OY YOU - get a grip! Erm NO!

26th May 2015

Whenever you find yourself doubting how far you can go, just remember how far you have come.  Remember everything you have faced, all the battles you have won, and all the fears you have overcome.  Unknown.

Okay so I'm all about the healthy and happy, I'm all for eating well and taking care of yourself but part of that includes not obsessing over it and beating yourself up!  Obsessing over anything isn't really healthy, we've all done it, I've done it more than I care to remember, but it really isn't good for us.  Nor the inner mind bashing we do, when was the last time you told your bestie to stop her moaning and whinging and to get a grip and just do it and be more self controlled!  Hopefully NEVER, if you have then I'm glad you're not my bestie!  I bet you've said those harsh words to yourself though, I know I have in the past.  What I'm trying to say is give yourself a break, think about what you would say if your bestie was struggling with their weight and finding it hard to stay on track, if they told you this morning that they'd really struggled because of the Bank Holiday and they know they've gained weight - what advice would you offer?  Hopefully it isn't to get a grip and sort it out!

The other thing we need to start doing is thinking about ourselves and prioritising those things that are important to us, would you dream of skiving work just because you had a crappy few days there last week (imagine you don't get paid if you don't go, I'm not talking duvet days) or tell your kid you can't go to that important game they're playing or their parents evening.  Do you tell your bestie who really could do with a natter because they're having a tough time that you just can't fit them in?  Nope, I bet you don't, I'm guessing you do everything in your power to find the time to do all this, and yet I bet you often can't find the time for your meeting, or to go to the gym or whatever it is you should be doing to get yourself healthy and happy!  I bet you're too busy doing everything for everyone else that you don't make it onto your to do list!  Trust me you need to find the time for you, it's all part of that healthy and happy future you're looking for!

So today and for the rest of this week be aware of how easily you brush off what should actually be really important to you, notice the words you use to berate yourself - would you talk to your mother with that mouth!   The constant chatter that goes on in our heads can either motivate us or make us miserable, so change the record if you're playing a depressing, miserable one right now.  Be mindful of your thoughts and the saying goes;

Watch your thoughts, for they become your words.

Watch your words for they become your actions.

Watch your actions for the become your habits.

Watch your habits for they become your character.

Watch your character for it becomes your destiny.

If you were like me a Weight Watcher leader, would you make a good one if you were to verbalise the inner 'coach' that's encouraging (or not as the case may be) you on your weight loss journey?

If the answers no and you're struggling to stay on track and lose weight, then it's time to change those thoughts and be nice to yourself and encouraging! 

Here's to finding the time and positive self talk BeYOUtiful. Have a great day. xx

Don't blow it because it's a Bank Holiday!

25th May 2015

Would you prefer a moment of satisfaction or a lifetime of happiness?  Sometimes that's what it comes down to.

Another Bank Holiday Monday, last one till August, they seem to have some kind of mystical power when it comes to taking over my members minds and sending them off track!  I suppose it's because it's out of routine, we see them as a 'holiday' even if we're not going anywhere and we can forget our goals in that moment.  Then we know we've gone off track so we think sod it till weigh day and by weigh day you may think I know it's going to be bad so I'll wait a week and pull it back!

That mentality doesn't work and if losing weight is important I'm guessing any damage that could potentially be done today wouldn't be worth it at all. 

So today, I'm getting my journal out and I'm going to plan dinner and track it all, ooo I just got a little excited because I remembered that I've put overnight oats in the fridge, so breakfast is sorted.  For lunch, I'm thinking either a spaghetti dish, oh hold on I've cooked lunch already too, I made a leek and mustard bake yesterday, the recipe and lots of others are on my website http://happyowls.co.uk/Recipes/RecipesDinner/LeekMustardBake.html, it's still being re-constructed but there are lots of cooking ideas there now.  I might still add some spaghetti to that to bulk it out a little, we'll see. 

I'm having a lazy weekend, although I did make the effort to do some cooking yesterday, I also tried a new food, Freekeh (roasted green wheat) it was good, I'd eat it again anyway and I served it with fish curry, used cod and although it was delicous, I don't think I'd make it with fish again, for one the cod was damned expensive and the curry obviously took away the taste of it.

I really do recommend the Spice Tailor range, that's the second one I've tried and they actually taste like you've bought a takeaway, there aren't many jarred sauces I think get those flavours across, so far I've had the Mangalore Herb Curry & the Punjabi Tomato Curry, I've got a Rustic Rogan Josh to try next, I'm thinking I'm going to add Quorn to it.   I'm trying to really focus on the healthy, hence more fish, less beef and Quorn instead of chicken.  I've been listening to / reading a lot of stuff lately that's got me thinking about what goes in our bodies and the effects it has on our bodies!  I don't eat a great deal of processed food anyway but I'm going to make even more of an effort to include natural foods, foods from the Filling & Healthy list should be the foundation of everyone's diet.

I'll finish by sharing this video, yesterday I watched it and usually before and after photos follow the same formula: left is a sad and overweight person, then on the right is a happy, satisfied, and self aware figure - because she lost weight. But this mother of three named Taryn Brumfitt wants to turn this concept on its head:

https://youtu.be/dsfs5POp0aQ

Taryn Brumfitt’s message is: love your own body, because it’s the only one that you have.  I 100% agree with her, you're all BeYOUtiful if only you could see it, now go treat that body with respect and feed it with love and healthy, nutritious food!

Enjoy your Bank Holiday Monday BeYOUtiful, I will. 

#1tweakaweek

24th May 2015

Everyone you meet is fighting a battle you know nothing about.  Be kind. Always.

Another amazing week, so much success another 450lb lost this week, and I've seen some amazing before and now photos in my facebook members closed group, I love to see them all sharing their success and supporting each other.

Yesterday when I weighed Julie and David, I asked them about the wedding they'd attended last Saturday had gone, I know Julie was looking forward to wearing her new red dress, she showed me her photo and a photo of them both take ten months previously at another wedding. Julie told me it was lovely to be able to attend wearing a dress she'd chosen to wear and not buying something just because it fit!  That's one of the benefits of losing weight, more choice!  I'm sure you'll agree they have both done incredibly well, Julie's lost over 7 stone with Weight Watchers and David almost 5 stone so far, just awesome, I'm very, very proud of both of them.

We're all in those meetings supporting each other, working on improving our healthy, losing weight and living happy, I love to be in those rooms each week sharing in everyone's success.We're all following the plan and each week for the last 3 weeks I've given us all a challenge, we're all embracing it and I personally feel it's helping me, I'm still drinking plenty of water even 3 weeks later and my fruit intake is most definitely higher, had me some amazing watermelon yesterday!  This week my challenge was to not eat at my desk but to stop and cook some lunch and stop to eat, I've done that.

It was only going to be 8 challenges over 8 weeks but instead I'm going to continue, every week from now I will challenge my members to make one tweak each week #1tweakaweek, if we all focus on the same thing, we will be able to support each other in doing it too, after all together is better.

I've really felt the benefits from the changes I've been making, there's much less junk hanging round the house so I'm eating fruit instead, foods affect our bodies in different ways and I know eating lots of bread makes me sluggish.  If you've never really stopped to observe the affects different foods have on your body, remember food takes two or three hours to get in the blood, so think of how you feel two or three hours after you've eaten and you'll start to realise what suits you and what doesn't - cake and chips might leave you feeling more tired than vegetables.

I know they don't have the same effect on your emotional state or taste the same and there's nothing wrong with eating these foods as long as there a balance, and that balance is a healthy one, not tipped too much towards the junk food. 

Stop rewarding yourself with food - you're not a dog! 

That one statement really packs a punch doesn't it!  The first time I read it I was offended, or angered for some reason, I don't really know what the emotional was but it wasn't a positive one, then I realised that I felt that way because there was some element of truth to it.  When something really offends us or angers us in this way, it's usually because there's an element of truth to it!  And there was, I do reward myself with food, not as much now as I maybe once did but there's still that moment where I'll think wow I did good, let's celebrate with a food party for one!   Mostly I treat myself to a nice bath or my weekly massage, that's my reward these days. 

Anyway it's Sunday and I'm waffling, I need to get my paperwork done, then I'm not sure how I intend to spend my day, so many things I can be doing, will I do any of them, we shall see.

Whatever your plans are, enjoy your day and remember if you're following the plan,  that means sticking to your ProPoints and tracking, even at the weekends, especially on a Bank Holiday! 

Alarm clock at the weekend - boo!

23rd May 2015

It is impossible to live without failing at something, unless you live so cautiously that you might as well have not lived at all - in which case, you fail by default." J K Rowling

Alarm scared the life out of me this morning, I really must work out how to get it to come onto radio instead of a beep, I've slept from 9.30-5am, lovely and I would've slept longer if the alarm hadn't gone off! 

Looking promising for a nice day out there this morning, I've just got my meeting to do this morning, food shop straight after then I may spend this afternoon in the garden painting, I've also got a couple of recipes I fancy trying.  I love the universe and how it works, I have 3 ingredients I need to use, red lentils, coconut milk and a butternut squash, the lentils and coconut have been in my cupboard for 12 months and in the week I realised they're about to run out of their sell by date, then yesterday when I was looking for recipes for my nutribullet, I also stumbled across two recipes for those ingredients, so at some point this weekend I'll be making;

Red Lentil & Coconut Dal

100g of red lentils (9pp)
200ml of coconut milk (9pp)
400ml of vegetable stock
1 large red onion – finely chopped
2 cloves of garlic – finely chopped
1 fresh green chilli – finely chopped
2 fresh lemon grass stalks – bruised
Olive oil (1tsp = 1pp)

• Start by bashing the lemon grass. Use the butt of a large knife or something with plenty of weight behind it. This will split and bruise the stalk and allow the wonderful fresh oils to leach out of the lemon grass into the dish.
• Saute the onion, garlic, chilli, and lemon grass in a little olive oil with a pinch of salt, until the onion has softened.
• Add in the lentils and the coconut milk, and allow to simmer for 3-4 minutes.
• Start adding the vegetable stock little by little. Keep doing this until the lentils have softened and partially broken down, which usually takes about 20-25 minutes.

Butternut squash The Quickest Recipe Ever

350g butternut squash

1tsp sunflower oil (1pp)

1.5tsp vegetable Bouillon powder (1pp)

250ml boiling water

generous pinch of pink Himalayan salt

½tsp cumin

• Preheat the oven to 175°C
• Peel and chop the butternut squash into 2cm cubes. Cover in the sunflower oil and roast in the oven for 20 minutes or until soft.
• Place the butternut squash into the blender with the remaining ingredients and blitz until velvety smooth.
• Serve and enjoy!

So that's enough to keep me busy, I had me plenty of me time yesterday afternoon, really enjoyed my massage then came home and chilled for the evening, followed by an early night.

Love my life I do, aren't I lucky, and for those who want to see one of the reasons why, this is a 10 minute clip of my mom just being my mom, she hasn't changed, the one constant throughout, observant, witty and sharp!  There may be a lot of repetition throughout our days but that's overshadowed by the humour and the love.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=usHnG-i3xLE

Appreciate what and who you have in your life BeYOUtiful, its what makes us blessed.

Are you a priority?

22nd May 2015

Live the way you want to be remembered.

I love nothing more than a meeting where all my members are already interacting, supporting each other and having the banter with each other before I even start my talk, it's great to observe and listen from the scales, seeing them take some time out of their lives for themselves. 

Prioritising yourself is something we all need to learn to do, we need to set aside the time to focus on our goals is essential for our long term weight loss success and a healthy and happy life.  It's difficult enough to stay on track and keep our motivation going, and I know that finding the time to focus on taking care of ourselves when we're busy can disappear of that 'to do' list.

Let's decide today to stop putting ourselves at the bottom of our 'to do' list, we're important too and need to prioritise ourselves.  How & why?

When the why I'd say is because when we don't it affects our eating, we tend to comfort eat more when we're busy, if you're last on your list of priorities then you're not really going to be very happy, nor are you setting a good example for those younger people in your world - you're telling them it's ok to put themselves last and it's not. Making yourself number one isn't 'selfish' it's self-care and it's essential for a healthy and happy life.

You've got to notice that you have less motivation and certainly less energy when you're just getting by and not focusing on yourself, we usually end up going back to our bad habits too, eating irregularly and not the best quality food and we laugh less because there just isn't time to stop and relax.  You just don't function at your best when you put yourself last!

So how can we get back to being top of our 'to do' list, well for me one thing I'm doing is stopping for lunch, I could work none stop because there's always something to do and I've realised I've gone back to eating at my desk so this week, I've take time out of my day to stop, cook lunch and sit down and eat it with my mom rather than rushing it whilst typing at the same time.  It's a bit of me time, I'm thinking about what we're eating, I'm enjoying cooking it and it doesn't take that long to knock something up then I'm enjoying spending a bit of time with mom in the middle of my day. 

So if you're thinking I can't do that, how about claiming 15 minutes a day for you - trust me you'll still get everything done, it will actually increase your productivity because it's make you feel better.  Do whatever you like in that time, read, meditate, write your food journal for the next day, have a bath, take a long shower, just sit and enjoy a cuppa, you know you're worth it.  Taking time for you isn't a luxury, it's a necessity - you can't function if you're not happy, so don't feel guilty for putting yourself first.

Remind yourself it's okay if it doesn't all get done, you're doing your best!  If you're life feels like on long 'to do' list then it's time to get control over it and make sure you're at the top.  It's okay for you to take time out of your day to do something that you enjoy, whether that be grabbing a coffee with a friend, going to the cinema or having a massage, we all need to turn off from the normality and reality of life once in a while. 

If you keep a diary why not book an appointment with yourself and don't let anyone invade that time, if you're one of my members, I hope you do that with your meeting, it should be in your meeting and unless your ill or on holiday then no one should be allowed to steal that hour, it's yours so that you can get the support and motivation needed to keep you on track and heading towards your weight loss goals. 

'Me time' can easily get scratched off that to do list so if it's in your diary as an appointment you're more likely to stick to it, you wouldn't just cancel a dentist appointment because you hadn't finished cleaning the kitchen so you don't cancel your 'me time' yep, make yourself a priority and it will show your children and your loved ones that you respect yourself enough to prioritise yourself, be that role model, drop the guilt if you still have any about putting yourself first and start making some 'me time' appointments.

Mines this afternoon, my massage is the one thing I do not cancel, it's my most valuable 'me time', I think I might be finding me some more this week too and having me a trip to the cinema, fancy Mad Max. I'm also going to continue to take that hour out each day to cook and enjoy some time with mom, I love a bit of 'me time'

Have a great day BeYOUtiful, think how to find yourself that 15 minutes.  I'm guessing you're thinking 'I wish, I just don't have time'.  Mmm you really do need to find it then.