Slimming World

I'm now going to waffle on about dieting. I totally understand if you don't want to read it but I figured that some of you might like to know about how my weight loss is going.

I received my Yay-I've-Lost-A-Stone-And-A-Half! certificate and sticker at Slimming World last night. I was mighty chuffed. I've only been doing the diet for ten weeks and I've shed twenty-two pounds in total.

A few months ago I decided that I wanted to shift some weight. I was a size sixteen and I was feeling unhealthy. I got overly-hot and out of puff walking to the shop and back and doing housework proper knackered me out. I also didn't like the way my jeans were so very tight around my thighs (they looked like when you clingfilm biscuit dough into a sausage shape) and I felt big and sluggish and generally meh.

I've tried calorie counting in the past and I lost a bit of weight doing so, but I never kept it off. I also became fixated with adding up calories and numbers and it wasn't healthy and I got tired of it very quickly. I needed to do something that I would stick to and a couple of friends had lost weight successfully with Slimming World. So I bought a copy of the Slimming World magazine, read it, searched for my nearest group on the old internet and the following Monday I went along and enrolled. You can do the programme entirely online which was tempting but I felt that actually physically going to a group would work better for me

I was SO nervous about going. I had visions of Little Britain's 'Fat Fighters' in my mind but within ten minutes of being there I realised that Slimming World was going to be nothing like that.

"Dust?"

I lost four-and-a-half pounds in my first week. And I've lost weight every week since, sometimes only half a pound but still, I've not gained weight.

And you know what? I'm NEVER hungry. That's the joy of this diet. (I'm totally aware that I sound like an infomercial here.) You can eat as much of what Slimming World calls 'Free Food' as often as you like. The Free Food list includes rice, pasta and potatoes. And - get this - you can still eat crisps and chocolate! Obviously you can't yum eighteen Mars bars a day, but I have about three Curly Wurlys a week.

There's no calorie counting, next-to-no food weighing, no complex points systems and you can do the diet with minimum disruption to the rest of the family. The Slimming World recipes and cook books are wonderful. I can't say enough good words about the whole thing.

Weight loss aside, I actually enjoy going to Slimming World on Monday nights. I like seeing everyone. I like hearing how people are getting on. The place is full of lovelypeopleness.

And I FEEL better. I feel healthier. I don't get as hot and flustered walking about the place. I'm nearing a size twelve now and I've got to go and buy new clothes because nothing fits me properly anymore. I bloody hate clothes shopping but the fact I've GOT to go makes me smiley.

So yeah, in short, if you've ever considered joining a slimming club but have thought "Nope, I just can't do it!" then shush up and go do it. I've got about another stone to shed and then I'll be in healthy BMI territory. I'll see what I look like and how I feel when I reach my target and then I'll decide if I need to lose a bit more.

And American readers, if you're thinking "Why haven't WE got Slimming World?! It sounds AWESOME!" then you may be interested to know that Slimming World is now over there in Unitedstatesland and right now you can get four months' enrollment for just $40.00. Have a look right here for more details.

So that's that. Diet blog post done. I'm off for lunch now. The homemade pea and ham soup is calling me ...