Tag: diet

Children, Exercise, Families, Family Life, Food, Gym, Health, Healthy Eating

Strapping Myself To The Wagon In 2020

by thejoyoffive2 Comments on Strapping Myself To The Wagon In 2020

This picture has been doing the rounds since May 2018. It was the last time I finally felt like I was getting things back on track, but sadly despite several failed attempts the gap I had created in my jeans is now well and truly full again, as is the disappointment in myself.

My life used to revolve around the gym and healthy eating. For me this was always a priority, nothing else would get in the way of it and if I’m honest with myself it was obsessional, unhealthy, made me ill and in turn made my family suffer because of it.

The cycle of super strict eating, fad diets, over exercising followed by overeating and doing nothing have since filled the years resulting in beating myself up and living with the huge sense of failure.

I have let any kind of self care go and my hair and skin have both suffered terribly because of this, so this is something I have been looking to change and have found some of the best hair products for women from Lilyhair.

As with every New Year I have filled myself with hope and a new found motivation has been fuelled with the hopes that this year things will finally change for the better and I will find a happy medium when it comes to health and well-being.

For the past few years it hasn’t just been the weight gain that has impacted my life, it’s been the implementations of this that are really showing.

I am run down the majority of the time, continual headaches and migraines that I know are linked to my bad diet, dull and dry skin that I’ve never had before and the inability to exercise like I used to.

All of these things have been staring me in the face for so long but I have been choosing to overlook them and hope they just go away which I know is not going to happen unless I change my lifestyle.

Above all of this though I want to to be a better role model to my children. I don’t want them to think that the perfect body is the only way to true happiness but I do want them to understand that we are blessed to be given the bodies we have and we should do our best to look after them, feed them, nourish them and not abuse them like I have been doing for way too long now!

Children, Christmas, Diet, Exercise, Families, Family Life, Fitness, Food, Gym, Healthy Eating, Hobbies, Parents, Photography

Celebrating The Small Things:Week Four

by thejoyoffiveLeave a Comment on Celebrating The Small Things:Week Four

This weeks ‘celebrating the small things’ is a little self indulgent as I’m unusually pleased with what I have achieved. I’m usually full of self doubt and always see the negatives in what I do which is really counter productive and something I want to try to improve so here it goes:

Happy In My Work- I recently restarted teaching my ladies fitness kickboxing classes which I have found a whole new love for. Teaching was always a huge passion for me but the more children I had the trickier it became to fit this kind of work in and sadly it stopped a few years ago.
Thankfully the New Year has bought with it some lovely faces both old and new that have made my job an absolute pleasure once again.

Weight Loss Going Well – A New Year, restarting my classes and a big hit of self motivation has seen me finally losing some weight.
I wrote a post a while ago on how the past few years have seen me gaining a lot of weigh which has really bought me down and I’m so pleased that over the past few weeks I have seen some changes for the good.
I’ve banished the scales as these are always a source of disappointment for me and have simply used how I look and real as motivation to keep me going.

Looking Back – Last week the lovely Carrisa over at Little Likely Lads tagged me in a post on Insta Stories that needed me to scroll back through my hundreds of photos on Instagram to find my first ever post.
Of course this task had me stopping and looking over all the photos through the years and made me love this social media platform even more.
Moments captured in pictures are hugely important to me and Instagram allows me to see a whole host of my favourite moments in seconds.

Blogging, Diet, Exercise, Families, Family Life, Fitness, Food, Gym, Healthy Eating

As My Blog Grows So Does My Waistline

by thejoyoffive10 Comments on As My Blog Grows So Does My Waistline

It is coming up to nearly two years since I started my blog and my love for it is a strong as the moment I hit publish on my first post which now seems like a lifetime ago!

Blogging has bought me so many wonderful opportunities and I never in a million years thought it would be something that I could turn into a job and I am absolutely over the moon that my little pipe dream has become a reality.

The only downside to staring this journey has been my ever increasing waistline!

All my time and energy are being engulfed by my family and my blog and my passion for exercise has fallen to the wayside and been replaced with a far more sedentary lifestyle. 

I was always a five times a week girl when it came to training in the gym and this would always be a priority, which in turn managed to keep my love for food under control.

In the past two years I have managed to gain a considerable amount of weight that has been really getting me down…yet apart from some sporadic training I have done little about it.

With the New Year started I have decided that with some organisation and getting my butt out of bed they little earlier in the morning I have the ability to give just as much effort to losing weight as I do to my blog and I’m feeling really positive about the changes I have been making.

Last year I attempted to get my old self back by tracking my progress on here.

This was an epic fail so this time I am going to put less pressure on myself, throw away the scales and just get back to a healthier and happier new me.

Wish me luck X

Families, Family Life

Are you Holiday Ready?

by thejoyoffive1 Comment on Are you Holiday Ready?

For the majority of people the phrase “are you holiday ready?”means only one thing.  That worry of of how you are going to look when you hit the beach!

 Europa Pharmacy have gatheredsome  staggering statistics that show only 31% of women get excited when they are packing for their holiday and 1 in 3 worry about their bodies everyday they are away.

I for one am one of these statistics and have spent years crash dieting, crying over how I look in bikinis and miss out on  quality family time when I’m away  because I’m to busy stressing about my body image for the entire holiday.

This year I am going to turn things around and focus on all the the wonderful things you have to look forward to when you planning a trip away.

  • A New Wardrobe Who doesn’t love going out and shopping for some beautiful new items to stash away in your case ready for your trip.  I’m going to chose pieces that are bright, flattering and the kind of thing you only get the chance to wear while your abroad due to the lack of good weather you get in the UK.  Plus those all important beauty essentials to get you ready before you go and to emphasise that brilliant tan while your away! 
  • Planning Places To Explore There is nothing more exciting than going to a country that you’ve never been to before and exploring all the exciting new places there are to investigate.  Why waste time fretting in front of the mirror about how you are looking when you can discover new places you may never have the opportunity to see again.
  • Quality Family Time with the hustle and bustle of life at home with work and school, quality time is something that often gets pushed asside.  A holiday is the most perfect time to push all the worries of everyday life to one side and just enjoy each other’s company.

I urge you all this year to banish those negative body images and instead concentrate on all the things they are really important when you go away.

Make the run up to it exciting and hopeful for the fun time you have to come rather than wasting all that energy on focussing on all the things you don’t like about your body. 

Let’s face it do you come back from a week away remembing what all those strangers looked liked on the beach? I’m sure the answer to this is no and nobody else will be worrying about your wobbly bits either!

Enjoy yourself, enjoy your family and create all those every lasting memories to think back to fondly for years to come.

*Collaberated post 

Children, Families, Family Life, Food, Healthy Eating

I’m On A Diet Mummy

by thejoyoffive6 Comments on I’m On A Diet Mummy

  

‘I’m on a diet Mummy’. These are the words that came out of my four year old sons young mouth tonight and my heart completely sank when I heard them.

He had been into the fridge and grabbed himself a handful of pepperoni and strolled back into the living room and sighed as he sat down exclaiming he was having this as he was on a diet.

I looked at his little face and the sullen look he was giving me and I just couldn’t believe what had already been planted in his young, impressionable mind.

When I asked him what a diet was he simply said it was because he was going boxing.  My husband is a martial artist and has to make weight for his fights several times a year.  This is always a big thing in the house as he loves his food and so mealtimes becomes a big issue that are spoken about a lot.  Seperate meals are prepared and there is a big emphasis on how, where and what he eats.

In my late teens I had big issues with food that lead to my periods stopping for over a year and I became quite ill.  This is something that I would never wish on anyone, especially my children and I have had a real wake up call tonight about the negative food issues we are displaying as a family.

I have always taught them the importance of a healthy diet, ensure they have a good, well balanced diet and try not to let them go overboard with sweet treats.

As of today there will be no more seperate meals, the scales will be banished from the bathroom and the word DIET will be banned for good!

Children’s minds are like sponges and I dont want my little one’s to be soaking up rubbish about diets and weight loss that could so easily lead to such damaging choices in later life.

  

Diet, Exercise, Fitness, Healthy Eating

A New Me For Christmas: FAIL

by thejoyoffive2 Comments on A New Me For Christmas: FAIL

Well a few months ago I set out will every intention of being in the best shape I could for Christmas and started a weekly blog post ‘A New Me For Christmas’ unfortunately this never happened!

I lost my way, started eating way to much and the exercise dwindled.  The Christmas outings and parties then started and any work I had done was completely undone.

Today I have woken up feeling bloated and massively out of shape and in fear of stepping on the scales!  I feel in my worst shape ever and am now eager to get started on a healthy eating regime again.

Just before Christmas I was given some fantastic weight loss shakes and soups from Exante Diet to try out and had fantastic results.  I combined a shake or soup for breakfast and lunch with a healthy dinner and two healthy snacks.  I also did 30/45 mins of HIIT training every day and lost 10lbs in a week!

I was feeling super healthy, my clothes were fitting well and I had bundles of energy.

  
I’ve never really been a fan of meal replacements but these were great to get me thinking about how much a really needed to eat and with the yummy flavours I found the plan really easy to stick to.  I completely gutted that I didn’t stick to this as the results were fantastic.

  
I’m under no illusions that I will be able to get right back on track until after the New Year celebrations.  So until then I’m going to start exercising and cut down but still enjoy my last few days if the festive season.  The Exante Diet will defiantly be the way to get me back on track.
I was given the shakes and soups for the purpose of this review and they are all my own honest opinion .

Children, Exercise, Families, Family Life, Fitness, Gym, Healthy Eating

A New Me For Christmas:Week Eight

by thejoyoffive3 Comments on A New Me For Christmas:Week Eight

I’ve been a little quiet on the weight loss front for the past couple of weeks and that’s mainly due to the fact I fell off the wagon spectacularly over half term!

Way to many days out and parties occurred which resulted in not fitting in enough exercise and a large amount of overeating!!

  

I had a wake up call when my jeans wear getting more than snug again and jumped straight back to it.

I have massively cleaned my diet up again and have got lots of exercise in even with the children.

 

I did my first buggy run for about six months and throughly enjoyed it.  I’m a gym bunny at heart but love the feeling you get from running outside.  It’s way more invigorating and give you time to clear your head and gather your thoughts.

I’ve had a gain in weight which came as no shock but I’ve taken it as a positive to stay on track from now on.

Week Seven

Weight 10.4

BMI 23

Body Weight 25.4

Goals

To exercise outside at least twice a week.

Keep food healthy yet interesting so I don’t waver .

Diet, Exercise, Families, Family Life, Fitness, Healthy Eating, Marriage

A New Me For Christmas:Week Seven

by thejoyoffive2 Comments on A New Me For Christmas:Week Seven

  
Well my big night out has come and gone and I can say that I felt a lot happier in my dress than I was expecting.

I’m not where I want to be yet but the weight loss and toning that has happened so far has really helped with my confidence, something of which I wrote about a while ago.

Due to a few to many drinks and a big fried breakfast in the morning my weight has remained the same.  I’m not surprised or disappointed about this as I had a much needed night out with my husband that is far more important than losing a few pounds.

Week Seven

Weight 10

BMI 22

Body Fat 24

Goals

Lose another 2lb this week

Make the most of this good weather and train outside

Get the family involved in my training

Exercise, Families, Family Life, Gym, Healthy Eating, Uncategorized

A New Me For Christmas:Week Six

by thejoyoffive2 Comments on A New Me For Christmas:Week Six

  

After a very poor week last week I’m back in full swing, which to be honest has been prompted a little with the fact I have a night out at the end of the week.

As im sure is the same with most of you, nights out are rare so I always like to try and look and feel my best as I’m never sure when the next opportunity will be!

I’ve trained everyday even if it has been a quick 20 mins in the front room.  My diet has been good in the whole apart from a couple of chocolate slip ups!!

I am however trying to take a different approach to food as it is something I really enjoy so if I really fancy a treat I’m going to have a little as life is to short to not have a little of what you fancy!

Week Six

Weight 10

BMI 22

Body Fat 24

Goals

Loss another 2lb

Up the weight sessions to improve tone and strength

Get party dress ready for the weekend!!

Diet, Exercise, Families, Family Life, Fitness, Food, Gym, Healthy Eating

A New Me For Christmas:Week Five

by thejoyoffive6 Comments on A New Me For Christmas:Week Five

  
I had a break from my routine last week as number four started the week with fracturing his foot and number three, four and me all had a horrible sickness bug at the end.

I tried to stay on track but didn’t want to get disheartened so I didn’t recorded my weight and just got back to it this week!

As I’m sure you are all to aware the worst thing to do when you are trying to stick to a healthy eating plan is to open the cupboard and find nothing suitable to eat, or to be out and about and not have a healthy snack to hand and find yourself stopping for a quick fix.

For me I start the week with a shopping list and have meals planned for each day.  That way I know what I’m getting and it also saves money!  

My slow cooker is an absolute saviour and 50% of my evening meals are prepared in here so there is something healthy for the whole family to enjoy. I carry a bag with things for me and the little ones to graze on such as fruit, dried fruit and oatcakes so it puts of the temptation to pick up those naughty treats when your out.

I husband has a karate tournament next week and I want to feel more confident at the after party on my dress so it will be hanging up on my bedroom door as a reminder to me to keep up the good work.

Goals

Cut down on carbs for my evening meal

Add an extra cardio session into my training