Emma's Journey from Fat and Frumpy to Fit and Fabulous!

Hello everyone! I'm Emma, 26 years old, and I'm back for my second attempt at losing weight. I'll try to keep my introduction brief (apologies if I end up rambling!).

I graduated from university in 2011 and although I knew I was big, it wasn't until I saw photos of myself at my graduation ceremony that summer that it actually sunk in how big I was. I tipped the scales at 17st 12lbs. I decided it was time to do something about it. I worked hard for the next three years and managed to get down to 13st 12lbs in June 2014. I'd done it with a combination of eating healthily (most of the time) and exercising by playing roller derby. I still had pizza every Saturday and I lost weight quite steadily.

I'd gone back to uni to do a PGCE and after completing that in June last year I spent the summer travelling round Australia and New Zealand. It was an amazing experience, but I gained more than a stone and a half within the six weeks, and came back at 15st 7lbs. Two weeks after coming home, I moved to a new city (Leeds) to start my career as a teacher. Starting a new job in a new city was stressful enough, and I just didn't have the time/energy/motivation to try and lose the weight I'd gained.

Fast forward to now, I've just started the summer term in my first year as a teacher and my weight has crept up from 15st 7lbs in August to 16st 7lbs today. If I'm being honest, it makes me feel sick to think I've gained 2st 9lbs in less than a year. My clothes don't fit right, but I don't want to buy anything new at this size. I'm feeling miserable, demotivated, and very stressed out.

I'm going to Florida and New York this summer, and I'm absolutely horrified at the thought of being seen in swimwear. Plus I have a sneaky suspicion my boyfriend might propose during the trip, and I really don't want to be a fat bride. Babies are also on the cards in the next few years, so I have plenty of reasons to shape up and lose weight again. All I need now is the motivation.

I joined my local SW group this evening. I'm feeling excited and determined to succeed. I've not been prepared enough over the last few months - skipping breakfast, not eating lunch at work, and then stuffing my face when I get home. It has to change. I've already started putting meal plans together. Organisation is definitely the key to success.

I'm planning to use this diary as a way of tracking my ups and downs, and hopefully making some friends in the process. Please comment if you'd like mutual support on this journey

Here to sub You have made a great start so far, planning is important, otherwise it can be easy to fall off the wagon. You sound really determined too, and you have lovely reasons to motivate you! I look forward to reading your diary

Good luck, sounds like you've got your mojo back and some great reasons to be motivated xx

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Welcome, Emma

So today was my first full day on the plan. I had to rush for work this morning so I didn't have time for the Wheatabix I'd planned to have, so I made do with two rocky road Hi-Fi Light bars for my hexB choice. They're absolutely delicious, I could eat the full box in one go!

I couldn't go food shopping last night so I grabbed a quick pre-packed sandwich for lunch. Checked the syns online when I got home tonight and I'm mortified that it had 27 syns! I'd usually think 'oh well, I've blown it now, might as well give up', but luckily I went food shopping before I got home so my fridge and cupboards are full of lovely healthy food now and I'm just drawing a line under my slip-up at lunch and moving on.

For tea tonight I'm going to have an omelette with ham and a bit of cheese (hexA) and a side salad made up of lettuce, tomato, cucumber and sliced pepper. I'll have a bit of light salad cream with it, otherwise it'd be a bit plain, so I'm counting that as 3 syns for 2 teaspoons of the light version.

My main issue is planning ahead. Because I'm so busy with work (I'm in my first year as a fully-qualified teacher), I've been skipping breakfast and sometimes even lunch. I often get home after work and I'll have only eaten one or two cereal bars all day. By that point, I'm starving and I end up stuffing my face with crisps and biscuits or even a takeaway instead of cooking a proper meal. I need to get into better habits, as it's really unhealthy. Now that I've been food shopping though, I'm feeling prepared and raring to go. I just hope my little lunch-time blip won't come back to haunt me on the scales next week!

It's great that you've jumped straight in and are so excited about it all. It's really admirable that you've drawn a line under the lunch time happenings rather than just writing off the whole day. It's a really good mindset to have! Because you're carrying on with the plan rather than letting go, it shouldn't affect the wonderful losses you'll have when you weigh in next week!

Hello Emma! Try to get at least a fruit for breakfast, this way you don't feel hungry and it also bumps your metabolism a bit. Good to hear that you are now prepared to start! For me, if I don't eat properly, chances are that I'm going to give up and binge eating whatever I can find in front of me. Then I'll start thinking about all the awesomeness of eating a lot (because I do like eating), so I try not to be hungry

Those pre-packed sandwiches are quite scary! Even the supposed 'healthy' ones can be terrible. You have the right attitude though, no point dwelling

Sounds like you have had a good day. I now have a fruit bowl in my kitchen, it is pretty handy when I am feeling peckish, as it is the first thing I see. Once you get into a routine there will be no stopping you

Hi emma, here to subscribe!

Hi Emma, I'm not far from you.. In York. I am coming to my first year as a social worker so I understand your stress!

I am terrible for just grabbing stuff... Then regretting it!

I have a few tips that have worked for me that may work for you...

Breakfast - make it the night before, I do the over night oats with fruit in a box I can take with me, or have a 60g wholemeal roll filled with ham, boiled egg and tomato.. In a bag so I can grab it from the fridge.

Lunch - could cous, pasta, salad, cold meats, eggs, tuna, or if you have a microwave evening meal left overs..

Tea - I LOVE my slow cooker! Put everything in the night before and put the pot in the fridge, stick it on low in the morning... Curries, chilli, veggie dishes... Endless options..

I hope that helps... Good luck

Hello Emma! Try to get at least a fruit for breakfast, this way you don't feel hungry and it also bumps your metabolism a bit. Good to hear that you are now prepared to start! For me, if I don't eat properly, chances are that I'm going to give up and binge eating whatever I can find in front of me. Then I'll start thinking about all the awesomeness of eating a lot (because I do like eating), so I try not to be hungry

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Hi! I planned to have wheatabix with chopped up strawberries but I just didn't get up early enough. I'm trying really hard to make time for breakfast in future though, I'm a firm believer in it being the most important meal of the day!

Hi Emma, I'm not far from you.. In York. I am coming to my first year as a social worker so I understand your stress!

I am terrible for just grabbing stuff... Then regretting it!

I have a few tips that have worked for me that may work for you...

Breakfast - make it the night before, I do the over night oats with fruit in a box I can take with me, or have a 60g wholemeal roll filled with ham, boiled egg and tomato.. In a bag so I can grab it from the fridge.

Lunch - could cous, pasta, salad, cold meats, eggs, tuna, or if you have a microwave evening meal left overs..

Tea - I LOVE my slow cooker! Put everything in the night before and put the pot in the fridge, stick it on low in the morning... Curries, chilli, veggie dishes... Endless options..

I hope that helps... Good luck

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Hi cheekychick! It's good to meet people close by to offer support

I made an omelette with ham and salad for tea tonight so I've already made up a box of salad with ham for tomorrow's lunch. You're right, preparation is the key. The issue with taking breakfast 'to go' is that by the time I get to work, I don't actually have time to eat it! so I really need to be eating before I leave the house.

I'm seriously thinking about investing in a slow cooker, but I'm only cooking for myself. I'm living in a house share with three other professionals, and I know I can batch cook and freeze portions, but we have a limited amount of space in the freezer =/ My shelf in the fridge is already overflowing from buying all the fruit, salad, yoghurts, ham and bacon tonight and I always keep my bread frozen because I don't eat it often enough and it always ends up going stale before I'm halfway through the loaf.

It sounds like I'm making excuses, but I'm sure I'll be able to find a way around it. Once I'm fully into the swing of things with eating healthily again I think I'll be investing in some new equipment. A slow cooker is definitely at the top of my list!

*Emma said:

Hi cheekychick! It's good to meet people close by to offer support I made an omelette with ham and salad for tea tonight so I've already made up a box of salad with ham for tomorrow's lunch. You're right, preparation is the key. The issue with taking breakfast 'to go' is that by the time I get to work, I don't actually have time to eat it! so I really need to be eating before I leave the house. I'm seriously thinking about investing in a slow cooker, but I'm only cooking for myself. I'm living in a house share with three other professionals, and I know I can batch cook and freeze portions, but we have a limited amount of space in the freezer =/ My shelf in the fridge is already overflowing from buying all the fruit, salad, yoghurts, ham and bacon tonight and I always keep my bread frozen because I don't eat it often enough and it always ends up going stale before I'm halfway through the loaf. It sounds like I'm making excuses, but I'm sure I'll be able to find a way around it. Once I'm fully into the swing of things with eating healthily again I think I'll be investing in some new equipment. A slow cooker is definitely at the top of my list!

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With the slow cooker intend to eat the same thing all week... Boring I know but during the week I am just cooking for one as well and saves me having to think each night.. I just chuck a ready made portion into the microwave.

I guess if you preprepared breakfast it would be quicker to grab and eat it before you left than starting from scratch... The other thing I do when I've no time is grab 2 alpen light bars as my healthy extra b and a banana and sneak them when I can..

That's what I've been doing this week CheekyChick, I've had two Hi-Fi Light Bars as my health extra B and a handful of grapes with a pot of yoghurt. It's working so far but I'm still trying to drag myself out of bed earlier to have a proper breakfast haha.

Didn't have time to post last night, so my meals for the last two days were:

Wednesday:
2 x Hi Fi Light bars for breakfast (health extra B)
Ham and salad for lunch
Pasta with tuna and sweetcorn for tea
Snacks - grapes, clementines, yoghurt, milky way (5 syns)

I also counted 5 syns for 2tbsp of salad cream (must remember to buy a lighter version!) and 2 syns for sugar in my tea (must also remember to take sweetener to work!). I used milk in my tea as my healthy extra A.

Total: 12 syns

Today:
1 Hi-Fi Light bar with grapes and yoghurt for breakfast
Leftover pasta with tuna and sweetcorn (5 syns for salad cream)
Jacket potato with cottage cheese and salad for tea (lettuce, carrot, cabbage, tomato, cucumber, pepper)
I'm going to have 1 weetabix with milk for supper to use up my healthy extras.

Total: 5 syns

I'm really happy with how this first week is going. I've been more prepared than I used to be. It was so easy to get home from work and just order a takeaway, have a microwave meal, or shove a pizza in the oven instead of preparing a decent meal. I'm also planning ahead to take lunch to work with me too. I used to regularly eat just two cereal bars all day then come home from work and stuff my face, and it was so unhealthy. I'm already feeling much happier and healthier just by eating more fruit/veg and being more prepared.

So tomorrow is Friday. I've already made up a box of salad with a jacket potato and cottage cheese for lunch tomorrow. I've ran out of Hi-Fi Light bars so I'll have to make sure I get up early enough to have two slices of wholemeal toast or a bowl of weetabix otherwise I won't have any breakfast to take with me.

My main concern now is how I'm going to cope over the weekend. I used to have a takeaway almost every weekend, and I'd be grazing on sweets and biscuits all weekend if I was at home working. I need to be really prepared and have my meals planned to be sure I don't deviate and slip back into bad habits.

Does anybody have any advice for getting through the weekend without falling off the wagon?

Weekends are hard... I've bought a few of the cook books and cooked some nice meals that feel a bit more special than the week day stuff... I did the pulled pork which was yummy..

Alcohol is my downfall at the weekend

Alcohol is not a worry at all for me - I very rarely drink. I'm definitely more of an eater than a drinker haha. It's usually the Friday night and Saturday night TV that's the hardest for me, I like to graze on snacks. I'm thinking I'll chop up some carrots into batons and hopefully the honeydew melon I bought on Tuesday will be ripe enough to chop up and I can snack on those instead. I'm also really tempted to try making those haribo-type sweets with jelly and yoghurt, but I'll have to go out and buy some gelatine.

I'm finding it really hard to believe how positive I'm feeling after just a few days. I've been pretty miserable for the last few months, and although my relationship is going great and my family are amazing, living away from everyone has been really hard. I've been feeling amazing this week though, and even my students at school have commented on me being in a good mood for once! I hadn't realised they could pick up on my moods, especially the younger students, but now I feel a bit guilty about them thinking I was grumpy all the time! I just hope this new positive outlook lasts, and I really hope my hard work this week pays off when I step on the scales on Monday.

I've tried to avoid the scales at home, mostly because the floor is uneven and I can never tell if it's an accurate reading. I stepped on the scales just before, and then moved the scales to another part of the bathroom, and there was a 6lb difference between the two readings! I really hope the lower reading was accurate haha.

Do you have your own diary Cheekychick? I'd like to have a read of it if so

*Emma said:

Alcohol is not a worry at all for me - I very rarely drink. I'm definitely more of an eater than a drinker haha. It's usually the Friday night and Saturday night TV that's the hardest for me, I like to graze on snacks. I'm thinking I'll chop up some carrots into batons and hopefully the honeydew melon I bought on Tuesday will be ripe enough to chop up and I can snack on those instead. I'm also really tempted to try making those haribo-type sweets with jelly and yoghurt, but I'll have to go out and buy some gelatine. I'm finding it really hard to believe how positive I'm feeling after just a few days. I've been pretty miserable for the last few months, and although my relationship is going great and my family are amazing, living away from everyone has been really hard. I've been feeling amazing this week though, and even my students at school have commented on me being in a good mood for once! I hadn't realised they could pick up on my moods, especially the younger students, but now I feel a bit guilty about them thinking I was grumpy all the time! I just hope this new positive outlook lasts, and I really hope my hard work this week pays off when I step on the scales on Monday. I've tried to avoid the scales at home, mostly because the floor is uneven and I can never tell if it's an accurate reading. I stepped on the scales just before, and then moved the scales to another part of the bathroom, and there was a 6lb difference between the two readings! I really hope the lower reading was accurate haha. Do you have your own diary Cheekychick? I'd like to have a read of it if so

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I do... It's in the food diary section called the roller coaster diet... Or something like that...

It sounds like things are going really well for you! When do you weigh in?

Oh I've just seen.. Monday! Sorry long day

Emma, you can have some fruits and low fat yogurt for the weekend. I like blueberries with fromage 0% or low fat Greek yogurt 0%.
In case you prefer salty things, have you ever tried zucchini chips? If you sprinkle some paprika before baking they will taste just like chips.