Another big gap

I'm not going to do the usual big "O-M-G I haven't posted in ages. I can't believe. I'm so sorry readers blah blah blah blah blah".

It has been ages. I'm back to my usual ways. Stop. Start. Stop. Start. And so on and so on. And then I came across a blogger doing many many rounds of 12wbt like myself and on the stop start band wagon:

http://cocogirlbutter.blogspot.com.au

And she has achieved some great things. And then I realised - it's ok. It's ok to stop & start as long as you are starting again. And the stopping isn't final.

I moved to London 13 months ago. 

 

I wish I could be all fancy and have done this blog right on the 12 month mark, but life is full of imperfections. We just have to deal with them.

Those 13 months - boy have they been tough:

• Moving to the other side of the world - oh please. "Piece of cake" I told myself. I was so bored with my current city that I desperately needed a dramatic change. Well now the novelty has warn off. London is a brutal mega-city filled with as many lows as it offers in highs. I'm almost ready for home. I miss my family, my friends, Australian people, and the Australian way of life.

• 3 trips back to Oz. 1 full of happiness. 2 full of sadness. But firstly, flying 3 x return trips to Oz - each leg taking almost 30 hours door to door, takes it's toll. Add to it the emotion of losing my partners parents. Ohhhhhh boy. That was so hard. I'm still grieving. I didn't realise they were such a big part of my life. They're just my partners parents after all. But I miss them deeply. Two very special people who I just expected to be part of my everyday life as soon as we got back to Australia. Sadly not. Some days the reality of not having them there when we return hits me like a tonne of bricks.
 

• Coming to terms with my food habits - I think it's taken this year of self-discovery to finally realise deep down that yes, I have significantly improved my binge eating habits from when I started my weight loss journey (so biggest loser of me) 3.5 years ago, but I still am very much an emotional eater and can eat in excess even though I don't want to. There's a long way to go to change, but as "they" say, admitting you have a problem is the first step to recovery.

• Finally, one of the most rewarding things to come out of Life in London - I feel like I am discovering what I want in life. I used to always tell myself and anyone else that would listen, that I'm a big city girl. I want the busy lifestyle, the glamorous drinks after work, the suited up corporate days, the Insta-worthy weekends. Now - I look back on that girl and laugh, that wasn't me. That's just what I thought was me. I want the quiet life. I want to be my own boss, I want to dictate my own hours and have a minimal commute, I want weekends doing relaxing things like outdoor activities or reading, I want to do classes in topics that interest me, not climb the corporate ladder, I want to live by the beach not in a big city.

So London, there you have it you saucy minx. All my cards are on the table. I'm here until September this year as a minimum and I'm not going to let you defeat me!

Plan of Attack:

 

Just take it day-by-day - for the next two weeks I will:

• count my calories daily, with the aim of being under 1500 each day
• exercise daily with one rest day (Sunday). No skipping sessions - no excuses

Yes London life is busy. And yes I can't really say I've lost any weight in the past 13 months, but I need to stop letting it get the better of me. Stick to the plan, man. Prepare your food the night before. Have lunches in the freezer ready to pull out. Pack your gym bag the night before. That's it. Just do that for 2 weeks woman and those habits will form. Like the dog with the bell, I'll be a new woman with new habits yet.