It’s the end of my Monday FD here. I ended up adding a banana tonight so topped out at 580 calories, but not too bad. I’ve had a headache all day, not a bad one but just persistent. The low amount of food probably didn’t help. I’ve tried to drink a lot of water.

Cinque, those gherkins in that recipe you posted look like a work of art in a jar! What a beautiful jar of pickles. I will have to try that recipe. Thank you for posting it. Oh to be 23 again and eat whatever we want, huh? I think I was a lot more active at that age.

LJ, I’m glad you’re planning to spend more time in California on holiday. I was afraid after hearing about all the other places you wanted to visit that you wouldn’t have much time here. We could also drive up to Lake Tahoe which isn’t far from here. It’s a pretty drive and the lake area is gorgeous with all the mountains around.
Those cookbooks look so interesting. I bet there are some interesting recipes.

Betsy, my OH was having a lot of trouble with acid reflux a few years back and taking Prilosec. We bought an incline wedge for the bed that’s made from heavy foam and that helped enough that he was able to get off of the medications. I wonder if something like that would help you?

Neil, that sauerkraut recipe sounds good. I once fermented some beets and red cabbage. It was so pretty! But the fermentation took all the sweetness from the beets so they were sour too. Perhaps if I stopped the fermenting sooner there would have been some sweetness left. Quacka, cabbage is one of the easiest things to ferment. In fact I used to add it to other vegetables to help them along.

Anzac, congrats on the weight loss. Reduced portion sizes always seems to help.
I bet Maxx is so happy to have you back home again!

Time for me to get to bed. Please keep an eye on the world while I’m asleep. (It’s supposed to get below 0 C tonight.)

Hi everyone, good to check in again. Had a good FD800 yesterday followed by a CD today, so going well so far this month. Enjoyed 5 more strawberries this evening, Cinque.

Can’t offer much help re the cooking of preserves, etc. – nover done it, though my mother used to have a Fowler’s preserving kit and always had lots of bottles of preserved fruit which we gradually ate throughout the year. One of my favourites was apple jelly, which she hated to make as it was such a lot of effort, but she generally did a small batch just for me. It was yum!

LJoyce, thanks for mentioning the Green and Gold Cookbook availability at QBD. I had looked for it there a couple of times, never located it, but never thought to actually ask if they could get it in for me. I had a copy from years ago, but when it was stored while I was working in China, the storage warehouse burned down, so it was gone (among multiple other treasures). Haven’t replaced it. I was possibly looking for it in QBD before the anniversary version was printed, so I’ll make a point of asking if they can get it in for me.

My fitbit’s buzzing to remind me I should start heading for bed. I’ll get off the computer, at least, so the blue light doesn’t wake me up too much. That’s another change I’m trying to implement – no screen time within 1-2 hours of bedtime.

Goodnight all!

Morning all, 700 gram gain this week so the roller coaster continues! I’m not overly worried now, I’m moving in the right direction with my fitness so I’m happy with that, even though the scales keep doing their indecisive thing.

The weather cleared up this morning so I rode to work the long way https://www.mapmyride.com/routes/view/2868809032 The rain hit us hard yesterday but not nearly as hard as it hit the West Coast and Fiordland who got over 1 meter of rain in one day!!

I’ve got a 4 day weekend coming up now with Waitangi day tomorrow and then I’m taking Friday off.

Good morning from a pre-deluge Sydney. The next week is forecast to have 10-50mm every day. Crikey – from drought to flood in one hit. At least the temps are cooler, around the mid 20’s. Sleeping is much easier

My FD was ok yesterday but not great. I’m struggling to get right back into it so I have reinstated my written mantra with the unflattering photo and I will have Thin’s voice in my head (not that I know what you sound like but I do have a good imagination) “it’s just one day. Fast days are not negotiable”. Love it. Many food challenges coming up with a family BBQ this Sunday then the next weekend I am away with OH in the Hunter Valley for a concert followed immediately by a weekend away at my Sisters holiday house with good friends (who always bring piles of junk food). GAH!

Thin I most certainly will have the rude train commuters and just to make it more fun I will have to actually change trains in the City – so even more chance to experience them. Yesterday we were all politely lined up to walk onto the train when a young man barged in front of us and I couldn’t help myself and said ‘where are your manners?’ just like the cranky old woman I am becoming. He completely ignored me which is probably a good thing as I really need to remember that some people may have mental health issues and perhaps don’t realise that they are doing the wrong thing.

Sorry to hear about your reflux Betsy but so happy that you are on top of getting back into the healthy WOL. I need to follow your example more.

I hope your headache is gone tomorrow Cali. I suffer from them and they are very annoying and painful. Getting lots of water is a very good idea. Lake Tahoe sounds awesome and if we ever make it to California it is on top of the list.

Poor Maxx has been sick in the mid-morning yesterday and the day before so OH is watching him today and will take him to the vet if he is still poorly. Otherwise we are amazed at his increased interest and ability to learn new things. He can now do a spin on command and last night OH was teaching him to fetch a quoit and put it back on the spike. His enthusiasm for learning (and the treats he gets of course) is so heart-warming. We think he is coming out of the other side of teenagerism (yes I made that word up)

LJ my Huawei also buzzes and shows a stick figure stretching if I’ve been sitting down for an hour. It’s great and I immediately get up and walk around the floor (if at work) or around the house.

Oh yes to be 23 again. LJ, I can almost double and a half it so we must be around a similar age.

Cinque I loved that story about your first day of school. I can imagine your poor Mum’s face when you walked all the way home on your own and turned up early.

You are so wonderfully back in the swing of 5:2 Quacka, well done. You are inspiring me just like everyone else on here.

Lindsay – what antics has Rosy been up to lately?

On the job front, I had a call on Monday from the big boss to say they are interested in bringing me on board if I pass their hiring assessment. It is an online Gallup assessment and supposedly measures your ethics and values. I’ve done it before as I have worked for this bank once before. So I did that on Monday night at home and am now waiting to hear back. I’m having a mad attack of the guilt’s for the good people here who will feel let down if/when I leave as well as the fact that I’m not seeing my contract out. While it has a clause to say either party can terminate with 2 weeks’ notice, it is not the ‘done’ thing for a contractor and you can wreck your reputation if you do it too much. This is a small market and I have to protect my reputation at all costs. Anyway, let’s see what the next couple of days brings about. At the interview they also made no effort to hide the fact that it will be a complex role with a lot of data analysis. That is also giving me doubts. I love deep analysis but the subject matter will not be as familiar to me as it is here. GAH plus another GAH!

Hi to everyone I’ve missed. Klondi, if you are reading please post soon to let us know you are ok

Good morning,
I posted yesterday 1 minute after Quacka’s post! Hi Quacka, ooh your garden is wonderful and your bone broth miso soup… what could be more nourishing and perfect for a fast day?
Eep the price of the cauliflower. Part of the fire damage I guess. Hope they are not that expensive here when I go shopping next.

LJoyce, ofcourse, being double and a half 23 must give us double and a half chance of doing the same! Boom!
I do hope your 500cal day was a great one.

Cali, I hope your headache has gone. (We need to give you a bowl of Quacka’s soup). I hope everything is swinging along at your house. What theme next? St Valentines?

Neil, great day yesterday, stupid scales today. Hopefully they will catch up with you next week.

Betsy I had to laugh when you said you were ending screen time before bed and then popped back to respond to the posts that came through, hehe just what I would do too. Hope you still managed your earlier night and and a more refreshing sleep.

Thin, I read your post and thought Me! Me! I’m going to do a Wednesday fast! But then I remembered I am babysitting tonight and so decided to make it Thursday instead.

Ooh you have had a long winter, you will appreciate summer when it comes.
Oh dear, the silly custard thing, never mind, maybe it gave your metabolism a boost? I had chicken and chips the other day, first time for yonks, enjoyed the half of it I ate but I think it will be an even longer time before I fancy that meal again.

Poor old YamDaisy is still in recess. I put it on the back burner when my grandkids and my ill friend were priorities, and then even that was too much and my health got so bad I was pretty much housebound. Thank goodness it is improving again (I am managing to opshop again, and babysitting tonight, and catching up with my friend by phone).
But YamDaisy? I am still so sure it would work wonderfully but I can’t see how I can get it going, unless Gina Reinhardt might kindly give me half an hour of her income? I could make it happen with that .
I want to offload equipment we acquired (filling up my flat) to other good little food projects, but I haven’t been well enough to do that. Then I will try hawking my YamDaisy idea to the powers that be. Not likely that could get anywhere, but I will try.

Anzac, beautiful Tuscan stone! Hooray for your job assessment. I do understand your concern about breaking your contract, but I do think they got their money’s worth out of you! I hope you have a chance of letting them know the things you needed in your work, that they didn’t provide, to make it clear to them why you looked for another job.
Hoping the deluge is as gentle as a deluge can be, with time to soak into parched land.

Well, the morning is going and first thing, I have bread to put up for its second rise. Fast day tomorrow. Okay Wednesday, here I come. Cheers all you lovely people.

Good afternoon all.

My first 500cal FD in about a month went well yesterday and I realised how much I’ve missed them. This week with some days around 1200 cal and normal FDs has felt easier so I will do another FD500 on Friday and stick to around 1200cal on the other days. The calorie deficit is a little less than Fast800, but not by much so it may work better for me. I pulled on a pair of jeans straight from the laundry this morning and they did up easily – no breathing in required – that’s a good sign.

Cali, Lake Tahoe is a lovely idea. I know so little about what’s in northern California. I might just let you (the local expert) plan that section of the trip for me.

Neil, 44 beats a minute shows just how good your cardiovascular fitness is now. My resting heart rate is 52 and was happy when it got down there – I clearly have room for improvement.

Thin, 20C for a winter’s day is pretty good. I can see why so many Brits head to Spain or Portugal for the winter
Yes, I’m glad about not needing any language skills for where I’m going. I find Canadian and northern US accents are easily understood – I have a bit more difficulty picking up every word with some of the southern US accents.

Neil, hope you have a fabulous long weekend. Are you going away anywhere? Hope you at least get some lovely cycling weather.

Anzac, I hope things work out with the new position. (I let out a wistful sigh when you mentioned the data analysis – I’d be happy as a pig in muck with a job like that). I know you would be leaving mid-contract, but you have seen them through the worst of the project – development & implementation of the new system. Your current bank might see it as considerate if you were able to offer a month’s notice – it may be worth checking with the new employer about whether that would be ok with them. You’d still be leaving, but giving them a more reasonable time frame to find a replacement.

Quacka, thankyou for letting me know that website name – again! I saw the noodles flavoured with green tea and was wondering what they would taste like. Are they nicer then the plain kelp, or just different? I also noticed they have “konaberry noodles” – have you tried those?
Very glad you could get a green and gold – can you let us know whether the recipies have been updated or whether they are exactly the same as the old editions. If they have made them easier for modern cooks, I’d be tempted to get a copy too. I’m alright with the smaller imperial measures, but always have to look up things like a gill or a gallon as they aren’t on my measuring jugs.
I’m amazed they are still publishing that old text book – it was written for the Victorian Education Department but SA used it too.
Quacka, I used to have fowlers jars (not easy to buy these days) and had a semi-permanent loan of my aunt’s fowlers electric urn. I mainly used to do jars of whole peeled roma tomatoes with basil leaves & garlic. I didn’t bother with excess fruit – just turned it into jams. I also did tomato relish, but that didn’t need a fowlers kit due to the sugar and vinegar.

Betsy, I think staying away from backlit screen before bed is a great idea, and one I rarely follow, I’m ashamed to say. Although I do read for an hour or two when I get to bed on a paperwhite ereader (not backlit), so I suppose that counts – not resting my eyes though.

Cinque, enjoy that lovely bread – I hope you get to eat some today and don’t have to wait until your next NFD on Friday. I miss bread, but can’t risk it at the moment as stopping as a small slice would be challenging.

Have a good day all.

Hi! Can i join here? You seem a lovely bunch. Just started Fast Diet 8 days ago and just finishing up a FD today. It’s felt a struggle. Thought it would be nice to connect with people in tbe same (ish) time zone. Originally from London and 18 months here still cant believe you have multiple time zones in one country!!

Am also in the Feb Challenge group which has been a great support.

Welcome Dondons, of course you can join us. Where are you living now? Fasting gets easier and eventually becomes like any other day. Lucky you finding this WOL in your thirties when you still have a chance to make a real difference to your health and longevity. I started in August 2014 when I was 58.

Oh poor gentleman. Glad you were able to get him help.

I have to say i feel excited about this as a WOL and not a diet. Already I feel more in control of my eating and making bettwr choices on NFD as a result.

So my name is Donna i live in Melbourne and my quest is to shed baby weight and honestly feel confident again. And be healthy and a good role model for my son.

The velocity thing…..🤣🤣🤣

Good morning everyone, FAST DAY in the Cinque household (okay, Miso the cat is having none of it).

Welcome Dondons! Lovely to have you here, I’m a Melbourne girl too (well, a grandma, but a Melbourne girl inside). You have just the right attitude for 5:2: way of life, making it easy and sustainable, doing it for your longterm health, letting the ‘rest and reset’ fast day start to inform your NFD choices.
As a mum of a toddler I imagine you are tired and life is hectic, but hopefully losing that bit of excess weight will make life a bit easier too.

Quacka exciting news that the shower screen is going in and the project is so close to finished. Oops re the beer!
I used to have a Fowlers kit and do tomatoes every year. I’d buy a box when the romas were ripe and cheap. Rough and ready squishing them down into jars with the back of a wooden spoon. Worked great though!

LJoyce, so on the ball with the bread. I did get the fresh crust to eat with my stew and it was divine, and I did stop at one piece, so it is in the fridge developing resistant starch, and ready for a delicious breakfast tomorrow.
I am hoping to have one of those strict under 500 cal Fast days today and feel wonderful tomorrow morning.

Thin, hopefully Lindsay will pop back soon, I think she was heading off for time on the island. I am missing Klondi dreadfully and must contact her. I know she was busy with family things.

You can’t be spending enough time with the chooks if you don’t find them rewarding! Haha, (but I do love chooks). It sounds like a wonderful place to be looking after. Ooh yum the almonds.

And another haha for the questions three, Neil.
So glad that you and the first aider could chase down the man with the cut hand. It would have been so embarrassing to fall in public, but he needed chasing.

Anzac you are getting a rain dump up in Sydney!

We were warned that the the bushfires would result in maybe a 50% rise in vegetable prices, and I think that is mostly because of the NSW fires, so you might have it worst. I paid $2 for a whole big rockmelon yesterday, so it clearly isn’t effecting everything here. (I am reintroducing a little fruit to my diet, and can’t resist a good buy). More veggie shopping today, ready for the coming week, so I will report back.

Oooee what a tricky job situation. Maybe it was your friend hassling them to follow up with you that made them set the meeting. I hope you get the call re your new job before you have to talk with your current job! Sending good wishes.

But cheers for your good NFD. Yes, the less crap we eat, the easier it is. So obvious, when will it stick in our heads?

Off to have my fasty fast day. Making a big jug of water with a pinch of salt and a squeeze of lemon juice, it is getting humid here again. Cheers all

Good Morning everyone

(2nd attempt to post)

Welcome Dondons!

I had a successful NNNNFD yesterday so that’s my two for the week. Unfortunately the scales are not reflecting quite what I expected so they were almost thrown out the front door this morning! I still had a small drop and I know that weight loss is not consistent so I am not too worried. Looking forward to next week.

I did a big veggie shop this morning. Yes, I bought a $7.90 cauli and some other expensive veggies. Although they are more expensive than usual they still work out much cheaper than other things we could be eating. More importantly they are better for our health. I think the prices of veggies has more to do with the extended drought that we have been in more so than the fires. However, having been in the fruit and veg industry for most of my life, I also know that the markets will use any excuse to artificially jack the prices up. The fires have given them a convenient excuse.

LJ, I did like the green tea kelp noodles but I didn’t think they were better, just different. I haven’t tried the Konaberry ones, mainly because I don’t know what a Konaberry is! Lol

Neil, happy long weekend. They are always well appreciated here too.

Great to hear from you, thin, as always.

Cinque, I hope you have a nice easy FD. I also bought a $2 rocky this morning. I rarely buy them as OH doesn’t eat them so a whole one is too much for me, but there are times when I just really feel like some.

Anzac, your work situation does sound tricky! I think you really need to do what is right for you this time. I understand about the not getting a bad rep but I don’t think once is going to hurt yours. Hopefully your new workplace will be more rewarding and more accommodating for being on 5:2! 😉

Off to do some more work. It’s been one of those mornings where reps have been in the way and I feel like I have achieved nothing so far. I best get set to rectify that.

Hi Betsy, Lindsay, Gday, Turn, Penguin and anyone else that I have missed. Please pop in and say hi 🙂

Take care xx

Anzac, kind comments, thank you! I miss you too. And knowing what’s going on with everyone. Skim reading doesn’t give the proper story. Tricky situations for you to juggle at work but you look after yourself, do what’s best for you and don’t worry about employer loyalty. Over the decades, I discovered it really only works one way.

Neil, funny. It reminded me of the three questions to prove you’re really English. 1) What is LBW? 2) What is Marmite? 3) Do you like it? Oh no, I hope that doesn’t start the marmite/vegemite discussion again.

Lilymartin: I remember your name from way back. Hello!

LJ, thanks for the info re: the milk allowance. Hurricanes and tornadoes are often associated with southern states so it probably was a southern accent. I found that some people took so long to finish a sentence that I’d forgotten the beginning of it. (I’m only having a go because they would relentlessly make fun of my accent to the point that I started saying, ‘wada’ instead of ‘water’). Once I got to California, that all changed. Where are you going in Canada?

Iberian Mastin: did I mention that he’s an INDOOR dog? How insane is that! Until last week, he would apparently lurch at rabbits and pull his owner over. This is rocky terrain. He now wears a halti and that has essentially emasculated him and he walks next to OH like a well-healed poodle. What he does now is just stop. And you’re quite right, if he doesn’t want to walk, he doesn’t walk!

We leave here today, return our rental car to Alicante, have two days in a luxury apt. and then take the train to Barcelona where we will be pet-sitting a cute little lap dog. It’s a good way to see parts of the world that you otherwise wouldn’t contemplate and/or save a heap on accommodation. It can also be a lot of work. Cinque, I don’t mind the chicken rituals but do expect the odd egg thrown in!

Ha! Ljoyce got it, my questions were a Monty Python reference.

I had a good day off, I got some work done around the house, gave my bike a service and then went for a good ride. I did mostly hill work so I climbed almost 900 vertical meters during my 1 hour 50 minute ride and covered about 36 kilometers. My wife’s family came around for dinner, they cooked up a goat curry, but I didn’t feel much like meat this evening so I stuck with a decent serving of sauteed okra, eggplant curry and lentil dahl with a little salad.

Hi everyone, quick check-in as it’s later than I intended.

Good to read of news from folks old and new – welcome Dondon1oz. I’ve seen you on the February forum, too. You’ll find that this one is a lot more chatty, and very helpful with various advice.

lilymartin, I guess a hiatus hernia is a possibility, but I did have a barium swallow a couple of years ago and nothing showed up then. Now I’ve been back into more controlled eating this week, I’ve had no reflux, so it may be the result of eating too much at one time. The throat is still bothering me, though. It’s not really serious, just persistent. I’m putting it all on hold till I see my doctor on the 27th.

Quacka, glad your bathroom is just about finished. What a saga it’s been.

Thin, I can just see you trying to drag along a 75kg dog for his “healthy” walk! 🙂

Anzac65, my opinion re your current job – you need to think very carefully before agreeing to any job extension. Considering what you’ve been promised at times, and what hasn’t happened, if you have the option, I’d be moving. Having said that, offering a 4-week notice period, as suggested here (by LJoyce?), would be polite, and mitigate any feelings of letdown or frustration. You’ve already worked your heart out for them; you don’t need to give them any more pounds of flesh! Just giving an opinion though; you’ll do what you feel is best for you.

Neilithicman, you continue to amaze and inspire with your dedication to fitness and maintenance. You started this WOL after me, and have starred in comparison. I went down, yo-yo-ed up partway, and am now slowly moving down again having regained my “mojo”. Doubt if I will ever equal your exploits though.

Cinque, so glad to read that you are regaining some energy and can resume doing some of the things you love.

Missing Klondikween, LindsayL, Intesha and crazyartist – are you just lurking but not posting? Hope all is well with you and that you’ll be back soon.

Hi to anyone I didn’t think of, and goodnight!

Good morning,
Yes, a lovely morning after fast day 🙂 I did forget to make that big jug of water until this morning, bad mistake, I was irritable. But I am drinking it now. (Well, I have drunk a couple of big glasses and I am already onto coffee 😉 )

Cauliflowers $3:90 each in Thornbury and the big ones were yellowish. Got a lovely little one. Green beans as expensive as long beans (so I bought long beans, yum!). Mushrooms are expensive, not sure how bushfires or drought ar doing that, but the ordinary ones were nearly as expensive as the Swiss browns, so I treated myself to Swiss browns! That’s my veggie report Quacka! (I might need to give half my rockmelon to my daughter, I did pick an enormous one. So beautiful and its scent greets me every time I open the fridge).

LJoyce, lovely the NBN connection all went well. Good grief that 18 months has gone quickly!
Freezing bread might be even better than refrigerating for developing resistant starch. I love it when we can be smug doing what is easiest for longterm storage!
I am so pleased about the bit of fruit too!

Lilymartin, how good to see your post. Congratulations on your current hitting the mark. That’s the go. So sorry to hear how awfully dry it is where you are, fingers crossed these developing rain systems come your way soon.

Haha Thin, You started it up again! https://www.choice.com.au/food-and-drink/groceries/sauces-and-dressings/buying-guides/vegemite-taste-test

You are right, they are rude chooks for not laying. Hope your next leg goes well.

Neil, OF COURSE I got the Monty Python reference! Lots of things go over my head, but rarely an MP one!

Betsy what a relief that the small portions are helping. Hoping your throat might have the chance to heal itself now too.

Yes, Merry! Write a post! xxx

It is grandma kinder today for the 3 year old, must run. Cheers all!

Good afternoon from a totally sodden Sydney. I forgot how lovely (not) damp labrador smells.

Quick post as I’m a bit busy at work today (from home) but big developments on the job. I told my boss i was leaving yesterday morning in the meeting where she had hoped to give me the good news that i was being extended. Then my friend at the new job sent a text saying that had been a restructure she was very unhappy and would be leaving. She also said to expect ‘challenging’ to be more like ‘stressful and awful’ under the new structure.
Oh no! Out of the frying pan into the fire!. Before I had time to process the mess I was in, the big boss at current job asked to see me. He asked what it would take to keep me. I said if they moved me back to my old team, changed my role back to what I was actually employed for and matched the extra money offered by the new job I would stay. He said he would try and I just received an email saying he is calling me in 25 minutes with an answer. Fingers crossed!

I really need to retire soon. Really.

So of course I came home last night, drank 3 large glasses of wine and ate badly. Haven’t i learnt anything?

Today I am having a better day and I skipped breakfast and had a healthy lunch. Dinner is steak and salad and NO WINE.

I will post more soon….take care

Oh my goodness Anzac, talk about a rapidly changing situation. It looks like the competition might get you back into a better situation where you are – which sounds like a reasonable outcome. Also good to know that your boss is ready to fight to keep you in the organisation – that says a lot about their opinion of the value you provide.
Like Cinque, I’ll keep everything crossed for you.

Oops our posts crossed LJ. Thankyou!!

Gosh Anzac, what great news! Nail biting stuff. Congratulations. I hope you’ll be much happier – but if it’s not all roses, at least you’ll be laughing all the way to the bank.

Cinque, you devil. I’m not even opening that link!

LJ, I looked up the havanese breed too and was surprised to see all that hair. The photos that the owner posted on the web site don’t show her dog being long haired. He must be a cross. Anzac, I wonder if you’ve considered pet sitters for Maxx? It’s not for everyone to have strangers in their home; I wouldn’t like it.

Mention of the British comedies reminded me of an Australian ‘Two Ronnies’ episode that I saw in England at Christmas. I hadn’t realised at the time that they’d also recorded specifically for Aussie audiences. My brother and I were crying with laughter, OH and DD didn’t get it at all.

Great news, Anzac, you can stay at the same bank, but with a better situation and more (slightly) pay. You must be such a good worker. Well done you! By the way, I think you may be stuck with “lab smell” for a few more days – isn’t Sydney forecast to have more rain over the weekend?

Thin, I was wondering if the dog you’ll be looking after next had been clipped in the photo, and there was LJoyce’s suggestion of the same.

LJoyce, an endoscopy is an option I’ve been considering, specifically a gastroscopy, which is the one which goes down from the mouth. My doctor hasn’t brought it up yet, just got me to double my Nexium for several days after I last saw him, as I seemed to have a stomach/ respiratory virus then, but I need to consider my symptoms now that has passed, and then talk with him.

My big news tonight, which I’m not very happy about, is that I’ve lost my principal supervisor for my doctorate as of this week (today?), or more precisely, he’s been demoted to being one of my “associate supervisors”, all due to policy changes at my college as it pursues university status, and I’ve been allocated a principal supervisor that I’m not sure I can work with. I’ve already responded suggesting a different person as an option, so now I’ll see what happens. Apparently I was supposed to have been sent an email about this (not received to date) and a form to fill in. Instead, an email came today from my current supervisor apologising that he hadn’t contacted me before I heard it from the college. A bolt from the blue as until that point I was completely in the dark. I’m now feeling rather thankful that I’ve taken a “leave of absence” for this semester so it can all be sorted out before I return to semester 2 study. And yeah, I’m calming down now, but initially I was quite gutted. Sigh!

Okay, despite that, I have not suddenly lashed out on comfort food, so that’s one victory, and I’m hoping for a good weigh-in tomorrow after a fairly good FD800/CD week.

Goodnight all.

Hi all from a wet Temuka, Saturday 11.15am.

Well done you Anzac, it shows how much they value you and your work output, and you won’t have that awful extra train ride commute. I like the idea of Maxx getting the extra spoils with the pay rise hahahaha.

Got it too Neil, can’t miss those MP lines, so sad to see the funeral of Terry Jones a couple of days ago, I think those type of comedians are irreplaceable and will never appear on our screens ago, so happy to have lived through that original era and enjoyed it. Well done on all your cycling activity, you’re certainly clocking up the miles. (kms!) Wish I could get my resting heartbeat as low?

Thin, glad you are enjoying Spain and also the house/pet sitting, we find it a great way to get to know an area and a cheap way of doing it too. We are looking at doing the same in Canada later in the year, certainly reduces the cost of travel.

All the veggie gardens on here sound wonderful, I get so excited when I see wonderful fresh green veggies growing eveywhere! I bought a cauli the other day, fair size for $3, and a $2 rock melon, but running the fridge down now as we leave the van locked up for a week, so getting rid of all the perishable stuff.

I always frezze my bread Cinque, but only because we eat so little of it and so rarely, if I didn’t it would go off in no time!

Welcome back Lilymartin, glad you’ve found your way back, I did too, I lurked for what seemed like a lifetime before I gave myself a good kick up the backside and started to get serious about getting back to this WOL.

Having said that, I feel like the bathroom scales could have got thrown in one of the red bins on the holiday park and left to rot forever this week, after all my hard work I ended up back at 76.6 on Thursday mornings weigh in, so not a happy bunny. Mind you, not had the best of weeks emotionally, so do put a lot down to that, can’t seem to find anything in the food diary that seems to be out of whack! Supposed to be out for a bike ride but saving it for later when the rain stops and the wind calms down a bit, I’ll get my indoor jobs done this morning.

Enjoy your weekend everyone, Turn

Good morning, a minute ago it was 8 o’clock, and now it is 10:30. Nice morning but I’ll start complaining as it gets hotter and stickier.

Anzac, I know it has been a nightmare roller coaster, but didn’t it turn out well! Excellent maneuvering! You came out with the best combo and what a relief that those further up the ladder are realising they need to change things. All you need now is to get your friend from the other place, a job at your place!

Hoping you have a good few days of letting the relief settle in and those comfort eating strategies can go to the back seat.

Thin, haha, if you had opened the link and read the top line you would have just closed it again anyway.

Betsy, such dreadful news. I am also SO glad you gave yourself this break, I couldn’t bear to think of you dealing with this on top of everything else you have to contend with. I so hope a nice solution presents itself in time for your return to study. Big cheers that you didn’t let it derail your careful eating.

The scales of the world seem to have ganged together and decided to cause trouble, so glad you are pulling yours back into line LJoyce! Yours next, Turn!

Hooray for spreadsheets.
I suffered for not having one when I managed to plan two separate things to cook, both which need to be done today. Luckily I think I am up for it. (Zucchini slice and spanakopita).

Kiwis, I thought of you when flooding at Milford Sound was on the news.
What a wet South Island.

Well, it is late enough to be brunch this morning I think. Mushrooms, roasted red peppers, avocado and lettuce on a piece of my yummy toast. Lucky me.

Great advice I received years ago (thinking about self destructive eating when times get hard). 1. “Whatever gets you through the night is alright, is alright”. 2. Then as soon as we have the space, work out how to look after ourselves in healthier ways.
So many of our self destructive activities developed as a way to get us through that hard night, we need to change those behaviours, but there is an honour to them, in that they helped us survive.

Cheers all

Hi Everyone, Fasters and lurkers all,

Hope everyone is going well with their 5:2 or 800, that all are well and Life is being kind. To the newbies I hope you stay here and find the encouragement and info you need to make your life healthier and more satisfying, and you’ll be learning lots from the wise ones on here.

I have been away from being here regularly for quite a long time now, and I miss you all, you fine folk!

Also I hope you are getting some lovely rain, not flooding wherever you are in Oz, and those in New Zealand, England and California, and Spain (Thin) are getting the weather they have been hoping for.

Check in: 65.8kgs

October 2019 62.6kgs (goal weight was 62kgs)
Mid January 2020 64.6kgs
Today – 8th Feb 65.8kgs

My last check in I wasn’t doing too badly.

Now I’m struggling a bit. I had a go at 800cals for awhile pre wedding and pre Christmas, and then ate without 800 or 5:2 since Christmas. I guess I should be grateful I haven’t put on more than I have. I’m having a challenge getting back onto 5:2. I know it only takes a little while to get back in the saddle, but I think my challenge is I really need a holiday after Life being really full on for a couple of years, and I’m feeling a bit exhausted. For those in the people professions the term ‘burn-out’ is commonly used for this feeling.

After the 2nd wedding reception here, and our overseas and Australian visitors had finally returned home, both OH and I just felt really tired, and basically just sat for a few days, both of us feeling run down. It was all lovely, and I wouldn’t change it, but we were just so tired. Christmas was at our house and we are now adept at teaching people to peel prawns and how to cut and eat a mango, lots of mangoes. Trays of mangoes, ‘slip-slop-slapping’ and now adding ‘slide’. “You burn so much quicker here don’t you!” Oh, and how to make a pavlova. How to have a summer Christmas, New Year etc. All much enjoyed.

Anyhoo… My 3rd annual attempt at my long term secret project finishes at the end of March, so holidays are off till after then., and some project related stress will have to be endured till then. I think I need to:

* go back to writing down what I eat and drink for a week. It always helps me to be accountable if I feel I’m slipping.

* eat only healthy and lower calorie foods

* make sure I drink enough, get enough sleep etc

As the long term 5:2ers will know, I can’t exercise, but I continue doing what I can within my limitations, which are less than when I started 5:2.

Bye for now,
Onwards and Downwards,
Merry

Morning all

Congrats on the weight loss Betsy, that must have been a really good % of your body weight gone in one week.

Congrats on the job situation too Anzac, looks like things are looking up for you.

I’m really over the weather this summer. It makes me envious seeing areas of the north island hitting temperatures in the 30s while us at the other end of the country get awful weather. Yesterday and this morning we got rain, hail and wind and it was just 8 degrees in the evening yesterday! Where is our summer??

I did manage to get out for an 11 kilometre ride last night which put me over 500 for the year so far. Hopefully I’ll get time for a short ride today if we get a break in the weather. We’re supposed to be going to a potluck dinner tonight so I’ll have to watch my eating.

Have a good day everyone

Goodmorning,
I had a bit of a sleep in with a wild dream that ended with Thin asking me if I was fasting today. In real life I was going to babysit grandkids this morning and have a visitor coming tonight, but then my daughter said the kids could go next door. So in my dream I said to Thin, ‘ooh I can fast after all!’ and then next minute I was getting a big rectangle of some sort of cooked meat out of the fridge and biting into it. Oops I thought, I was going to fast!
Okay dream interpreters, what do you make of that?

Well, currently I’ve got a cup of tea, not a slab of meat, and I will fast til my friend arrives. She has very small meals after a tummy staple, so I might keep well into fast day territory even if we have a small meal together.

Anzac, hoping you have a great time at the family BBQ, everyone will be whooping in the rain I imagine. Except Maxx.

Merry such a treat to get a good catch up. I’ve missed you here and hope the secret project gets done this year, followed by a lovely big rest for you and Mr Merry, but that you manage lots of 5:2 posts too!

Wow, what a busy exhausting wonderful summer season. I know you will fit in as many little rest times as possible, so you can keep going.

Everyone here seems to have had a particularly hard time this year, getting back into normal everyday 5:2ing after the feast season. Excellent accountability points. An eating audit is such a good thing to help see the lay of the land.

Betsy woot! That’s for the 2kg down, what a lovely feeling. But also cheers for your supervision and things looking like they will pan out well.

Neil, that is shocking summer weather, no wonder you are complaining. I hope the potluck includes something you will enjoy greatly and feel you haven’t overindulged.

Well I need to attack the chaos in the spare room so that my friend can find the bed this evening. Best wishes everyone.