Jess' Journey

[Maintainer]

New scales suck! boo!! (Although my last update actually weigh me lighter than the previous model - I kept the two readings for quite a while before I'd trust the "new ones", and only grudgingly let the old ones go quite recently!)

I used to make Dukan pizza - galette + tomato + onion + topping of your choice and here we can find a (totally tasteless) 6% tolerated grated cheese. Must have another go now that you've reminded me.

I'm glad to see you're still with us... and, as you say, it is so much easier weekdays

 

[soshbfly]

Okay, I know as a supportive wife I should be pleased with my husband's announcement this a.m... but I'm a bit annoyed! This morning's chat goes like:

Me: "Honey, do you want what I'm having for my tea tonight - chicken with ginger & chili?"
DH: "Is it Dukan? I'll eat WHATEVER you're eating for tea <very enthusiastically!>"
Me: "Um, okay?"
DH: "I'm down a STONE!"

WTF?? Yes, he's lost a stone and has done nothing but eat my tea sometimes and even with added extras like pasta and potato! How is that fair? He hasn't been to the gym one single time whereas I have been 5 times every week not to mention yoga/muscle strengthening every single morning without fail. And I have eaten totally clean - not one bite of food not on Dukan's list has passed my lips (3 wine lapses, but small... and compared to the buckets my husband drank at those same events I hardly think it should it matter! )

Not sure why this is so annoying to me, but it is. I'm happy for him of course because he needs to shed some belly weight, but considering how hard I've worked, I feel like it diminishes my efforts somehow.

On the plus side, I had a PV day yesterday and the scales even went down this a.m. (think its shedding TOTM water). Will see on Saturday what the final number ends up being. I'm still down about 20lbs (even today) but am curious as to what my actual weight is going to be!

 

[anjuschka]

Ahh my commiserations and congratulations to him too though! And it does NOT diminish your efforts.

I get you completely but as you've just found out - men lose weight more easily :-( it's a fact of nature and there is nothing we can do unfortunately. So you've just made his main diet a smidgen healthier (I presume) and lower fat and hey presto - result!

Shame I can't say the same for my DH - he's sharing my food / I'm cooking for the family (and they get the carbs on top) his 'vice' are the biscuits and I don't think he's cut back - until very recently that is! I've just noticed our household consumption has gone down a bit. I think having to buy new trousers and finding himself another size up might have been a wake-up call.

 

[robinhood]

Can sympathise, Jess. My husband decided to diet Dukan-style after I'd lost most of the weight (maybe 8 kilos in?) and we both arrived at goal at roughly the same time (he lost about 12 kilos, I think). It took him about a month! He did his own version of conso (don't ask) and is maintaining now, despite not always sticking to conso/stab rules. We bought new scales on Monday (others were broken) and he says he's stayed the same despite not cycling to work (off with a broken coccyx - going back on Monday - planning to cycle:sigh.

I feel the same weight/shape-wise, will not step on scales until next Friday (if they're the same as the old ones for husband, hopefully they'll be kind for me too).

And healthier eating is a bonus (whether weight loss is quick/slow) in the long run anyway.

 

[Maintainer]

I posted this on a diary in the Atkins section just last week. A (real life) friend of mine here was doing Dukan seriously with her husband. No lapses on either side were confessed. He lost his weight at twice the speed of light of course, and moved onto Conso and confessed having eaten a Mars bar a day in Cruise! Sooo frustrating!

So congratulate him for his loss... (and don't be tempted to spike his food with sugar, haaaaaa!) but it detracts not from your own programme... I remember someone telling me once that there aren't a finite number of pounds in the country to be lost on a given day and, while I confess to sometimes feeling irritated when newbies lose having extras(!), it all comes out in the wash!

Have you tasted vodka/gin + diet coke? It'll keep you in ketosis. The wine lapses could well be making a difference.

 

[dukandebut]

It does seem rather unfair that men usually find it easier to lose weight. A similar thing happened with my husband whilst he wasn't actually dieting as such, just eating the same main meal as myself but with extras, whilst still eating very much non-diet breakfasts and lunches.

As Anja says, though, it certainly doesn't detract from your own good efforts and results. In fact, we should be doubly pleased with ourselves since it IS so much more difficult for us to achieve!

 

[soshbfly]

...Have you tasted vodka/gin + diet coke? It'll keep you in ketosis. The wine lapses could well be making a difference.

Yes, funny enough - last couple of times with booze lapses were a glass of wine and then 1)vodka/diet coke and then 2) drank my very first G&T (w/slimline) as I was worried about carbs. Not to give TMI (but gosh really - I have a diary on here so not much sacred left!!) - I test my ketones daily... and about 5x a day after I had a drink because I was worried. Have been very lucky and not knocked out of Ketosis since the I entered on the 2nd week.

 

[Maintainer]

nothing is sacred here... we want to know everything...

 

[RunnerBean]

I totally hear you on the hubby losing easily thing. Me and my hubby are both on the diet pretty strictly, he's had a few lapses and has lost quite a bit more than me. It's not the weight that he's lost that annoys me most though, it's the fact that I am the willpower behind the diet. I am the one who drags his arse to the gym or forces him out for a run when he wants to just sleep in (this has always been the case though) and I'm the one who will persuade him to take that chocolate bar out of his hand when he's about to eat it. It's like I've got to have enough will power for 2 people, and it seems to go down like this for everything we do. It'd be so nice if, for once, he can psych me up to keep going when I'm flagging, instead of him just saying, "well if you're struggling/feeling sick/lightheaded/TOTM should we just order chinese tonight." RAAAAAGH!

But yeah, congrats to your hubby, but I COMPLETELY understand your point!

 

[dukandebut]

instead of him just saying, "well if you're struggling/feeling sick/lightheaded/TOTM should we just order chinese tonight." RAAAAAGH!

I really hate it when they do that.

I must say that my husband does have incredible willpower. He gave up sweets as a young teenager for Lent many, many, many years ago and have never touched one since. I'm seriously impressed with that.

 

[missfortissimo]

My dad has always dropped pounds more quickly than my mom. Men have it easier that way sometimes, and it can be discouraging.

And my husband would die if he lost a stone, he's the tall skinny man who can eat whatever he wants without gaining a single pound!

My empathies indeed. :heartpump:

Keep up the admirable work!

 

[soshbfly]

Big Decision Made - LONG post

Hi folks... been a while, but haven't had much to report and I've actually been mulling over things a bit this week again.


So, the current situation as you may know is that I had a huge flub with my original scales (sounds like a few are having this problem these days!) Fortunately, I do weigh myself at the gym (fully clothed and in trainers) and on the Wii. Well, there's a bit of bad and good news weight/scale wise:

• I fear that I started much higher than I thought... like at 208 rather than 202 :cry:! This is bad for me as I've been using this scale to measure my weight and ensure I wasn't gaining for YEARS. I could have done something much sooner as I always had my eye on the 200's as an absolute no-go. So that's the bad.
• The good is that my weight loss has been great. According to the Wii, I have lost about 22lbs in my nearly 6 weeks on Dukan... I'm totally chuffed with that and it exceeded my expectations time-wise.

To preface what I've decided to do, its important to say that I don't do anything in half-measures and with that not one single bite of food that wasn't allowed on Dukan has passed my lips these past 6 weeks. I have eaten a bit extra of tolerated foods (only 1 time) and I've also drunk alcohol (3 times) - but no food... nada... nothing... not even a flipping crumb!

But I now feel my motivation waning and since I didn't have a desire to lose a huge amount to start with, I'm finding it hard to remain enthusiastic and committed. I am working out loads as well and that's making me hungry all time which means I'm constantly thinking about food and what I'm consuming - something I always said I'd avoid as its a recipe for failure.

So, even though I'm hardly a great weight by most standards, I've decided to move to Consolidation as I have absolutely committed to myself to do this diet right (its my one-go for those of you who know my history and anti-diet position). I will ensure that I stick to the Conso phase as I did the Cruise phase and continue with the Stabilisation thereafter... to that I am definitely committed and so the decision has been made.

My expectations are that I will likely continue to lose in Conso as I won't be back into my old habits... wine and crisps at night, nor copious amounts of pasta and cheese. I just don't want to remain in the position I'm in now of weighing maniacally and bummed when scales don't move rapidly, weeing on a stick to check ketosis (oops, reminds me for today... last day ), and being in a position that's removed myself from my family as I'm always preparing or eating my own foods and missing out on the together eating time.

So I'm going with 22lbs loss to be safe and that puts me at 110 days from tomorrow on Conso. Will DEFINITELY stay on here throughout as this board has been my lifeline and helped tremendously... so thank you to all for the great support and wish me luck in this new phase.

 

[Teasey]

Hi Jess

I'm glad I came across your post, I was just about to post something similar myself.

I totally understand where you're coming from. I think we started around the same time and I've found that the last few weeks I've STS so the motivation to keep going is not really as strong

I'm happy enough doing Dukan and I've got used to eating what we eat but I've found that without the motivation of the big loss every week I'm starting to feel that the restrictive nature of Cruise, especially PP days, is a bit frustrating. I'm also quite happy with my weight and how I look now so I think I would like a bit more freedom. Especially as my job involves a lot of travelling and attending events and it's not always possible to be 100% prepared

I'm considering Conso too - but I'm a little nervous incase the weight starts creeping on again. I'm still a few pounds above goal so I haven't given myself any wiggle room. I'd be interested in hearing how you get on - this is going to be a bit of a scary stage for me so it will be great to hear your experiences too

 

[soshbfly]

Hi Teasey - yes, it sounds like we're in the same boat. I actually feel very relieved now that I've made the decision (like a weight off, literally!) Trust me, I love the attention from weight loss, but it has seriously dominated every single conversation I've had with friends lately and I even have one chum who wants to meet for coffee alone so I can dish on Dukan tips (she's trying but keeps lapsing.) Its just not me to be that person who's consumed by dieting and/or weight loss - I already like me well enough !



I already feel so much better at the gym which was my primary goal so I'll see how I get on. I've already learned and developed some great new things from this, so I'm encouraged that loss (although very minimal) will likely still occur:

• Love all my oat bran creations - especially the cupcakes which will remain a family treat
• Will cook meat in Foreman Grill as it adds no fat and tastes great
• I love the non-fat yogurt sweetened myself with Splenda & vanilla essence (add Sugar-Free Jello and that's probably my favourite sweet thing!)
• I've realised I can survive without loads of cheese and food still taste good
• And doing Conso will allow me to still cook healthy evening meals for family (just with veg now - I was doing 4 PPs during the week)
• MyFitnessPal.com will remain my pal as I'll want to watch everything I'm eating... just not counting carbs any longer!

Need to plan properly though so I'm not starting straight away (probably tomorrow if I have time to map out week first thing in the a.m.). Just like the 1st two phases, I think success lies in proper planning and coordination with our every day lives!

 

[dukandebut]

Given the fact that you're happy with your weight loss and know that it's at a very sustainable level for you, then I think this could be a good decision for you, Jess. As you mentioned, the diet does tend to teach us some good habits and that should certainly help.

I'm a great believer in reaching a weight or size that you feel happy with, rather than feeling obliged to achieve an officially recommended one. Sounds as though you're there already.

Apart from anything else, I'm delighted to have more company on Conso. Welcome aboard!

Teasey - You're so close to your goal now. As with Jess, if you're already reached a level with which you're happy, why not move onto Conso if you'd find that works better for you.

Laura, Anja and myself all continued to lose weight whilst on Conso so, whilst there's no guarantee that will happen, it is a possibility. Above all, don't be afraid to make the leap. I was really nervous about it, but it was absolutely fine and I'm actually enjoying it very much.

Good luck to you, whatever you decide.

 

[missfortissimo]

It's excellent that you've lost 22 lbs, and it's really extra great that you are going to continue to live a healthy lifestyle and have the support you need to do so. Congrats on what you've done and good luck! :wavey:

 

[soshbfly]

1st day on Conso

My 1st day on Conso was pretty great! Woke up to a move on a scale (another lb down... so 2.5 this weekend already). I was at a dinner party last night and explained to host about food - she was kind enough to not give me any potatoes/bread, etc. I lucked out with pudding as well - part of it was stewed rhubarb (no sugar made just for me) which of course was the only bit I ate!

Today, I had a PV breakie, PP lunch (grilled chicken w/cottage cheese) and then I made tea for the whole extended family - chicken enchiladas, refried beans, rice and veggies... though of course mine was made a bit different (no rice, tablespoon only of beans, only 40g of cheddar, fromage frais instead of soured cream, and my favourite bit - a small wholemeal tortilla! Found it was the same calories/carbs as a slice of wholemeal bread and since I don't really like bread, I was well chuffed.) Topped it all of with sugar-free Jello & a Mueller Light Vanilla yogurt with about 4 strawberries (YAY!). Of course everyone else got cake and custard!

Got my oatbran in via the cupcakes and the remainder in my yogurt.

I have to say I was a bit hesitant to take that 1st bite of tortilla as I knew it would be the point of no return! Same with the strawberries - I had remind myself that it was okay... I'm allowed a bit of fruit (though going forward I'll move to apples... bought today.)

As for exercise, I was a very vigorous hour at Zumba... so all-in-all a very great day and I'm pleased !

 

[soshbfly]

Forgot to mention - had a super boost yesterday. Popped into Markie's yesterday and grabbed 3 x jeans, 1 x button down top, and a cardi - all in 16's and all fit (with plenty of room!!!) Its funny, the top in my avatar is a 16 Coast shirt and I thought it was just a fluke. Then I ordered 16 jeans from Debenhams and they were actually a bit too big... again, I thought it was just a fluke. But yesterday's Markie's shop convinced me - I am A COMFORTABLE SIZE 16 (UK)!! Woohoo. Can't wait to try on the 12's when I'm in America this summer !

 

[Jackk]

^ That's brilliant, shopping for new clothes is always the best bit!

 

[Teasey]

Result! Fab news Jess!

That's interesting about the wrap-I'm not big on bread myself, I'd definitely prefer a wrap if it's allowed.