The diary of a spod.

[abz]

hi spod. thanks for that. i agree with you about guantanamo, but the northern ireland issues are going to be running for a long time yet, but at least there is a massive effort to do something about the violence that does occur. it just seems in some parts of china that the government doesn't care about the poor. but saying that, a lot of what we see will be hype. hence the question thank you

your questions are very valid ones. i try to see myself as a thin person and sometimes i just can't. but i guess i'll figure that out when i get there i don't know when i want to stop either, ha. but i'm doing the cambridge diet at the moment and i will continue to do that until i get down to 11st 7 which is my goal weigh at the moment and at which i know i am a comfortable size 14. i am then thinking about (at the moment) using some of paul mckenna's (well, they aren't his but he wrote about them) principles to help maintain my weight and perhaps lose a little bit more slowly if i want to.

have you thought about how to maintain your weight once you've lost it?

abz xx

 

[spod]

hi spod. thanks for that. i agree with you about guantanamo, but the northern ireland issues are going to be running for a long time yet, but at least there is a massive effort to do something about the violence that does occur. it just seems in some parts of china that the government doesn't care about the poor. but saying that, a lot of what we see will be hype. hence the question thank you

your questions are very valid ones. i try to see myself as a thin person and sometimes i just can't. but i guess i'll figure that out when i get there i don't know when i want to stop either, ha. but i'm doing the cambridge diet at the moment and i will continue to do that until i get down to 11st 7 which is my goal weigh at the moment and at which i know i am a comfortable size 14. i am then thinking about (at the moment) using some of paul mckenna's (well, they aren't his but he wrote about them) principles to help maintain my weight and perhaps lose a little bit more slowly if i want to.

have you thought about how to maintain your weight once you've lost it?

abz xx

No worries about answering questions. It is a real bug bear the press being so negative about China. Its not an utopia, but in my experience (which isnt massive) there is a lot of miss reported information (as there is with all press in every country!!)

Maintaining my weight loss?????? Not even thought about it at all to be honest. Now I will have to!!

I'm curious as to how people choose their goal weight. Why have you chosen 11stone 7lbs as your goal weight? (if you dont mind me asking!) I have gone for 10 stone cos its a nice round number and safely in the middle of my healthy BMI range.
I dont remember being 10 stone, which is why I dont know how I will look. I remember being 11stone 2lbs but not any less! (although I thought at 11stone 2lbs I thought I was too fat & being told I was too- wish I had done something about it then...where as now I would love to be that weight!)

I suppose I will maintain by keeping up my new habits, not slipping back in to eating how I did which was the main problem. Working too long hours, too tired / depressed to cook, so get a take away and each same amount as husband. I dont use food as much as an emotional crutch, which comes from sorting out my own issues I guess!
I think I will also be more active. I really want to go climbing up mountains and see more of the scenery as I travel, so I need to step up on the exercise too. (although I do more now with walking to the bus stop / instead of getting the bus (when they are too crowded in rush hour) and tai ji twice a week.

I will do some reading on maintaining cos I havent thought about is at all - its so long in the distance!!!
Thanks for the 'food for thought Abz!'

xx

 

[Janey2004]

Have you been on the myvirtual model site Megan. Would post you the link but have no clue how to that. I think theres a thread in the General Weight loss bit on here. You can do a wee model of yourself at goal weight, kinda gives you a rough idea.

 

[spod]

That sounds like something that could kill an hour or so - thanks Janey!! I am home alone til v. late cos husband has a school evening thing he has to go to. Have been on my own all day, can phone anyone to talk to, so starting to feel like a bit of a spare part!!

Will try and track it down!

xx

 

[spod]

Have just realised I havent lost anything since my last official weigh in on 28th October.... Really going to have to get my arse back in to gear and do more exercise & eat less. Cant go on not losing - thats really bad. :sigh:

xx

 

[abz]

you'll get there hon. have you gained? if you've stayed the same then that's an achievement in itself

i chose 11st 7 because i know i was a comfy 14 last time i was that weight but i would probably like to get lower. at my slimmest (about 7 years ago!!) my weight stabalised at 11st 2. whatever i did that's where it stayed so i think that is a natural point for my body. so i would like to get to that eventually and then maybe lower, see how we go.

abz xx

 

[Janey2004]

Staying the same is a big acheivement like Abz said. I think maintaining is gonna be the hardest part of my journey. When I lost weight before I stuck around the 12st mark for a couple of weeks, but it eventually started moving again, just tweeked a few things in my diet at the time.

 

[spod]

Evening all!

What a day! Went to hospital to see a doctor the a.m. (there arent doctors surgeries - you just go and see them at the hospital). I have an infection in my throat (suprise) and I now have antibiotics and pain killers. My voice should be back properly in a few days - thank god!
Spent the last 4 hours fast a sleep. Only went for a snooze for a couple of hours but just couldnt wake up. Have forced myself to get up otherwise I might not sleep tonight. :nightf:

Drs was an odd experience. The first thing I was asked was had I been drinking cold water. Apparently western people are naughty and drink too much cold water which upsets the natural whatsits of your throat and stomach, causing lost voices. When it is summer we should drink warm water and when it is getting cold / colder we should be drinking hot water. My friends who came with me to translate was telling the dr she was concerned that we drink cold water / cold fruit juice!! Its a rather odd thing that the Chinese get hung up on - you shouldnt drink cold water / eat ice cream in winter, if you are pregnant, breast feeding or when its totm. apparently.

I have maintained about the same weight - which I know is good! But I have hovered around the same weight - so like you say Janey - I need to tweak a little something in my diet. I do know that I am eating a lot less fruit now the weather is getting colder - we practically lived on it when it was rediculously hot, but now the weathr is changing I am not eating as much.

According to the fountain of all knowledge (Cosmopolitan), there is a natural weight that your body is most comfortable at. So it sounds like 11st 2lbs is yours Abz.
I have no idea what mine is!!

Not been good eating today - throat is too sore.

Breakfast: yakult drink thing
green tea
Lunch: nothing - I was asleep
Dinner: chicken, rice, radish & unidentified green vegetable (it was a ready meal thing) took me bl**dy ages to eat, but I thought I should try and eat properly.

Was also told I shouldnt eat anything spicy or oily, but surely spicy is good - cos it will clear my head???? Think that maybe a cultural thing, like the cold drinks!

 

[Silence]

Dinner: chicken, rice, radish & unidentified green vegetable (it was a ready meal thing)

"unidentified green vegetable" lmao. it sounds like something from another planet or something.

I'm glad you have meds to sort out your infection. Hope you get well soon!

~Silence~

 

[abz]

it does sound strange about the cold drinks thing janey. but each country has it's own ideas about what's healthy...

abz xx

 

[spod]

"unidentified green vegetable" lmao. it sounds like something from another planet or something.

I'm glad you have meds to sort out your infection. Hope you get well soon!

~Silence~

Thanks chick!
We often eat unidentified vegetables...its the unidentified meat you need to be more wary of!!! :jelous:

xx

 

[spod]

it does sound strange about the cold drinks thing janey. but each country has it's own ideas about what's healthy...

abz xx

I think the differences are interesting - the most worrying one I have heard of is the adding a little bit of oxygen to your blood via a drip.......

xx

 

[Janey2004]

Never heard of that before, the cold drinks thing. Glad you got an antibiotic sorted, you'll be back on form soon with that. Glad you're making sure you eat a wee bit. Esp with the sore throat. dunno if you get it there but Readybrek always seems to soothe mine if it sore. Dunno if that just a comfort thing from childhood though as my mum would always make me some when I was poorly, that and poached eggs. LOL wee childhood memories coming back there making me

 

[spod]

Never heard of that before, the cold drinks thing. Glad you got an antibiotic sorted, you'll be back on form soon with that. Glad you're making sure you eat a wee bit. Esp with the sore throat. dunno if you get it there but Readybrek always seems to soothe mine if it sore. Dunno if that just a comfort thing from childhood though as my mum would always make me some when I was poorly, that and poached eggs. LOL wee childhood memories coming back there making me

Readybrek is a grand idea! There is oaty stuff you can get here (as a drink as well - which is lovely) but I hadnt thought about getting it. Will have to head to supermarket tomorrow cos we are running out of stuff, so I shall have to brave a bit of a walk and I will have to go and hunt down oaty stuff.

Main problem I have here is that we only have a microwave and a toaster oven. We eat out most of the time - at work for lunches then a restuarant in the evening cos the places we go to (in general) are small everything is cooked as if it was a homemade meal. The ready meals you can buy at our little corner shop are great, you get a portion of rice, choice of meat, and 2 portions of vegetables (1 is usually unidentified!), so you can zap those in a microwave.
The toaster oven is great as a mini oven & toaster (it opens as an oven & you can fit 2 pieces of bread lying down inside) but you couldnt cook a whole meal in there. I am becoming pretty good with the microwave tho - never used it in the UK much.

Really want readybrek now!! That would be nice on my throat!

xx

 

[Silence]

Porridge is easy to cook in the microwave... I used to make mine in the microwave all the time. Warm some milk in the microwave for 1 min, stir the appropriate amount of oats in and put it back in the microwave for another minute.

I sympathise with you on the cooking front. In my old flat I had a hob with two rings. That was it. I had my george foreman grill shipped over so I could cook meat properly. It drove me crazy being limited to what I could cook. I'm so much happier now I have my oven and a proper cooker.

~Silence~

 

[Janey2004]

Readybrek is a grand idea! There is oaty stuff you can get here (as a drink as well - which is lovely) but I hadnt thought about getting it. Will have to head to supermarket tomorrow cos we are running out of stuff, so I shall have to brave a bit of a walk and I will have to go and hunt down oaty stuff.

Main problem I have here is that we only have a microwave and a toaster oven. We eat out most of the time - at work for lunches then a restuarant in the evening cos the places we go to (in general) are small everything is cooked as if it was a homemade meal. The ready meals you can buy at our little corner shop are great, you get a portion of rice, choice of meat, and 2 portions of vegetables (1 is usually unidentified!), so you can zap those in a microwave.
The toaster oven is great as a mini oven & toaster (it opens as an oven & you can fit 2 pieces of bread lying down inside) but you couldnt cook a whole meal in there. I am becoming pretty good with the microwave tho - never used it in the UK much.

Really want readybrek now!! That would be nice on my throat!

xx

You'll have a wee warm ring around you like the ad, or am i showing me age again?

 

[BBlilsis]

Hi Spod, I came across your diary when I hit new posts and i've read from the start, so I thought I'd say hello, your diary is lovely, real interesting to hear about other people living in other countries.

I'm in Ireland (southern) :giggle: me thinks the media may be misleading about us too, cuz we're grand over here, both north and south, ok there are a certain fraction of peeps who like to stir things up but its not in the mainstream and hasn't been for a long time now (touch wood).

I can sympatise with the throat infection, cuz I had to come home from work today myself and head straight to the doctors, seemingly i've had a chest infection for a week or so now, but i'd been putting it down to a sore throat. Doctor sort of gave out to me, cuz i'd been self medicating with strepsil spray :giggle: seemingly masking the real issue.

So I'm off work now till monday, I was doing the CD and I guess I still am in a way, but I've to up the plans cuz of the antibiotics and I'm not too happy about that.

I'll head off now before I completely lose track that this is not my thread , talk soon xx

 

[spod]

Good morning all! and hi Lily - sorry to hear you are under the weather too, make sure you look after yourself & keep warm; chest infections are nasty. The antibiotics should sort it out pretty quick now you have been to the dr!

Hope you are all ok and had a good night's sleep. Its cold and sunny here today - v. pretty, but v.v.v.v. chilly.
So....
I'm not allowed out. Its so cold and my throat / voice isnt too good, so husband says that it would be really stupid to go out and breathe in cold air, cos it could make eveything worse.
He's working from home today, so there is no escaping out either!!!!!

I might be allowed out tomorrow, but we will have to see....husband is in bossy / looking after mode which is sweet. He knows how crap I am at being ill and how I will try to do stuff, end up over doing it and make myself worse...

So here I am watching Oprah (its about wieght loss - v. interesting, talking about different diet programmes & Best Life Challenge diet stuff) & having finished watching series 3 of Desperate Housewives and wondering who I am most like...(God I am sooooooo bored of being ill)

Silence - thanks for the cooking tips of porridge in the microwave - didnt realise you could do that!! Is it only since you moved to your new flat you have had your oven? It opens up loads more opportnities for yummy food. (esp. in the winter with stews and stuff)

Janey - If you are showing your age, then I will show mine too - I remember the readybrek glow & then the cartoon character Ready Eddy!!

Lily - why do you have to up the plans cos of the antibiotics? I dont understand CD! (I did slimfast in the UK)

Going to go and have some lunch, husband has got some chicken & rice stuff from one of the little restaurant stalls near our apartment complex. Not v. hungry, (but didnt have any breakfast cos I was asleep) so I need to eat something. I have been drinking lots of water (hot!!!) and green tea tho - so its not been all bad.
Did weigh myself this morning (naughty I know) and I was 80kg, but its not my official weigh in day, so its unofficial! Hope its the same or less on Sunday / Monday....

xx

 

[abz]

wouldn't adding oxygen to your blood via a drip kind of kill you?

sounds like things are going well for you spod how's your throat doing? you feeling a bit better?

abz xx

 

[Silence]

Yes I've only had an oven for 3 weeks. The other flat had two electric rings. That was it!!! It's sooo hard to cook and eat healthy food when you're only option is frying or boiling.

When I was at uni I used to cook my porridge in the microwave all the time because I hate cleaning the pan afterwards. Is Ready Eddy the red Ready Brek dragon, cos I remember him and I'm a modest 22 (almost 23)

Hope you start to feel better today. Get stuck into some good old day time telly whilst curled up on the sofa under your duvet. Thats what I'd do!

Have a nice day

~Silence~