ANOTHER 2lbs!!! YAY!!
So I've been AWOL from not just my blog but also the gym. For the whole month of September I'd say I went about 5 times! In my defence, I had a busy month moving home from Spain and then into my new apartment at the beginning of this month. And then my gym membership was up. So, my main focus for the last 6 weeks or so has been weight maintenance til I get back on track and on the fitness shizz again.
So, when I rejoined the gym on Friday, I was really shocked to see that I'd lost another 2lbs! I was really happy with myself, especially when I realised that put me a quarter of the way through my weightloss! :)
It seems like a good time to set out my goals. Some are long shots when it comes to timing but I think that I haven't really tried THAT hard to lose weight- at least diet-wise- so far, so if I can step it up a notch I CAN achieve this!

• Overall weightloss goal: From 14stone to 10stone 4lbs. (3 stone 10lbs/ 46lbs)
  
• Current weight: 13stone 2lbs (12lbs loss)
  
• Christmas weight: 12 stone 2lbs **long shot- would be happy to be under 12 and a half
• Goal weight reached by April 2011 (As of now, 34lbs to go)
  

I think I lost weight, in spite of not working out, because I was aware that I had to keep myself in check food-wise.
Also, I am drinking less. Over the Summer I'd often be out two nights and then drink in my sister's on another night. These days it's usually one and I've also cut out the random drinks here and there.
Another thing that's really helping is the fact that almost everyone I know is watching their weight at the moment! My best friend/housemate has lost 9lbs in the last 2 weeks! Go her!! And another friend of ours has lost a couple of stone in the last few months and is looking very slim indeed. I think when that happens you really feel that you need to up your game. Three of my sisters have been working out and dieting recently too and they look great! So it's time for me to really get back on track.
One thing I have to watch out for though is post-gym treats! I've been to the gym 3 times since Friday and every time I leave the gym I'm starving and really proud of myself- not a good combo! On Monday I ended up getting a bag of chips to reward myself. Fine once in a while but not a good habit!
Here's another eye look using the 88 Ultra Shimmer palette. I hardly ever wear blue eyeshadow these days so thought it'd be nice for a change from all my neutrals. Also made the mistake of cutting my fringe short again- eugh please GROW!

Finally, I just wanted to thank everyone who reads my blabbering. I'm way behind on my blog reading at the moment so hope everyone is doing well and all my fellow dieters are staying on track. I'm getting the internet soon so will be back to my normal blog stalking/ sporadic posting habits soon.
xxx

New week!

So after a weekend with a little too many treats, the week begins again! I've just finished a yummy salmon fillet and baby potato dinner- will have veg as a snack in a bit! I'm not eating healthily all the time but it's nice to eat something that you really enjoy that isn't going to go straight to your beer-belly!

Pissed off today though because I couldn't go to the gym and may not be able tomorrow either. I think I've been overdoing it though. I hurt my left ankle 2 months ago and it's still not right and I think that I've been working my legs too hard because now my left hip and knee are giving me hassle. I was actually in pain after my workout last night. Thank God for the jacuzzi!! If I go tomorrow I'll just do crunches, arm weights and swimming. In the meantime, I will ice my knee and ankle and take some anti-inflammatories and hope for the best. If I'm not exercising I'll have to cut RIGHT back on food and I will NOT be happy!! It's my birthday next week though so I wanna be looking as well as I can.


One thing I need to work on is 'treat' mentality. I have a tendancy to overly reward myself. For example, my sisters and I were meant to go out last night but we changed our minds. I'd already considered that I was going to have a blowout calorie-wise because of all the booze so, when plans changed, instead of going 'oh fab, i stayed on track', I went 'oh fab, now I can have a Chinese'!! That's ok, I guess, but only occassionally. Also, if I am eating Chinese again, I have to put a ban on fried rice because it really doesn't make that much difference to the meal if you're eating really spicy chilli chicken and it is just LADEN with calories. So, yeah, stop with the treats, Claire! Thing is, I know I can still have treats as long as I keep count of the calories. So, starting from tomorrow, I'll be trying to keep track of all my food and exercise. I've started well but if I want results I have to take it up a notch!!

Getting my confidence back

Letting my weight creep up the way I have over the last 5 years or so really knocked my confidence. I used to love shopping and clothes and having my own style. As I got bigger that melted away a bit. I didn't want to draw any attention to myself. If people were looking I assumed the worst- that they were thinking 'the state of her in those clothes' or whatever. It's shitty but when you aren't confident you don't want attention. So I let my style become more safe and 'normal'. I began a rotation of 2 or 3 outfits at a time. I hated shopping. I hated getting ready for nights out. I just felt crap!

This Summer I started afresh- going to the gym, eating better, drinking less. Even though i haven't lost much weight I feel soooo much better. I feel healthier and more toned and it's giving me so much confidence. It's still difficult to find clothes I like that suit me but I'm interested in looking now! I've been holding myself back when it comes to online shopping but it's fun to look at things and feel like I could wear them and feel confident.

I'm really enjoying 50's style clothing and accessories and a more ladylike approach at least some of the time! I'm loving back-seamed tights, flowers in my hair, full skirts, fitted waists and pencil skirts as well as my usual love of false lashes and red lips.

It feels good to have some confidence back. It makes getting ready so much easier and more fun.

Cute hair flowers:

My new Primark coat:


I'm going to get it in navy and white too. So cute!

I've ordered two pencil skirts from ASOS. I'm hoping one will be nice and I can wear it out for my birthday in a couple of weeks!
:)

Weighty stuff

So I have talked briefly in past posts about the fact that I've allowed my weight to creep up. I have said loads of times that I'm going to do something about it and either I don't commit or I do it half-assed/cheat.

I won't go into specifics but I need to lose 30+ pounds and I WILL DO IT THIS TIME!!

I've been eating a lot more healthily, though I still have off-days and allow myself a junk night once a week. I have also been at the gym 5 times a week for the last 3 weeks, usually spending an hour working out and then an hour swimming. I haven't lost much weight but I can see and feel a difference around my waist and bum. I've started as I mean to go on and am really enjoying having a more healthy lifestyle! I'm still pretty unhealthy though. I love crisps, fizzy drinks, Chinese takeaways, wine and fags but now I also love eating 5 portions of fruit and veg, drinking 2 litres of water, lifting weights...


It will be more difficult,though, when I start up at work again as it will be harder to make the time to work out, I won't have company (my mum and 2 sisters use my gym) and I'll be living away from home which means my food supply won't be as varied (the fridge is always soooo full at home because there are lots of us). But hopefully the 6 weeks I have left will be enough time for me to have formed lasting habits and enough of an appreciation for the good stuff to keep up my good habits. I have a tendancy to allow myself too many treats,though, so, from today on, I'm clamping down firmly on that!
Wish me luck!!