Asos package

I ran excitedly to the post office earlier to collect my package and the queue was out the door- bloody Christmas packages! Eventually I picked up my ASOS package and practically ran home.
My shoes are ridiculous- high, platform heeled and very dangerous.... but gorgeous all the same!
The first dress wouldnt zip up above the waist- hoping a different bra and reaching my Christmas goal will take care of that . I think it'll be flattering once it fits!
The second dress is verging on too big. It is definitely not fitted enough on the waist, even with a little belt. So, with more weight loss on the cards, I'm exchanging it for a 12. Wooooo!! I know that it's because the sizes obviously run big on the particular dress but ordering a 12 definitely has big feel-good factor!
So, one too big and one too small. Definitely a 14 now then! :D
I'm off to eat lunch now and head off to the gym and to weigh myself. Hoping for 4/ 5 lbs off since last Tuesday. Will update later.
~Claire.

Saturday night

So I'm feeling great this weekend, apart from the hangover! Got lots of compliments yesterday about weight loss. Got all jujjed up and went out for a few drinks and had lots of fun. Really hoping the scales is on my side tomorrow. I'm over my Polo mint illness too.

Coat- Dunnes Stores
Purple top- Primark
Skirt- New Look
Bag- Primark
Ring- Primark
Tights with bow detail back-seam
Shoes- New Look

Makeup:
Makeup Forever HD foundation
17 blush China Pink
Banila 'The Secret' liquid highlight
Benefit Boing concealer
NYC pressed powder
Eyes:
MAC pigment Copper Sparkle
NYX pigment Red
VOV Color Song single shadow (don't know shade # but it's a coppery gold)
Nouba liquid liner Red
NYC liquid liner Sable
Maybelline Expression Kajal black liner
Etude House Black x Black mascara
Active false lashes
Lips:
Maybelline Color Sensational lipstick Midnight Plum 338
Essence XXXL shine lipgloss 13 Rock On

:O Sugar-free Polo mints are not my friend

In my effort to curb cravings I've been consuming lots of low calorie snacks; apples, carrot sticks, rice cakes etc.. This week I thought I'd give mints a try; at 80 calories for a whole packet where could I go wrong?!? The answer? Shart. Yep, shart.. as in shit and fart.

EVIL!!!

There is a warning on the label saying that excessive consumption may produce a laxative effect. But to me, excessive would be like three packs. I ate almost a full one and very nearly had an accident- well actually I kinda did. Ew! Thank God it didn't happen in public!!
So, believe me when I say- sugar-free Polos: use with caution.

Anticipation

I'm sitting in the office at my Mum's work helping out for a few hours and wearing my size 14 trousers! :)

I was so annoyed because I missed my delivery from ASOS yesterday and went in to the post office with the slip to pick it up today and was told they don't do package collection on Saturday! Grrrrr! It's a post office.... POST office! What's the point of being open if I can't pick up my damned post?!!?!So now I've to wait til Monday and I'm very anxious to try these size 14 dresses on and see if they fit and if they look in any way nice!

Also on Monday is my weigh-in. I've been cheating and weighing myself at the gym and apparently I've lost 4lbs since Tuesday but it's not official til Monday.

The gym is going well. I've been 4 times this week including swimming twice as well as my usual mixture of weights and cardio, weight machines and free weights with fitness ball. I'm trying to remember to keep my core engaged as much as possible too. Food-wise I've been doing good this week too- mostly healthy meals and snacks and generally low-calorie.

Yesterday, though, I relaxed for the day and had some treats. I'd a pint of Coors Light, over half of a homemade pepper and chorizo pizza (I went light on the chorizo and cheese and heavy on the fresh chillis) as well as half a bag of microwave popcorn and 2 packets of Banshee Bones which are my weakness (at least they're only about 100 calories per pack). I also had some chicken and veg soup and a couple of apples with peanut butter as well as water, Coke Zero, 2 cups of green tea and 2 double expressos.

Saturday night is looming which means white wine and X Factor. Tomorrow I'll probably sleep all day, eat something low calorie like soup (surprise, surprise) and then get my usual Chinese takeaway of (dry, battered) salt and chilli chicken and boiled rice- cos I'm badass like that! And then it's Monday and my weigh-in and Asos dresses! Can't wait!

Size 14 bitches!

I'm helping out at my Mum's work tomorrow so tried on some work trousers I bought a looooooong time ago that wouldn't fit me! THEY FIT!! SIZE 14 BITCHES!!!!!!!!
That is all!

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.)

Plans

Where I'm at:
September:

Ok, so it's a bad picture but even with that you can see I have a belly, regardless of the angle.

November:I'm def getting more waist definition and less belly. SLOWLY getting there!

(Excuse the visible bra. Turns out I don't have many plain black bras. Silly pink ribbons! )

** First outfit is from New Look in size 16 but could have benefit from some Spanx-esque support!
** Second outfit: Top (14), jacket (14) and jewellry are Primark. Skirt (with belt) is from ASOS (16).

So yesterday and today I lowered my calorie intake significantly. Tomorrow will be a soup and smoothie day. May do it for Thursday too if I'm not too hungry.

I had put on a pound but I've lost it and am back at 12.12. I've decided I need to stop weighing myself so often and from now on it'll be on Mondays only. The next few Mondays are important!

Christmas kicks off for me on Saturday 18th when I'll visit my sexy bitch friend Charlene in Galway, two hours away. A night of hijinks will ensue no doubt seeing as that is the unofficial night of the 12 pubs of Christmas.

(The 12 pubs is a popular kick-off of the festivities. It's a big, messy pub crawl with rules. One drink per bar in a certain time frame with a certain amount of loo breaks and so on. Dirty Irish alcos, eh?! I don't know that I fully approve because I know me with 12 drinks and it ain't pretty but each to their own!)

Anyway, so I'm working towards Christmas size 14 and it will have to be achieved by the 18th which, as of now ( 2.40am 24th Nov), gives me 25 days. I don't know how many lbs this will take but if I can be losing 2 a week, I'll be well pleased!