Day 1 of 33...

Breakfast - Porridge, cup of coffee made with skimmed milk and a banana

Lunch - Sticky pulled pork and sweet potato mash meal from Sainsbury's (DELICIOUS ALERT!!!)
              Apple

Dinner - HUUUUGE plate of roasted veg topped with homemade lean chilli (the second pic is how much I managed to eat!)

Exercise - Body Pump followed by Meta-fit (Bloody ow!)

The most difficult part of the day for me is usually after I've got home from the gym, after my shower and when I'm in my PJs. I crave sweet or carby goodness! Last night instead, we went shopping and I filled up the basket with 3 more pulled pork/ sweet potato meals (above) as they are only 299 cals and they're are taaaaasty! There's not too much dodgy stuff in them either for a ready meal! I got them as an option for when I'm short of time and/or can't be bothered to prepare something for lunch at work the next day. After shopping I collapsed into bed, totally pooped after two new 'routines' in 'pump' and metafit, involving lots of back and glute work! Hurts to sit down. Yes. Yes it does.

On to day 2!

ash xx

Beach ball

A couple of years ago, after gaining some extra 'comfy' after a break up (I thought the heart break diet was supposed to make you drop the pounds?!) I tried Slimming World and I lost around 28 lbs! Hi-fives all round! However, the problem with Slimming World for me, is that doesn't teach you how to control your portions, in fact it actually encourages you to eat to bursting....'no restrictions, no weighing, never go hungry again, unlimited free foods'. Okay, well it may not encourage you to eat until you feel you may just explode, but that is what I did. Because I was missing out on the things I actually wanted to eat, I'd eat 11 portions worth of 'free' food to attempt to make up for it. This is fine when sticking 100% to the plan, however, if you give up and continue to eat the same volume of foods that are certainly NOT on the plan, it isn't great.
Needless to say, once I strayed, I piled back on all the weight I lost and more.

Rotund (image credit)

Anyway, here I am 4 months into the Year of the New me (a.k.a, 2014) and I'm still, erm, the old me? Okay, maybe I'm being to hard on myself. I have changed. The 2013 me would secretly consider walking 20 mins into work to be a solid work-out. Fast forward a few months and I'm running, body pumping (ahem) and meta-fitting but I am definitely over compensating with food because I feel I somehow 'deserve it' after all that hard work. After a long (okay, 3 mile) run there's nothing I crave more than a door wedge of bread with lashings of salty butter and a pint of Vimto. I need to sort the diet thing out.

Ultimately, I want to eat 'clean' but I'm on a bit of a deadline. I have just realised how close my appointment at a beautiful wedding boutique, The White Closet is. 33 days to be precise.
The last time I tried dresses on I felt slightly beached whale-esque, or maybe more floundering porpoise, trapped in an ivory, lacy net. I felt sweaty, red and bulging. Not exactly the movie-like, beautiful, orchestral, angel voiced choir 'hallelujah' moment I was going for. Most of the dresses could not would not so much as meet at the back, let alone be fastened up.

CRAAAAAAAAAPPP! (image credit)

I know, I'm not going to transform my body in 33 days, but I'm going to give it a bloody good go. I figure the best way to begin is to cut out the crap and watch what goes in vs what I expend calorie wise, however calorie counting doesn't work for me. I ALWAYS feel deprived and hungry and can manage to be saintly for a week and then I get h-angry (can I still have that? Is it still a thing?) and eat EVERYTHING.IN.SIGHT (so don't get in my way). So, I have decided that just for the next few weeks, I will do my own version of SW, or the same, but just free. Shhhhhh. Last time I did it, I stuck at it for a good 4 months, so I can certainly do 33 days. 

To help me, I will chronicle the journey on here, you lucky things (anyone out there?) and maybe, I should make this thing real cringe and post a 'before / after' pic in my smalls. Maybe.

ash x

Delicious MSG...(T-minus 38 days until wedding gown browsing...)

Bless me Santa for I have sinned, it's been two months since my last chinese takeaway.

What is wrong with me!?? I ate the worst possible type of takeaway food this evening.

Massive.Angry.Face.

Credit

Now usually I am coerced into such a heinous act. But tonight? Tonight I did it all by myself.

I've had a painful upper back and neck for a good few months now and it has recently worsened following starting running and getting my wobbly botty back in the gym. Now being a physio and all I'm aware that I have some issues with my posture and I should be doing what I know will work (practicing my lifting technique, altering my sitting position at my desk, stretching, strengthening etc) but instead I've been going for monthly sports massages which hurt like a motherlover, cost me more money than I have and only ease the issue for a day or so (sensible).
Anyway, after an evening of sitting slumping in a crap chair yesterday for a work strategy meeting, my right upper back (traps - if you're interested) has been KILLING ME today. Worse than I have ever felt it. So much so that it has made me a bit of a moody moo all day. Luckily, my massage was scheduled for this evening! Yay! the only thing getting me through today was knowing that by 7pm, the beastie would have been pummelled to within an inch of its life.

Sadly, when I arrived for my appointment, despite my incessant attempts to emphasise that I wanted her to focus on my worst area, the part that feels like it has a moderately sized great white gnawing away at it, she totally ignored me! She was more bothered about trying to smooth away the 'apple sized' knot in the middle of my back - which by the way I had no idea was there. Bothered.

But, you know, ludicrously, I smiled and paid the money and even thanked her - for NOT doing what I asked her to do!

After that I was so pissed off at myself really, that the only thing that could sort me out was some salt and pepper chips. Obviously. Oh and erm...a bottle of Kopparberg. And now my stomach is doing flip flops and my face has that sickly alcohol glow. All engines are go for a settled nights sleep then!

Pfft.

Anyway, tomorrow is a new day! Clean all the way! I can do it! Pray for me!

My new mantra - getting pretty good at it! (image credit)

ash x

Food!

Well......the boyf has been whinging for a while about losing weight and to be honest I could do with losing a stone or two!  Problem is, we both get in around 8.30pm, which doesn't lead to very healthy teas.  Boyf determined, championed the diet chef route.  Personally I was not really up for this as I felt that the meals would be tasteless, bland and well I wasn't keen on the food not being 'fresh'.  Im quite happy to tuck into a family sized packed of kettle crisps......because they have a short sell by date so they must be good for you (I ignore the fat content).  

Any-who boyf won, being faced with preparing teas and lunches plus washing and drying the hair in the hour period I get each day swayed me to giving in. 

So here I am week one in- I have lost two pound and I had a scrumptious meal out in on saturday night! (thanks Ash!) Meals are ok, they aren't 'fresh' but what I have had has been good.... especially the snacks!  

I am quite desperate to open the tray of Dairy Milk that is calling me from across the room.........

My darling...

In the beginning

This is the beginning. The beginning of something where two friends write some stuff about trying to be fit and healthy in both body and mind.

A bit about what gets us sweaty and what we shovel in our mouth holes (ooh err).

It may occasionally feature whatever clean clothes we can find some fashion, casually draped over our model-esque physiques and perhaps the odd slick of Mac lippy here and there. But you know, we'll see how it goes.

Love

Kelly & Ashley x