If you thought Fiji was big...wait until you hear this!!!!!!

I am back!

Okay I have been back for a week an totally neglected to tell you my news. It's not that I havent wanted to. I have been busting to get on here and blog but between getting back into the swing of things at work, looking after an active 18mth old and catching up on the piles of washing I have failed to blog.

I promise to make up for it now with news from my trip to Fiji.

Are you ready for it?

I certainly wasn't. Well I was. But it still caught me off guard.

I'm engaged!!!!

How spectacular is that!!!

And I know what you are thinking about that cake....

I only had a few mouthfuls I swear!

I have so much more to tell you and promise to tell you all about our trip, the temptations, the endulgences

(can anyone say champagne buffet breakfast each day),

which dress I wore to the wedding, the proposal, the weigh in, the future plans, goals and lots, lots more but for now I will leave you with a couple of photos from the trip.

I promise to blog again soon and will work on catching up on everyone's blog happenings over the weekend.

Stay tuned for further updates!

One year since the beginning

Tomorrow will be mark one year since I started in this journey (properly).

One year ago I decided that I had enough of hiding beneath all the layers of fat.

A beautiful friend who I met through mother's group had been going to Weight Watchers after having her gorgeous son and I had noticed all of her baby weight coming off. I asked her about what she had been doing and decided I would go along to WW with her. It was time to face the scales and see what they said.

104.2kg

WTF! This was bad. I never really saw what was really in the mirror but it was made crystal clear at that moment.

Yes I had a baby 5 months earlier but I had lost the baby weight within 2 weeks of giving birth (I was quite healthy during pregnancy and only gained 8 kilos). What I had to lose now was the chocolate, junk food and couch weight that I had put on whilst on maternity leave. 10kilograms had been gained in 5months! That's shocking! But I suppose that is what eating at all hours, eating high sugar/fat foods just to get that quick energy fix, no exercise due to being so tired and just eating a lot of processed convenience foods will do to your body.

So I began the journey with WeightWatchers and had my good and bad weeks (mainly good) and kept this up until December when I had lost a total of 11kg. The program worked for me. It taught me a lot and I loved that I never ever felt like I was on a diet. It was little changes that bought results on the scale. I think it was also the first year in ages that I didnt gain weight over Christmas. I kept my eating during the festive season under control. It was after Christmas that I quit WW as i jsut felt liek I was wasting money just to go there and only lose a few hundred grams so I stopped going (when I stopped going to WW that things started to go pear shaped again and I gained some weight).

After a massive momentary lapse of concentration,

I  had renewed motivation when talk of going to Fiji came up as some friends are getting married there!

YAY!!!! A holiday!!!

Oh F*%K!!!!! Swimmers!!!!

The thought of wearing swimmers terrified me!!! Most Summer's I would just hide away inside in the air con but this was not an option on this holiday.

Time to get to it again!

I started to really make use of the treadmill sitting in my lounge room, spend less time on the couch and now have a toddler to chase after. At times it has been hard work...really hard work, but I am making progress.

From then until now has been pretty well documented over this blog.

I thought seeming it has been one year on my journey I should include my progress. You have probably seen some of these pictures of my progress on my blog but here are some photos of me in the last year anyway.

October 2009 - 97kg

February 2010 - 97kg (after regaining some of the weight I had lost)

May 2010 - 96kg

June 2010 - 88kg

July 2010 - 85kg

July 2010 - 84kg

August 2010 - 80kg

August 2010 - 80kg

I am feeling so much lighter. I have lost almost 24.2kilograms which is 53.2pounds and I can live life.

I hope that in the next year I can reach my goal of 70kg.

Then bypass it by at least 5kg taking me to 65kg and hold that weight for the duration of the year.

And the nominees are....

Gain ............................Boo!

Loss ...........................WOOHOO!

Stay the same?.............>meh!

  

LOSS!!!!

And representing loss this week is

80kg!

Let me just say I am a little lost for words but here is my best effort.

That is a loss of 3kg!

First of all I would like to thank the food that has nourished me over thie last week. Not only have you tasted great, but you have kept me healthy and did not sit in my body and turn to fat. You can come again anytime  as you haven't overstayed your welcome (special mention of some of the most popular foods this week are mentioned below).

Special thanks also go to my other half for not bringing home any alcoholic beverages this week (if it's not here, it can not be consumed).

More thanks going out to family especially my gorgeous daughter who has kept me extremely active this week by running away from me laughing every time that I say stop (because it is so funny to see mummy get up and down chasing me and picking me up) and for bringing the joy of dancing back to me. So many dance sessions have been held at our house this week. Most involve me holding and spinning 10 additional kilograms around which must have contributed to me reaching 80kg!

Also minor thanks go to a little thing called stress and of course being the week after my most bloated time off the month.. I am sure you have both helped in some way.

And to each and every one of you who have supported me through my blog or by writing your own, you each give me inspiration and strengthen my inner powers to achieve and succeed! 

Popular food choices this week:

BREAKFAST
Biggest Loser Shakes for breakfast

CRUNCH & SIP MORNING SNACK

Carrots with hommus for morning snack

LUNCH

Multigrain sandwich with tuna, salad no butter.

CRUNCH AND SIP AFTERNOON SNACK

Strawberries or watermelon for arvo tea

DINNER

Soup or grilled chicken breast with winter veges (favourites at the moment are broccoli & cauliflower)

DRINKS

Green tea x 2

Normal tea with skim milk (no sugar) x 1

Diet coke

Water x 3 

Exercise this week:

Treadmill 5km a day (5 days)

Abs x100 (5days)

Lots of incidental walking, running, rushing, chasing, cleaning, stressing, dancing, lifting, etc!

MEASUREMENTS

Chest-100 (minus 2cm)

Waist- 84 (minus 4cm)

Hips- 100 (minus 2cm)

 

It's coming off!

I was going to wait until Sunday when I weigh in to post about this but decided it needed a post all of it's own.

Have you ever had one of those weeks where suddenly everyone that sees you notices the weight loss that you have actually been working on for a year? It clicks to everyone that this picture they had of you in their minds was of that fat girl (even though they would never say it) and all of a sudden you aren't that person anymore.

That is the week that I have had. I can not begin to tell you how many compliments I have had this week and it's only Friday! And instead of going all shy when receiving them, I have said to small words with a smile..."Thank you".

My other half even said to me today,

"Have you checked yourself out in the mirror lately...

cause you are looking damm fine!"

Yep, I'll take that one!

And you know what, I have been looking in the mirror. I have been checking out my reflection in the doors of the freezer section at the supermarket, as I walk right past the icecream that I used to pick up and eat all in one serving.

Finally I am not ashamed of what I see looking back at me.

Don't get me wrong...I still have a lot more work to do but I can see that changing my lifestyle in small ways over the space of a year, has made big changes.

I am happy.

I can breathe.

It's coming off!