I've been absent from posting for a few months but I have been occasionally lurking when I find the time
I was back in Dubai to see my boyfriend for a month for much of February (just got back last Sunday) so it was hard to keep active like I normally do here in hilly, carless Istanbul! Dubai is like an American city in many ways- very very car oriented, and whenever I tried to go out for walks I didn't feel safe (not enough sidewalks or traffic lights and crazy drivers). Also, the restaurants serve huge portions, which I'm not used to. They have a surprisingly increasing obesity rate. However, unlike last time when I was there (around the time I last posted), I didn't gain any weight. Yay! It was a struggle to eat well and move enough.
One thing that has helped me to lose 6 kilos since November has been my new job: I'm teaching in a big company now, and they provide free lunch and dinner, and their cafeteria serves really healthy Turkish meals- there's big salad bar filled with veggies (no mayonnaisy things) with fresh lemons and herbs to sprinkle over them, there are several daily soups, small meze style side dishes made of steamed vegetables drizzled with olive oil or yogurt, and a choice of sane-sized portions of healthy main dishes. The only choice for drinks: mineral water (with or without a hint of fruit juice) or water. I've never eaten so many veggies in my life! It's great!
In fact, I'm down to 68 kilo now, which is better than a boot to the head!
My continuing february goals: stick to my current low key thingy of cutting out as much sugar as possible, cutting back massively on coffee (I always drank too much, and with milk and sugar), eating three balanced meals a day with small, healthy snacks if necessary, drinking more water, staying active (even if its just walking around the city).