Weight Loss Journals - petecohen.tv

Have been really busy since finishing my last 21 days - I'm planning to start again on 4 January, to get myself back into the swing of things before term starts. But I don't know that I'll get a chance to do this again before we actually hit 2010, so I am taking a look at the things that have happened this year.

On the plus side, I've lost 3 stone, I've become much fitter and healthier and of course thinner. I have another 2 stone to go before I hit my target weight and BMI, but compared to this time last year, I know that this is going to be hard work, but doable. It's the hols now, and what with visiting family and hosting friends, I am not going to be able to put in the full-on aerobics and resistance work that has been essential to getting my weight down, but I really am trying to walk for at least an hour a day and trying to watch the eating - I have not mainlined mince pies or Xmas chocs, for example and am trying not to drink too much as well.

This year, there were some great professional moments - overall, the teaching continues to go well, I finished a masters in educational management and I'm working at discovering more about the school's management and longer-term goals. A story I wrote was broadcast on the BBC and I was commissioned (and paid an advance) to write a novel which I finished about a fortnight ago.

We had some great holidays as well, as a family - a week in Malta and a week in Spain, not to mention a great time over the summer just chilling with family and friends.

This year, I really learned what a hero my husband is - he went from no job at the beginning of the year to a position where he has pretty secure income coming in from three freelance positions, he's set himself up as a private company and he has been incredibly supportive about my own extra projects. And finally, he's stepped up to the plate twice, going to Spain to try and find out what is going on with my mother, who has been experiencing depression and social withdrawal in a big way. So after nearly 20 years together and 15+ years of marriage, my main resolution for 2010 is to make sure he knows he's very much appreciated.

I suppose the big downer this year has been my mother's situation - she makes it very difficult to offer help and support, and I have had to face up to realising that I feel a lot of anger towards her - her life hasn't been easy, but she makes it much more difficult for herself, largely because she is alcoholic but not able to admit to it.We have been trying to encourage her to move to be closer to us, but she is very conflicted about this idea, and keeps cutting herself off. And when she did come and stay with us, afterwards, my husband discovered that not only had she been drinking her own whisky, she had cleaned us out of rum and vodka!

Perhaps I've kept myself busy during 2009 to avoid facing up to this, but then, since it is really clear that she is not ready to face up to her problems, I am not sure that there is anywhere for me to go with this particular issue. She has friends who feel I ought to be doing something about her state - but having flown down to Spain in the summer and taken her to a psychiatrist, I don't know that there is that much more I can do with her around a thousand miles away and determined not to answer the phone or contact me. So for now, I am leaving it up to her to make contact and take the next steps. I have to say that I am not convinced that I want my own children to see too much of her given the way she is increasingly affected by her drinking as she gets older. It's a difficult situation as I am her only child, and I do feel a sense of responsibility towards her. So that is clearly going to be an ongoing saga for 2010. The key thing to remember is that there'll be good stuff going on as well - lovely boys to look after, friends to see, places to go, books to read, music to listen to, walks, great students to teach and weight to be lost!

At the moment, my daily outcome is to write 2500 words...but hopefully, that will be done in a week's time and I'll be a much more relaxed person.

In the meantime, I am really trying to focus on eating as healthily as possible and saying no to things my body doesn't need. Last week I had cake and cookies, things I haven't touched in months. This morning, I had the strength to say no thank you. I don't know what makes the difference, but I am feeling much more resolute and determined. It's 4 weeks since we were on holiday - I put on a kilo, which I have taken off, but I've pretty much been on a plateau since then, and Xmas is coming. There were a lot of recipes in there for naughty things like mince pies and gingerbread houses, and I just thought, I'm going to have to say no.

I guess being tired is another thing that really affects me, and I have been pretty weary recently. Still, it's four weeks till we break up and in that time I'm determined to get back on the losing track and really take another 2-3k off.

I can't believe it is already a week - it seems like it's been a very long one! am finding keeping to calorie limits a bit of a struggle at the moment, but trying to hang in there and definitely keeping up with the exercise.

Absolutely shattered, but I have about 1000 words to write in the next 40 mins before going to fetch houseguesls from the station.

Have a good weekend everyone.

Yesterday, my ankle started really hurting, and this morning it was still a bit dodgy, but I got up and did the aerobics anyway - and it hurt less. A few months ago, I'd have used it as an excuse to have a lie-in, but I knew that if I tried that I would just fret about not doing the exercise. And it has worked out, as what with the exercise and wearing proper supportive hiking boots hidden under the jeans, the foot now feels much better.

Which made me think that I can really tackle the last main challenge I have, which is eating too fast. I went over the Day 3 info again just now and realised that I have to break this down into even smaller components.

So my first target is going to be taking smaller mouthfuls in the first place. Then I'll work on chewing longer, and then I'll work on making sure that the knife and fork do go down between every bite. So that's my chief resolution for the moment.

Hi guys, I've been off the programme for a while now just to see how I would manage - but I'm back on because I can tell that I need that extra oomph that comes from a daily encounter with petecohen.tv and the Petettes...

I've lost another few kilos in recent weeks - since April, I've lost 19k or about 40lbs, and am feeling very positive about that, and I've also been very consistent and committed to exercising. Saturday is my rest day, but otherwise, I'm doing 30-60mins of resistance/aerobics every day, and really enjoying that. We went on holiday in Spain a couple of weeks ago and we did a fair bit of walking so although I did eat a fair bit of forbidden food, I only put on a pound, which I've now dropped again. So overall, things are good.

But but but...I was sitting there about half an hour ago feeling ravenous - it's that chill in the air that has me craving buttered toast with lashings of jam, steamed puddings, creamy stroganoff and rich stews. So any tips on lowcal winter warmers? I've tried soup, bovril, marmite and tea...good, but not quite enough, even with the occasional oatcake...

So I've started the programme again just to remind myself of all the great habits Pete has managed to instil in me over the past 7 months and keep that will power going - hopefully that will shut that duck up!

Sadly, last thing I am capable of doing is celebrating - feeling dead from neck upwards with rotten head cold. At least I am not very hungry!

But will be startig programme all over again come 1st October. In the meantime, am having a little break to try and get over this cold and catch up on marking.

Good luck to all.

A real quickie - I've got 1000 words to write in the next hour. Just to say that no car day in Brussels was fab - a bit crowded at times because this year more than previous years, they had a lot of activities for all ages - live music, carousels, stands and shops open - so that the centre of town was packed - but mainly with pedestrians and cyclists. It's such a great idea: a large area within one of the main ring roads is totally car free - you can only drive if you have a special permit from the police. You can walk or cycle down the middle of roads and all public transport (metro, tram and bus) is free.

It's a really chill day - we ended up walking much further than we planned - at first we thought we'd just go through the park near our house and then catch the metro, and then we thought we'd just walk down the main artery into central Brussels, and then we just thought we'd head for the shop which sells the Sunday papers, and before we knew it, we'd walked about 4km, and same again on the way home. We must have done 8km altogether, with even the little one getting into the spirit of things. I was wearing MBT trainers and when we got home, I realised my thighs and bottom were aching like mad. But it was worth it.

Just catching up after v. busy week - school trip went well, all arrangements fell into place, no disasters, and the kids themselves were well-behaved and sensible (or at least, in front of me). Am feeling absolutely shattered, but also lacking in exercise, so am about to catch up on yesterday's workout. We walked a fair bit on Thurs and Fri, but it's not the same as working up a full on sweat.

I was thinking about the thing about setting daily outcomes - over the years, I have become pretty focused - and I do think setting goals is really important - but equally important is making sure you celebrate them when you've achieved them. Giving yourself rewards - a new pair of jeans, a night out, a day of just total vegging - is a real incentive to hit your own targets. The other thing I'd say is you have to make sure that the goals and targets really are yours - not ideas you've got from a magazine or what your husband/best friend/sister tells you should be your goal. My trigger for taking my body more seriously was health and fears for my health. I couldn't ignore the mounting evidence about things like diabetes, cancers and heart disease. Taking unnecessary risks with my health seemed increasingly silly given how a little bit of discipline and effort could turn things around. That was all fine, but working out the logistics in terms of shorter-term goals has been tougher - not impossible, but tougher.

Tomorrow is no-car day in Brussels - we'll wander the streets, pick up some UK sunday papers, and hopefully, take them down to the Grand Place and sit in the sunshine with a glass of wine and a few moules. It's time after a really hectic start to the school year to take a deep breath and regroup, ready for the autumn.

This is one of the entries I really love, because whatever weight I've been, I've always been a good exerciser.

But I didn't start out that way...neither of my parents was particularly sporty - my father was big into tennis and cricket but more of the spectating than the doing, and when I was at school, it took a while for people to realise that I needed glasses and that was why I kept missing the ball....when I got to school we sort of divided up into those of us who were not into sport and the girls (I went to an all girls' boarding school - v. Malory Towers, not!) who were FKJ - frightfully keen and jolly. I was not cut out for all that hockeysticks stuff and we had to play lacrosse which was nightmarishly even worse than hockey.

At university, a friend introduced me to squash and I also swam regularly (the university pool was one of the few really warm places during an Aberdeen winter, with limitless hot showers available), plus I was cycling everywhere, so I got pretty fit, but it was almost sub-conscious.

Starting work made me soooo miserable. And there were always people running out to buy Kitkats...and when was there ever time to fit in an exercise session, plus I was no longer cycling - I put on something like 30lb in a year. It took a little while to get rid of it, which happened when I changed jobs and found that I had time to go to the gym in the morning before work plus sessions at weekends and I took up cycling again. So I was back on track.

And I've been a pretty regular exerciser ever since. The problem was, I was also a champion eater of things that are just bad for me. Ben and Jerry's, Nigella's chocolate puddings, Choccy-woccy doo dah cakes (Brighton's wackiest cake makers), and portions that were the same size as my husband's...who is 7 inches taller than me...I saw friends who were also hitting their mid-thirties and getting a lot more careful about their diets...it didn't really sink in that I needed to do that too. Getting the balance right between diet and exercise has been hard work, but I really feel I am getting there. I'm prepared to accept that I can have the occasional chocolate praline, but three a day is not occasional. I can have some cheese every now and then, but not every afternoon when I get in from work. And mainlining chocolate chip cookies is not the right way to handle stress.

Meanwhile, am in a very stressful place, caught up in a situation where there is a lot of ill feeling and bad decisions being made at work, and handling the fall-out, including having one of my closest work colleagues really upset - a few months ago, I would have been comfort eating, but now I'm blogging. I guess the whole thing will blow over, but in the meantime - I hope all you guys are hanging in there!

Yesterday was a very naughty day - I always give myself one day a week off exercise and yesterday was it. I think I walked about 500m and that was it - but on the other hand, I'm doing around 45 minutes of exercise every other day, so I don't feel tooo bad. But then we went out to dinner and had a delicious meal, including wine, saute potatoes and cheese. I was modest with amounts, and I didn't feel too guilty, but I ended up about 400 calories over my regular intake. Pudding was mixed berries and very virtuous.

On the other hand, a friend who is also dieting away said that she gave herself one day a week of absolutely no limits and found that she was still losing weight.

Meanwhile, I have decided to be a bit stricter with myself and slightly drop my calorie intake to see if I can make a bit more progress on reaching my goal, which is to get to 90k by November and 80k by the beginning of 2010. We'll see!!

It's the weekend, and I am looking forward to it. No 1 son has a disco tonight, we're out to supper tomorrow night, no 2 has a playdate on Sunday, so it's all socialising, but there is plenty of time to chill a little and have my weekly glass of wine.

I hope you all have a lovely weekend and have positive experiences with food, exercise and the whole caboodle.

Last night I went to a new book group, and it was lots of fun, although the mung bean dal and a late night made me feel a little fragile today. The dal was delicious, but a bit strenuous on the digestive system;-).

Overall, it's been a good week, although I have to say, I will be a lot more relaxed next Saturday when my husband is safely back from his latest trip and I am back from the Stratford trip hopefully with my 59 charges...

Stress piling on this week, and I resorted to chocolate this afternoon (70% and only 20g, but still...). At short notice, we've got houseguests, I'm trying to sort out the final logistics of a trip for 60 students to Stratford next week (visas needed for non-EU nationals, plus official Belgian stamps to confirm that they are resident, plus sorting out final payments...argh!) and then there's just the day to day shock to the system of getting back into the school routine, plus husband was away for three days last week and is away for three days next week, just before I head off. It's all a little bit too much!

Still, am doing very well with exercise at the moment, and overall, I am feeling very lucky - my new classes are really nice, it's lovely to catch up with last year's students and it's also great catching up with colleagues.

I am trying to be really strict with myself about weigh-ins - I keep wanting to weigh myself every day, but I know it is counter-productive so I am really stepping away from the scales. I know it is how I feel inside that really counts.

I have been on the move a bit today - did an hour of exercise and felt much better afterwards. Looking forward to the week ahead. I am still not quite used to the early morning start after lots of lovely holiday lie-ins, but I have met all my classes and they are lovely, and I'm looking forward to working with them over the next ten months, catching up with colleagues is great and both boys are settled back in school although a bit tired.

I saw an article in the Daily Mail about a friend who had a gastric bypass and lost 5 stone this last year. I met her at Easter and was soooo impressed by how fab she looked, but her description of the operation and her post-operative diet was one of the major incentives that got me losing weight this time. We were exactly the same weight. It has taken me five months to lose 15k - it only took her 6 weeks, but then she was eating nothing but clear soup and yoghurt for most of that time.

Meeting her was a real wake-up call. we are about the same build and height, and I knew that I was in a situation where I could get the cost of the surgery covered if I really pushed for it - and chest pains and breathlessness were beginning to frighten me. But I was even more frightened by the idea of surgery and just soooooo icked out by the side effect of Alli that I couldn't use either of those quick fix routes.

So I revived my Pete Cohen membership, and also went for a calorie counting website which also measures exercise calories. I do feel it is really working. I really believe I can reach my target weight next year if I c arry on as I am, and I also understand that I will always have to watch what I eat and make sure it is healthy, I will always have to exercise and I will always have to take an active part in managing my weight and diet. I think the biggest thing that petecohen.tv has done for me is really help me get my head around taking responsibility for what I eat.

Seeing the article reminded me about my goals and has renewed my focus - what a great way to go into the autumn!

Yesterday was such a crazy day - cancelling bank cards, discovering my wallet was with the police - and luckily, of course the bank/credit cards had gone, but all the really tiresome stuff like driving licence, id cards (legally in Belgium you have to carry your id card with you and I keep the boys' cards with me too because we're mostly all together in school), insurance cards etc etc all turned up - the thieves had just junked them thank heavens.

Wasn't really focusing on diet, but we had a healthy supper. Today I was ravenous when I got home but had a very healthy snack (marmite and wholemeal toast and plums) and feel ready to cook supper without an attack of the serious nibbles.

Have had a great start to the term with lots of people telling me how well I look, and asking surreptitiously how much weight I've lost (about 15kilos) and how I did it - bloody hard work is my response! And despite a couple of really late nights, I have been up without too many groans to get the main exercise out of the way and set me up for the day. On the downside, we're being hit with a huge electricity bill and I've lost my purse - luckily no serious money in it (I'd just spent it on a babysitter) but a pain to have to sort out all the cards.

Feeling positive about starting the programme again and looking forward to catching up with you all,