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Friday 29 March 2013

4 weeks into Lighter Life

I started Lighter Life Lite 4 weeks ago, and wrote a little piece about it here 

I said I would do weekly updates, but figure monthly is all you need, it's not THAT interesting.

So I had my 4 week weigh in last night, and wasn't looking forward to it as felt I had been hungry quite a bit this week which normally means your body may not be in ketosis (when our bodies are using fat for energy).  

I was totally dumbfounded when the scales said I had lost 5lbs!!  It's usual to lose anything between 1.5lbs-3lbs, so I am not quite sure what happened here, but I am certainly not complaining.

This now means that in 4 weeks, I have lost 11.5lbs.  My goal is 2.5stone, so I am over a third of the way there.  It means I may not reach goal weight in time for hols on the 10th May, but hell, I'll be a lot more confident in a bikini!



In measurements I have lost:

2inches off my bust (as a 34F, I am VERY happy about this)
2.5inches off my waist
2inches off my hips

This apparently means I have probably gone down a dress size.

This is such an easy diet for me, I was useless on weight watchers and slimming world as couldn't be bothered to measure stuff, so this is perfect for me just 3 sachets a day and then a yummy dinner in the evening.

Only downside to this....my clothes are starting to look trampy due to being baggy, my skinny jeans are no longer skinny jeans, in fact Kat (@doesmybumlook40) this could be the answer to your boyfriend jeans....although if you lose any weight you would disappear!  So I am off to put my jeans in a 60degree wash, which apparently can shrink them by 1 size.  Hopefully not in length too...

Any suggestions in how to prolong wear in clothes while losing weight?  I refuse to buy new ones every other week, as much as I would love to.

Melissa Odabash Jamaica Bikini that I have my sights on here

Don't forget when I reach 50 followers on GFC or Bloglovin, I will be giving away a l'Artisan Parfumeur scent, full size 100ml Seville a l'Aube.  Just click here, follow and leave a note to say you have! x

Wednesday 27 March 2013

If you want something, work for it

This popped up on my facebook page from one of my friends today, and it couldn't ring more true.


All I have seen on twitter and facebook recently is people moaning about things, that to be honest, are not out of their control.  Things that if they got up and made an effort, there would be no need to moan about.

You're not happy in your job, find a new one.  (been there, done it)
You're not happy in your relationship, move on. (been there, done it)
Not happy with your weight, do something about it (been there, doing it)
Want to earn more money, ask for more responsibility in your job (been there, done it)

I have no idea what has compelled me to write this, I think just because I am so fed up hearing people moan when I work my arse off as a mum, as an employee, doing extra things on the weekends to make a bit more money, just so I can have nice things and so does James.  We don't expect them to land on a diamond encrusted platter, we expect to work for them.  They also mean a lot more to you then too.

I started off temping as a receptionist, on about 7k a year, I didn't go to University, I went to what my mum calls 'the university of life'.  aka the big bad bitch world.  Yeah I've had some terrible times in jobs, but I've also had some amazing ones, which even had me running my own business, until Max turned up and I wanted security in a full time job.

Karla Powell and Caroline Hirons are big examples of this, Karla was working very closely with MUA cosmetics, and then when she decided she had learnt all she could learn, she made the move to Crown Brushes.  Her previous boss then badmouthed her all over social media.  Disgusting behaviour, and not how I would expect a brand owner to behave.  In all my career, my bosses have always told me they are hoping to mould me enough to either go onto bigger and better things elsewhere, or to take their jobs! This guy obviously doesn't have that mindset.   Karla has worked her fingers to the bone, never complains, and I love reading about her challenging days and her tips, and look where it has got her.  BECAUSE SHE WORKED FOR IT!  Follow her on twitter here, she is very inspiring

Same with Caroline, who has been known for her profession for years, but now was recently asked to do workshops at Liberty.  BECAUSE SHE WORKED FOR IT.  Follow her on twitter here

None of the above happened by them moaning that nothing good was happening to them, they knew what they wanted, as do I, and went out and bloody got it.

Phew.  Rant over.

Sunday 17 March 2013

The lighter side of life


Post Pregnancy I lost pretty much all of my babyweight and then some due to Post Natal Depression.  It didn't matter what I ate, I must have just had so much nervous energy or stress, that the weight just dropped off.  Once I got onto my medication, that weight slowly crept back on!

I have done Atkins, the Cabbage Soup diet, weight watchers, you name it, I have tried various ways in my adult years to get back to my 21 year old body, that even my skinniest friends used to moan about, as I had such a flat tummy, without any exercise.  Bad eating, bad drinking and just bad lifestyle put pay to that.

If you read my blog you will know we have booked a holiday for the 10th May, one of which I am bouncing off walls, slap my thigh excited about, and then with that came that feeling in the pit of my stomach 'shit, that means I've got to wear a bikini' !

My mum recently did the Lighter Life diet, and lost near on 3 stone in as many months, so I figured I have full proof it works, she has always been a healthy eater, not a big drinker yet struggled to get the pounds off.

Me before starting, at 12stone 13lbs
So I joined up.  I don't own a pair of scales, never have done, I feel they are damaging, especially if on a diet as I personally know I would be on them every morning, and if I hadn't lost weight, would probably sack it off and go eat a muffin.  When I heard my weight, I nearly fell over, I can't believe I am about to tell a lot of strangers my weight, but I was 12stone 13lbs.  Ok so I am 5ft 10, but after checking my BMI etc, and my waist (I am NOT telling you that measurement), we decided I need to lose 2stone 7lbs.  People say they don't believe it, and I think because my mum is a retired image consultant, I have just always known the right styles to wear for my body shape, but my height probably helps me carry the weight better, but it's no excuse, I need to lose the weight.

I don't know why this is different for me, maybe because it isn't cheap, it costs me between £60-£70 a week in the food sachets and the weekly counselling group, so I think I am probably thinking, this is nearly £250 a month I could be spending on bags, shoes, make up, don't screw it up.

My choice throughout the day

So, the routine is that I have a Chocolate Shake for breakfast (not powdery like those gross slimfast ones, oh yeah, I tried slimfast too!), a soup for lunch, and then I either have one of the bars with a cuppa at around 5pm, or stretch myself until after dinner and pretend it is a mars bar for pudding!! Due to the fact I am on the light plan, it means I can eat a proper dinner, so I normally have a lovely bit of meat, with some roasted veggies, or a stir fry, or prawn salad.   You also need to drink at least 2litres of water a day.


First week, I was so thrilled, as I lost 4.3lbs!

Second week (last Thursday), i had lost 0.3lbs, so I had a massive downer on myself, it seems that I have had something that I shouldn't have (I blame the local pub for my mothers day dinner, where I asked for meat and veg but the veg was definitely covered in something).  I had been so excited to get on those scales, as clothes felt looser, My boss who had seen me the previous week noticed that I looked slimmer, and James keeps telling me I look so much narrower, so my LL coach says I must have lost more than that, as normally you will only notice visually if you have lost half a stone or more.  So whether it was clothes I was wearing, or the fact I had eaten before I got weighed, I'm not sure, but it has royally put a rocket up my arse to not be disappointed again!

I'm not sure if this kind of post will be interesting to you all or not, so please let me know if not, otherwise i'm planning on doing a weekly update.

Now I need to start exercising, which as far as I am concerned is the activity of the devil, any easy suggestions welcome, and if any of you have done LL, I would love to hear about it!

This is not a sponsored post.

Don't forget when I reach 50 followers on GFC or Bloglovin, I will be giving away a l'Artisan Parfumeur scent, full size 100ml Seville a l'Aube.  Just go to the giveaway post, follow and leave a note to say you have! x

Sunday 10 March 2013

Mothering Sunday

Happy Mothers day to any Mums reading this post, and for those of you that aren't, I hope you have spoilt your mum rotten!

I do feel that the card companies just use this Sunday as another excuse to get the tills ringing, but it is always something I have loved, whether it is buying just a £2 bunch of daffs for my mum, or splashing out, all it does is let your mum know that all those little things that she may think are insignificant, actually mean a lot to us.  I do regularly tell her I love her, and appreciate her, but this just makes it officially about her!

Now that I am a mum to Max (2 years old in June), I know how much hard work it is, you never stop, you always worry when they're not with you, and recently on a night away with work, how my heart ached for my boys at home!  My mum has told me that even though her babies are now 39 and 34 (ahem, make that 40 and 35 this year....I'm the younger one before you ask), she still worries about us and wants to always know we are happy.

This year I wanted to do something with a difference for my mum, so found this gorgeous and clever card for my mum on etsy


 I then came across @typographyoflove on twitter by pure chance and thought this would be perfect for my mum, she is a big softy, and loves anything that she can see you had to put some thought into.  Mel at Typography of Love offers you various templates which you can then give her 12 words that mean something to whoever you are doing this for, and adds them inbetween some others already on the template, you also choose the colours.  There was one word that was really not right for my mum so I asked her if we could change one, which she happily did without any question.  So below is my beautiful gift for mothers day for my wonderful mum.  (including the frame and delivery this was just £35)

 I was up with my mum in Yorkshire this week, so asked her to open it when I was there, and there were lots of tears, so I think she was chuffed!

Onto my second mothers day, and I received a beautiful bunch of flowers, a beautiful butterfly made at Nursery, and 2 very special cards, one from Max and one from James.  Now off to Mothers day dinner too!


Did you get anything special or do anything special for your mum?