Things in the life of Loz...

[lozenger8]

1. I have started my new T-shirt collection. It is aces. And 17 t-shirts strong already. I'm very proud of myself. I actually rebought three of the tees I had before, because I love them so much

Comments

[theficklepickle]

I'm glad you posted; I was only thinking about you the other day and wondering how you were getting on. I've been a bit luckier in some respects, there's nobody much to make a comment about my progress and even my BH knows better than to mention it. For the record, though, I'm still losing weight ... no idea how much, but I've hit my target of being a size 16 by Easter (from roughly a 26/28 this time last year) and I'm back wearing a couple of much-loved teeshirts from the mid-1990s. Also, after a long break for winter, we've started our walking routine again - tried to go in January but were rained off half-way round, and had to miss February and March completely for other reasons. We did seven miles on Wednesday though, and are planning to do the same distance again next month, and maybe increase to twice a month or more after we move house. (Now that BH has retired and money is a bit more plentiful we both went out and bought new walking boots, and the difference that's made is unbelievable!) I reckon I could probably do nine

[lozenger8]

<333

I'm a size 16 now too, although I was a size 22 before, so clearly you've lost more than me. 10 miles is so long! But yes, I think you could easily manage it. Most days lately (when I haven't had parent teacher interviews), I've been doing about 3 miles, but there was a long stretch of time when I was doing 7.5 mile walks on weekends. I also use my resistance band exercises, and as mentioned in this post, dance like a fruit loop around my room. I do wish I'd realised I actually like exercising 10 years ago.

I agree that you're utterly brilliant.

[wolfy_writing]

I have to say, I really appreciate how much you focus on fitness and physical activity in your posts. I'm fat myself, and my past attempts to lose weight have been...unsuccessful to say the least. But exercise is something where I know I can achieve noticeable results (I just spent the last week scuba diving, and 3-4 dives a day plus a bit of extra trekking and snorkeling didn't wear me out), and it's nice to see someone who, after going on a diet, still doesn't treat weight loss like the most important thing.

I hope people get used to your new size and stop making it such a huge thing.

[lozenger8]

It's all about physical fitness, for me. The main reason I was overweight wasn't really unhealthy eating, it was how sedentary I was outside of school - both as a student and a teacher - so getting up, moving and dedicating time almost every day to some form of concentrated exercise has been the key to me feeling better. Is it because you haven't found an exercise that suits you/because of physical or time limitations that you haven't been able to lose weight the way you've wanted to?

I sincerely hope your last thing too, but I have a horrible feeling they won't, considering they still haven't. It's been a year since I got more active and switched to a higher protein & lower carb diet. It'll be at least another year I think until I am at a fitness level that is sustainable and more toned.

[wolfy_writing]

I think it's less exercise than food? I've had periods where I was exercising fairly regularly, but that works well with the right kind of external motivation (such as an impending dive trip or being on a rowing team), and leads to little or no weight loss. (When I exercise a lot, I get hungry, and if I'm not trying to lose weight at the time, I'll happily eat large portions.) I'm a picky eater (trying to improve, but slowly, as I tend to balk when I feel as if I'm forced to eat things I don't like), and I haven't found a way of restricting food that doesn't either accomplish nothing or dissolve into frustration. It doesn't help that I travel a lot, so portion sizes, recipes, and brands vary hugely.

[lozenger8]

Yes, I can see how that would be incredibly difficult. For me, foodwise, it was about cutting down on breads, pasta, potatoes and rice and substituting with vegetable dishes. So I'll have 'cauliflower rice', or caramelised cauliflower, or caramelised fennel or onion, or kale & spinach, or roast pumpkin, or various different salads, whereas once I might have had two extra servings of the aforementioned delicious starchy carbs. I still eat bread, pasta, potatoes and rice. I just have less of them. I also tend to have to decide between which I'll have on any given day.

I also try to have low gi foods throughout my day, and natural fats. So I eat apples, nuts, whole grain foods and bigger portions of red meat than I ever used to before. Low gi foods haven't actually been proven to help with weight-loss, but I have found I don't seem to get as hungry as quickly. It could be the placebo effect.

[miri_me]

I spent a good chunk of my teen years as a short, curvy-but-slim girl in XL Ts (the XXXL ones came down to my knees and swamped me with fabric. Great nighties...). In my case part of it was coz it was a lot less weird chatting to guys who came up to me because my Tshirt was cool than guys who came up to me because I was a girl. With boobies and everything. Baggy Ts are comfy, and it's convenient if a differently shaped/sized friend gets caught in the rain and lending them something dry makes sense. But it's not a particularly flattering, feminine, or professional look

[piapiapiano]

A few people at church touched my bump without asking. I made a point of obviously drawing my coat/cardi closer together as I passed them next time I saw them. They asked to see/touch it after that. I refused. They stopped asking.

It's bizarre how some people view a pregnant woman's body as public property.

"flutters" sounds about right for feeling those first movements, by the way. :)

[miri_me]

At least they picked up on your behavioural cues!

That's what I understood, but at the same time, the internet says 16-17 weeks is about right for first time baby movements, and this started at about the 13 week mark... Not sure I can rule out wishful thinking, really!

[eumelkeks]

Um, no. I just changed my aspect ratio.

I know this is a serious topic but this really cracked me up, thanks for that. Good T-Shirt slogan, too. ;)

People are tactless shits and I am sorry that you have to suffer through these comments on a regular basis. However, maybe some of them keep doing it because they mean to be encouraging and supportive, they're just unable to understand how this might sound to you.

[karaokegal]

You don't have to shut up about anything! Fatphobia is a thing, it will continue to be a thing and as long as people are going to think they have any right to read your beads about, you have every right to vent in whatever forums you deem appropriate.

I'm still fighting my own internalized fat-phobia, as well as the comments from my Mint bodies, which are extremely contradictory in nature, ranging from "Keep up the good work" to "Don't lose any more weight."