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