I’ve been on Weight Watchers since the beginning of January, did very well and lost 20lb. 13 weeks on I am still 20lb off and not for the lack of trying. I’ve still been going to WeightWatchers but this particular class doesn’t sit well with me, I don’t have a good relationship with the leader and am demotivated.
When no weight comes off after such a period of time you get cross and upset and you binge. Then diet like crazy to claw it back (hands up if you’ve been there, done that!). I’d had enough of that and decided to track my calories and fat via an online diary. Great to start with but I was constantly hungry, still bingeing and food was a huge focus throughout the day.
To be honest, I was getting really pissed off. I’ve done well so far, I don’t have an issue sticking to a plan but I find them so regimented and not at all enjoyable past a few months.
After seeing many tweets about ThinkingSlimmer, from people I know and some I don’t and several conversations with users I thought I’d give it a go.
Basically I have bought an MP3 that I listen to for 10minutes a day (before bed). Before I go any further can I just say, Trevor’s voice is lush! The idea is that my subconscious will be spoken to and my attitudes to food altered, based around where I want to find myself weight-wise. The first time I saw this my initially thought was “Mumbo-jumbo – move on” and I continued this line of thinking until after seeing yet another tweet about how good people feel about themselves.
With a “What have I got to lose” attitude I bought the MP3 (2 dress sizes to lose), read through the handbook. Really sat and had a think about what I wanted and tuned in for the first time.
That was a week ago nearly and already I’m noticing small differences. This week was my monthly (sorry but it does come around pretty regularly) and during this time I am usually bloated, fat and frumpy feeling, hormonal and I binge eat. I just haven’t had the urge. Shopping for a special anniversary meal last week (hubby offered to cook me whatever I wanted) I decided on a chicken stirfry packed with veg – (usually I would go for something cheesy and would most definitely choose a banoffee cheesecake afterwards!). Nope, I fancied a thai stirfry – light and delicious. It still felt like a real treat. And water? I hate water! I know I need to drink more clear fluid, have been trying to for years but I loathe the stuff and I will now reach for a bottle of water before a coffee. And I’ve bought decaff too!
This sounds very “yeah right” – trust me, no-one is more surprised than I am. I don’t do “alternative” anything – I like what you can see and do – so listening to an MP3 for ten minutes a day seems ridiculous but it’s working. Is it a flash in the pan? The “new diet” goodness. I don’t think so, though time will tell. What I can tell you though is that I have never enjoyed my food so much, can’t remember naturally making such healthy choices without “having” to and can’t remember the last time I had a full week where I wasn’t counting points, syns, calories or whatever and didn’t feel guilty. Here’s hoping these changes (which I’m told are just the beginning!) stick around. I’ll keep you informed.
*I am NOT reviewing ThinkingSlimmer, being paid by them or anything else. This is a personal journey sponsored by myself and I’m sharing it because I find it interesting, and am glad someone else shared it with me. If you want to find out more about it have a look on the website or find them on Twitter for a chat!
Helen Lindop, co-author of the book 