Monday 31 December 2012

The Good, The Bad and The Ugly....by Heather

My husband doesn't believe it ..... middle aged spread, menopausal weight gain - it doesn't exist. It is, he says, simply the product of  lazy women who eat too much.

 I was prepared to let him live with this notion, it wasn't worth the argument and anyway, what did it matter?

Well, it started to matter when I started to spread.....started to lump on that tell tale middle fat, a whole stone of it. I knew that if left unattended that this would become ugly.

What was I supposed to say? What the hell could I do?.............Well eat less and move more obviously!!

It should be quite straight forward, live on 1300 cals for a while and exercise my arse off - literally! Well, that and my boobs, my midsection, and yes my thighs too. Easy. Sorted - 3 months tops and all will be well.

Well no.
First off there is the working full time, then doing the housewife and mum thing; doesn't exactly leave a whole lot of time to run around like Jess Ennis. And I'm tired. None of this helps my usual ambivalence to exercise, so may be I'll do it tomorrow.

And then there's those 1300 calories per day - they're hard going and boring. It starts off ok...but  6 long weeks in, and the needle on the scales have stuck and don't seem to be budging. Of course, its that time of the month, which is a bit of surprise actually, but these days, I have no idea when to expect it and that brings with it the munchies,I  feel angry all the time and am mightily pissed off that all this hard slog isn't getting me anywhere.....where's the chocolate stash?

And so I'm squished up on the sofa, Cadbury's in hand - with a bulge which is still sat there, around my middle - like a  constant, taunting reminder. I feel guilty and miserable.

It isn't just that I think its cosmetically unappealing - its Bad. My health is already compromised, and I just don't need diabetes or any other of the myriad complications that is exacerbated or caused by being overweight. I already know how awful it feels to have a medical condition that transcends your entire being, to be at the mercy of symptoms you can't control - I know I'm not immune, it can happen to me, and I really don't want it to.

So having failed so spectacularly over this last year - how is it I'm entering the new year with renewed confidence that this time I can make it work.

Well I'm not confident. I'm hopeful is what I am. Because there is good news, I have a plan. Tomorrow I step in to 2013 determined to take what I have learned over the last year, about myself, about nutrition, and make a difference.