Ups and Downs...

[Note - I typed this up yesterday (Monday) but only managed to post it Tuesday morning hence the slightly out-of-sync timings...]

I am determined to get settled into this new challenge and really cement the sensible eating and increased exercise back into my life. Generally speaking it's been going well but progress does not follow a straightline course. And that is very frustrating!

I set out some mini-targets on Thursday so I may as well report back on how well I did with those.

1. Dig out and use the chart for my wall. Our survey says - XX. I have got the chart but it remains folded up in my handbag. I have weighed every morning though just not written the results (good or bad) up for public consumption. I am resisting doing this but don't know why as it helped me before and I'm not embarrassed in front of Rich as he knows what I weigh etc. Think I am frightened that I will fail and the chart will record that failure. But if I don't use it, I am more likely not to succeed - derrr...

2. Go swimming on Friday. I didn't do this because I was working from home miles away from a pool and it snowed. But I did go for a run in the snow so I would say that that counts!!

3. Do some form of exercise over the weekend. Partial success. I did not run, bike or gym but did go for 2 energetic, hilly walks. The Saturday one is a bit of a cop-out but the Sunday one up Win Hill in a howling gale certainly was not. Need to stop shying away from running though and keep the pressure on as one cuckoo does not a summer make....I've only been running once since the new push started.

4. Tighten up on food. Once again, partial success. Saturday was good but Sunday involved big cooked breakfast and roast chicken supper. Ideally, I would hope to be able to accommodate that sort of Sunday into my new regime but maybe not straight away, not until I know what I'm doing....

The upshot of this is that, while I initially lost 3 lbs on Friday, Saturday and Sunday and felt great, this morning (Monday) saw all 3 back on again. I feel fat and full and my waistband is tight. Blegh! Now I know that this is all very short term and nothing is lost by one indulgent day, but really I could do without this lardy feeling. So, back to 14.2......grrrrr That's one whole week now for those pesky 3 lbs....

So, more mini-targets:

1. Go swimming today. Tick - am leaving right now!
2. NO picking at work. There are too many post-Christmas chocolates and biscuits hanging around so I am going to take a zero-tolerance approach for a few days, starting this afternoon (have already had a shortbread biscuit... and a Lindt choc....the slippery slope beckons)
3. Chart up. This evening. No excuses.
4. Talk to Rich about this challenge. Shauna made this part of her plan and it seemed to make sense to me. Don't know why it is so hard to talk about weight and dieting when I can open my soul to the internet but it is different in real life somehow.
Set more targets tomorrow

Update - I went swimming at lunchtime and it was great. I always say to myself when I go (one of the tricks I learned on the TV show - to make exercise more palatable for my chimp) that I only have to do 40 lengths which is pretty manageable for me. I will try to do more but can stop after 40 without pressure. I normally go on to do a face-saving 44 or maybe 46. Well today I carried on up to 56 non-stop laps of steady front crawl and only stopped then because I was running out of time. I reckon I'll be able to get my minimum up to 50 and my target up to 60.

Also, there has been no snacking this afternoon (okay it's only been 3 hours but those Lindt chocs are pretty damn tempting!!)

We're off dancing again this evening. It's been ages since our last class. We missed the last class of December due to a trip to the Panto and the studio was closed over Christmas and the New Year. I'm really looking forward to it but cannot remember much in the way of actual dance steps. Rich is frankly dreading it!! Suspect we'll be fine but a bit rusty. Once again, though, I could do without feeling so lardy!