Week 14 - RESULTS

So after coming so close last week, have I FINALLY passed the half-way point?

STARTING WEIGHT:   247.5 lbs

ENDING WEIGHT:  246.1 lbs

WEIGHT LOSS:  1.4 lbs

So, let me get this straight. I have now lost exactly 51 lbs. Which means I have 49.1 lbs left to lose. Which means...which means...


YES!

I AM PAST HALF-WAY!

Of course, I know that means I still have almost half the weight still to lose, but gosh does it feel good to be here! If I look at my countdowns over on the right, it is brilliant to see a larger figure for weight lost than for weight still to lose.

A fairly small loss (comparatively) this week, but I achieved all I wanted to, so couldn't care less! Not even going to stretch this post out any longer. In fact, I'm just going to say it again.

I AM PAST HALF-WAY!

Once again, here is my total tally, and then my photos. Did I mention that I'm past half-way?

WEIGHT LOSS TO DATE: 

51.0

 246.1 lbs

246.1 lbs

My First Award!

Many thanks to Jess, author of Project: Get Thin, for graciously gifting this blog with its first award! I've seen them pop up elsewhere from time to time, but never thought I'd get one myself!

Many thanks to Jess - and now I have to tell you 7 things about me!

1) By the time I was 25, I had lived in four countries - the UK, Germany, Belgium and New Zealand.

2) I once made a sandwich for Vanessa Redgrave.

3) I own an acre of Moon.

4) I performed in three different shows at the same time in the 2006 Edinburgh Fringe Festival.

5) Many of my friends call me 'Lord', due to the drunken purchase of a new title by deed poll...

6) I collect swords.

7) I have a scar in my left eyebrow, that people sometimes mistake for an intentionally shaved gash, much to my chagrin.

And last but not least, 15 other blogs I am now passing this award on to! They're not all weight-loss blogs, but they're all worth checking out!

1) And In My Corner...

2) Crazy Little Thing Called LIFE

3) Ellie Unzipped

4) I Will Be Skinny

5) Jack Sh*t, Gettin' Fit

6) Life In Crisis, I Mean, Fitness...

7) Maybe It Was The Moonshine

8) My Journey From Wide To Wyldly Fit

9) Not The Fat One Anymore

10) Changing Milla

11) A Better, Lesser Me

12) The Half Of Me

13) The Word Den

14) Tolkien Geek

15) My Little Gaming Blog

That's all folks, see you tomorrow for the weigh-in!

Week 14 So Far...

Evening all!

Apologies for not posting in a while, had my second exam on Friday, so the days before that are now just a RedBull-fuelled blur of cramming. Went up to my Dad's on Saturday, and now I'm finally home, with a big sleep debt I am desperate to repay!

On my Monday weigh-in I didn't quite manage to reach the half-way mark. Well, at Tuesday's weigh-in, I did. Thing is, I saw quite a dramatic drop between Monday and Tuesday, and being as it followed on from quite a big loss the week before, I was slightly concerned. Never thought I'd be concerned to see weight dropping off me fast!

But I want the weight-loss to be steady, and sustainable. Now I have a better understanding of how my body loses weight, I can tell if its slowing down, or speeding up, or whatever. And I got worried that the weight was shifting a little too fast. Given that I've been revising for the last few weeks, and spending most days glued to my desk, my calorie consumption has been pretty low, and my appetite has shrunk accordingly. As such, I probably haven't been eating as much as I should, and I was concerned that some of the weight I had lost might have been muscle mass.

So I've made an effort to eat a bit more this week. After all, my only objective for tomorrow's weigh-in is to reach 50% of my target, and that only needs a loss of 0.6lbs. So I allowed myself to relax while I was at home, had a take-away with my Dad and Step-Mum, and just allowed myself a couple of days where I didn't have to think about my diet or exercising. Was quite relaxing to be honest, and as long as I see the result I want tomorrow, I won't feel bad about it.

So, let's hope tomorrow, the scales are kind!

Fading Away...

Further to all the pictures in yesterday's 3-month weight-in, I have been playing with the photos today, comparing them and trying to find different ways of seeing the difference.

Thought I would share the image below, which is my very first picture, taken at the start of my weight-loss, superimposed onto yesterday's photo, nearly 50lbs down.

It's not the clearest photo in the world, but you can see just how far the tummy has shrunk in the past 13 weeks! I was also surprised how much narrower I was around the butt and upper thighs - I focussed so much on watching the belly disappear, I didn't even really notice that change! Just goes to show that weight really does build up EVERYWHERE!

Anyway, that's all - still saving up all the photos every week, and will run them together into a time-lapse video once I finish losing all the weight!

Week 13 - RESULTS

A week of only six days, thanks to my late weigh-in last week, and with several mini-targets looming...which, if any, did I pass?

STARTING WEIGHT:   252.1 lbs

ENDING WEIGHT:  247.5 lbs

WEIGHT LOSS:  4.6 lbs

To start, I have to focus on the big target that I didn't reach this week - the still-unattained 50% mark. I came ridiculously close - only 0.6 lbs above the necessary weight. I really went for it too, and perhaps exercised and dieted more this week than I would usually. But no cigar - and I don't really mind, to be honest.


If I look at my weight-loss over the last 7 days, it actually stands at 6lbs - my biggest weekly loss since the first two weeks of this attempt. I probably could have done that little bit more, and made 50% this week, but with such a heavy drop in weight, I don't know that it would have been sustainable. It would be awful to reach 50% by starving myself, and then see the weight all pile right back on again. As it stands, I only have to lose 0.6lbs next week to reach 50%, and to be honest, that is my only target for next week - anything else is just a bonus!

But enough of what I didn't manage - let's look at what I did achieve! 




- Into the 240s. My 'three-weeks-per-10-lbs' pattern continues, as I am now into the (high) 240s. This isn't so much a specific target that I aim for, but I find it is a good indicator of whether my weight-loss is maintained, or is slowing. I expected the rate of loss to drop once I passed 18.5 stone, but so far its falling away at a similar rate to before. Long may it continue!


- Into the 17-stone bracket. For a man of my height, a normal BMI will be reached between about 12 and 14 stone. When I was younger, I usually averaged 16 stone, and as an adult (before last year's rapid gain), I averaged about 18.5 stone. As such, I've been wanting to get into the 17-stone range for a while, so that I'm no longer losing 'new' weight that I put on last year, but rather 'old' weight that I have carried for nigh on a decade, and almost take for granted. I am now slimmer than I've been in years (literally), and to finally be here - well, its great, but I don't intend to stay here for long. Onward and downward!


- Over 3.5 stone, and 15% body weight dropped. To think that there is 15% less of me than when I started is...a strange concept to wrap your head around really. Where did I go? Sometimes I try to visualise it - 50lbs of me, pounded away onto the London streets. Still a long way to go though!


- Closing in on an 'Overweight' BMI. If I do manage to reach the 50% mark this coming week, I will then be within 10lbs of an 'Overweight' BMI. It's strange - having lost so much weight, I already feel like a winner, already feel like I look good. I have to remind myself that, according to my BMI, I'm still obese! It's hard to image what I will look like after losing another 50lbs, but I can't wait to find out!






Anyway, here's hoping I make 50% next week. I have an exam on Friday, and then I'm visiting home on Saturday, with the promise of a night out at an Indian restaurant. My plan is to try as best I can between now and Friday, shift as much weight as possible, and then enjoy myself on Saturday night. I only need 0.6 lbs!


Here's my usual total tally, and as I have now been doing this for three months, I have included the 'before' pics alongside today's, so that we can compare!

WEIGHT LOSS TO DATE: 

49.6

 

247.5 lbs

 247.5 lbs

 Also, just for a change (and to make this post even longer), Here are the photos from the start, followed by the three monthly comparisons, to give an idea of my progress to date. (click on the pictures to expand)

 Almost 50lbs lost here, but I don't think the photos really show it from this angle yet. Guess we'll see some changes to this view once we move into the final 50lbs! That said, a slightly less wide silhouette, and the folds seem narrower under my arms. Also is it just my imagination, or are my nipples closer together? Man-boobs, away!

 This has always been the best view to see my weight-loss. Belly has been moving in, and down. Chubby crease behind my arm slowly receding too. Still got a big old crease below my belly button though - can't wait for that to disappear!

Anyway, that's enough from me. 50% here I come! 

Week 13 So Far...

Week 13 - unlucky for me?

I certainly hope not! Last week was a smaller loss than normal (but still great!), so I was worried that a) it was a sign of my weight loss starting to slow down, and b) an indication that sitting at my desk revising all day was affecting how many calories I've been burning.

But so far, things have been pretty good. I've made sure to go out on my run every other day, to give some boost to my metabolism. I've also paid closer attention to what I eat - as I'm busy revising, its easy to make excuses. "No time to cook, will have to order in" is not a phrase I will allow myself to utter this year! I'm also guilty of hitting the Red Bulls quite hard this week, but I have at least managed to stick to the sugar-free ones...

As I've mentioned already, yesterday was the 3-month mark for this weight-loss attempt, so tomorrow's weigh-in will once again include the 'before' photos, so we can see my progress. I have also now spent 3 weeks in the 250s, so to maintain my pattern of no more than 21 days in each 10-lb bracket, I have to get into the 240s at tomorrow's weigh-in. AND, if I make it into the 240s, I'll only be a hair's breadth away from the 50% marker...

Quite a few targets to hit - I wonder how many of them I will achieve by Monday? Well, I guess I'll know in about 12 hours!

1000 Views - A Thank You!

One of the things about blogging from the UK is that most of the hits on this blog come during our night. Its always nice to wake up to the odd comment or two, but this morning was especially nice, as IdleToIdol has now bagged over 1000 views!

When I started this blog, I never thought I'd get that many hits (if any). To my mind, the blog's primary function would come into effect AFTER I had reached my target weight, as a way to show my friends and family - or at least those who noticed my weight loss - exactly what I had gone through. Exactly how I had done it.

I also hoped that by blogging my weigh-ins, I would be more inclined to stick with it when times got tough. Even if I only got one hit a week, that one reader would be the person I had to impress. Part of the reason my previous weight-loss attempts failed was that there was no accountability - only I knew about my attempt, but as it was my own attitude and habits that had made me overweight in the first place, the excuses soon mounted, and the attempt collapsed.

Blogging has certainly helped to keep my objective firmly in sight, and ensures that every day, I think about my weight-loss. Every time I eat, I think about my diet. Every time I collapse into a chair, I think about exercising. Keeping me on track has been the main personal benefit of writing this blog - but would it have been enough without readers?

I don't think so. To know that someone else can see what I have done is a massive incentive to continue. From the casual visitor via Google (who's presence is usual a result of my search-engine-friendly "What Does 100 Pounds Look Like?" post!) to those who regularly pop in, it is the knowledge that someone else is following my progress that gives me that extra kick when I feel its getting tough. I feel that if I were to give up, I would be letting down my readers, so for that, I thank you.

But its not just about me, and my posts. It's not just your comments on my blog that help inspire me, but also everything you write on your own. As I have said before, almost nobody in the 'real world' knows about this weight-loss attempt, so it is my fellow bloggers who are my support group in this. To read about your own journeys, to hear about your ups and downs, and to compare methods, tips and diets, has made me feel part of something bigger. I'm not just lonely, overweight Headspace, vainly trying to shift his weight. I'm part of a dynamic, proactive community of people, from all over the world, all with the same goal: to improve our lifestyles. To regain our health and confidence. To take control of our lives. That's a morale booster, if ever there was one!

And all this is not to mention those of my readers who aren't actually trying to lose weight themselves, but drop by anyway! For you guys to put up with what has now been three months of constant chatter about pounds, and diets, and exercises - well, I can only say thank you to you too!

Anyhow, I've waffled on for long enough, but since I don't always remember/have time to reply to every comment, I wanted people to know that every single one is read, read again, and appreciated (and let's be honest, they usual lead to a smile or two!). We've got a lot more time together before I reach my target weight, so I'm sure I'll say it again before the end, but until then, one more time...

THANK YOU!

My Philosophy on Small Weigh-Ins

On the whole, with my own weight-loss attempt, I've been consistently ahead of schedule. This is still largely thanks to the rapid weight-loss of my first two weeks, but I've kept seeing losses every week so far, and my monthly averages have by-and-large been perfectly on track.

But the weight loss isn't constant and steady. Rather, I tend to have one or two weeks of above-target weight loss, followed by another couple of weeks where I don't reach my weekly target. Overall they average out, but on those below-par weeks, it was quite easy to become frustrated, especially since I was sometimes seeing daily gains after being especially good on the diet, or after exercising.

But as the weeks have progressed and I've got a broader view of the pattern my weight-loss is taking, I have come to see the smaller losses as something of a good thing, for a few different reasons. Here are some of them:

- They 'lock-down' the previous week's drop. As I've said, the smaller losses seem to follow quite big ones, and as nice as it is to see a big loss, there is always a part of your brain which worries that perhaps the scale was wrong, or perhaps you've just lost some water weight and will gain it all back, or perhaps that the loss is unsustainable and you'll just bounce right back up. I've certainly worried about that, especially now that I'm boasting a 12-week constant-loss pattern, and am loathe to give it up! But by recording another loss, however small, you have proved that the previous week's result was not a fluke, and it's 'in the bag', so to speak. That's always nice!

- I am now OWED a bigger drop! On week's where I've dieted really well, and exercised regularly, it can be a bit disheartening if the scales don't seem to reflect it. But now I've changed my view on that. If I've eaten and exercised enough to warrant a loss of (say) two pounds, and the scales only show a drop of half a pound, I now say that my body owes me 1.5 lbs next week! And it really does seem to work out. Not perfectly obviously, but at the end of the day, if you use up more calories than you take in, you will lose weight - if the scales don't reflect that one week, stick with it, and you'll see the changes eventually!

- It's the deep breath before the plunge. Sometimes I view my weight-loss as a kind of rollercoaster (a bit of a cliched metaphor, but it helps). On weeks when I only record a small loss, I picture myself on the rollercoaster, slowly creeping up to the top of a rise. Its just my body adjusting to the new, lower, weight I have achieved. It drops, catches its breath, then drops again. If I record a small loss then I picture myself pausing briefly at the top of the rollercoaster, before I tip over the top of this particular rest-point, and see another steep drop the following week!

- Maybe its just water weight! Because when I started I restricted my carbs, I know some of the weight I lost was just water. I now seem to go through cycles of not eating carbs, and then including them in my diet again (I don't intentionally cut them out completely, as I don't want to start burning away muscle). And I do occasionally notice, if my diet has been especially carb-heavy one week, my weight doesn't seem to drop as much. This could just be me regaining some of the water I lost when on low-carb, so I know that when I next reduce my carbs again, some of that extra weight will drop right off!


I've rambled for long enough, but those are some of the things that go through my head when I record a loss that doesn't quite live up to my weekly target. To be perfectly honest, all I need to have a satisfactory week is a loss of 0.1 lbs - anything more than that is just a bonus!

Week 12 - RESULTS

A day late, but its time to record last week's achievements!

STARTING WEIGHT:   254.0 lbs

ENDING WEIGHT:  252.1 lbs

WEIGHT LOSS:  1.9 lbs

First of all, apologies for bringing this weigh-in a day later than usual. As I mentioned in an early post, I had my first exam on Monday, first thing in the morning, so weighing, photographing and blogging weren't exactly at the forefront of my mind! Don't think the exam went too badly though (although could certainly have been better), so we'll see.

I did weigh yesterday afternoon and recorded a loss, but as that weigh-in was after breakfast, and a stupid number of Red Bulls after pulling an all-nighter cramming session, I decided to use my weigh this morning as the weekly tally, and steal a day from next week's weigh-in.


Quite pleased with the loss this week. Although its less than my weekly target, it comes after two very good weeks indeed, so I expected to see a smaller result after the larger losses there. In fact, I wanted to see a smaller loss - I'd get nervous if the weight was dropping off too fast, as that probably wouldn't be sustainable. Overall, very satisfied indeed (especially after the odd weight pattern I reported in my previous post).


I am now almost exactly 18 stone, so as long as I see a loss next week, I should be into the 17s! That will be fantastic. I've already told how 18.5 stone was my usual 'heavy' weight, but when I was younger (and lighter, albeit still overweight), my usual weight was always 16 stone. To be into the 17-stone range would finally bring that magic area back into realistic reach, so to get out of the 18-stone bracket, and into the 17s, would be a massive confidence boost.


And speaking of confidence boosts - I GOT MY FIRST COMPLIMENTS! I wore a shirt for the exam that hasn't fitted for ages (great in and of itself), and three separate people all commented on how 'dapper' and 'swish' I looked. Made me feel like a million bucks! Of course, nobody has yet uttered the golden "you look like you've lost weight", but I was still over the moon.




Next week will be the end of the third month of weight loss, so I'll be posting up my comparison photos again then. For now though, here's my regular total tally, and the ever-shrinking photos!

WEIGHT LOSS TO DATE: 

45.0

252.1 lbs

252.1 lbs

 

Week 12 So Far...

Just a quick one today, as I have my first exam tomorrow, and its the one I'm least confident about, so I'll likely be cramming into the wee small hours!

It's been an unusual week weight-wise, where nothing seems to happen the way it should. I am currently at a small loss for the week, but once again, my weight went up at the start of the week, this time without any treat-eating assistance from me. I also recorded my first ever daily status quo - my weight literally did not change even 0.1 lbs!

Something else that bothered me - on the days when I went for a run, my weight went up the following morning, whereas on my 'rest days', I seemed to lose weight. I'm not really sure what to make of it.

Of course, having lost over 8lbs in the previous two weeks, I knew that my body would need to take time to adjust, so perhaps its just that. Either way, I can't take the time out to run tonight, so I'll have to take whatever result tomorrow throws at me - hopefully it'll be an OK one. Would hate to hit a wall when I'm within touching distance of the half-way point!

Anyhow, back to books for me. Wish me luck!

How To Motivate Yourself For A Run

This post isn't about how to go for your first EVER run - I honestly have no idea how that started. It was something I was always going to do tomorrow, but tomorrow never came. Then one day I found myself in my running gear outside doing stretches, and before I even knew what was happening, I was running! Not very far or fast to start with, but I'd started!

This post will be about how I make myself go for a run on those days when its really the last thing I want to do. There are always days like that, especially after a good weigh-in, when you think you can do without it for a change. 

FIRST THINGS FIRST - I need my iPod when I run. Partly its the distraction, partly the fact that it makes the time go faster, and partly the fact that a regular beat or rhythm helps me sync my paces and breathing. I know some people run on machines at home or at the gym, so you can probably make do with background music or TV, but if you hit the streets like me, a little music goes a long way!

Now, as I've said before, my current route is 4 miles long, or about 6.5 kms. Sometimes the prospect of doing that seems dreadful, so I break it down into small, manageable steps, almost to 'trick' myself into doing the distance! Here's how.

- Just do your warm-ups. Don't fancy a run? Feeling stiff and awkward and tired? That's ok, you don't have to run - just do your warm-ups! I find that stretching out my muscles helps to wake me up, raises my heart-rate just a little, and generally makes the idea of a run slightly less horrendous than when I've just tumbled out of bed.

- Just put your running gear on. Still don't fancy that run? Then don't think about it. Just put your gear on. I know this sounds silly, but sometimes I literally have to just say to myself 'I'm just getting dressed, even you aren't too lazy for that!'

- Just go get some fresh air. I'm all geared up, but the thought of running 4 miles still seems awful. That's ok, just pop outside and get some fresh air! No harm in that...

All this just to actually get me out of the house and ready to run! Its not always this hard of course, but as someone who spent years with absolutely no exercise, I still have to sometimes take myself by the scruff of the neck (a bizarre image - who's grabbing whom?), and force myself to not be a lazy so-and-so!

By this stage I'm outside, warmed up and in my running gear, and some mornings that's enough - I can almost go through these stages on autopilot, so that before I've had time to weigh the pros and cons of having a run, I'm already outside and ready to go.

Another useful 'trick' I use is the fact that my 4-mile route has the shape of two figures-of-8. From my starting point, I basically do 4 loops, each a mile long, that bring me back to where I started after each mile. 

The benefit of this is that I don't have to muster the enthusiasm for a 4-mile run. I can tell myself that if I want to, I only have to do one mile, and then I can quit. Heck, I can even say only do a half-mile. By that stage, its a half-mile to home, so I might as well run back. By then, I've warmed up and I'm into my music, so just one more mile doesn't sound so bad (boom, 2 miles). By this stage, if I feel like quitting, I can tell myself that if I just do half the distance again, I'll have gone three miles. And THEN, once I reach the 3-mile point, I use the first trick again, and say 'just add another half-mile'. Once that's done, there's only a half-mile left until I'm home, so screw it, might as well carry on running till I get there!

I know it sounds absolutely ridiculous, and I'm sure 'normal' people who exercise regularly and are in good shape have none of this difficulty. But I'm not there yet, and I still have to make a real effort to fit in the exercise I do. And some days, of course, I'm absolutely pumped and can't wait for my run! Some days...

So anyhow, that's what works for me. If anybody out there has any little tips or tricks that they use, please do share them - some of us need all the help we can get!

Week 11 - RESULTS

This week seems to have flown by, its already time for the results!

STARTING WEIGHT:   257.6 lbs

ENDING WEIGHT:  254.0 lbs

WEIGHT LOSS:  3.6 lbs

Another good loss this week! As I mentioned on my previous post though, the last few weeks have all seen a big spike in my weight on Tuesday/Wednesday, followed by a steady drop from then to the end of the week. Although I've been seeing good results, I don't like the bouncing up and down my weight has been doing recently, so I want next week to show a steady, maintained loss.



Here are a few things to shout about this week!

- Officially lighter than I've been in years. About 18 months ago I started running regularly, quite out of the blue, and managed to drop quite a bit of weight. I put it all on again of course, but the lowest I got that time around was about 256 lbs - I'm now in VERY old territory weight-wise!

- Have lost more than 40 lbs. Although the counter said I was at 40lbs dropped last week, I was actually at 39.5 and it rounded up, so this week I can officially say I have lost more than 40lbs!

- More than 40% done! And of course, passing the 40lb mark means I'm now more than 40% done. Its a strange feeling - I can see such a difference in the mirror now, that it doesn't seem possible I still have 60lbs+ to drop. But drop it I shall - the 50% milestone is now merely pounds away!

- Have dropped more than 3 stone. I'm not sure if readers in the US will use/be aware of a stone (14 lbs), or if its more of a British thing - all the TV shows I've watched seem to use pounds (but then so do I, so go figure). However, although I measure in lbs, I always have to convert it into stone to get a real appreciation of how much weight I've lost - and this week, I have passed the 3 stone marker!

Anyhow, I have my first exam a week today, so I'm hoping that doesn't impact too much on my weight loss this coming week - would be great to go into the exam next Monday with another couple of pounds under my belt (or more accurately, NOT under my belt anymore!).


Here's my total tally, and then the photos. See you all soon!

WEIGHT LOSS TO DATE: 

43.1

254.0 lbs

254.0 lbs

The Trouble With Good Weigh-Ins

Now don't get me wrong - seeing a good result on a Monday morning is a great thing. It's sort of the point of this whole weight-loss business too. I'm certainly not knocking good weigh-ins!

But here's the thing. For the last three weeks now, I have been quite pleased with my weigh-ins each Monday. So pleased in fact, that I have decided to treat myself. Not with chocolate or ice-cream or anything 'bad'. Just giving myself a slightly larger portion of chicken, or maybe adding some sausages to my breakfast omelette.

And each Tuesday, my weight has rocketed up. Far beyond what calories would suggest - I actually believe that with my running, my calories on these 'treat' days are actually still below my BMR threshold. I don't know if its water weight or what, but without fail for the last three weeks, my Tuesday weigh-in has been several pounds heavier than my Monday result.

And then for the rest of the week, I'm playing catch-up. I have to shed these extra added pounds, and then some, so that I can show another loss the following week.

And that's not how I want this weight loss to go. Each week has been a real mission, with my target not being to just record a loss, but a significant loss to counteract my Tuesday spike. Luckily I've managed it so far, but I'm sure, if I keep on doing this, that one week the spike will be too high to counteract before the next Monday.

Soooo, next week I can't be too self-satisfied with my result (assuming I even manage a loss by next week!). I'm getting close to half-way now, and soon I have to start thinking about not just dieting to drop the pounds, but finding a manageable, sustainable level of calorie-intake and exercise, to ease me gradually down to my target weight, and then stabilise there. The idea isn't to stay on this diet for the rest of my life, just to use it until I've dropped to my target weight, and then 'maintain' until eating healthily and exercising regularly is the norm.

Got a bit of weight still to shift this week before I start showing another loss, and from then on, its softly softly. This isn't a sprint to my target weight, its a marathon. I have to make sure I pace myself...

Week 10 - RESULTS

So, did I manage to finally reach my mini-target of 18.5 stone? Let's find out!

STARTING WEIGHT:   262.3 lbs

ENDING WEIGHT:  257.6 lbs

WEIGHT LOSS:  4.7 lbs

I am so proud of myself this morning. This weigh-in means I have achieved exactly what I hoped for from this week, and then some!

- I finally reached my 18.5 stone mini-target! For about a month now I have been waiting to see the scales drop below 259 lbs, which equates to 18.5 stone. That is the weight I have always given as my default - even when I was heavier but too embarrassed to admit it, 18.5 stone was the figure I quoted, being high enough to be realistic for my size, but lower than the shameful truth. To finally be LESS than that weight just feels amazing!

- I have maintained my average. I've been worried about losing too much weight too quickly, because of the rebound and side-effects it can cause. Although this is quite a big drop, it evens out with the smaller results from the previous two weeks, so that in the last month I have been losing weight at almost exactly my target rate. Great success!

- Into the 250's! In my previous weight-loss attempts, the high 250's was the limit of my achievements. I will very soon be lighter than I have been in YEARS, so I can't wait for that! I have also maintained my pattern of only spending three weeks in the 280's, 270's, and now the 260's. I can finally see the half-way point of my weight loss looming on the horizon, tantalisingly close, and to think that in a few weeks my 'Weight Loss To Date' number will be bigger than my 'Weight Still To Lose' number is a marvelous feeling - I can't wait!

- This is DO-ABLE. I haven't been a saint. There have been days when I haven't exercised, and days when I haven't stuck to my diet plan. Just this morning I treated myself to an ice-cream after recording such a good weigh-in. The thing is, now that ice-cream is seen as a treat, and not just a regular part of my diet. I counted the calories, adjusted my food accordingly, and could enjoy that ice-cream and still only take in about 1300 calories today, which after I exercise should give me another small loss tomorrow. I'm getting the best of both worlds at the moment, and although it might not last, I'm making the most of it while I can!

Here follows my total weight-loss to date, and then of course my infamous photos!

WEIGHT LOSS TO DATE: 

39.5

257.6 lbs

257.6 lbs

Friend Making Monday...Again!

Before I post my results for last week, I wanted to take a quick moment to once again join the Friend Making Monday movement, this time inspired by Jodi over at And In My Corner...

1) How often do you read?  I read every day! At the moment I OUGHT to be reading my textbooks and revising for my exam, but I always have to have something else on the go!

2) What's the last book you read and loved?   The last book I read (and I loved it) was 'A Time of Gifts', by Patrick Leigh Fermor. The book is the author's account of a journey he took back in the 1930's, when he was just 18, travelling on foot all the way across Europe, from Holland down to Constantinople. There are two books in the series (he sadly never finished the third and final volume), and this first ends with him crossing the Danube into Hungary. Its a magnificent tale for many reasons - he's a fantastic writer, and each page is full of interesting geographical detail, eye-opening historical facts, and heart-warming tales of the people and places he came across on the way. I can't recommend it enough.

3) What book(s) are you currently reading?  Well, I'm now onto the second volume of the aforementioned series, 'Between the Woods and the Water'. I also treated myself to a Lonely Planet guide to Eastern Europe (inspired by the books), and I'm now reading through that too, planning holidays to places I've never been; holidays that I probably won't be able to take for years!

4) Share a few of your favorite authors.  Leo Tolstoy, John Irving, JRR Tolkien, Ken Follett, Donna Tarrt, Pat O'Shea, William Golding, Patrick O'Brian, Umberto Eco.

5) What's next on your list of must-reads? Well, after my exams, I intend to dig out my 'Complete Shakespeare', and finally get around to reading the plays I have never seen, read or performed!

That's all for now. I'll post up the results from last week later today!