New Aspirations...

Life has been a bit crazy and well I fell off the wagon - both with my diet and with blogging. As a result I have put on half a stone (if not more - I am afraid to step on the scales for fear of them saying something horrendous). But with Christmas only 23 days away, I am refocusing my efforts and having half heartedly followed it for the last week I have lost a two pound. So come tomorrow I will begin the Dukan with the attack phase again - 7 days PP and then PV. No excuses! Additionally, my Dr is sending me to have blood tests for a diabetes and thyroid check and I am hoping that I'll get some answers and help with my weight loss. Time to crack on - I have until May as I don't want to be the fat relative in my cousin's wedding photos and would like a nice family picture with D and mouse.

Ok I completely forgot to blog my week on the Dukan! It went well - I didn't start the attack phase again (which I should have!) but went back to cruise and lost 3lb. So the week after next I am AL again and I am going to do the attack phase for 7 days alongside Jillian Michael's 30 day shred - which I have heard lots of good things about, but have struggled to find the 20 mins quiet time each day to do the workout. I want to drop another dress size before Christmas - and be a size 12/14 by next June... It should be do able if I can rediscover my willpower and say no to carbs & sweet things!

Well I know it has been a while since I last blogged and sadly no I haven't lost anything in my absence - I wish I was blogging to say 'break out the trumpets another stone gone' but alas (this word isn't used enough for my liking!) I am unable to even do that because as I write this my bathroom scales sit broken as a silent reminder that I need to replace them... The coward in me is kind of glad that they have as I know they'll say something horrid, however on the flip side without them I have completely lost my drive! Although I will hold my hands up and admit I had become a bit obsessive in my weighing every morning and perhaps again at night to see what water/food weight I had gained! So perhaps this break whilst not good for my weight loss has been good on my mental approach... Perhaps... So as many of these recent entries have mentioned I need to REFOCUS but I need to be in the right mindset and not so bloody exhausted or bloody broke either - because let

Whilst nosing around on the official Dukan site, looking for inspirational recipes to get me back on track, I found this one and had to share it!    Molten Chocolate Muffins  Preparation time: 10 min Cooking time: 30 min Serves 6 Ingredients 4 eggs 12 tablespoons of Dukan Diet oat bran 3 tablespoons  of skimmed milk powder 4 tablespoons of 0% fromage frais or quark 1 tablespoon of liquid sweet ener (of Stevia or other powdered sweetener) 3 level tablespoons of cornstarch 1 sachet of yeast A couple of drops of Dukan chocolate flavouring 6 tablespoons of Dukan Gourmet chocolate spread Directions - Preheat oven to 180°C - Separate the egg whites from the yolks - In a large bowl, mix the yolks together with the sweetener,  fromage frais, milk powder, cornstarch, baking powder, oat bran, and flavouring. - Beat egg whites until stiff peaks form and gently incorporate them into the rest of the mixture. Fill each silicone muffin mold halfway with a spoonful

Well lovelies... It's been a month since my last post, I am sad to say in that month I haven't lost anything, well except the pounds I have gained from falling off the Dukan wagon... Yes I have fallen with an almighty crash - looking over the previous post it was inevitable the sandwich at lunch has led to a sandwich and a bag of skips because my little internal voice was telling me 'it's cheaper to buy the meal deal!' & 'its better to stop in Tesco on the way to work than having the temptation in the house'.... Was it little voice? Was it really? Then there's has been L's birthday (which meant cake!), introducing L to the joys of marmite... He loves it! Which is odd as I couldn't eat it whilst pregnant as it would trigger morning sickness... So my little internal voice rationalised this as needing to show L it was yummy! Add to this that because of L's birthday money has been tight, meaning this last week has seen me eating carbs w

The weight is dropping off, my weight loss has now steadied to about 1lb a week, which is a healthy loss and will hopefully mean that what is lost will stay off. That's not to say that I am not a little bit disappointed in myself, as it is L's 1st Birthday in three weeks and I have been hoping that I would be able to fit into the dress I blogged about back in January but sadly it is still too tight! I have to confess for the last week I have been naughty - I have Dukan'd for breakfast and dinner, but for lunch I have had a chicken, bacon and lettuce sandwich, as I eat with the children at work and I am trying to encourage one of them to eat sandwiches, so we have had a challenge - I eat half my bread and they eat half of theirs. This probably hasn't helped as I am craving carbs now, but I will try and smash it next week by taking salads and having five days PV/two days PP. So maybe I won't get in the dress but I will hopefully fit my denim shorts & the

Well yesterday I broke the plateau - the green tea/PP day definitely worked! I called D to double check as I wasn't convinced that I was seeing it correctly! So now onto the next step - exercise!! I've got to find something that I can fit into the few hours I have during evenings or of a weekend. So it looks like I wil be stealing the Wii back from my mum, if I can fit in half an hour on there every evening plus 6 lots of 25 reps of sit ups then hopefully I can keep this loss going even if it has slowed to a pace of about 1lb a week. I am looking at this slower rate of weight loss as a good thing, as it is said that the steadier and slower you lose it the better chance you have of keeping it off. If I lose more so be it! It'll be interesting to see what difference the sit ups/Wii will make to inch loss in the next two weeks... Wish me luck and any suggestions would be welcome please (I don't do running just yet but I am considering this as a challenge so any

Well after hitting the two stone mark - my weight has stagnated & with my will power abandoning me over Easter I have hovered around 17st 4lb-2lb (on the odd day hitting 6lb!) I haven't permenantly gained anything despite my wobbles. Having looked into it further I have discovered two tips which might help me to break this period of stillness, firstly what is known as White Protein Day - which is exactly as it sounds - a day of purely high quality white protein avoiding all tolerated items, a strict variation of the PP day to increase weight loss through burning stored fat to convert the protein to energy. The second tip is to increase the amount of Green Tea drunk. With Dukan himself recommending that for one day you replace all the water you drink with Green Tea - be it hot/cold/iced or in sorbet... Including the glass of water you sip from overnight - and given that it is a very good diuretic I will be awake at night! So with this all in mind I am going to give both a

Bugger it all! As with most 'relationship' breaks, mine with Dr Dukan has led to weight gain - a significant gain of 4lb in the last week! With the addition of sugar cravings and bloating... was the break worth it? YES ! Not because of the Easter meals out or the chocolate, but because it has made me more sure that Dr Dukan's way of eating is for me! I have come to realise that when I am properly on the diet I feel so much better - I feel lighter and more energetic, there are NO sugar cravings after a few days. So, as of Thursday, our relationship is back on - with a renewed vigour... I say Thursday as that is when I must go shopping and restock the fridge and cupboards... so until then I am off to help finish off the bag of Doritos in the cupboard and the last of the Easter chocolate that isn't destined for Mousey Man! After which I am going to have 7 days pure protein and harrass D to make me those nice Dukan biscuits...

With the passing of Lent - I have decided to take a small (long-weekend) break from Dr Dukan and allow myself to dine out with friends and enjoy some lovely home cooked pizza (D has been demonstrating his Pizzola skills in the kitchen today to his friend) over the weekend.  Whilst, I am enjoying the break, I must say I am eager to get back to the diet on Tuesday, fully focused and refreshed (if a little bloated from the carbs... the fact that I am noticing the difference in how they make me feel and my energy levels after eating 'bad' carbs amazes me!).  With a new week beginning and being only 2lb away from my last goal, it is now time to look at a new weight loss goal (and share with you my starting weight and current weight).  Until, now I have been doing it by stone, recording my loss on a handy free app on the iPhone called Targetweight. So, for Easter I decided to upgrade to the paid for app to access other useful functions including a note taking feature whe

For many years now the mirror has not been my friend from the chest down. I physically feel ill when I catch I glimpse of my naked body in the bathroom mirror and this has become particularly worse since having L. My body between my hips and my thighs has always repulsed me as my stomach has always overhung - I'm not talking a small pouch of fat, but a serious droop, something the medical community endearingly calls 'A Mother's Apron'. I hate it! I've dieted before and tried to reduce it - it's worked a bit but I have no real stomach muscle tone to help - less do since L! I have had a problem with weight since I had kidney failure as a small child and no amount of healthy eating (we were never brought up to eat anything but good nutritious home cooked food) has helped and since my teens weight has always accumulated on my lower stomach. Weight will fall off everywhere but the stomach remains and with my C-Section scar now acting as a ledge, I am beginni

Whilst there is no loss in pounds to report this week - stabilisation I am taking as a good thing! I have noticed that I have lost half an inch from most areas - chest-waist-hip,arms & thighs. My calves remain the same but hopefully in time the calf length pirate boots I covert will fit & I'll be able to indulge myself by buying them! Next week I plan to have three days pure protein as I am not in my regular work environment for two days, so it'll be easier to stick to it & to drink the required two litres of water which I have been struggling to do! With this in mind I have been looking for some new ways to make meals more interesting & have found a wonderful website/blog called mydukandiet.com which breaks down recipes into the phases - and I must say I am quite excited by a few of the recipes, including the sweet ones as that seems to be my downfall at the moment - following Dinner I always want something sweet & diet coke just isn't satisfyin

At the beginning of the week I had a lovely moment where I looked in the mirror and actually noticed the weight loss. This has made me more determined to knuckle down and carry on, I just need to make my meals more adventurous as until now my meals have been a bit too similar and it has become boring, I've also lost track of which are PP or PV days! So I was pleasantly pleased to find that the Dukan recipes app on my phone has been updated to include allowed/tolerated list which means that I can easily refresh my memory as to what veg/proteins are allowed when I am out shopping/eating out. I have been discussing this diet with my mum & my dear friend Jo who are both thinking of giving it ago, but whom are yet to pick up copies of the book, so I figured I'd include at the end this week's blog the lists as well as a typical PP and PV day, for them but also for anyone who might be interested. So until next time take care, and please feel free to leave comments.

Well this week has been a hectic one in our house. With OH off work due to his back accumulating in a trip to out of hours Dr first thing (6am!) yesterday morning and another visit today to A&E and a busy but productive week at work. I simply haven't had time to try any recipes from my Dukan book this week, although I have ear marked a couple for next week including trying the galettes, a chocolate oat bran muffins (woo hoo!), Dukan mayo and Dukan bread! I have discovered a lovely fajita paste that is really nice on chicken and combined with cottage cheese it is so yummy! I had it for dinner tonight and could have eaten it all over again - the only problem being I wanted something sweet after - so I've been naughty and had a glass of weak hi-juice squash which did the trick. So you are probably wondering how I've done... Well some how since yesterday I lost 5lb overnight (I've triple checked and it is accurate) so I am 2lb away from having lost two stone sin

Well the last week or so has been a busy one, with work and D at home having been off sick, it's not really been a diet friendly week. Plus, I have grown bored with what I have been eating - I have got stuck in a rut with breakfast, lunch and dinner. So next week I resolve to work through my copy of The Dukan Diet Recipe book and find more interesting and yummy things to eat... And I shall blog my attempts at being a culinary diet goddess here next week... So watch this space for the chaos that is likely to occur! That's if D let's me in the kitchen!! But I have lost a pound - even with the chocolate and strawberry laces stolen of D!...

They say 'Out of the mouths of babes, no truer word is spoken'... Well the scales and I disagree with this! Today, at lunch some of the class and I were having a discussion about how I have a baby at home who stays with his Nana during the day (a hot topic as I've just returned from Mat Leave), when one of the children asked me if I was having another baby because my tummy looked like it was growing!! I laughed and said no and that my tummy was still trying to go smaller,- so I resolve to try harder! Although... I'm pleased to announce I have lost another 6lb! At this rate the children will hopefully see a healthy "Miss 'Chelle" very soon as the next step is to add some exercise - starting with increasing my walking (pedometer has been ordered to see how little I do each day and then I'll set some targets)... Well I have an example to set to the children now and to L when he's older. I will also admit to eating about 7 Malteasers but I did

Well the title says it all, since last Friday my weight has been at a plateau and I will openly admit I have eaten pizza and a couple of biscuits this week. But I wonder if this plateau could be down to the fact that since I have returned to work full time, I have not been able to drink as much water., as I have had a couple of PP days and still no weightloss! According to the book a plateau is to be expected after a significant loss and that it can also happen if enough water is not being drunk and if oat bran has been missed out, all of which has happened this week! So next week I intend to do a full week of PP (if finances and work allows), eating oat bran allowance and drinking as much water as possible throughout the day - even if it means having to keep getting up in the night (well I'm up with little man anyway!) Wish me luck! Hopefully, next time we meet I'll be half a stone lighter!

I finally shifted the pesky pound which has thwarted me all week. So it is onto the next stone, this time I am allowing myself 50 days to lose it in, which equates to 2lb a week. According to Dr Dukan, this is a reasonable target given the amount of weight I have left to lose. (I promise after the next stone is gone I will reveal all - that's if you want to know?) As I get closer I will lower my weekly target to 1lb, as I full expect it to take longer to shift the lighter I get and I am ok with this. As I hope it will give me chance to firm up, something which is much needed! Especially my tummy. Sorry to keep it short and sweet but I must now go get little man's breakfast ready, but had to share my joy whilst he was occupied with Daddy.

Well people it maybe a little longer until I fit into the dress, as despite losing just shy of a stone (two more pounds to go), the dress is still too small! However, at least it now actually goes over my chest (there was massive gapping zip and there was a slight concern that D would have to rescue me from getting stuck!) but I am on my way there, if not by end of Feb then March... I don't mind moving the goal post, I think a month was probably a bit ambitious, as I should realise by now that my weight and dress size dot always tally up and seeing as I also tried on two pairs of tailored trousers which having been too small pre-pregnancy, now do up! (Snug, yes but there was no laying on the bed and breathing in deeply) I am beginning to see an improvement in my clothes fitting. I can't wait to be comfortable in jeans again, I miss wearing them, every pair of maternity ones now have to be constantly pulled up or cinched with a belt, so I am living in my slinky jersey blac

Well it's been two weeks since I started the Dukan Diet and so far I've lost 11lb! The last week has seen my weight drop by another 1lb and rise again - stagnating at a 11lb loss. I've been good - I had one little slip up involving a crumpet, it was out of hunger at the end of my second KIT day at work, this was also a PV day and for some reason I have felt less satisfied on these days, no matter that I eat the same amount of protein just with added veg. What I've found interesting is that I didn't enjoy the taste and rather than sate my hunger it had the opposite effect. But surely this slip up couldn't be the reason why I hadn't lost anything for five days, especially as additionally I felt bloated and exhausted. I had put these down to the change in routine, which with along with other things meant not drinking a lot during the day, that is until I checked my calendar, did a little research and found another reason why... that time of the month wa

Well got on the scales today and I am yet again a pound lighter than yesterday and I feel great... Word of advise for anyone thinking of doing the diet - don't forget to eat lunch! I did yesterday, as I was so busy what with taking Mousey to the doctors, having friends call round and a loft insulation inspection and by the end of the day I was really craving something quick and carb filled... But I resisted and had salmon and cottage cheese - it might sound a bit bland but I have discovered all different ways to jazz the foods up without the need for sauces - although Dukan does have some lovely recipes I've yet to try out... When I do I will share some. This weekend when Mousey is away at his grandparents I may enlist D to help trial some - he's the chef in this house as I can be a culinary disaster when its not basic, but practice makes perfect and now I'm a mummy, my famous Jacket Potato & Diet Coke à la a Rachel from Friends wont quite cut it nutrition wi

I have been asked by many people to explain what The Dukan Diet is all about - isn't it like Atkins because you can't have carbs? The answer is no! Unlike the Dukan Diet, Atkins not only allows, but even encourages dieters to eat as much fat as they want. The Dukan Diet does not include the option to eat as much fat as you like, in fact you are discouraged from eating any fat at all if possible. So here is a little information... What is the Dukan Diet The Dukan diet originated in France when Dr. Pierre Dukan tried his friend, who was a meat eater, on a high protein diet to lose weight. This diet was so successful for his friend that he fine tuned it, making it the diet we now know as the Dukan Diet. Particularly in the beginning this is a high protein diet with an emphasis placed on pure protein days, not just throughout the diet, but after the consolidation stage once a week for life! How Does the Dukan diet work? The great thing about the Dukan diet is that i

Just to share that I was right the scales at my local Boots need recalibrating because they are out by 2lb and 3 inches... I've worked hard for those 2lb, thank you very much and am proud to say I am 5ft 4 not 5ft 1!! ... So the grand total so far is 8lb so just over half a stone!

Well I went and weighed myself today and found that I've lost 6lb - but the scales I used in Boots decided that I had shrunk by 3 inches despite me wearing my Primarni Uggs with a thick sole! So the question is have I actually lost 6lb or could it be more? Given that when I got on the scales to at Mum's earlier on in the week I was at about a 6lb loss then. I am now confused greatly, perhaps the loss was at the beginning of the week. Well I plan to steal a set of Mum's scales so that I can weigh myself at home! So watch this space...

I've decided to set myself a goal each month to get into/feel comfortable in a different item of clothing... First up is this dress it's a size 18, I bought off eBay just before Christmas thinking it would fit - I have coveted it since my days of working at New Look when I brought it in a 16 (I was a 14) because it came up small, I promptly took it back, as D laughed and said it wasn't really my style - too girly... As my style lent more to rock/surfy minimal effort for maximum impact, he was right but I still loved it - I just figure the 'Rock Chick' in me can wear it with leggings and boots when she finally breaks free... The problem being I forgot it came up small across the bust - so whilst it would have fitted and cover my horrid stomach it just wouldn't go over what Gok would call my 'Bangers' So the challenge is to see if with the help of Dr Dukan I can get into this by the beginning of February! If it takes a little longer so be it...

Today starts Day 3 of the Dukan diet, and so far so good. I'd weighed myself two weeks before Christmas at the Drs surgery, so I had a rough idea of what my weight was. There are no scales in our house - so when visiting Mum with Mousey I usually jump on hers. However, this usually finds me dragging the scales around the house to find an average - much to the amusement of my Dad & Mousey as the floors are uneven! The conclusion from yesterday's mission - 3 days in & I am 3lb lighter than my weight a fortnight ago!!! So onwards I go... When I lose a stone I may even be tempted to admit my weight... Maybe...

Since having my little man I have been the heaviest/biggest I have ever been - a size 20/22 bottom half and a size 18 top! (for now I shall keep my weight to myself if you don't mind (it's embarrassingly heavy)... Other than the last weeks of my pregnancy when I was so bloated I resembled a helium balloon I have never been so uncomfortable in my life! The consolation is that at least my hands and feet are normal again! I've spent the last 7 months focusing on my little man, grabbing food on the go and on reflection not eating regularly and then eating/drinking the wrong things (Carbs in the form of pasta, bread and rice! Diet Coke and Coffee) when I get the chance has not helped my weight issues. My weight problems were pre-existent to pregnancy and made my journey more difficult - high blood pressure due to this and the bloating/swelling led to constant monitoring for pre-eclampsia and having to take mat leave earlier than I would have wanted. Our little man arrive