Friday, 21-08-20 (very long ponder alert)

Good morning.   :-)
Apologies in advance for the length of this post.  Please, do feel free to scroll down past it to today's meal plans at the end. 

The SW weigh in yesterday evening was a little bit disappointing in that yes, I was above the target weight.  However, I was 'in the bubble', which is within three pounds of target (this can be above or below) so I'm more than happy with that.

There could be a number of reasons including:
I was wearing clothes (obviously!) and during lockdown I've not when I weighed
It was an evening weigh, not a first thing in the morning weigh and I know from experience that my weight can fluctuate by three or four pounds through the day, whatever I eat or don't eat.  It just does.
I've started swimming again which is a muscle strengthening exercise, being a resistance activity, so am likely to be building muscle as I lose more podge.  Muscle is heavy but good heavy!

So, really, it was a little disappointing but not frustrating or annoying!

I came home with quite a haul of certificates and shiny stickers gained while on lockdown.
Slimmer of the Week x 5 (more than I thought I had achieved)
Slimmer of the Month x 1
Three Stone Award
Target certificate, shiny sticker, little badge and a book entitled 'Slim for Life'

The book is very useful.  It has loads of advice for staying at target, a twelve week planner for consolidating things and bags of encouragement.  It's quite different from the older one that Mel lent me so I have both resources now.

For now, I will be carrying on with the weight loss strategy because I want to lose a bit more.  In a way, it is a whole new adventure now, and a path I need to make my own.  The book says I could consider having one more healthy extra and a few more syns and that is certainly something I would want to consider when needed, although very rarely do I have anywhere near the syns one can have anyway so I doubt that will be an issue.

So, for now, for the next twelve weeks or so - which takes me nicely to the start of the Christmas Season, more or less (oh, my goodness!!) - this is my ongoing strategy.

1.  I will stick with the Slimming World strategy with my own individual applications (cheats? tweaks?) full time, except for a week on holiday (fingers crossed) in October.
This means two healthy extra As and one B, a maximum of fifteen syns but more likely under ten, as much free speed food as I can manage with the balance being towards vegetables rather than fruit when possible.
2.  I will also check calories, aiming for between 1200 and 1400 each day.  This will provide an extra layer of 'security', so to speak.  Knowledge is power!
3.  I will go for lower carb choices as much as possible but won't go very low carb.  I will eat a variety of these including rice, pasta, couscous, quinoa, bulgar wheat, wholegrain whenever possible because they are more filling, they are better for me and, most of all, I like them!  Contrary to SW guidelines, I will not see these as free foods and will weigh and measure them very carefully.
4.  I've tried ready meals over the last few months as a strategy.  They are, generally, not a patch on my own, home made dishes and, at twice the price, not a frugal choice.  As I enjoy cooking, that's the way to go.  We are so lucky nowadays with such a variety of foods available and so many recipes and ideas freely available online, it would feel wrong not to take advantage of it all.
5.  I now have, built into my week, one hour of personal training and three sessions of swimming or aquacise, each of between thirty and forty minutes so that provides the core of my exercise programme.  I now need to consider what else (if anything) I want to add.  I don't need to, what I am doing is fine, but I might like to.

I aim for losing around half a pound a week.  Yes, that's a slow pace but it's going to be a slow pace now, this is a consolidation time really, not a time for dramatic drops.  At half a pound a week on average, I will have lost another half stone by December which is great.  I will be happy with that.  Any more, I will accept with thankfulness but won't expect.
Just thinking about this gives me a sense of 'power'  It's achievable, realistic and I know I can do it.  It's taken me over three years to get to this point and I have learned many things, including patience.

What are the negatives - or the things I will continue NOT doing.

1.  I will continue to be more or less teetotal.  I like alcoholic drinks such as wine, G&T and so on, but they are a trigger and it is just too easy to aim for one and end up having - er - more.  Lots more!  It's not just about the empty calories here, is it? 
If I don't buy it, I can't drink it; it is as simple as that.
2.  I know my trigger foods and it is sensible to avoid them.  Things like crisps, pastry, salted nuts are a bit of a disaster area for me so no.  Cheese used to be one but I now see cheese as a healthy extra so that's helped a lot.  Chocolate, generally, is not a problem, thankfully.
3.  I won't have a lot of fatty stuff.  This is out of necessity as, post gallbladder, too much fat gives me the runs (sorry about tmi).  Very useful as a controlling 'strategy' though!

I think that's about it.  End of ponder.  I've tried to write out the things that have been swirling around in my head all week and get them into some sort of coherent, cohesive form and it has really helped me.  Thank you for staying with me both through this essay and through the journey so far.

None of the above is any different to what has developed over the last three years or so.  It's as if I have been building a road for myself, brick by brick, stone by stone, and now I am ready to walk along it.  Repairs will be necessary from time to time, there may be a few potholes to fall into, a few obstacles to trip over or climb over, but generally it should be a comfortable walk.
So on I go, easing on down that road.

Come on, ease on down, ease on down the road

Come on, ease on down, ease on down the road

Don't you carry nothing

That might be a load

Come on, ease on down, ease on down, down the road

Pick your left foot up

When your right foot's down

Come on legs keep movin'

Don't you lose no ground

You just keep on keepin'

On the road that you choose

Don't you give up walkin'

Today's food plans:

B:  savoury waffles or pancakes (same batter) with some fried tomatoes

Every morning, I wander out into the garden and come back with a handful of tomatoes.  They have to be used - oh, the hardship!

I find that the savoury pancakes can be a bit lacking in flavour without good seasoning so I will add salt and pepper, garlic and onion granules and maybe some cajun spice too

SW:  one heB for the wholewheat flour, half a syn for 30 mls milk and two syns for a tsp sesame oil 

330 calories

L:  ham salad, coleslaw; apple

I have salad, ham and coleslaw left over from yesterday so waste not, want not.  

SW:  one syn for the mayo in the coleslaw

approx 250 calories

Snack:  one Hi Fi bar

Yes, I fell for these at group yesterday.  It wasn't something I intended to do but . . .

SW:  three and a half syns (could be classed as half a heB)

70 calories

D:  salmon, new potatoes, peas; kvarg

I'll be at Dad's s no certain calories as I don't know how big the salmon is or, indeed, whether he actually has new potatoes in.  We will see.  I can be more certain of SW values though.

SW:  half a syn for the kvarg and one syn for mayo (I love mayo on salmon)

An estimated 500 calories

Body Magic:  none today.

Summary:
one healthy extra B

eight and a half syns

I'll try and keep up the food plans over the weekend and, whether I can or not, I'll be back on Monday.