Unique Gloucestershire March 2016

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Lose Weight For Free
Losing weight is just as much psychological as it is physical, this is
why it is so hard.
Now I'm not a dietitian, psychologist or a fitness instructor. I'm
a mother to two children under 3 years old. My youngest is 10
months. I'm a wife to a mechanic (endless cleaning of walls, bath,
clothes and footprints on my carpet) I have a dog and I run two
businesses so needless to say I don't have all the time in the world!
After having my second child I weighed in the region of 18 stone
at 5' 6". My BMI reading was 'Obese'. I have never been small and
my weight has fluctuated over the years, I even had my thyroid
checked, but it was fine. I had tried loads of fad diets in the past
and failed most of the time because I gave up.
So in the late stages of my pregnancy with my second child I was
dreaming about being able to move properly and even go for a run
as I was sat on my sofa eating a pack of biscuits! I still ha about 3 pots of Slim Fast in my
cupboard from where i had tried to lose weight after my first child.
This time I was going to do it properly and for free! I researched a lot of scientific
information about how the body works in terms of metabolic rates, what foods contain,
how exercise burns energy and how much I needed to eat to sustain my energy and breast
feed my new baby. I was not allowed to do any strenuous activity after my Cesarean
section for 8 weeks and as I had become allergic to certain painkillers I was definitely
taking it a lot easier than I did the first time round.
So 'phase one' of weight loss was 'eating clean'. I did a bit of research on foods and
sugar as that seems to be a subject in the news and on TV all the time at the moment. I
was looking for a scientific approach to my whole plan. I needed it to be simple. So after
working out what was good, what was bad and what I actually liked, meat and veg was the
way I planned to go. So losing weight for free isn't quite right, you still need to buy food to
eat but you don't have to fork out hundreds on pre-made meals or shakes which are full of
chemical sweeteners which are a short-term fix and a money spinning con in my opinion!
For each meal have half a plate of veg (steamed/boiled/raw) whatever you like. No sauce
or dressings. Then half a plate of meat. One or two chicken breasts, pork chops, steak
anything that's oven cooked or grilled. This will give you fibre and complex carbs from the
vegetables (the more colours you include the more variety of vitamins you will get) protein
and fat will come from the meat. For those of you who eat breakfast - a piece of fruit and
yoghurt are quick and easy for those on the go (although these contain sugar and fat,
don't cut anything completely from your diet). Smoked salmon and egg, bacon and beans/
tomatoes, are all good options. I wasn't overly strict on cheese and butter etc but if it has
no nutritional benefit for me I didn't eat it.
Understanding what you NEED and what you WANT is a major part of the battle. NEEDING
food, energy and nutrients is one thing WANTING food because it makes you feel good
or because it tastes nice is your battle. I had to remind myself everyday I WANT to lose
weight, I WANT to be healthy and play with my children without struggling to get up off
the floor. I WANT energy to spend time with my husband after a long day. I WANT to feel
confident and happy. I NEED to be healthy and around for a long time because I have a
family who depends on me.
Therefore eating right, checking calories and cutting out the bad stuff was what I did for 8
weeks when I couldn't exercise. I downloaded a FREE app called MyFitnessPal which has a
barcode scanner and I scanned my food - mainly to check I was eating enough to maintain
my breastmilk supply - but this showed me that my 'healthy option' cereal was packed of
sugar! So cut that down to a couple of days a week and my 300g of raisins had a meal's
worth of calories, so I cut this down to 100g.
As soon as I has sign off from my doctor that my scar was healed and I was 'fit' again, I
started 'phase two' a workout DVD (I had a couple from the past) but I also found some
on Youtube - which are FREE to watch - to mix it up a little as I get bored of the same one
all the time and made sure I did at least 30 mins every weekday. I started at really low
intensity, kept low impact as I was scared to hurt myself. But after about 4 weeks I felt
the difference and began to do situps instead of holding a crunch. Obviously the pain
reminded me I was still recovering and needed to go at my own pace.
I was on the verge of 3 and a half stone down at 4 months after my baby was born. I
hadn't spent any money on extra fads or gadgets but now my clothes were too big so I
decided to shop and I joined a kickboxing fitness class which I went to once a week (not
FREE but something that I enjoy and get more out of per session than the gym). I then
quickly dropped another half stone.
'Phase three' is where I am now. I am reintroducing 'normal' food like bread and sauces.
But I am pushing myself now. I'm still classed as 'overweight' on the BMI chart (I can wear
size 12-14) which I'm pleased with but my body isn't ready for my bikini yet! I have signed
up for 5k race for life. So my exercise schedule has changed. I am still doing a workout
DVD each day but my evenings now include running and kickboxing after the kids go
to bed. I have posted online to find a running buddy and Kickboxing buddy, this helps
motivate me as I don't like to let people down, so having someone to meet up with and
run or partner with keeps me committed. I have an hour to myself getting sweaty and
working off the stresses of the day. I dont use my calorie app anymore but still watching
my carb intake.
So I lost weight for FREE... keeping my calories at 1700 a day and moving more, walking
places, being silly with the kids, going to the park and playing football instead of watching
- calorie counting is hard, i don't have time, i make things at home are some reasons I
never did this in the past.. this time my FREE app was really helpful to tell me what i was
putting in to my food and ultimately into my body. A cup of tea with sugar is roughly
80kcals, a banana is 110kcals my favourite pizza and wedges meal from my local takeaway
has over 3500 kcals! That's the main reason I
stuck to the meat and veg. More food and less
calories!
I now have until July to get to my 'Ideal' BMI
weight (I was 13 years old the last time I
weighed my target weight) so focus, motivation
and self control is what I need to achieve my
goal. If you want to sponsor my Race For Life
please donate: Help Kayleigh raise more money
for Cancer Research UK https://www.justgiving.
com/leightrigg/
Next month: SOFA TO 5K - The Training begins!