A couple of weeks ago I started my new challenge… I had gained some kilos over the last couple of months and somehow I didn’t manage to lose them! That’s why I made it into a challenge to lose 5 kilos… preferably before the festive season 🙂

Today you get to read the final ‘chapter’…

Let me tell you how my seventh week has been…

This is the final post on my challenge. I didn’t reach my goal of 5 kilos before the festive season, but the main part is that I am back on track after losing it for a couple of months!

This last week I have managed to lose just 200 grams, bringing the total on 4,2 kilos in 7 weeks, which means an average of 600 grams a week. I am so happy with that 🙂

This evening we celebrate Christmas Eve, tomorrow we’ve got another Christmas party and I’m sure I’ll have a fab time as I get to spend these Christmas days with my family. I’m sure I’ll enjoy the company. I’m sure I’ll wine and dine and enjoy the food! But I will take in mind my tips on how to survive the festive season and I will certainly insert a couple of sober days in between Christmas and New Year to limit the damage!

Here are some tips to eat and live healthy :

Tip 1 : don’t look on a diet as something evil, look upon it as a new, healthy way of eating

Tip 2 : any time is a good time to start living and eating in a healthy, responsible way

Tip 3 : drink lots of water

Tip 4 : eat 5 times a day

Tip 5 : exercise

Tip 6 : make the right choices

Tip 7 : how to survive the festive season

Tip 8 : various tips ‘n tricks to take in mind

Today’s recipe : breakfast

Not really a recipe today, but I will tell you more on what I eat for breakfast.

I have already told you not to skip meals. You might be tempted to skip breakfast for instance, but your metabolism really needs 3 meals and 2 snacks a day to get you through the day. That way you won’t be feeling faint and your stomach will be content all day long. It will also prevent you from binge eating during the day…

And what better way to start your day then with a healthy, nutricious breakfast, which will keep you satisfied for hours!?

Weight Watchers and Sonja Kimpen (both routines I base my eating habits on) encourage to eat various… but I must admit that I usually eat the same breakfast every single day! It’s yummy, healthy, nutricious, satisfying… I know what I eat and I know it fits in my diet!

So here it is : 

• 20-25 grams of muesli
• 150 grams of fat-free cottage cheese
• 100-150 grams of fruit. I usually eat a banana with it, but sometimes I use grapes, kiwi, raspberries, strawberries, an orange,… whatever I feel like actually (or whatever is in my fridge)
• mix it all together and… bon appétit!

Variations :

• You can also fry some apple slices in a non-stick frying pan, add a pinch of cinnamon and let the slices fry until soft and brown. Then add this to your muesli and cottage cheese.
• If you think this cottage cheese/muesli mix isn’t sweet enough (this might be the case, especially at the beginning of your diet), you could add a spoon of sugarfree jam.

Today’s tip : how to maintain that target weight??

When starting something new, like dieting or eating healthy, most people are really enthusiastic, eager, determined to make it work. And when you only have to lose a couple of kilos, you will get there quite fast and you can be really proud of yourself for reaching your goal that fast.

Now losing those kilos was the easiest part, believe me (and I’m a pro I’m afraid to admit). Maintaining that target weight… now that’s something else! All of a sudden, you don’t have to lose weight anymore… that means that you can start eating just a bit more… but how much is a bit?

If you start eating like you did before you went on a diet, all your hard work will have been for nothing as you’ll gain those kilos as quickly as you’ve lost them and you can be sure they’ll bring a couple of friends! And that my dear readers is the start of a jo-jo… try to stay clear of that!!!

What you have to do is you’ll have to find your balance… but how to do that?

What has worked for me in the past, and I will start doing this again, is that on weekdays I really watch out what I eat and drink. I actually keep on eating as I did when I was on a diet. But in the weekend I will treat myself to a couple of wines with some crisps, I eat an icecream or a danish, …  and I keep on exercising as well of course as that helps me to keep my weight.

I also weigh myself every single day. I need this to keep control of my weight. I need to get confronted with that figure on the scales every day…

And I know I can start again… every single day… and so can you… If you had a rough day, a rough week or even as I had a rough couple of months… you can always start again…

Writing these 8 posts have really motivated me to live and eat healthy. I did fell of the wagon a couple of times, but I can say that I am back on track again!

I am so proud that I have lost those kilos (again…). I feel better, more energetic, more beautiful… Just in time to wear my party dresses!

I really hope that these posts have inspired you in some way. Perhaps you didn’t have to lose weight, but my tips may have taught you something you didn’t know… I really hope so anyway!

I wish you all a very tasteful festive season… enjoy the parties, the company, the food and drinks… Don’t forget my tips, don’t forget to make the right choices, but most of all… don’t forget to have fun!

Love, Kathleen

Beware : I am not a health coach, dietician, nutritionist… I am just sharing tips that I have read and heard, tips that are helpful to me to watch my weight and to live a healthier life. If you want expert advice on how to lose weight, I advise you to seek professional help!