I can feel my willpower slipping away, and I haven't been on here in like two days. So, because the level of my willpower seems directly correlated with my presence on this board, I'm going to post some random waffle.

For about three weeks, I'd done really well, and lost 15lbs over the Christmas break. But my flatmate (damn her!) took loads of Christmas chocolate back with her when we moved back in last weekend, and I've just been munching on that!

Breakfast is the toughest meal of the day. I am NOT a breakfast person. I don't like cereal, I can never be bothered to make something complicated (ie. scrambled eggs, lol) so I have wholemeal toast with margarine. I'm sure this isn't too bad, but seeing as I'm trying to limit carbs/bread products, this isn't great. Most days I sleep in til 11am or 12pm so it's not too bad though. It's just been the last couple of days.

The past couple of days I've had bad lunches too. I had a sausage butty today. SO BAD! But it was just...what I craved, y'know? And here was me saying I was going to cut processed meat... *facepalm*

And so I had a roast chicken breast and veg for dinner. Brilliant.

But wait. My flatmate came home late and made dinner - pasta with sauce - but wait, she made too much! 'Do you want some?' 'Yeah OK!' Grrr!

At least I'm still exercising every day. About twenty minutes - that's not enough, but I'm serious about getting my 1000 minute target this month. I'm over halfway there and we're halfway through the month, so I'm doing OK.

It's tough being in this flat where I can't really do my exercise DVDs. I don't want to workout in front of my flatmates, so I'd do them in my room, but we have neighbours downstairs so I don't want their ceilings to crash in!

But I do 15 minutes on my bike every day, fast as I can, plus weights, plus my swiss ball. I did an hour of Wii Fit like yesterday -plus climbing the four flights of stairs to my flat! Yeesh! But I'm going to go hillwalking this weekend. REPEAT: I am going to go hillwalking this weekend.

And in the words of Jen from the IT Crowd: "Wow, it's obvious you're going completely mad."

Ya know... breakfast doesn't have to be breakfast food.

I used to eat leftover dinners, even sandwiches for breakfast. No food is designated to any time of the day. The purpose of breakfast is just to get food into your body since it's been fasting overnight. Your body doesn't care what that food is.

If you don't like breakfast foods, then prepare something different ahead of time, even the night before.

georgiad~
You haven't gone mad.
Tie a knot in your resolve and hang on for dear life!!! It's THAT important.
I loved Faerie's advice. (I'm not a breakfast food person either.)
Ask your flatmate to kindly hide her chocolate. Don't beat yourself up over the pasta. Focus on the right choice of chicken and veggies. And you're exercising~ that's wonderful.
Enjoy your hillwalking this weekend. The fresh air will clear your mind, and you can approach next week with new resolve.
You can do this.

You've put a lot of hard work in! Try eating whatever you want for breakfast, you don't have to have breakfast foods, it can be anything, as long as it's fuel.

Good job so far!!

I went hillwalking yesterday. It was hard as ****, but it felt great! I loved the sense of achievement as I got to the top and looked out on the city (if you guys've never been to Edinburgh, you should - we have big hills right in the middle of the city - Arthur's Seat, and Salisbury Crags!) And I ate pretty well yesterday too - soup for lunch, some amazing roast vegetable and rice combo for dinner - yum! And we went out at night, and I stuck to bacardi and diet coke, so hopefully the night wasn't too calorific, and I'm sure I burned it all off with my dancing!

In other news - I can see a RIB! Only when I breathe in, and it's vague, but at over 200lbs is that NORMAL? I've always felt small for my weight - I wear a US size 8-10 clothes (UK 12-14) but being able to see a rib at over 200lbs seems...really weird. Even when I was at 150lbs a couple of years ago I don't remember having visible ribs.

ETA: Faerie, what brilliant advice about not needing to eat breakfast foods at breakfast. That had genuinely never crossed my mind before! I'm going to have to start tuning in to my body and work out what it craves in the morning. Thank you!

Can I just say that I LOVE when people say words that are in the same language that I speak but that I nonetheless don't understand. "Sausage butty" is a term I have not heard before. And seriously, it sounds like an insult.
...but it made me

I definitely agree about not needing to 'breakfast foods' at breakfast. We arbitrarily decided that we eat certain foods when we wake up. Why? If I were more organized in the morning, I would eat soup for breakfast. It's filling, nutritious, and there are loads of soups that you can eat even when you're trying to keep your calories low enough to lose weight. I've even heard of fruit soups, which sound like a wonderful idea for summertime.

Georgiad, those pix you posted of the "hills" were magnificent!!! You live in a stunning city! As I've never been outside the US, I am fascinated by the cities and countryside of the British Isles and Europe...sigh...

As far as walking up those hills - well, congrats on that! But, with 4 flights of steps to your flat, you must have very strong legs... Isn't it great when we "discover" body parts that have been "hidden" to us for so long!?!

Good luck on your journey - and know that we are here to applaud you every step of the way (and commiserate on those slips! Chocolate is both a source of pleasure and frustration for me)

This is a sausage butty! Don't think it's like a hot dog; it's in fact very different and very, very tasty for breakfast [warning: hungry people may not appreciate this link!]

My flatmate and I went for a very long walk today, and stopped in an amazing pub. It had been such a gorgeous, sunny day, we had to go for a walk. But when we left the pub all the elements were out! So we walked 3 miles home in freezing rain and gale force winds, and it was getting dark

I am not a breakfast person either, so I'll do anything from drinking a low carb breakfast drink (like Atkins) to grabbing a piece of cold chicken from the fridge.

You are doing a lot of exercise, which is great, so think about that next time your flatmate offers you pasta late at night-----don't negate what you've burned off by eating extra!!

Depending on your body shape you could see a rib of course! I am very pear shaped and even at my weight have a smaller waist than some of my co-workers who weigh far less than me, and that's really cool, I thinki!!

Post often and get support here, especially if it helps you make the right choice, that's what I do!!

Just hand in there. I know you can do it. I know where you are at though. I lost 130 lbs and have been there many many times. Actually, I was there BIG time just 2 days ago. Keep up the good work. As our friend said, "hold on for dear life."

Have you heard of the reverse diet? You actually eat a dinner for breakfast!
You don't actually have to have cereal or an omelette (breakfast foods) for supper, but thats the plan, to have supper for breakfast, and breakfast for supper. While you may not be a breakfast person, and there fore not want to "make supper" first thing in the day, you can certainly pop in a lean cuisine or something like that. The point of course is to jump start your metabolism into burning calories early in the day, instead of staying in reserve mode.
good luck, I walked up a big hill when in Edinburgh last may, but can't remember the name. But anytown where you walk a lot is good for our exercise habits.

Oh I know how you feel about your resolve slipping. It gets so frustrating sometimes, losing weight is hard! (Okay that was obvious huh?) Hang on for dear life, as someone said. I let go and gained 20 lbs in about 3 months. Keep coming to the boards and posting when you are struggling. Read others' posts for encouragement or to commiserate. Don't give up, you are worth it!

As for the breakfast thing, I am totally not a breakfast person. I hate eggs and I am not a sweets person, so I don't go for pancakes and waffles. I sometimes have cereal but now I am making smoothies with protein powder in them. You can make all kinds: banana with almonds, strawberry banana, PEANUTBUTTER banana, chocolate peanut butter (with unsweetened cocoa powder, not the real stuff), tropical fruit, etc. the possibilities are endless. Here is what I do for a basic fruit smoothie, and it makes a large one that fills me up:

1 cup frozen fruit
1/4 c orange juice
1/4 - 1/2 c lowfat plain yogurt
1/8 - 1/4 c lowfat milk
1 Splenda
1 scoop vanilla protein powder (optional)

It's yummy and filling and so easy! And not breakfasty!

Good luck.

Another one who isn't crazy about breakfast food! Drove me crazy until I finally figured out that my body doesn't give a flying flip WHAT I eat for breakfast, just so long as I eat something! This morning, I had some leftover couscous w/ toasted pine nuts.

Hang in there!

I almost gave in and bought a Whopper Jr for brekkie (I woke up reaaalllly late) but I had a turkey sandwich instead. I completely understand what you mean about willpower. It comes and goes for me.

I really REALLY want a burger.

*whimper*