Weight Loss Journals - petecohen.tv

Ok, so here's my new start. Its been a funny kind of morning, I've been asking myself a lot of tough questons and I'm not too sure I'm liking the answers!

There are a lot of things I'd like to change, not just my diet and fitness levels, but of course when you start thinking about things you want to change, the list keeps growing! I was talking to a friend recently and I was saying how since my mum died and I got divorced, I'd been like a spoiled child-eating what I want, drinking fizzy drinks, not caring that things were done in a certain time frame, always giving myself an 'out' when it came to doing things that were a bit tougher, thinking that this was me being good to myself. This led me to realise that everything I had been achieving, or trying to achieve, had been for the approval of others. So this morning I've been facing the fact that eating 'what I like' isn't being good to myself. Allowing myself to sit on my bum when the ironing pile is about to take over the house isn't being good to myself. Talking myself out of exercise so I can 'rest' isn't being good to myself.

Yes, the mountain of things I want to do is growing by the minute-for example, eat well, exercise more, stop smoking, clean out the cupboards, clean the house so I can start decorating(the paint and wallpaper have been sitting here for months), walk my dogs more regularly....the list goes on but when I think about doing these things, the pay off seems so far away-it'll take months to get where I want to be weight-wise, it'll take a few weeks of hard work to get the house the way I want it, it'll be years til I stop craving the damn cigs-I know, coz I've done it before....and then I get overwhelmed with everything and revert to type, grab a chocolate bar and a sugary coffee and sit down in front of the telly, or lose myself in whichever book I'm reading.

I'm notorious for not finishing things. I like to say its the Gemini part of me-I get bored easily. And yes I do. I started losing weight how many years ago? My daughter just turned 20 so its that long. Last year alone, I started my own cleaning company, then I went back to college, then I got the offer of overtime at a TEMPORARY job and took that and got kicked off my course....are you seeing a pattern here?? I am always searching for something outside of myself to stimulate and motivate me...but today I've realised I have to find that inside of me. I DO deserve to eat well and feel good, I DO deserve to have a lovely house, I DO deserve to be proud of myself if only for finishing the ironing!

So, today is a new start for me in more ways than one. Today I will set myself ONE goal, instead of being mentally buried by all the things I 'need to do'. So, my one goal for today is to eat well, choose fresh foods over processed foods, and more importantly, to thoroughly enjoy every mouthful!

Thanks for letting my rant-it's a bit of a watershed for me, but I feel like I'm finally growing up and starting to be responsible for making ME happy! Have a great day everyone, its great to be back :) xxx

Helloooo me old chums!!

I've come back 'home' after a long and not too successful journey! I haven't gained too much weight however my eating habits have been so bad-fast food, picking when I'm not hungry and started drinking the dreaded irn-bru again :-s

SO, new year, new start for me and I'm back to the only place wherre I actually succeeded and wherer I was accepted for just being me-the world can be a cold, hard place sometimes!!

I'm looking forward to catching up with my old friends and making new ones.

See you all soon!
Vikki xxx

Hi guys
Its been a strange old few weeks!! I'm back on track with the programme and doing well-I bought the Personal Trainer game for the Wii and I love it!! Gets me off my bahookie lol. Weight is starting to come off again but boy does it love me-it hangs around as long as it can before sighing and disappearing....
My new job makes it tough to eat properly. I have my dinner early, around 4.30pm as I leave around 5 but then I'm heading home at 1am and wondering why I'm starving until I realise I havent eaten for nearly 9 hours! I tried taking fruit but at that time I crave someting warm so need some ideas to keep me away from the all-night McDonalds! I allways head there for a coffee for my last 30minute drive home and have been tempted to the odd poke of chips!!

Health wise the kidney stones are STILL there and waiting to be zapped, and I've been diagnosed with inflammatory bowel disease and have to get a colonoscopy to see if its Crohns or ulcertive colitis. Fun fun!!

Just waiting for the gorgeous summer to arrive-am manifesting it big time!!
Hope everyone has a great Easter!! xxx

Its officially the first day of spring-thank goodness-that winter seemed to last forever!!

Wow, where has the last week gone? Its been so busy-and so good! I had a fantastic time at my sisters in Fife and then this lovely weather started-

My ex had an operation yesterday and came through it successfully which is good and tonight I'm going to a friends house for dinner and tomorrow we're going to a workshop with Tony Stockwell: 'The Street Psychic'-should be a lot if fun! Back to Janes tomorrow night afterwards as her hubby is making Thai green curry!

Only downside to my week was going to the cinema with my daughter as an early Mothers Day gift. We saw Marley and Me and laughd through 90% of it. BUT the other 10% we were bawling like babies-as was everyone else in the cinema! There were a couple of kiddies there wailing at the end-Kate and I stuffed our scarves in our mouths to stop making noises-it was horrible! Def not a film for a dog lover to watch-bad, bad movie!!!

I've been sticking to loads of tools, water, eating slowly and eating when hungry are a given, relaxing when need be, and I'm feeling so good :-) I haven't weighed myself yet but my stomach is much flatter-no more bloated tummy. I pinched a couple of Kates sour sweets in the cinema and was bloated for hours, so now I know its bread, potatoes and sugar which make me bloat, so I can avoid them.

Hope everyone has a great weekend, those of you still lucky enough to have mum's here, please treasure them and let them know you love them xxx

Thanks everyone for your lovely welcome back! Zenith and Silvia, I'm still doing the writing course, or rather, it's sitting in the corner of the room waiting to be finished! I've been so busy with other things I haven't done much with it lately, no doubt I'll get back around to it! Silvia, I'm still at the supermarket part time, and my daughter and I are also setting up a house cleaning service so if that takes off, I can leave the supermarket behind once and for all!!

Has anyone noticed how strangely our brains work?? As soon as I made the decision to start back on the programme, I started feeling hungry all the time! Now I don't normally get hungry often-I have to remind myself to eat-and of course I leave it too long and grab something totally unsuitable. But the last few days, within an hour of eating my tummy is starting to rumble, and I'm convinced that drinking water is making me hungrier-now how daft is that?? So I've been having a word with the duck , who has been on such a high since my last 'date' with a guy who made plans to meet me again twice and both times cancelled, little duckie has been saying 'of course it's coz you're FAT sweetie. Just look at the chins-and the boobs on your back-who would want you? So eat, food will always be your friend, it will never let you down...' so I'm attempting to drown him in all the water I"m drinking-cheeky blighter even started popping up in my meditations!!

After listening to one of Pete's podcasts,it struck how true it is that we medicate ourselves with food. It was proved to me today when my friend called to say her little boy hadn't won a prize in his Robert Burns poem competition and he was crying so she'd picked him up a nice sticky bun for when he got home from school!! Poor kid already has a weight problem and it's easy to see where others are going wrong. but not always so easy to see it in ourselves!

So as well as drowning, my little ducky is going to starve because if I don't get anything else out of this, I'll learn to shut him up and replace him with positive self talk!

Ok, rambling over for tonight chums. Its so great to be back and you are all so inspiring!! I'm going over to Fife this weekend, I'm working 2 nights there and am staying with my sister and her family which will be great as I haven't seen them since Xmas and the best part is, they are healthy eaters and active people so I won't be vegging out there. Have a fab weekend everyone.

Big hugs
Vikki xxx

Hi guys,
Long time no speak!!! I'm finally back on the Pete Cohen wagon, with all guns blazing. I've have a tough few months with the kidney issues, trying to get my new job sorted, and loads of family stuff and I let my focus go on my fitness and diet.

BUT I'm on Day 2 now and more determined than ever to get fit and get the weight off. What didn't help was sitting on my son's bed to change his pillow cases and catching sight of myself, side on, in his mirror. Not an angle I often see myself at and I got one heck of a fright!! So, 71 days til I turn 40. 71 days in which to turn things around. Wish me luck!

Its great being back in amongst you all, can't wait to get caught up on all the blogs xxx

Grrr...just wrote a long blog and it disappeared...grr.It was really funny too-starting with wanting to blind myself after seeing Tommy Sheridan in the Big Brother house, wearing a turquoise headband and doing aerobics. I think I'm scarred for life and Kate has been told that no matter how much Mr Motivator terrifies her, she's not to change the channel in the morning!!

Food is going well but I've been told my kidney stone has only reduced from 11mm to 7mm so it looks like surgery is the next option :-( Big fear with that so I'm on a mission to get rid of it by any means! I had a fantastic crystal therapy treatment last night, my word it was amazing! That next on my list of therapies to learn!

So if anyone is so inclined, take a few minutes to imagine my kidney stone ground to dust for me please!!

Onwards and upwards guys and gals. Have a great Wednesday xxx

Its been a fairly quiet day-horrible weather, wind and rain and it stayed dark all day-yuk!!

Have hardly eatten-not surprised I'm not hungry after last night hee hee. I had cereal around 2pm and Kate made spag bols at 6 but didn't even manage half my plate. Did have a bit of fun on the Wii Fit though-love that!!

Can;t believe tomorrows day 7 already! Dont think I've lost any weight this week, but then rarely do the first week, my body likes to hold onto fat to see if I'm serious lol!

Here's to a relaxing Sunday! xxx

Great day today, my wee girl is 19!! Made her and Stephen scrambled eggs on toast and had some porridge myself-keeping myself good for dinner tonight! Steve grumbled about the wholemeal bread but when I told him it'd keep him fuller for longer, he was happy to eat it.

A couple of ryvita for lunch and 1.5 lt of water down by 2pm. A long walk at the Marina with the dogs and Kate, don't know who was more exhausted afterwards, but they all had a lie down when we got back! I virtuously did some housework and ironing!

Out for dinner at 7pm, lovely place, really busy as its an old establishment which was shut for years and has just be re-opened. Ex mother in law singing along to the pianist after 10 minutes, poor son bright red. Its kind of open plan, the chefs are right there and you watch them-so poor Steve got a few comments shouted over to him! The co-owner walked by and Steve grabbed me up and took me to meet him. Pleasant conversation about how much promise my wee boy has and what a hard worker he is. Sat back down to a barrage of questions from the ex about why Steve didn't introduce him. Poor boys face said it all.....maybe if he'd turned up sober??

Had chicken wings to start-delicious but was itching to pick them up with my fingers-one look from the boy convinced me not too! Chose lasagne for main course-sheer bliss-a party in my mouth! The out-laws both chose veal whcih they then sent back-poor Steve had his head in his hands. His dad requested a fresh portion while 82 yr old granny was full from eating the spaghetti napoli which came with it! Head chef looked at Steve and mouthed 'sorry mate' which made Steve want to crawl under the table. Both kids texted me to say next time they have a birthday, they want it to be just the 3 of us!

Granny wanted a dessert-they are world famous for their ice cream-but no one else did so she declined. Feeling sorry for her, Kate and I agreed to share one to keep her company. Out came her tiramisu and our knickerbocker glory! Then KAte announces she hates chopped nuts so would I eat the cream on top with the nuts. In hindsight, I realise I could have scooped it off and put in on a napkin, but not wanting to scar my poor son more, I set about the cream and chopped nuts...wow...if I thought the lasagne was good, this was heaven! Kate ate the ice cream and we shared the fruit at the bottom. We declined coffee then out came the birthday cake which Steve had asked the Italian baker to make-a cornucopia of cream and chocolate! Since we were all ready to be rolled home as it was, we asked for a box and Kate walked out, very red faced, as the whole restaurant had sung happy birthday to her! I walked past Head chef (gorgeous Italian specimen) and he shook my hand and asked if I was Stevies big sister-normally I'd cringe but I have a memory to giggling when he said that-sad, sad woman lol! He also said what a harder worker Steve is and that he's doing really well-and he assured me he doesn't say that about just anybody. Then he said 'he's got some mouth on him though-he never shuts up!' Giggling again I assured him I had no idea where he got that from :-)

Dropped everyone off at houses and friends and walked into the house with the birthday cake in a box. Scooped it out to put it in the fridge, opened fridge door without looking-too late! Scout (No3 cat) had booby trapped it again. He sits on top of the fridge freezer and pushes the crunchy nut cereal box to the edge so when you open the door, the cereal goes all over the floor and the dogs get to eat it up (I'm sure these animals collude just to frustrate me!) Well, said cereal box landed on the cake and took a huge chunk of cream with it! Very happy dogs and I swear the cat was lying there, arms folded beneath him, laughing at me!

So slightly over ate yesterday but loved every mouthful, so def not classing it as a wobble! Back to doc on Monday and hopefully soon I'll be feeling well enough to get some exercise in-although I'm going to dust off that yoga dvd this afternoon. Have a great weekend everyone! xxx

Today was quiet again, in a lot of pain after yesterdays shopping extravaganza! Porridge for brekkie, ryvita with lo fat soft cheese, ham and then a pear for lunch (is it wrong that I LOVE ryvita??) chicken breast and steamed veggies for tea, with a couple of potatos which I didn't eat.

thirty minute walk with the doggies so I feel I did some kind of exercise! Going out for a meal tomorrow night for Kate's birthday-we're going to the place that Stephen in a chef in-he's so nervous as his dad and granny are coming and if anyone's guaranteed to embarass him, its them! Ah the joys xx

Today was busy, shopping for Kate's birthday presents! 5 hours trawling around Greenock-what joy! It actually was a great day and we had so much fun.

Kate wanted to treat me to lunch and was angling for KFC but I talked her into a cafe where I had a baked potato and beans-talk about filling! Kate had macaroni cheese, chips and garlic bread and finished before me. She asked whether she's started eating faster, but asured her I've just slowed down!

Fruit for dinner as wasn;t hungry and bought myself a new pink water bottle with a sports cap-the kind I prefer-so now my water drinking feels more fun!

Didn't get much done today-renal colic rearing its ugly head :(

Did eat well though, porridge and an apple for breakfast, ryvitta with low fat cheese spread and ham followed by 2 pears for lunch and a chicken breast with veggies for dinner.

3 coffees today but also my 2 litres of water. Lets hope tomorrow is a bit more eventful! Have a great Wednesday everyone xxx

Its been a good start to day 1! I've only had 2 coffees, have drunk my 2 litres of water, had porridge for breakfast, wasnt too hungry at lunchtime so had a small fresh fruit salad and made a fresh tomato based sauce and some pasta for tea-and only ate half the bowl I'd put out for myself!

Typically, when I'm not well enough to exercise, I'm desperate to! Dogs only had a short walk today, so I'll take them for a long wander tomorrow.

Havea brilliant Tuesday everyone! xxx

My tools for the first part of these 21 days are:
Drinking 2 litres of water
Reducing sugar and stimulants
Eating natural foods

I was hoping to be using the exercise tools, but was signed off work for yet another week today with the blasted kidney stones and told to keep warm and rest. The doc has no idea what'sgoing on so is going to chase up the hospital for me, it been nearly 3 months since the stones were zapped and still no follow up!

Lets hope I have a job to go back to.....in the meantime, I can work on the sugar and stimulants as there will be nothing here to tempt me!

Have a great Monday everyone xxx

Well, here I am, ready to rock and roll! I've written up menus for the next week and planned daily exercise for myself and I'm about to pick my tools.

So exciting that we're all doing this together-linking arms and marching to a stronger, slimmer, fitter, healthier and happier future!

Good luck everyone xxx