No Potatoes, I'm dieting

This is a spud free zone. And Pasta too. Carbs you see.


The diet is now a week old, and thus far, due to my new found love for throwing any old ingredient (although now I check the wheel thing for nutritional info first) its not been that hard to give up my spuds and pasta.


I generally get bored of diets after a week. I love my food you see. As a teen, I found it very easy to just not eat for 6 days, go out to my local goth club (hence the diet to fit in a dress) and then stuff a Maccy Ds on the Sunday, and start again Monday. I used to easily lose weight. I was very skinny, and to be frank, I took it far too far and ended up eating a bowl of spaghetti or two fish fingers every other day by the time I was in my first flat. I think back then I lived on alcohol. But then it didn't matter because I couldn't cook and wasn't bothered by food.


Enter Elder and his love of fry ups, eating out (and not just in McDonalds, in pubs and curry houses and proper restaurants) and cooking good Irish stews and Shepherds pies. He would demand I throw food in the trolley in Tesco (which I didn't know existed until meeting him), and bought me sweets when going to the offy, finding chocolate to be my weakness in the "must diet to extinction" drive.


Two kids and 5 dress sizes later (yes from 8-16), all be it with a short respite and sudden size 10/12 drop whilst breastfeeding (The Child Formerly Known as) Mini for a year (where I could eat family sized pizza and not put on a pound. Truly the best 12 months of my life).


Now, I don't blame Elder at all. I think he opened up the food love for me, but someone had to.


And then I got a bit pee'd off not knowing how to cook. So I have taught myself- I have near blown my own head off with over chilli usage in early attempts. And some things really didn't work how I thought they would. But now I'm definitely competent, but from the school of whack it all in one wok/pan and see what occurs on it hitting a plate. 


My faves are lemon juice, soy sauce (light soy now), chilli (moderated and definitely de-seeded) and garlic. Easy peasy and go with most stuff. I also love adding cream cheese to stuff- the light one is just as nice and it goes a long way to replacing oily sauces like mayo. 


But its not just food. Its exercise.


I bought my Nephew's Wii console. He got a Connect for Christmas, so I offered to buy his Wii so he can buy his BMX fancy bike he's been diligently saving every spare penny for for months. Win win.


I now box my way round the living room every night, and play a good few games of tennis too.  Daytime and cabs are kaput, and I have walked to town and back, with heavy shopping everyday this week. If I had no bags, I pushed the buggy up the hill whilst power walking.  I also have an Ab Slider, which hurts like hell, but no pain no gain, as well as a Yoga and Ministry Aeroburn DVDs, which you can do in 10 minute routines. 


As I write this, I am sore. I have done a 20 minute work out, walked to the town centre and back with bags of spuds and four pints of milk (amongst other food) and have done quite a bit of Wii Boxing and tennis. I danced to the kids music DVD (including a rather over done Hokey Cokey).


But the whole thing may not have meant I have shed stones in weight in a week. I am sleeping so well. Knackered by 9 now. Which is brilliant as my energy levels are right up there for the first time in 3 years.


Yes, I call the Nutritional Wheel the Wheel of Doom (if its salt filled or fatty its not going in my food), I miss my take out and sweets. But its worth it for the feeling that I may just fit into my fave Karen Millen jeans by Easter, and even better hopefully my first fave Diesel jeans by Christmas. Slow and steady, but progress indeed.


Pass the sweat bands please!

Atkins and Other Food Related Issues

Yes, I am back. Sorry I have been slightly quiet, but the new house seems to have taken over my life at the minute, and of an evening all I want to do is lie on the couch and watch Friends re-runs.

But, here I am again with an update.

Mini's room is now all but finished, only the wood work is left to do now, and regardless of my new found decorating skills I am still banned from touching anything near the carpet. 

I was also, shockingly, allowed to paint the entire front room, I say shockingly because Elder had previously banned me from painting anywhere where guests would see. But after seeing the skilled job I made of Min's room, he has now decided that I have made it look like I was crap at decorating to get out of doing any for ten years. 

I however argued that, actually, I was crap ten years ago, but after watching a master at work such as him for that ten year period, I have obviously learnt from his skills. (Insert canned laughter here!).

But, the newest news is that I am back on the scary New Year diet.

Yes, my resolution to lose weight and drop two dress sizes failed miserably by March. In fact, such was my failure I went up a dress size instead. Doh!

And now I 'm actually bothered by it. 

Previously I didn't care, but well, I don't feel healthy at the moment. I feel unfit, slovenly, crap. And when I have two kids as active as mine, its just not good.

Therefore, I am doing something I tried prior to Mini. 

Atkins.

Yes, I know it gets a bad press, but it does work. If you actually read the book, it does say that stuff like spuds and pasta are things which will make you put on weight. But it doesn't say to cut them completely.

Unfortunately, due to hype, people do think that's the idea, and that's when you get the stinky breath, awful farts and fainting fits that are the common side affects moaned about.

What I did last time, and which worked well for me, was to cut out carbs in the week, then eat what I wanted at the weekend. I also cut out sweets and tried to drink less milk, and coffee too.

So, instead of eating chicken and chips, I would substitute chips for plain boiled rice. Instead of coffee, I drank loads of water.

I had to go on a diet at that stage- I had suffered from high blood pressure due to stress at the time (mostly the stress of not getting pregnant), and I tend to comfort eat when I am stressed. 

But by following the practices above, I went from an unfit, spotty size 14/16 to a clear skinned, healthy size 10, in about 3 months.

I don't really want to get to a size 10 again, I think after two children that's unrealistic. And I think setting a goal which you can get to is half the battle too.

Instead, I'd be happy with a size 12. But I wll do it slowly, and get more exercise, which is where living at the top of a hill is always handy, and hopefully I can do it by Christmas. 

I really don't want to be the Mummy who looks like a whale getting into the swimming pool. I also hate my spotty complex, and think I have started growing bingo wings too. Eugh.

So, Sushi and rice, and grilled chicken, here I come.