Ritu’s Healthy Living #icandothis – Week 1

08 Aug 2016 46 Comments

by Ritu in Thoughts Opinions & Memories Tags: , , , , , , , , , ,

I don’t profess to be any sort of lifestyle expert, but last week, when I got the ‘Shock of my life!’ (slight exaggeration!) I decided I had to do something.

I was fed up with looking in the mirror, depressed by what I saw, that double-chinned face looking back at me, that stomach that could pass for 6 months pregnant. I hated the fact that so many of my clothes weren’t fitting well. I didn’t like that I was feeling so low in energy all the time.

Something had to give.

So I looked back on an old eating plan I had when I was following the Juiceplus+ diet a couple of years ago. No, I wasn’t going to fork out lots of money on the shakes and vitamins etc, but they had a great detox plan, which really helped me strip back unnecessary food, and encouraged clean eating.

 

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Some of my breakfasts

 

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Lunch examples

 

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Some dinners I made

Water. I have been drinking lots of water, and herbal teas too, at least 3 litres every day! (Yes, you do wee a lot, but hey, if it helps!)

Another thing I have tried to do is not eat after 8pm either. And I have managed that every night, except tonight. It is 10.30pm and I am eating now! But there is a long story behind that one! At least it’s healthy!!

 

 

 

I downloaded the My Fitness Pal App, and set it up on my phone It is a calorie counter, but if you input your details, and tell it what you want to do, be it lose weight maintain, or put on weight, it will give you a calorie goal. You can tailor your nutritional requirements if you want to aim for more protein, or carbs, or fat, or lower the percentages too. You can then enter the food you eat, either manually, or by scanning a barcode. It is even possible to make your own recipes which are then ready for you to enter whenever you make them!

Then, I decided I needed some form of exercise. Again, I have tried lots of things over the years, but simply walking was not something I had concentrated on. So I found an app called Map My Walk, which you can set to record your walks. It tells you speed, distance, steps and calorie burn.

We have the playing field moments from the house, so every morning, during the holiday, I get up and I go with Lil Man, or with him, and Lil Princess. They play football while I do my circuits, listening to music as I go around. It’s even better as the family are getting involved too! Yesterday we even went to a local country park, and hiked around for an hour, and I built up another 3km on my walking app!

The best thing? It links to the My Fitness Pal app so any exercise you do, creates extra calories that you can eat, if you want, without jeopardising your weight goal!

 

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The analysis reports of my walks. It’s amazing that in a week, I have managed to increase my pace per KM by over a minute!

 

I will weigh in, in the morning, but to be honest, I am not going to cry if I don’t lose lots of weight straight away. I am already feeling so much better, and the weight loss will be a great boost!

I must give a little mention here to someone, who has been extra supportive… All of you who commented on my original post last week are amazing. You really spurred me on to make sure I try my best and do this!

But I have been following a blog for a while now, Amanda at The Keen Peach. She is amazing! Despite being pregnant for, as she describes, 3 years, she has been eating well, keeping her fitness up, and is trying various healthy diets, to be in as best form as she can be. Every day she posts about what she eats, as well as any exercise she may have done, and encourages others who follow to do the same, giving commenters a really motivating reply!

Oh, and I started flooding my Instagram posting some foodie pics on my Instagram account (@phantom_giggler) which have been liked by a few (possibly self-professed!) healthy eating experts out there! A few extra likes are always a plus!

My hashtags for me personal life revolution? #icandothis and #lose2stone

I guess what I want to say really is, if you want things to change in your life, you need to be that change! Several of you mentioned that my thoughts and determination had motivated you to think about your lifestyle. I’d love to know if any of you were really spurred on to do something like I did!

Have a wonderful night/day Peeps! Love my Blogily 💗

46 Comments (+add yours?)

  1. amommasview
    Aug 10, 2016 @ 02:24:44

    The hardest thing is done: You have started. I did too. You inspired me! And I’m 2kg down! We can do it 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  2. Hugh's Views and News
    Aug 09, 2016 @ 16:14:20

    Well done, Ritu. You certainly sound like you have the willpower to do this.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  3. TanGental
    Aug 09, 2016 @ 12:06:50

    Yep, go for it; I was rather depressed when I described a healthy eating plan to a friend who commented that ‘I can see your body must be your temple… it looks like the dome of St Paul’s’. But nil desperandum. You can do this!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Ritu
      Aug 09, 2016 @ 12:23:00

      Uh oh! Lol!!!!
      But thank you Geoffles! I am trying my best. I even dusted off the hula hooping this morning and swung it around my waist for 20 minutes, no dropping!!!

      Liked by 1 person

      Reply

  4. treacledays
    Aug 09, 2016 @ 10:02:36

    Good for you, keep going! You have got me thinking about my own situation. I need to start looking after myself more. I would really like to change my looks. x

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  5. Judy Martin
    Aug 09, 2016 @ 08:18:02

    Well done Sis. The meals look wonderful and you are really making the effort which will no doubt pay off! 🙂

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  6. Erika Kind
    Aug 09, 2016 @ 07:11:29

    You just started. Soon you will have your own plan and diet/fitness routines and all will be part of your day. Just the time until everything is getting together. You are doing great and the holidays help that you have time to manage that start!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  7. New Journey
    Aug 09, 2016 @ 05:58:48

    I start the day with a glass of water with a bit of fresh lemon…great easy detox on the liver….good job on the food plans….I use fatsecret app to keep track of my calories…..you got this girlfriend….nothing to it….kat

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  8. keen peach
    Aug 09, 2016 @ 01:08:35

    Oh my gosh! Thank you for the shout out Ritu! You are doing SO GOOD! You have such a good plan and you’re just taking it a day at a time. You got this girl!
    I love that you won’t be disappointed if the scale had not budged in the morning. There are so many factors that go into that number. The fact that you have been doing everything right and are feeling great is proof enough that you are on the right track. You might be down though! Fingers crossed friend! 🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

    • Ritu
      Aug 09, 2016 @ 08:51:01

      Thank you sooo much for the encouragement, serious.t though, Amanda! It means a lot! I still haven’t weighed myself… But will be checking, once I finished my morning blog check!!!

      Like

      Reply

  9. syl65
    Aug 09, 2016 @ 00:56:44

    One day at a time Sister! You’re off to a rousing start 😊

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  10. Fourth Generation Farmgirl
    Aug 09, 2016 @ 00:22:25

    It sounds like you’re off to a fantastic start! And, getting started is half the battle. I’m so happy you’re feeling better and moving toward your goals! Thanks for the inspiration. 😊💛

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  11. Tessa
    Aug 09, 2016 @ 00:03:13

    Very inspirational. I wish I had your determination right now. I know I would feel so much better despite my health problems, and some would be lessened or eliminated altogether. Keep going, you inspire me.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  12. vanbytheriver
    Aug 08, 2016 @ 23:03:01

    Stay strong, Ritu, you are on the right track. Wish you the best results. You are already feeling better…and that’s a huge benefit. ☺

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

  13. Natalia Erehnah
    Aug 08, 2016 @ 22:57:48

    You can do this! Thanks for sharing your journey.

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply

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