Week Forty Four Xmas Day Blog.

Merry Christmas to one and all and thank you for follow my blog.

Twas the week before Christmas, this has turned out to be quite a good week, lets start with the fact I've had a week off work to unwind from the stresses of work and work did get very stressful for a while so its good to unwind and relax. Another good  thing this week is that I had my grandson Oakley stay over, it so happened that I picked him up after a run so I was in my running gear as I got out of the car he said "Granddad your legs are slim now" he also run indoors and told his mum bless don't think she wanted to look at my legs. That's a big boost to me as kids can be truthful at times.

I have done three runs this week increasing the runs as they went starting with a four miler then a five and half miler and lastly a ten point seven eight mile run the amazing thing about this last run is the ten mile split 1:57:41 which means that in less than two months I have run 11:29 quicker than the great south run. Here are the links to my runs http://connect.garmin.com/activities  and http://runkeeper.com/user/DarinMcCloud/activity/63663976 I prefer the Garmin site for information but keep Run keeper as it has all my runs recorded on there but the information is different no idea why all gets downloaded at the same time from the same watch.

Every Christmas Eve we go to my mum's for dinner last year was a fat overweight sweaty horrible Darin that turned up this year a slimmer prouder Darin turned up in a nice black top I brought myself recently because I liked IT and not because they did it in XXXXXL as you may be aware from a previous post I brought two pairs of jeans size 36 that I have wearing for a while as they were in a sale and nice and cheap I also brought two pairs of size 34 jeans (guess what I going to say now) I tried on the size 34 jeans and they fitted, size 34 waist cannot remember ever being that size really. It was great to wear them and for mum to see me in them. In less than one calendar year I have gone from a 48 waist to a 34 waist.  http://www.ThinkingSlimmer.com take a bow again I am still amazed how well the slimpod's and me still work this far down the line.

My weight today is 98.9kg a little disappointing to be honest but with the long run yesterday (my legs feel like tree trunks this morning) and a three coarse meal last night that was excellent I will take that. See above why scales are rubbish.

For anyone that may be interested my Christmas gift this year is my life back and control over food. THANK YOU to all the special people in my life who made this happen without each and everyone of you it would have been so much harder I love you all, you know who you all are. xxx

Week Forty Three

Not a great deal to write about this week so will be a short blog, Lets start off with another difficult situation and how I passed the test.We went out for a meal with some friends and we went to the Water Margin a Chinese buffet style all you can eat restaurant, There's a sentence to put the fear of god into me, this could end in tears the plus side was great company so I felt good about putting myself in harm's way. The good news is I went up twice for food I ate more than I should/needed but not by loads and I was comfortable that the people at the table were happy that I ate something without being silly or overeating, more importantly I felt comfortable about going up and getting the food this made the experience more pleasant instead of the fat man going up and down being conscious of my size, this was very liberating. The great thing was they had loads of fruit and jelly again I went up twice but fruit is good. All in all a great experience that I would be more relaxed to do again and know that in that environment I am now NORMAL.

On the running front this week I managed three runs which made up for the other week when I missed a couple of runs things have a way of balancing out, the runs have been good even in the cold weather I did have a problem with my calf, I was told about a local college who do sports massage done by students and at more than a reasonable rate, I did think my calf was better when I went, Boy was I wrong that was a session of pure pain, I think this shows the need to look after the body as well whilst training, in the new year I will be a regular at the college as I continue my training for the Brighton Half Marathon and then what ever run is next on my hit list. My run details are here http://runkeeper.com/user/DarinMcCloud/activity/63080037 

My weight is a little disappointing but in the scheme of things alright A small gain of 0.2kg That's good a week before Christmas with a night out good food a few beers great company that's a good swap in my book.

I would like to wish everybody a Merry Christmas and thank you all for taking the time to read my ramblings of my journey that has turned my life around, If you use a slimpod keep using it over the holiday period enjoy your self and remember if you have a bad day and we all do have them I know my battle with bread is still not won yet, take the positives out of the bad day and the chances are you still eat way less than you would have done before the slimpod. I know I'm lucky to be 11 months in on my journey for some you have made the decision before the Christmas holidays, it may be hard but after you will feel so much better trust me. 







     

Week Forty two

I would like to talk about my depression of the last two weeks, first of all it's all work related and the problems have now been sorted. I have not been on anti depressants for a good few months now (please seek medical advice before stopping any medication) my choice to stop, and the time seemed right for me so I did. I have no regrets about doing so nor have I had any problems with depression since or until two weeks ago.

I noticed I was depressed with the chain of events that happened and I also noticed how deeply depressed I got over something at work. Why I will never know because its only work, maybe it had to do with a social occasion (Christmas do) in the mix as well, no maybe involved to be honest. The reason for putting this in my blog is to show that I was aware of the whole series of events that led to the depression that I was shocked by the severity of the depression and that today I can admit that I am over the depression and able to move on with my life all in two weeks! REALLY? Yes really and all because of my slimpod and www.thinkingslimmer.com it gives you the tools to deal with not only food but also your whole well-being, the biggest thing I have learnt is that I have the answers to my problems I just needed the confidence to trust myself to give me the right answer's. This also give me the confidence to help others and offer advice knowing that I am giving good advice and pointing people in the right direction. This is truly powerful and I plan to use it help people help themselves.

During the week Thinking Slimmer released their Christmas edition news letter and I am very proud and honored to be the Male Winner of Thinking Slimmer's Slimpodder of the Year. We need more men to see this and to let them know it does work and its not just for women this product is unique and works for both sexes. May I add my Congratulations to Jo Hallam the female winner and the Three runners up Wendy, Becca, Karen. Becca I have already met through our runner to the others I look forward to meeting you in the New Year, You are all amazing people well done on your journeys.

Congratulations! Darin and Jo are our Slimpodders of the Year By Sandra Roycroft-Davis, Founder of Thinking Slimmer ALL of us at Thinking Slimmer feel very proud and very humble. The success stories you share with us are amazing and you can’t imagine how good it makes us feel to know that we’re able to help thousands to transform their lives. The entries for the Thinking Slimmer Loving Life Awards 2011 were outstanding and the judges had a hard time deciding on the two winners and the runners-up. I’m delighted to announce that our winners are Jo Hallam and Darin McCloud, and our three runners-up are Wendy McDonald, Becca Jones and Karen Green.  Darin and Jo will receive their awards in the New Year and their prizes of £250 are already on the way to them. Jo's story Jo Hallam’s life has changed so much since she started her Slimpod in the summer of 2010. In three months she lost 26lbs and has kept it off effortlessly ever since, but the most remarkable part of her story is the way she has overcome her problems with inverted knees that have plagued her since childhood. Jo now rides a bike for the first time in years and she’s the first one on the dance floor on Saturday nights and the last one to leave! She was addicted to fattening Coca Cola, drinking up to five cans a day, but since day two of her Slimpod almost 18 months ago she hasn’t touched a drop. Her new-found confidence and love of life are an inspiration to all. Darin's story Twelve months ago, Darin McCloud weighed over 20 stone, was struggling with diabetes and having been refused gastric surgery because he wasn’t quite fat enough was stuffing his face with junk food so he could put on more weight. Today, thanks to his Slimpod, Darin has lost 61lbs in weight so far, his waist has dropped from 48 inches to 36 inches, his diabetes is in remission – and most amazingly of all, he’s become a long-distance runner. He was part of the Thinking Slimmer Great South Run and is now training for a half marathon in February. Darin, from Hampshire, is a brilliant example to everyone, he’s always cheerful and willing to help others and is an outstanding ambassador for the benefits of Thinking Slimmer. Our three great runners-up Wendy McDonald, from Shropshire, was a self-confessed chocoholic who weighed in at 16st 2lbs. With her Slimpod she has lost 40lbs in six months and looks so gorgeous she’s done a fashion shoot for The Sun and a major feature in a national health and beauty magazine. She’s a dazzling example to other women. Becca Jones wanted to do something positive with her life, so with the help of a Fitpod and our Supreme Sports Performance download she took up running. Not just jogging round her local park, though – she ran the Great South Run with Darin and she’s now won a place in next year’s London Marathon. Becca, who lives in London, is a leading light in the Thinking Slimmer running group, always willing to offer others support and advice. Karen Green, from Devon, suffered anorexia as a child and has been an obsessive eater and yo-yo dieter ever since. She was determined her two lovely daughters wouldn’t grow up seeing their mum dieting all the time and says her Slimpod has helped her to transform her life. She’s losing weight, looking great, gaining confidence and says she couldn’t feel better about herself.

This week the weather has been a challenge I have only had one run this week, this I can cope with and I am happy with were I am at, I made a brave decision to vary my run route this for me is very scary and takes me out of my comfort zone. This is the link  http://runkeeper.com/user/DarinMcCloud/activity/62410967

My weight for the week increased by 0.3kg  to 98.7kg again after a great weight loss last week this is a good week and only having the one run run made a difference. Only positives all the way this week.

Talking of positives I'm getting a few great messages from people that I know or people that I'm about to know, thank you and keep messaging or asking questions I will answer you. Remember it took us years to put the the weight on it will take a while to lose it safely and keep it off. There is no miracle quick fix weight loss program,it takes a little time.   

Week Forty One

Where to start this week? Only two days normal work this week due to the Strike over pensions. How bad can things turn in that short space of time. Well it screwed my weekend up and had me in the depths of depression, Saturday night was works Christmas dinner and booze up I have been looking forward to the night out for ages,after the football which Pompey won and the walk home I was unable or unwilling to go so switched my phone off and stayed in. I won't repeat it hear but check out my notes for Saturdays run, this will be posted later in the blog.

My training this week has gone well, I made a decision not to run on Monday but to rest instead I think this was the right thing to do so I have just done two runs this weekend the links are below.

Sunny until the sun hid behind a cloud not that cold ground wet. After a trying week at work that was only 2 day's long, Some of the team are turning into little children please sir he said this please sir he did that.Bloody grow up and act like adults the jobs hard enough without us not working as a team. Rant over. The reason for adding this was to explain how I managed to run another PB but also to have done it within myself Controlled aggressive running I shall call it. If ever I needed to run today was it, I feel so much better for having done so. http://connect.garmin.com/activity/132321546

Cloudy,cool,very breezy. The run up was against the breeze the fact it was a cold breeze made it harder. I had a good run back I thought about doing eight miles but with time on my side for the Brighton Half Marathon I'm happy to increase distance by one and a half miles. While yesterday's run was channeled positively today my head was too screwed up really bad depression last night. This is my 1st half GSR distance since the 10th Sept and is a PB by 6 mins 20 seconds Just goes to show how much I have improved. And that the depression did not stop me running. http://connect.garmin.com/activity/132613422

I have being trying very hard for the last two weeks on weight loss as the GSR is now over. Whilst I have a level of fitness and can now run the aim is to keep the running/training ticking over in between races so that I don't have to do the hard training again, the distance running will go up and down according to what distance race is my next there will always be another race. After three months of my weight fluctuating between 101kg and 104kg the milestone that is below 100kg has been frustrating and difficult at achieve. Today's weight loss is even more remarkable, it shows me that to lose weight I must eat less food than I have been, but the amount of food that I have been eating was enough to keep my weight balanced and steady so there is a great lesson learnt that I have control over my food to know not to overeat, never thought I would ever learn that lesson but now I have. So it is with great excitement that I give you this weeks weight 98.3kg a loss of 3.2kg or 7.1lbs making my weight a very happy 15st 6.7lbs I have been so fed up telling everyone that my weight is still 16 stone after 3 months this is just such a relief and a great kick start on my journey to my 13 stone target. I still hate the scales!!!