Where do those extra kilos come from?

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I don’t understand where those extra kilos come from. I don’t even have a sweet tooth! I hate to think what would happen if I did. Between November 2009 and January 2011, I lost 20 kilos. They stayed off for about 18 months, then very slowly, five crept back on. In January this year, I went back to see my nutritionist Dr Séjean and was determined to lose them. I even blogged about it!

But they are still there. The warmer weather has been slow in coming this year with only one advantage – I must just have time to fit back into my summer clothes before we go on holidays. I’m currently pouring myself into two pairs of stretch jeans, having alternated between two pairs of trousers all winter!

It’s Sunday night and we’re driving back from the Basque coast where I had hoped that cycling every day might help, but the weather dictated otherwise. “I can’t even remember what we used to eat before I put that weight back on”, I say to Jean Michel.

“Well”, he says, “you used to serve the meal in the kitchen and take the plates out to the dining room. That way, we couldn’t have seconds.” Ah, I had forgotten about that. With the ongoing renovations on our balcony in Paris, we had started eating in the kitchen to get away from the noise and then I spent quite a lot of time alone in Blois which disrupted my eating habits.

“Then we used to eat more fish”, he adds. That’s definitely true. Half our meals were based on fish and not meat but we haven’t found a good fishmonger in Blois yet. We used to buy fish at the Saint Eustache market every Sunday but we’ve had so many weekends away that the habit has been lost. But we’ll be spending the next three weekends in Paris so we can stock up.

Then there are the apéritifs. Our former diet Indian Tonic and canned button mushrooms or carrot sticks have somehow evolved into white wine and pringles. I groan inwardly. But I prefer white wine and pringles … I debate whether it’s better to give up the apéritif altogether or go back to the diet version.  We’ll see.

“And maybe we’ve got back into the habit of having a glass of wine with our meal at night, particularly since we’ve been eating more meat.” Sigh. I like wine. I would love it to be calorie and alcohol-free! But I know that when I eat fish I don’t feel the same inclination to drink wine as I do when I have an entrecôte or côte de veau.

Maybe I could listen to that weight loss hypnosis recording again? It certainly helped the first time. I could listen to the relaxation and sleep ones as well. It’s much easier to lose weight when you’re not tired and stressed.

“And what about exercise?” says Jean Michel. “Are you still using the exercise bike and going power walking?” Hmm, when was the last time I use the exercise bike? And what happened to the power walking? I know what the problem was there – the terrible weather – but it’s getting a bit warmer now and I can use the exercise bike when it rains. It’ll put me in good training for cycling along the Danube in a month’s time.

And there you go, I have one month to lose 5 kilos. Wish me luck!

The Natural Skinnies and Us
How I lost 20 kilos after 50 – for good: Part 1
How I lost 20 kilos after 50 – for good: Part 2
How I lost 20 kilos after 50 – for good: Part 3
How I lost 20 kilos after 50 – for good: Part 4
How I lost 20 kilos after 50 – for good: Part 5
How I lost 20 kilos after 50 – for good: Part 6
How I lost 20 kilos after 50 – for good – well, almost: Part 7 
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23 thoughts on “Where do those extra kilos come from?”

  1. Weight is so frustrating to manage, and this weather really is not helping.

    I have a suggestion re the wine based on what you’ve said above — it’s what I would do in this circumstance:
    1. only have a glass of wine every second day.
    2. decide each time whether it is to be an apero or with the meal, based on what the meal for that day is, or your mood.
    3. if with the apero, have pringles, but put a known and moderate quantity in a bowl and stick to that (and I would ring in the changes, with some interesting vegetable crisps or corn chips, or seeds and nuts some days instead of the pringles).

    1. Thank you, Susan, for all your suggestions. For the moment, I’m keeping off the pringles, but after I lose the 5 kilos, I’ll use your method.

  2. I hear your pain. I have been trying to lose weight prior to returning to France in a couple of months. In spite of health concerns I keep piling it on. In desperation I have contacted a friend and we are going to weekly compare percentage weightloss. I don’t know yet if it will be effective or not but I really felt I needed some accountability in my weightloss journey.

    1. I must say it’s very frustrating. I’m glad to hear you’re going to contact a friend. It definitely helps to have some kind of accountability. Rendez-vous next week!

  3. thanks for your post and Jean Michel’s comments. They show how easy it is to slip and slide away from what we think are well established good habits when circumstances change. But awareness can help us get back on track.

  4. I have a constant battle with my weight. Unless on holiday, a very special occasion or at the weekend, we don’t have wine or aperos. i can’t say lose a lot of weight but I probably put on less than I otherwise might.
    Bonne chance!

    1. We’re wine buffs – we used to go on one-week wine tasting holidays for many years. We’ve cut that out and considerably reduced our wine intake. We don’t have an apero every day. It usually depends on what’s going on but we do on holidays. We’re away for a few days at the moment so we’ll see how things work out.

  5. Sigh, I know how you feel.
    I have joined a Women’s Wellness program at work. I think the support network might help. I am also participating in a team in the Global Challenge. We all have to try and do 10,000 steps a day. We have all been given nifty Pedometers to count our steps.

      1. It takes for ever, I went for a walk at lunch time today and it is 8.30pm and I have done nearly 8000 steps. So I’m obviously going to have to do a longer walk each day. Still it can’t hurt.

  6. I’m starting Weight Watchers next week for the first time ever. I’m doing at work for 13 weeks. I hope it helps. I think it will give me some accountability and a way to quantify how much I truly eat. I’m a sweet tooth and get very bad sugar cravings since living in Australia (not sure why, maybe I don’t get enough bread carbs, haha?!)

    1. Maybe the fact that you have been out of France for so long. Even if you’re not homesick, maybe your body is! Sweet foods may remind you of childhood. I used to get vegemite cravings when I first lived here (with butter on toast) but they disappeared a log time ago now. Good luck with your WW diet.

      1. Have never lost my salt-loaded Vegemite craving.

        These days I have one day every three to four weeks where I incorporate it into one or two meals.

        Same with bacon … one meal per month … usually a Sunday breakfast/brunch.

        I don’t buy bread, bacon, ice-cream, sugar or processed ‘factory’ foods any more. By not taking them home, I can focus on eating fresh foods.

        1. Did you find the posts about the 5:2 fast diet that I wrote?
          After my initial weight loss, I found it very hard to constantly deprive myself of the things I love – not processed foods, but rib steak, foie gras, wine, etc.
          We’ve now been on the 5:2 fast diet (intermittent might be a better word) for over two years and find it works perfectly with our lifestyle. We have a balanced diet with the little extras every day (square of chocolate with coffee, wine at night, nibbles for aperitif, biscuits with our tea in the afternoon, etc.) and then two days where we have two light meals totalling 500 calories for me, 600 calories for Jean Michel. And we are feeling very fit. The fasting also lowers the cancer factor and improves cholesterol.

          1. I did find them and read them.

            My son-in-law has been fasting two non-consecutive weekdays for about 30 months now. He has a real handle on it. My wife is considering it. If she does decide “to give it a whirl”, I may join her for, say, a two to three month trial … longer if it works without ‘pain’.

          2. I hope both of you do give it a whirl. It’s always easier when both members of a couple follow the same way of eating.

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