Keeping the Kilos Off

Like many of you, it's been a yo-yo pattern for me too over the years with a few kilos off, then back on, then off, then on again. Maintaining my weightloss has always been a challenge. Until this year.

For the first time, I have managed to keep my weight off and it's now been eight months. 

The key this time around has been keeping my focus on four key areas.

1. Reducing Sugar & Carbohydrates - What I'm taking about here is eating more protein and fats than carbs and maintaining that as a focus. Typically my meals will consist of protein and fat, with a small amount of carbs, if any. Now I'm not talking keto here, just lower carbs than I would have previously, rather than restricting myself to a certain regime. One of the reasons I've been successful in keeping my weight off this year is that I have allowed myself to eat the foods I like and want to eat. I know, because I have proven it in the last 12 months, that this works for me. Yes, I've tried keto two or three times but I just don't feel good doing it. Here's what a typical day's eating looks like for me:

Breakfast - One piece of Burgen Soy & Linseed Toast with butter and Fix n Fog peanut butter and a cup of Heke Homemade Herbals chamomile tea. 
Snack - One small apple and maybe a piece of cheese.
Lunch - Scrambled egg, cup of tea and 2-3 pieces of Well Naturally chocolate or a Low Carb Chocolate
Chocolate Chip Cookie.
Snack - Small handful of nuts.
Dinner - Fish, chicken or meat with steamed vegetables with sour cream on the side.
Snack - Zilch ice cream, fruit or sugar free chocolate or some other sweet.

2. Eating When I'm Hungry & Stopping When I'm Satisfied
For me there are three areas of focus with this part:
(a) Learning to listen to my body so that I recognise when I have had enough (not when I'm full or so stuffed I feel dreadful), just enough, has been enlightening.
(b) Portions and thinking about the amount of food I actually need to satisfy me. You know a few years back I used to serve myself up the same amount of food as my husband, so it's no wonder I gained weight. 
(c) Examining why I want to overeat or binge. So thinking about or writing about this.

3. Getting Enough Sleep & Rest
Adequate sleep and rest is vital. As you may or may not know, I suffered burn out at the end of last year and am still recovering. It was a culmination of working way too much, as well as a couple of family stressors that came one after the other. At the end of last year I took three months off and spent a great deal of that time relaxing in the sun listening to audiobooks, reading and enjoying the summer air. What I also did was make a conscious decision to scale back my business to put myself first. Now I know not everyone can do these things, but what I want to get across here, is just how important it is to take care of yourself. 

I talk about sleep and rest because they are different. Yes, getting a good night's sleep is one thing, but you also need to rest, be it a nap or just putting your feet up when you can, meditating or relaxing in whatever way works for you. 

4. Exercising
Getting regular exercise has become a priority for me this year too. I'm not always super-focused on it, and yes, I have gone a few days without doing any at times, but more and more, it is a priority. As of this month, I've been doing yoga (with Yoga with Adrienne on YouTube) at home everyday, plus walking my gorgeous wee Sid boy (my Border Terrier).

As always I hope that what I'm sharing here is useful. It's a tough time of life going through menopause (it sure has been for me), and if I can help just one person, I'm happy.

Let me know your thoughts in the comments.