Measures of success

If you are anything like me, the chances are you have possibly set your weight loss goals on a specific number. Your ideal weight.

For years now I've been hung up on this elusive number. The weight I envision myself in my wildest dreams (these dreams also include a long and sexy persuit (and trist) with Wentworth Miller where I am the envy of woman worldwide). The reality is of course that the number I'd previously set my sights on is the digit I weighed at the tender age of 10! Completely unrealistic, especially if I want to be more than a skeleton with a tent of skin!

One thing I've started realising and actually put more stock in of late is other tangible measures of success. How do I feel? How do my clothes look and fit? Do I have muscles other than the one I flap about daily in my mouth? Do I have some general tone where a muscle should be? What are my measurements? How fit have I become?

Since taking these factors into consideration I have become accutely aware of the many and varied ways in which I can feel great about myself and see changes in my body.

One tiny (ironic at a Weight Watchers meeting) flaw I have found with Weight Watchers is the value they place in stepping on those blasted scales each week. I understand of course that at some of their meetings there are simply to many 'watchers' to faciliate anything other than a quick date with the scales and a number presented to you in your pocket book. Nonetheless, I am all to aware that the faces of my fellow weighers reflect the success or failure they feel they have had based solely on the digits now presented to them in smudged black pen!

It is entirely possible, and often likely, that weight-loss success will not be reflected with an actual body mass loss. Sometimes it's possible to lose size around your mid-section, or gain a lovely toned calf (maybe even 2) without seeing that reflected on the scales.

Muscle Man has the right idea in my opinion. He determines his success based on how much of the sun he can block out when he flexes his bicep! I now try and measure my success based on the size of my muffin top - when it's not billowing out of my pants like a sail on a yacht I know I am on track!

I thought it a timely reminder to myself (and possibly my readers) to review my own measurements in this regard:

16 December 2007: June 2009

Waist: 90cm ----------------------> 79cm

Hips: 100.5cm ----------------------> 88cm

Left Arm: 34cm ---------------------> 28cm

Right Arm: 34cm --------------------> 27cm

Left Thigh: 57cm --------------------> 53cm

Right Thigh: 58cm -------------------> 52cm

Right Shin: 38cm --------------------> 33cm

Left Shin: 37cm ---------------------> 34cm

This is a total loss of 54.5cm (and just think, if I included my boobs it would be around the 80 mark!).

Being a numbers gal I'm pretty happy glowing over my 54cm alongside my 20 kilo one ;o)

** The towel rack really is a lovely helper! I often lightly rest my arm on mine if I am after a loss of 500 grams in the space of 20 seconds ;o)

Slow and Steady...

...wins the race!

I've surprised myself with this little fable and wait for it - I actually do believe it!

Three years ago I would have scoffed at this common little saying and defended my fervent belief it was something we say to losers to make them feel better about themselves - and well, their complete lack of speed. I mean c'mon let's face it, the rabbit only lost because he was arrogant and stopped for something to eat (sound familiar?) giving the turtle the opportunity to pass!

However, now days in my 'successful-loser' frame of mind, I have realised the benefits of losing weight slowly and steadily.

I am currently in my 6th week of Weight Watchers and have lost a grand total of 3.8kgs, which also equates to a 5% body fat percentage loss! HOWZAT! (How very 'occa' of me).

Years ago I would have thrown the towel in by now disgusted at my lack of success, based on my own unrealistic goal setting. I was the token Biggest-Loser-watcher who had aspiration's of losing 4 kilos per week and reaching my 20 kilogram weight loss goals within a couple of months. No wonder I quit! I was never before prepared to invest the TIME (or sweat) the task required! After a couple of weeks, I'd be sitting back on my laurels and indulging in my usual lazy ways, cursing my body and it's inability to lose weight. I was never prepared to curse the real source behind my failings - MY inability to put the food down and get off the couch.

Here I am 3 years later and I am still aspiring to get to goal. You know what though, that's A-OK with me! My own experiences have demonstrated to me that realistic weight losses, such as 300 grams per week, are the kind which I can easily maintain and keep off! The fleeting times where I've lost in excess of a kilo are generally the weeks where I congratulate myself with a box of Cadbury Roses (You ought to be congratulated and all that jazz - Oh wait, that catchy little tune was for a butter advert right? Heh, chocolate/butter same consequence) and suffer the following week.

I am currently attending WW's meetings with baby sis, Angel, and some good friends. It's fantastic to have the support network each week. We are like a little bunch of 'weight-loss groupies' all getting together each Wednesday night to cheer each other on with our successes and offering a shoulder (or a carrot stick) for our gains. However, one thing which I have noticed as a distinct difference is that I joyfully-leap off the scales after losing 200 grams feeling elated and letting off a few victory-air punches as I go (after-all, I'm still having my wine with dinner, my treats on occasion and am NOT counting food points as WW's suggest you do). My friends however view a number less then a kilo as a possible failing on their behalf.

It's not their fault of course - socially we are so geared to expect weight loss success to happen instantly. We are so inundated with 'quick fixes' and alternatives to genuine hard-work and self-control that we have come to expect nothing less then success served up in large numbers (like our portion sizes) and instant results. I want to shake them all and remind them how fantastic they are doing - a loss is a loss after all, and in this particular instant I DO believe, in fact I know, that slow and steady does win the weight-loss race!

Australia the Obese Nation. Which statistic are you?

Having been to the U.S. (think Chip & Dale Disneyland photo) I find it hard to fathom how Australia can even fit (pun intended) into the same category of obesity as America does. This is after all America we are talking about. The land of cheese and phillysteaks!

One of my first memories of Disneyland was walking through the golden arches (oh wait, that's McDonald's) and seeing one of the elaborately-dressed-cartoon-like street sellers hoisting a roast turkey leg above their head and insisting fascinated passers by (read me) "Try the giant leg". The term 'giant leg' possibly still proving an understatement. These legs were no ordinary drumstick. These were the stuff pirates are made of!

How do we possibly compare to this? In Australia you're lucky if your Kentucky Fried Chicken drumstick fits into the palm of your hand, let alone being size-equivalent to the length of your own thigh (the irony of course being KFC is American). Australia also does not pride itself on the "Big-Gulp" (as seen below). So where have we gone wrong?

Sadly though, big-gulps and Turkey legs aside Australia is up there in the 'obese nations' category. A report in the Parliament of Australia Parliamentary library states:

Reports of an ‘obesity epidemic’ appear with increasing frequency and rising concern in Australia. Particular attention is given to reports of the accelerating rate of obesity among Australian children. Overweight and obesity in Australia

In the words of Helen Lovejoy "DEAR GOD WON'T SOMEBODY THINK OF THE CHILDREN!!" (Muscle Man will be very proud of my Simpson's reference!).

A recent survey conducted by the Australian Bureau of Statistics found that 68% of adult men and 55% of adult women were overweight or obese. For children, there was a significant increase in the proportion who are obese from 5.2% in 1995 to 7.8% in 2007/8. The proportion of boys who were obese more than doubled from 4.5% to 9.7% while girls remained unchanged at 5.8%. ABS Health Study

Even more concerning was a recent article printed in the latest edition of Weight Watchers magazine which claims that by 2020, 65% of all Australian children will be overweight or obese. Weight Watchers Online

So with statistics that indicate less Aussie men and women are in a healthy weight range then those who are not, which statistic are you?

For me, I see it as a sad state of affairs regarding the health of our nation that I should pride myself on being in the statistic serving as the minority. Alas, it would seem that with a statistic as low as 45% I should feel proud!

To some extent one could possibly argue that 'weight' does not always accurately reflect health. In this vein I am almost certain if we took a percentage of "healthy-weight-rangers" and looked at their health beyond the digit afforded to them on the scale, we would find that a portion of them were in fact less-healthy than those tipping the scale at the "overweight end". However when it comes down to it, healthy or not, the figures in relation to obesity are startling.

So what can we do?

Well, if I had all the answers I'd be rich and therefore, I imagine I'd be on a holiday in Disneyland at present with Muscle Man, Jim, Bob and a turkey leg. Sadly though the only immediate answers I have is that as a parent, and a person myself, it needs to start at home and it needs to start with SELF. It also needs to start with an honest question, which statistic are you?

I want my cake, damnit!

Don't you just hate the age old saying "You can't have your cake and eat it too". Or how about another pearler "Nothing tastes as good as being thin feels". Yeah right! Obviously the creator of that saying hasn't tried a creme brulee ever in their life. Heck, I've even eaten things more delicious than my skinniest-ever-day (birth) during college. Granted a certain kind of grass might have had something to do with that but none the less the point is these sayings SUCK!

Why am I so adverse to these throw away comments now you may wonder? Well it's simple: tonight is "weigh in day" at my "I'm a food addict anonymous" meeting and I suspect that rather than loosing weight this week, I have actually gained some!

I was feeling a little 'blow-fish' like yesterday but thought it was nothing that a good ol' fart and a good nights sleep couldn't fix. Wrong. Today is no better and I both farted and slept well. Doh!

So why the weight gain this week? Well I suspect the reason is because I wanted, and did eat my cake.

I know. I know. How many times have I said that I need to eat less and move more blah blah blah. The last two weeks I was pretty good at taking my own advice on board and even this week I wasn't too bad, but at some point (Saturday night: bottle of red wine) I let my guard down and indulged my taste buds. Naturally the following morning I required a hot breakfast to soak up the wine (it was either that or a hair of the dog). Oh, and lest we forget the 6-year-long tradition of Desperate Housewives night with Sexy Twin and cheese. Yep, that may not have helped either. Talk about confessions of a food-aholic!

So tonight I am preparing myself for my confessional. Inevitably it will ensue as follows:

"Hi I'm Alfie and I'm addicted to food"

Everyone in the room nods somberly as they say "Hi Alfie"

Me: "This week I ate my weight in bacon, I dreamt my pillow was a giant marshmallow and when I woke up I was eating my sheet. The following day I spent time at my desk dreaming of a custard filled canolli I saw at the Cafe downstairs which then led to thoughts of Italian food. Lashings of pasta, profiteroles and LARGE servings with a Nonna standing over me forcing me to "eat, eat something". Somehow these thoughts then turned to chips - they always do - and I found myself stroking the chip machine and whispering sweet nothings in the display window".

Hmm, I think tonight I'll just use my "No weigh" pass!

1.9 kilos down!

Hooray!!

For some time now I've been whinging about those token last 5 kilos that I'd LOVE to lose but really haven't been prepared to give anything up for and as many of you would know, I'm not really a 'diet-kinda-gal'. By admission I have numerous vices, which let's face it - enhance my quality of life. Wine, chocolate, eating out with friends, did I mention wine (only in EVERY SINGLE blog Alfie).

It was becoming a regular occurrence for Muscle Man I to have a conversation similar to this;

Alfie: "Hey Muscle Man, WHY can't I lose 5 kilos?"

Muscle Man: "Do you think the bottle of wine in one hand and the bag of chips in the other might have anything to do with it?"

Alfie: "HOW DARE YOU, GET OUT OF MY HOUSE!!!!!"

Poor guy.

Thing is though, he was of course partly right. In the last few months (heck, let's say since the silly season otherwise known as Christmas) I have been eating rich and indulgent foods teamed with a beverage of some kind on a weekly, if not daily basis. I live a fairly social life so it's not uncommon to catch up with girlfriends or Sexy Twin on a regular basis, often accompanied by my old friends Camembert, brie, Havarti, Salami and Semillon Sauvignon. Faithful as these friends may be, they really were doing nothing positive for my hips (my lips on the other hand...).

So, what have I done to lose 1.9 kgs you may ask? Well, given my exercise addiction is alive and well (especially since the newest addition to the family arrived....new treadmill) it really comes down to one thing. Eat less (cheese) move more (butt).

I must admit that I am quite capable of doing this on my own, and have done so in the past, but presently I have an amazingly beautiful baby sister who has recently given birth to my first nephew :) # 1 nephew is only 9 weeks old and sadly Angel (baby sisters pseudo name) is on the 'self-beration band wagon'. So, for moral support (and a touch of motivation) I am accompanying her to our local Weight Watchers meetings.

I must admit I was never really a fan of weight watchers (Muscle Man and I even have a code name for it such was our dislike) but in theory the principle behind it is quite good and as far as affordability goes, well it does cater to the masses here.

So, 2 weeks in and I am 1.9kgs down - GO ME!!!

The only down-side with WW's is that I'm the token 'watcher' who hoards her spare points for Friday night's dates with old friends! Let's face it - some habits never die!

The good ol' before and after pics!

Cause let's face it, we all love em!

So, a close up of the one featured in the magazine for you and also my old trusty Chip and Dale at Disney Land! You can decide who is Chip and who is Dale ;o)

NB: First pic was PRE kids. 2nd was post Jim. 3rd was Muscle Man's and my 6th Wedding anniversary in March this year.

In Print!

Well, it's hit the stands and in print!! I apologise for the quality, I don't have a scanner so a dodgy photo will have to suffice for now :o)

Health Smart Magazine - June/July 2009