Weight Loss

Yes, I'm still hanging in there as far as the weight loss is concerned, but I have to admit to having had a bit of a lazy week this week. I was lazy with my food choices, not awful, just not the best either.
I was lazy by allowing myself to have too many days at the top or over my calories range.
I was lazy with the amount of exercise I did, burning considerably less calories than I would like to.
I was also lazy with drinking my water, only managing 500ml on one of the days instead of 2 litres, but not hitting the 2 litres on at least 3 other days.

Oh and it's T.O.M. Consequently the scales did not move in the right direction when I got on them a couple of days ago.

BUT I am back on track today! I WILL do this, I Will Not give up! I am determined!
I have lost 30 pounds since may 25th! I have moved 4 notches on the belt I had to buy to hold my big trousers up. I have no intention of giving up now.

How will I do this?
It's the easiest answer in the world and at the same time it's the hardest answer in the world.

Eat less and move more! Not one or the other, both together, no quick answers, no clever tricks, potions, pills, or gimics, just the long hard slog.
How is that easy?
Knowing this is not about any particular gimic, means I KNOW what I need to do.
How is that hard?
Unless your head, your soul, your spirit is in the right place then you will never succeed at this? I watched a clip from an Oprah show where she had on past winners of the Biggest Loser. Some of them had kept the weight off and some of them had put on most if not all of the weight that they had lost. One of the guys who had put the weight back on said to her that at the end of the show he might have been a thin guy on the outside but he was still a fat guy on the inside, in his head.

So, the easiest answer and the hardest answer all at the same time.
If you're looking for help in that area, head on over to Spark people a free website that allows you to track your food and exercise along with getting support from teams and other message boards.

This post is being submitted to "I am Blissfully Domestic". Please head on over there to read other people's posts.

Weight Loss

http://ukzoe.blogspot.com/2009/08/weight-loss.html

OK, so I think the Simple Woman is still taking the summer off, not sure when she will be back on weekly, but she has provided for us all to continue through this post.

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FOR TODAY, Monday 31st August 2009...

Outside my window... there are only 4 apples on our apple tree this year, but what appear to be loads of tiny chillies on my son's chilli plant.

I am thinking... about some concerns I have about someone close to me.

I am thankful for... the love of the Father, for friends who care, for a new opportunity for relationship that opened up to me this week, for healthy foods, for water to drink, for a fantastic local church that we are blessed to be part of.

From the learning rooms... I am still learning how to eat right. This is a journey that will take me from obese to a healthy weight, that will take me from unhealthy to healthy and it is a journey that will continue for a life time. - yes this is identical to what I wrote last time, ho hum!

From the kitchen... I have been using some new recipes over the last few weeks from a book (and tv show) called ECONOMY GASTRONOMY! It's all about saving families money on their food budgets by using what they call bedrock recipes, where you make one big thing and then use that as a base for at least 3 meals, altering it into other things. For instance last night we had roast pork in tomato sauce with polenta. Tonight we will have a pork lasagne, using some of the pork and some fo the tomato sauce. And I am also going to put a dish into the freezer, which uses the rest of the polenta (which we allowed to cool and set), and some of the tomato sauce along with butternut squash and peas.

I am wearing... brown trousers and a patterned orange and brown top, with a home made necklace.

I am creating... Still not a lot, but hoping that that will change as the boys go back to school next week and I get back into my term time routine.

I am going... to sit in front of the tv somewhat today. It's a public holiday here in the UK and that means a whole day of Extreme Makeover Home Edition! The family will complain, so I won't watch all of them, but I have to treat myself to at least some of them.

I am remembering.... that we haven't organised date night for this week yet, and so I will need to ask hubby what we're doing about that.

I am reading... cookbooks on the whole. Mainly the economy gastronomy one.

I am hoping... that friend Dana gets some peace over the situations that are facing her and that god directs every step over the next few weeks.

I am praying.... for a couple of friends who have lost family members recently, for my friend Dana, and others involved in that situation, For someone close to me, who seems down lately, for God to reveal what I can do to help in that situation, when to speak, when not to speak and so on.

I am hearing... my husband talking to his mother on the phone, and the hum of the oven in the kitchen.

Around the house... List for the next few days looks like this:

• Kitchen floor
• Toilets, bathroom, mirrors
• Laundry
• Desk
• Master bedroom
  

One of my favourite things... at the moment, is the website, Spark People. A site that allows you to track all your food and exercise, read health related articles, get support from message boards and teams, blog your journey to health and so on and the best bit of all is it is all ABSOLUTELY FREE. So far, since May 25th I have lost 28 pounds using Spark people, and have gone down 4 notches on my belt. In fact there is only one more hole on my belt, there is space for me to make another, but then the pattern of the belt gets in the way and I will have to buy another.

A few plans for the rest of the week...

• Make a longer term, less urgent To Do List.
• email available assembly dates to a lady from church.
• email another lady from church to tell her how much money she owes me.
  
• Church small group BBQ.
• Make sure eldest (18) son attends doctors on Wednesday to see about a mole on his face that will be in the way when he starts shaving.
• Plan assemblies for Spring term.
• Book hotel.
  
• Date with hubby.
• Lots of exercise.
  

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

SO, if you want to read more daybook entries or you would like to take part yourself. Click on the image at the top of this post and check it all out.

http://ukzoe.blogspot.com/2009/08/ok-so-i-think-simple-woman-is-still.html

I NEED to get Organised Part 2

OK, so I'm not totally and utterly and completely disorganised.
I do still manage to do some things.

I Menu Plan - Every week, or two weeks I make a menu plan, and on the whole I stick to it, particularly the last couple of weeks. I do an online grocery shop a couple of times a month and top up shops in between.

I have just got back on top of tracking what where and how we spend. (need to work on bringing some of the outgoings down a bit, but on the whole it's not too bad.)

I manage to track my food and water every day over at SparkPeople, stay a reasonably active member of a few teams over there, workout at least 5 days a week, track that on Spark, blog on Spark about 4 times a week and so on.

I have also been managing to spend time with my hubby, both on weekly date nights and frequent evening walks.

The rest of it though, I need help with.

I NEED to get Organised Part 2

http://ukzoe.blogspot.com/2009/08/i-need-to-get-organised-part-2.html

I NEED to get Organised!

HOW DO YOU DO IT?

Get organised I mean. And stay organised? And work out what your priorities are? And give adequate time to those priorities?

HOW DO YOU DO IT?

I used to be able to do it. I used to be able to spend adequate time with my family, keep a reasonably OK home, spend time building relationships, spend time building my online relationships and fulfilling online responsibilities, eat reasonably healthily, spend time with God, read, journal daily, keep up with my work commitments (admittedly only ever part time) etc etc
I used to be able to do all of that, then I started to suffer wtih the symptoms of sleep apnoea and did less and less as I got more and more tired, culminating in a period of time where I was taking 2 - 4 hour afternoon naps on a daily basis and still feeling totally and utterly tired the whole time.

As you can imagine, housework, organisation, all of that stuff fell by the wayside. Even regular time alone with God did too. I just did not have the energy to do all the stuff.

So, in January this year I picked up a CPAP machine and since May I have lost 28 pounds in weight. The result is I have far more energy than I can ever remember having. It's awesome, amazing, wonderful. But for some reason I have been unable to get back into the organisation, lots of things are still being left undone, many times I find myself killing time at the computer screen, just finding something to do, when there are so many other things I could be doing, and yet still, somehow convincing myself that I NEED to be doing what I am doing right at that moment.

SO, how do YOU do it?
How do you organise yourself, your time, your housework, your spiritual life, your relationships, etc when you are completely out of the habit of organising and appear to have lost the skill!

HELP!

I've thought about going back to Fly Lady - but I'm not sure if I can stand the way I sometimes felt bullied on there, or if you can get the reminders at times appropriate to your location, rather than just in American time.

I've thought about re reading my Kathy Peel Family Manager book and seeing what I can work on from there, but I never managed to get the rest of the family to take the family meetings seriously and it always petered out after just a few weeks.

There are many many organising websites out there.
I KNOW I can't do this alone. I KNOW I need some help, I'm out of the habit. So where should I start?

I NEED to get Organised!

http://ukzoe.blogspot.com/2009/08/i-need-to-get-organised.html

ECONOMY GASTRONOMY

Check out some new posts on my food and fitness blog

ECONOMY GASTRONOMY - an explanation
ECONOMY GASTRONOMY - Part 1 - Chicken
ECONOMY GASTRONOMY - Part 2 - Braised mince
ECONOMY GASTRONOMY - Part 3 - Macaroni Cheese

ECONOMY GASTRONOMY

http://ukzoe.blogspot.com/2009/08/economy-gastronomy.html

Made My Day

Check out a new post on my Children's Ministry Blog:
http://ukzoe-childrensministry.blogspot.com/2009/08/made-my-day.html

Made My Day

http://ukzoe.blogspot.com/2009/08/made-my-day.html

Simple Woman's Daybook - summer edition

OK, so I've been away from blogging for a while, and strictly speaking the Simple Woman's Daybook is taking the week off, but she has provided for us all to continue through this post.

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FOR TODAY, Monday 10th August 2009...

Outside my window... the sun has probably begun to set, but I cannot see that through the clouds.

I am thinking... about the family who said goodbye to their beloved mother/grandmother today. I helped out with the food after her memorial service.

I am thankful for... the gaps in the rain, for the sunshine, for the rain, for this beautiful county that God has allowed me to live in. And I am more than thankful that i finally got my driving licence back today. It had been taken from me due to sleep apnoea and I now have it back.

From the learning rooms... I am still learning how to eat right. This is a journey that will take me from obese to a healthy weight, that will take me from unhealthy to healthy and it is a journey that will continue for a life time.

From the kitchen... I did not have to cook dinner tonight, there were so many sandwiches left after the wake I helped out at, that I was able to bring a whole tray home. That and a huge bowl of salad that was also left and we had plenty!

I am wearing... brown trousers and a teal green top. We were told there was to be no black at this funeral, it was a celebration of her life.

I am creating... Not a lot lately. I do want to take the time to create a new schedule at some point this week, so that i will have time to create for fun stuff.

I am going... to take a friend to the hospital on Wednesday to have her cast removed, could be there a while because she will have it removed, get another z-ray and then see one of the docs and possibly have a simpler cast after that.

I am remembering.... .

I am reading... If I could find our copy of Harry Potter 4 I would read that, sadly I cannot. I'm working my way through a re-read. I might have to skip 4 and jump to 5, I don't know. I could also read the time travellers wife again before we go to see it next week.

I am hoping... that my pampered chef party orders will come soon, I could do with a parcel or two to open.

I am praying.... for a number of friends who have lost family members recently.

I am hearing... my husband and eldest son watching the Gadget Show in the other room. That and the fridge, freezer hum.

Around the house... List for the next few days looks like this:

• Dining room floor
• Kitchen floor
• Toilets, bathroom, mirrors
• Laundry
• Desk
  

One of my favourite things... at the moment, is the website, Spark People. A site that allows you to track all your food and exercise, read health related articles, get support from message boards and teams, blog your journey to health and so on and the best bit of all is it is all ABSOLUTELY FREE.

A few plans for the rest of the week...

• Get to the park with my water bottle, journal, bible and pens.
• Church small group which coincides with the 65th birthday of one of the group.
• Take my friend to the hospital.
• Get my youngest son to finish working off what he owes me for the dvd's I bought for him last week.
• Date with hubby.
• Lots of exercise.
  

Here is picture thought I am sharing...

SO, if you want to read more daybook entries or you would like to take part yourself. Click on the image at the top of this post and check it all out.

Simple Woman's Daybook - summer edition

http://ukzoe.blogspot.com/2009/08/simple-womans-daybook-summer-edition.html