Hello all.

A quick check in. After 3 weeks on Fast 800, with only a minor blip or two, I’ve lost 4.9 kilos, and my friend 5. She’d lost more, but had a babysitting slip and her weight shot up disproportionately – no doubt it will settle again.

I’m not finding it hard – I must say Cinque your Nigerian Bean Stew, at just 212 calories per serve, is making a great FD lunch for me …by the evening, I’m happy with just a tablespoon or two of hummus, some celery and some olives. I remember you started a page for bean recipes, but I haven’t been able to find it. I’ll keep looking unless you take pity on me and tell me where to go.

Now, the good Doctor Michael lost some of his credibility for me the other night when I watched him host a fatuous program about cosmetic procedures. Honestly, it was pap, co-hosted by a heavily-procedured young woman – gorgeous, but who knows what was natural? Did anyone see it? Muscly personal trainers, using different procedures to take a kilo or two off their almost perfect bodies. A young woman having a quite invasive and painful procedure to reduce cellulite from her quite acceptable bum. What a waste both of air time and medical expertise. I had the sense his heart wasn’t in this one, which means he only did it for the $$$. Tut, tut, Dr Michael. You can’t need the money surely?

The little girls had a sleep over (the 7 and 4 year olds…we’d had the 2 year old on Friday). Such fun, and now I am pooped, and am ready to slink into a chair with something mindless on television ….or perhaps an old episode of one of my favourites – Endeavour, Vera, Inspector Gently ….as OH says about Vera, sometimes the story lines are so overly complex, that it’s easy to forget if you’ve seen it before, or perhaps just dozed through it.

Here’s something funny – after all the newspaper in lieu of toilet paper talk, Philip Adams, in this weekend’s Australian Magazine, listed it as one of the things we’ll not see again. I hope he’s right! (although after the toilet paper hoarding last year, it seemed a possibility).

Thin, the Facebook standoff didn’t seem to last long here, and yes, good on the government for taking it up to them. I’m sure it was never a good thing for people to get their news via social media when they can go directly to the source. And I think we’ll have to disagree about Twitter and President Trump. I guess if you own the company you set the rules, and we all agree to them when we sign on. I think it was a shame he wasn’t suspended long ago, for some of the vitriol of his tweets. He was given a lot of leeway – more than most people would have been given.

Nice you are getting a burst of warmer weather…..when do you motor away again?

Cali, good news you’ve had your first vaccination. Our PM and an 85 year old have just had their jabs …the first for Australia. I hope it will now roll out quickly. My OH is in the second group, because of his health issues, which should be vaccinated in early to mid March. My group comes next, hopefully by the end of March.

OK off I go to put things back to normal, after the chaos of the kids, and their dog who came for a play with Rose.

Take care all.

Evening all, just totaled up my rides for the week and I’ve hit 1003 kilometers for February so far. I’m dropping it right back to 20km per day or so for the next 3 days to let my legs recover fully and then I’ll be hitting the trail.

I’m following the tennis at the moment and I was delighted to see Naomi Osaka take out the women’s title, I’ll be hoping that Medvedev manages to take out the men’s title this year over Djokovic.

Have a great day everyone.

Just popping back in to say that I hope you are feeling better Cinque.

Yea, for Osaka winning Neil …and I too hope Medvedev takes the men’s. I don’t like the way Djokovic tends to take medical time-outs when he’s not doing well ….and comes back full of energy and renewed vigour.

Jony, nice to have the new car. And yes, car seats are one of the many things we do to help our kids out. I have a babyseat in mine, plus a booster seat. The 7 year old goes in a seatbelt on the rare occasions we have 3 of the 4 in the car …and Rosy just has to stretch out along the floor as best she can – which is troubling for her, because she can’t lick their faces as easily as she’d like.
Gday how is your week looking. Your last post had me faint with exhaustion just reading it. Hope things ease up, and your OH is recovering nicely now.

OK I hear my OH in the kitchen, which means he’s making coleslaw. It’s a tedious job, but he puts his heart and soul into the chopping, which is more than I can ever be troubled to do.

Ah LJ, I went back a page, then when I came back I saw your post. Thank you for the guide to the site, and to the beans recipes. Such a good fast option. We started eating more beans for health reasons (OH’s gout). I haven’t been to the butcher in a while, and I’m quite surprised how much my food bill has dropped. And how wonderful this WOL doesn’t charge 1500 per kilo, like the poor guinea pigs on Dr M’s cosmetic procedures program.

Enjoy your night all.

Good afternoon fellow fasters.

It was weigh-in day for me, a fortnight on Fast 800 just completed. Over the fortnight my weight is down 4.4kg and I am now just back to the very top of my preferred weight range. To celebrate I called into my favourite op shop after my morning walk to look for something nice. I found a cute pair of egg cups for my boiled eggs and a lovely designer skirt which was just $6. https://imgur.com/a/RHd5WaV The photo doesn’t do it justice. It’s a black skirt with alternating diagonal rows of white embroidery and pin-tuck pleats. It breaks my main rule – it needs ironing. However it was a perfect fit and it will be an excellent option when I need something formal – providing I can keep my weight stable! It has no elastic so it won’t be forgiving if my weight goes up. I plan to give it a first outing on Sunday during birthday brunch and dinner – I’ll have to be careful not to spill anything on it at brunch or it won’t make it to dinner.

Thin, where are heading first, do you have a canal chosen, or will you just moor nearby to do those maintenance jobs?

Lindsay, yes I find legumes really useful too as they are slow release carbs so they don’t trigger cravings for me. The dry legumes especially are very economical, although as I do also like convenience, I usually cook extra and freeze them – then the are as convenient as a packet of frozen peas.

I enjoyed another long walk this morning in mild weather – I could get used to this. I have my fingers crossed for March, I hope the weather gods are listening and don’t prove to be perverse little sods.

Have a lovely day all.

LJoyce our posts crossed and I just saw the skirt. How lovely. Yep ironing is a pain but worth it if it’s only for a few items that we dont wear often. I rarely iron now, maybe once a month or two for just a few pieces that I wear occassionally.

Good morning,

Tuesday already, I got through my Sunday fast day, and ate well yesterday. A bit jealous of Gday with no lump tum and bumps. But hooray for you. Sashay down the street, Gday!

Lindsay, I am so glad the wonderful Nigerian stew has stood you so well, and that LJoyce passed on the Bean thread link.

Woohoo, that lovely 4.9kg you don’t have to carry around any more. https://www.elwoodflowers.com.au/images/products/large/4317.jpg

Ha, I haven’t watched the latest crop of Dr Mosley specials, and you make me glad. (It is that side of him that irritates one of my sisters so much that she won’t consider doing 5:2.)

And ha again, good point about Vera, I think that is why I have been able to rewatch her so many times.

Ooh LJoyce, Hooray for being back in your happy weight zone. https://cdn3.volusion.com/rccqg.lrbyh/v/vspfiles/photos/BQPPN010-2.jpg

Such a beautiful skirt to celebrate! Well worth a bit of ironing. It looks such a lovely fabric.

I bet you are enjoying those homegrown capsicum.
A neighbour who moved house on the weekend gave me 5 unopened bags of potting mix! My garden is very pleased. And I have got my rocket, chard and matador spinach seeds started so I should be right for greens over winter.

Enjoy those lovely walks at the best time of day.

Thin, we are having our coolest February week for decades (I think they said since 1967 but I can’t find the quote so maybe not that long), blissful for me. I am glad to think of you preparing to go traveling again.

Gday, they will be two interesting speakers! I loved Geoffrey Robertson right back to his Hypothetical Days. They had a big effect on me. A great humanitarian.

And another scary toilet story.

Well, I don’t know if I am still under par or if this is my new par, but I am still feeling quite crook, and so I am trying to do all the good things for my health, and taking it slow. Off to go and do some more of it (good things, and slow). Best wishes all.

PS Lovely new post Lindsay. Thanks for asking after me <3 . Fingers crossed we hear from Penguin. I upgrade your bunch of flowers to celebrate OVER 5kg loss! Woot.
Ooh I hope you can enjoy some of your neighbours beautiful food without going over 800.

Good evening all.

I’ve had a busy day out today – mostly appointments and errands in Stirling (Adelaide Hills). I visited a nursery to use a voucher I was given for my last birthday (which was soon to expire) and found a suitable wide glazed pot that will allow me to put all of the little white orchids in the one bowl – which will sit in the centre of outdoor table for most of the year. I then had time to do a 45min walk before my appointment with the dietitian. The footpaths (where they exist at all) are so different to the concrete paths that I walk on around here: https://imgur.com/a/kjYTGBv Lovely in warm weather but it can be a bit wet and gloomy in mid-winter. I also had a haircut before heading off to do the grocery shopping. Far more things than I normally cram into one day.

Cali, that bear story got a mention here too – I’m glad we don’t have to deal with that here. On my walk today I did a loop of the local cricket oval where a flock of galahs were eating lunch (probably grass seed). Only one of them stayed still long enough for me to get a photo for you.: https://imgur.com/a/xQff0Sz
Yes I did do 800cal every day (except for one day where I had lunch out and probably ended up around 1200).

Cinque thank you for the flowers – you remembered my favourite colour!
I have just finished the last of the homegrown capsicum for dinner. This is all of them when I first stuffed and cooked them on Sunday https://imgur.com/a/fZftZXe they were really tiny – cherry tomato size and a bit irritating to stuff.

Lindsay, well done on your weight loss, especially as you are lighter than 2018. That must feel so good. I loathe ironing and I stopped when I retired and could get rid of my professional wardrobe for easy wear casual clothes. If this skirt had been any other colour I probably wouldn’t have bought it, but the black & white is so easy to coordinate with.

GDSA, I wouldn’t panic about the lack of weight loss, it sounds like you are already very trim and I suspect it’s just muscle toning that would offer improvement – you many not need to drop anymore weight. Hopefully the work placement in the gym may give you more opportunity to work on those muscles.
That’s a very expensive office loo!
Enjoy the Adelaide events you are attending, they both sound good.

I spoke to the dietitian today about the evening eating, which is the main source of my unwanted extra food and calories and is the eating that never has a connection to hunger. She doesn’t think I need to change my food choices throughout the day, she’s happy with that. She said the evening eating is not a food issue, it’s self sabotage and I need a strategy to deal with it – a distraction was her advice. If it was day time I can just get out and go for a walk, but that doesn’t work in the evening. Her advice is that a task that occupies your mind and hands is the best choice, but not reading as it’s often not successful. Her suggestions were folding laundry, ironing (!!), other housework, art or crafts. Even just having a shower or bath and cleaning your teeth immediately after dinner can help set an end point to food. Now that I am well on the way to having my craft room sorted I can easily find craft project and will pull out some embroidery to work on when I’m next tempted by evening snacking. As I’m avoiding all after dinner food during lent it’s not currently a problem, but I’ll revisit this in April.

As I am now down to 78kg I have changed this week’s eating plan to ease myself back into 5:2. I’m doing 5 days at roughly 1000-1200 cals and two 500cal days. Depending on what I weigh at the end of the week I’ll decide the next step for March. I am planning to add some serious gardening to my daily activity in autumn so I’m hoping that will help me improve both weight maintenance and general fitness and toning.

Have a lovely evening all.

Good evening all, lovely to read all the posts.

CalifDreamer,like LJoyce, I read about the lady in Alaska who was ?bitten?clawed by a bear resting under the seat in the outdoor dunny. Glad bears are not a problem over here, though like GDayfromSA, I also hate having spiders around. It doesn’t help that several Australian spiders are poisonous. Probably wouldn’t find them in a dunny, though. Redback spiders tend to lurk around outdoor wood piles, so not in a structure made of wood.

LJoyce, lovely skirt! And what a good result from your restrained eating. Well done you. I am still trundling along, not really fasting, but am around 1 lb less than the start of the month. If I can be 1 kg down, that’s a start.

Cinque, so sorry that you’ve not been well. You still manage to find lovely flower photos to share, which blesses us.

Penguin, are you doing okay? Haven’t heard from you and wonder if you’ve just been busy settling into your new home. Are you still in lockdown?

Thin, hope you get the boat chores done so you can plan your next adventure through the canals. Will you have to return for your second jab?

LindsayL, brave of you to tackle the ironing again 🙂 I actually rather like ironing, but don’t think I’ve ironed anything for the past few years. There were a few garments hanging for years on a wardrobe door handle and I finally donated them last year to an op shop. I figured if I’d done without them for a few years, while they waited for me to iron them, I didn’t need them in the wardrobe.

Not sure what the food was that your Chinese neighbour gave you. Sounds like it may be Cantonese (which I don’t speak) rather than Mandarin. Did it have a red or black bean paste inside the rice, then wrapped in leaves that form a kind-of triangle shape? If so, it is a traditional food called zongdza. I don’t think it’s traditionally made at Chinese New Year, though. Maybe on the 15th day of the new year? Or for mid-autumn festival? Though mooncakes are traditional then. Can’t remember now. Amazing the things that get forgotten, though it’s been more than 14 years now since I lived in China, so maybe I have some excuse.

GDayfromSA, hope your practicum goes well. Sounds like it will be fun.

Neilithicman, did the trip go well, without too many bike hassles?

Jonykiwi, aggh! I saw that the Kiwis beat the Aussies in the first round. Oh well, congratulations (reluctantly! 🙂 )

Stay well everyone. Let’s hope we’re all soon able to have the vaccine.

Hello everyone,

Cali, gday :D, after talking toilets with my sisters, one of them wrote about it on facebook and many of her friends contributed toilet paper stories (like only the rich people got to use telephone directories). Anyway, I went to link your bear story and facebook blocked it because it was news.
They’re ending the news blocks, so I should try again.

LJoyce, thankyou so much for such pretty flowers. And won’t little white orchids look beautiful on your table in their new pot.
Aren’t natural paths so beautiful, and much easier on our joints, too.
I can imagine that stuffing such little capsicum were fiddly, but wow, what fun they will be to eat.

Great evening ideas from your dietician. I hope you find a lovely craft project to start.

Betsy, yes, keep trundling. That is a great start. I’d be very happy with a steady kg a month. (No idea how I am doing, but I am slowly going down).

I loved reading your memories of Chinese food related to New Year and other dates.

Lindsay’s Lo Mai Gai was exciting for me because I made a similar glutinous rice dish this week from the old Terry Tan recipe book I found in an op shop. It had Chinese sausage and shiitake mushrooms in it and all cooked in stock. But it was steamed in little bowls. It was easier to make than I thought it might be, and very tasty. I used chorizo instead of Chinese sausage (needs must).
I made three little Chinese bowls full which gave me three very yummy breakfasts. It seems a very flexible recipe and easy to add more vegetables in. (And an exciting change from my usual Indian/Middle Eastern/African bent).

Neil, I’ll be thinking of you tomorrow, wishing you a wonderful ride. You might well come back 2 kg lighter. No more protein fat bombs until next marathon!

Best wishes everyone.

Good afternoon fellow fasters.
I’m doing my first 500cal FD in a little while and so far it been a very easy day – busy which helps a lot. My 1000-1200 days are also going well so far. I am planning meals ahead to around 800cals, so that I can just add an extra snack or piece of fruit etc. Last night I added a piece of sourdough to dinner (my first bread in nearly 3 weeks).

Neil, I hope you have a fabulous trip. Enjoy the helicopter ride and the cycling. We’ll expect you back fit and healthy.

GDSA, many happy returns to Miss GDSA. I hope you all have a lovely day.

Cinque, if you are posting I hope that means you are feeling a bit better.
The glutinous rice recipes are something I never attempt at home – eating out treats only for me. I don’t even own a bamboo steamer basket anymore. I actually think chorizo is much nicer than chinese sausage, so it’s an excellent substitute.

Betsy, when I lived in the hills I kept finding redback spiders in my garden shed. I took to entering slowly armed with a rubber thong to do some serious whacking with.
There is nothing wrong with getting back into better eating slowly. I could have done that, but I’m an impatient sort. I am joining you on the slow road this week though.

I’m trying to get my menus for Sunday sorted out so that I can get any remaining shopping done Friday. I’m feeling a little worried that I’ve more than I can chew, hosting a brunch for 8 and dinner for 10 on the same day. I am tying to overlap things so that I can make larger amounts and use them for both events. I’ve changed my minds on what to make at least a dozen times. Time for some decisiveness I think.

I planned an omelette for dinner but don’t feel like cooking. Thankfully the weather’s mild so I can be tempted to eat soup. I now have a serve of minestrone defrosting – no cooking required.

Good morning

Apologies for lack of posts but work is so crazy it making me crazy. All of my mindfulness has gone out the window but I’m not dwelling on that now

My calendar tells me it is lovely LJ’s birthday today so I hope I got that right and if so HAPPY HAPPY BIRTHDAY LJ!!!! Also congrats on your recent loss

Neil, have a wonderful trip

G’day, I hope all of the birthday celebrations go well and now-adult Miss Gday has lots of fun. Thank goodness the Covid restrictions have been reduced to the point where you can celebrate pretty much normally

Cinque, I hope you are feeling better

Betsy, hang in there and doing things slowly is better than not doing it at all

Lindsay, fabulous loss. I’m so happy for you and your friend

Hi Cali, Thin, Jony and our lurking friends I have run out of time. Take care

A quick hello,
Happy birthday wishes to Miss Gday, it sounds like a hoot of a celebration.
I totally relate to your present policy, it was the same with my daughter.

What a pity you are so frightened of spiders, Gday… and not interested in living in a city apartment, 6 floors up, which is my SIL’s way of dealing with his spider phobia. (None come in!)

LJoyce, hooray for an easy 500 calorie day, and sympathy for a hard next day.
Hooray that you think chorizo was a good substitute for Chinese sausage as I wasn’t at all sure. I’ve never had Chinese sausage.
Ooh is Sunday your birthday? Good luck with all the prep.

Anzac, sending good wishes
Lindsay I hope this week has gone well,
Betsy, you too!
Thin, are you scrubbing the poop deck?
Penguin https://imgaz.staticbg.com/images/oaupload/banggood/images/20/C8/5399a9e1-4f27-4d06-b7dc-8e6bfedda835.jpg

I see in Dr Mosley’s twitter he has just aired a documentary on UK TV called “How to stay a healthy weight” I presume we will see it to coincide with his speaking tour? Do you know Gday? Did you see it by chance Thin?

I am a bit better, but putting life to the test by having Miss 6 overnight tomorrow. See you on the other side!

Eat well and mindfully! Cheers all.

Hello, I’m very behind with posts and have just skimmed the last couple.

Cinque, have you been unwell? I hope you’re feeling much better and have a wonderful time with Miss Six. Yes, we have been taking advantage of amazingly warm weather (17C one day!) to prepare our boat for cruising next week. We’ve completed lots of maintenance jobs and, yes, a lot of scrubbing and cleaning. I don’t like the sound of those poop decks.

Neil, glad you’re enjoying the ride.

LJ, happy birthday for whenever it is. Were you a leap year baby by chance? We took ourselves off the electoral roll when we left Perth. Thanks for the reminder though. I gather there have been a couple of awkward moments in the Oz vaccine rollout but I hope you all get the right dose and soon.

My four weeks of 5:2 are now complete with pleasing results and I’m hoping the increase in activity will keep me in the 58s as I plan to revert to 6:1 and try harder.

Hope everyone is safe and well.

Happy Birthday, LJoyce! https://www.lovethispic.com/uploaded_images/334541-Happy-Birthday-Flowers-Gif.gif I hope today is a wonderful day!

Morning all, well I’m finished my ride. I’m tired, sore, but extremely happy. Day 2 was a real mission full of highs and lows, both literally and figuratively. The day started with a 400 vertical meter climb over the first 10 kms. It wasn’t steep, but the track was really rough. It was just big rocks and loose stones so it took me almost 2 hours just to do the first 19 kms up and down the hill. Then I hit some loose gravel turning into a trail and came off my bike. I grazed my knee and palm and I think I jarred my shoulder, but nothing too serious. The new trail along lake Benmore was spectacular and more than made up for the rough morning I had. The day was 114 kms and took me over 6.5 hours.

Day 3 was a relatively short day, 81 kms, but by the last 30kms the 3 days riding caught up on me and I was fast running out of steam. I managed to slog through it and completed the day in 4.5 hours.

I’m having trouble uploading my pictures but I’ll try to get them done this evening. I’m back to work now for a rest, and I think I’ll give the cycling a miss for a few days so my aching legs can have some respite.

Thin, congrats on the good results on 5:2 over the last month, hopefully you’ll continue the good results now you’re back on 6:1

Happy birthday LJ.

Hi everyone else who is lurking but not posting, I hope you all have a great day

Just popping in for a quick hello before I have to go to get the children, so apologies if I miss replying to some posts.
My news, in order of importance (haha), is that my beautiful Rosy won Best of Breed at the Gundog and Large Breeds Championship show on Saturday. It was quite a win, because she is totally untrained (I hang my head in shame), and it was her first show. A very kind woman I met through the breeder found us a handler who did an exceptional job. The same woman then took Rosy into the Best of Group challenge – which was extremely generous, as Rose had just beaten her champion dog for Best in Breed.
My second bit of good news is that after 4 weeks on Fast800, I have lost 6.3 kilos. I’m almost a couple of kilos under my lowest weight in 2018, although I still want to lose another 10. Unortunately I have found I am losing quite a lot of hair – has this been a problem for anyone else?

Now, posts, as I remember them.

LJ Happy birthday for yesterday – I hope your day was wonderful.
Gday nice to have a teenager in the house – such happy times.
Turn, how lovely to read your post and hear all your news. You are doing so well, and your life seems idyllic.
Neil, woo hoo for your marathon bike ride – you should be very proud of it, especially when you think where you were just a couple of years ago.
Thin, good work on getting 5:2 back to where you want to be. I’m thinking you’re leaving the marina today – happy motoring.
Calif, I ended up tossing the Chinese food. It was gluggy – at another time I would have relished it. But OH didn’t like it, and I didn’t want to eat it. A shame, but she will never know. Betsy it was, I think, a food more commonly found in HK, but I’ve also seen it in China (she’s from the north) and another Chinese friend used to make them too.
How are you going Anzac? Keeping your head above water?
And you, Calif. Are you getting out and about a little more, now the vaccines are rolling out?
And finally, dear Cinque. I hope you are feeling better, and your GD didn’t wear you out. A special kind of tiredness, I think, that the little ones give us.
We had the 4 here yesterday as DS and I collected honey, and DD brought her girls over for a play. My house looks like a cyclone has been through. A special morning, though.

OK I should press on. Happy day to lurkers and posters.

Lindsay, how exciting that Rosy won Best of Breed at the Gundog and Large Breeds Championship! That was her first show, right? I am not surprised because she is such a beautiful dog. Congrats to you and OH. Congratulations also on your 6.3 kilo weight loss. That’s a lot for 4 weeks!

Cinque, I hope you are feeling better. It looks like your temperatures are cooling a bit for the next week. Ours are getting closer, but still quite a bit cooler at night. We had our furnace go out for a few days. Luckily we have a propane fireplace in the familyroom that keeps that room warm but had to use a small electric heater in the bird’s room which had to be monitored during the night because it doesn’t have an automatic thermostat. Thankfully the furnace guy was able to diagnose the problem and order and install a new blower and control panel yesterday and it was all covered under warranty. We had roof repairs done on Friday to repair that leak. Fingers crossed that water isn’t getting in anywhere else. With houses it’s always something, isn’t it?

Neil, your bike trip sounds like it was fun and you saw some nice areas. It sounds like a lot of work pedaling up those steep slopes, but great exercise. I bet a nice hot bath would make your sore legs feel better. Can’t wait to see the photos.

Thin, I bet you’re happy to be able to resume your canal travels again. Congrats on finishing a month on 5:2 and getting solidly into the 58’s again.

Anzac, hope you are surviving your hectic work schedule. At least you are able to do it mostly from home. That has to make it a little easier, even with the sometimes long hours.

LJ, it sounds like your birthday celebrations were a great success, even if they involved a lot of cooking and baking on your part. At least you got some good exercise along with all that wonderful food!

Turn, it’s lovely to hear from you again. The 800 plus 16:8 sounds like it’s working very well for you and OH. Which new book are you talking about? They aren’t always released as quickly here.

I’ve just read that 16% of Californians have had at least their first Covid jab, and 6.6 have had both. We go for our 2nd jab late next week. It’s been 10 days since the first one already. Three friends who’ve had their 2nd Pfizer vaccine over the last part of the week had almost no side effects except for a little arm soreness. That’s good to know.

Hope all of you have a good rest of your day.

Good evening all. It’s the start of a new month and new resolutions 🙂

Happily, some of my doctorate work is now getting done, so I don’t feel so stressed, and if I can just organise a bit more sleep at night, the eating should fall into a better pattern. I ended the month 0.4 kg UP on the start of the month, but I’m not too concerned about that, as I did eat a big pasta dish (which I didn’t enjoy much, either!) the evening before weigh-in, and it usually takes me about 2-3 days to lose the fluid gain caused by carbs. Yes, I shouldn’t be eating pasta anyway, but I had this packet in the pantry and didn’t want to throw it out – famous last words! I am determinedly staying within the mildly obese range and not going higher. From tomorrow, the direction will be down.

Turnabout, how lovely to hear from you; it’s been a while. Sounds like you’re doing really well with the cooking and weight control/ loss. Well done you.

Jonykiwi, yes, alack, the Aussies are 2 down to the Kiwis. Sad that the lockdown over your way is affecting the events.

Neilithicman, loved the photos, and what a great ride. Now it’s time to settle back into a more regular pattern, until the next planned trip.

LJoyce, belated birthday wishes for the weekend. I hope you had a lovely time. You’ve been doing well in getting your weight down again, so I hope you’ll be able to settle back into just 5:2 soon. Redback spiders – scary!

LindsayL, yay for Rosy! What a great result, and not surprising, as she’s a beautiful dog. Maybe a bit more maturity? You must have been chuffed!

Anzac65, hope your time will come soon to “smell the flowers”!

CalifDreamer, so glad you’ll have your second Covid-19 jab very soon. That will be such a relief for you. Great that your furnace repairs were covered by warranty.

Cinque, I hope you survived the overnighter by miss 6. I’m sure she was excited to stay over with you. Have your energy levels gradually increased again?

G’DayfromSA, maybe slight overkill with the 3 bugsprays, but I do sympathise. I try to leave spiders alone outside, but inside, yes, straight for the flyspray.

Thin, great that the weather allowed you to do boat maintenance, in preparation for moving on.

Good night all. Hope tomorrow is a great day!

Morning all, wow, it’s been a bit quiet here recently.

Weigh in today, and despite consuming around 5000-6000 calories a day while I was cycling, I still managed to drop half a kilo to 92.2 kgs. I’m going to concentrate on getting my weight back down now. Now that I’m not doing excessive exercise I can start doing my fast days again. I’m going to try getting a head start by doing back to back fast days tomorrow and Friday. Sugar and starchy carbs are back off the menu now as well.

Ljoyce, That’s wonderful, it shows that the best presents aren’t always ones that fill your house with stuff. I hope you’re feeling better today.

Hi Betsy, you and I, March is going to be our month! Great that you’re getting some of the doctorate work done.

Have a great day everyone

Hello,
I’ve missed chatting here. Dreadful night with Miss 6, she slept badly, everything made trickier by her cat phobia so needing to keep Miso the cat separated, and she didn’t get back to sleep after her 3:30 waking.
I looked after myself well, but Miss 4 wanted her turn of Grandma time, and I was ready to get out of the house yesterday (luckily she didn’t want an overnight). Back to a recovery day today, but typing while I drink my coffee.

I haven’t managed to 5:2 this week, yet. I am hoping I can tomorrow.

Thin, sigh, my CFS has been worse lately and my health just doesn’t pick up as much as it used to do if I had a few quiet days.
I read some research yesterday (very small research but aligned with some previous research) that indicated that with ME/CFS there is vascular inflammation after exercise. I wonder if taking an anti inflammatory when I do my little bit of HIIT skipping each week might mean I am not so crook afterwards?

Cheers for your excellent 5:2ing https://i.pinimg.com/736x/9c/5f/0b/9c5f0bbbb564d145ce483a6524ef38af.jpg
Best wishes for a seamless move to 6:1.

Neil, big congratulations for such a successful bike trip and I do hope the nasty grazes are healing nicely. It was terrific to look through the photos.
You will enjoy your low carbs and easy life (until your next challenge!).

Turn, always a treat to see you post!
Cheers to you and Mr Turn with those yummy dishes and a great downward trajectory in that body fat you really don’t need.
I’m drinking a lovely coffee as I write, thankyou 🙂
Say hello to the mountains from me.

Lindsay, go Rosy! I must say, she has always looked like an award winning beauty.
And your bees are so wonderful too!

Jony, yikes! pulling up carpet. I bet the new stuff looks great though.
Your bike group is truly answering a need, may its success continue!
Luckily with 5:2, when a fast day collapses, the next one is waiting ready and enthusiastic for you!

Cali, Oh I have been so happy about the weather here! Except there has been no rain, and all the seeds I planted might have died with my ad hoc watering. But apart from that, it has made everything easier.
Hooray that it is so close to your second jab. It is wonderful just how successful the vaccines are showing themselves to be. I just hope everyone can hold the line a few more months until it is really safe to relax and get back to life as usual.

Betsy, hooray for a big step forward with your doctorate, I hope you can get up some speed now, no more sticky bits bogging you down!
You have done so well to maintain your weight through the tricky times when you couldn’t be losing. All power to you this month.

LJoyce, have you had a gentle time recovering from your cooking marathon, your party and your infusion? Sending good wishes.
Oh my, what a special gift, that newly hatched butterfly! I can’t think of a more special birthday present.

Okay, time to go. Lucky my ‘just 3 things’ does make headway.

Best wishes

Hello friends

Many days without posting, my apologies but I am crazy busy as usual and also not feeling very positive so I tend to not post when I’m feeling this way. This is to avoid sharing negativity unnecessarily

I’m glad you had a nice birthday LJ but so sorry you overdid it. Glad you are feeling a bit better. What an absolute cracker of a gift.

I hope you too are starting to feel better Cinque

Neil, what a trip. Good luck getting back on board with fasting

Yay for Rosy’s win Lindsay! I was very surprised that she would win at such a young age. But she is totally and utterly beautiful so how could they not

Jony and Neil – the Aussies finally had a win last night in the 20/20 cricket. May it continue

Good luck with your new resolutions for March Betsy. I need to do the same but it ain’t happening right now

Cali, I am working 100% full time from home and for that I am daily and eternally grateful. I hope it can continue. Glad temps are starting to warm up there; our weather is all over the place at the moment. Monday was very hot and Tuesday was positively cold. Yesterday mid-range and today quite hot – 28 again. I guess this is just the change of seasons

Lovely to hear from you Turn!

I hope to have a big catch up on the weekend because I have only been able to skim your lovely posts. I worked all weekend last weekend as I was given a few days notice that they had to bring training of the London users forward so I had no option but to prepare my training pack on the weekend. The training started at 7.00pm my time both nights (Tues and Wed) and as an early birdie I was exhausted afterwards. Anyway what can you do but soldier on

Enough from me, take care and chat soon

Good morning,
Fast Day!
And I am working hard for the next few days to get my home ready for my three sisters to visit on Monday and stay the night. It is a squeeze in my little flat (and at the moment you can’t even get into the spare room) but it might be the last time we can all stay together here (all worried we will wake each other up with snoring and toilet visits) so we are just going to make the most of it.
I’m feeling recovered enough from grandmothering to start attacking housework.

LJoyce, glad you are getting a bit of oomph back. I hope today is easy.

So good to understand the hair, nails and skin symptoms of longer term low calorie eating, but I thought the 800 calories were meant to mitigate that, and that the energy the body is getting from stored fat was meant to do the work? It’s complicated, I guess.

Hooray to hear your suitability for the vaccine.
I’ve let go of your fatigue baton, and grabbed your fast day baton!

Anzac. I really hope you can soon start looking for a job with similar pay but much, much, MUCH better conditions. This must be so bad for all the employees health!
Good luck getting it all done, though.
I’m so looking forward to a big catch up from you, but rest and recuperate on the weekend too!

Betsy, and Wilbur! hello,
Slow and steady wins the race. Hoping 5:2 is so easy and sustainable for you it isn’t a problem to keep going until it is time to start figuring out maintenance.
There is something nice about losing so slowly that you can wear and say goodbye to clothes as they get too big for you, and gradually fit into the lovely new ones.

Hooray for another transcript done.

Haha, yes you are so right about enjoying the kids while they are little and want nothing better than time with grandma.

Okay, I am off to do some steady tidying, and then settle down to as many ‘just 3 things’ as I can manage.

Happy mindful eating today! Don’t forget to drink water!

Good evening all. Cinque, I’m glad you are getting some of your energy back, just in time to clean and organize for your sister’s visits. That sounds like it will be a good time, and hopefully not too tiring. Is it a special occasion or just a time when you could all schedule a visit? It sounds like Miss 6 isn’t quite over her sleep issues when she comes to visit. No wonder you were exhausted.

LJ, what a beautiful and thoughtful gift of the emerging monarch butterfly from your great niece and nephew. It’s nice that it stayed around for a while on your outdoor plants. I’m happy to hear that you’re cleared for the vaccines and that they’re starting to administer them there. We go for our second one next Thursday.

Betsy, glad to hear you are getting your transcripts done and still managing some weight loss.

Neil, thank you for posting all of those lovely photos of your ride. You live in a truly beautiful country with so many wide open spaces.

Anzac, it sounds like work is just as crazy when you’re working from home as when going into the office. But at least you don’t have to deal with the commute.

It’s only getting a bit warmer but the two fruitless pear trees in front of the house are just starting to open their white blossoms. They should be in full bloom within the week. They’re the first trees on our garden to bloom each year and it makes it feel like Spring is coming.

Lindsay, you seem to get lots of honey from your hive. Eating it with plain yogurt is one of the best ways to enjoy it.

Good morning all.

Cinque, it sounds like you are overdoing it again, but enjoy being surrounded by your sisters.
I spent a bit of time scrolling through the facebook page of your niece – such yummy cheeses. I loved her question “Cheesecake is an acceptable dinner right?”

Cali, glad to hear that your temperatures are finally warming up a bit. Here it’s still high 20s, which is what we had for most of summer. The difference though is that the mornings are now much cooler and it takes longer to get to the high temp for the day.

Lindsay, have a lovely break on the island. Hope you and your OH come back feeling rested and refreshed.

Besty, any loss is good and having the scales head downward after a period of heading up is a blessing. I’m sure you will settle quickly back into your old 5:2 routine.

I spent Friday in the city. Caught up with previous work colleagues for lunch and went to my favourite bakery in the central market for sourdough loaves. Unfortunately when I arrived home I couldn’t stop eating the fresh bread. I must have consumed close to half a loaf by the time I finally put it in the freezer. I had to abandon my dinner plans because I was so full from all that bread. I haven’t been much eating bread over the previous month so I think it was a reaction to that deprivation – and also that I never really have much self restraint around fresh bread. It’s a good thing that I only buy or make fresh loaves a couple of times a month.

I finally got to T2 and bought their “All Day Breakfast” Tea to try. It’s the first decaffeinated black tea that they have ever sold – about time too! As I try not to have caffeine after 5pm I’m always on the lookout for a decent decaf tea – they are hard to find. I tried it after dinner last night and it’s quite nice. It’s weaker than other breakfast teas – that’s normal for all decaf teas – I think they lose some of the flavour when removing the caffeine. I intend to buy a vanilla pod to stick in the tin with the tea leaves to give it a little more flavour.

Sunday FD for me. I have a bowl of minestrone for dinner and a banana and raspberries this afternoon if I need them.

Good afternoon everyone

Another stunning day in Sydney; we are having a run of sunny warm days without it being too hot. A lot of rain is coming this week but we do need it.

I had a whole weekend off and I feel like a new person. Saturday I did a lot of cooking – both for the freezer and for dinner. Mr Anzac said he had a hankering for some of my pork and prawn steamed dim sims so I obliged along with peking duck pancakes and duck san choy bau. Sunday was housework and several long swims and relaxing with a book. Nice!

Thin, no I’m not looking for another job despite it being horrendously stressful. It is the same in every place I work (apart from the lovely Canadian Bank who have sadly closed down. Boo – there goes my backup plan) as it is the nature of the work, not so much the place. I choose this work so I have no-one but myself to blame. I love the freedom of working pretty much solo and of course being able to WFH permanently is everything to me. My boss gave me a formal recognition last week and it gets sent to everyone in both the project and the business teams we are working for. A whole heap of other people chimed in with such lovely comments I actually cried. It makes everything much more bearable when you realise you actually are making a difference and being appreciated. This all said, my contract is up in 6 weeks (end of April) and two other really good contractors are finishing up at the end of March when their contracts are up as there are budget issues. So I might be looking for another job after all

I’m glad you have been able to continue cruising Thin. It sounds amazing

LJ, bread is my nemesis too and a freshly baked loaf cannot be ignored. I think you did well to get as much as you did in the freezer.

So glad you are feeling better dear Cinque and your catch-up with your sisters’ will be lovely. Isn’t it great that we have come so far that we can now travel interstate again. We still have our trip to Fiji booked for October but I’m starting to lose hope that it will come about that soon.

Yes Klondie, where did you go? Come back please, we miss you

How beautiful those two fruitless pear trees sound Cali. Glad you have had your second vaccine, you must feel very relieved.

My heart melted at your story of your Grandma surrogacy Lindsay. What a lovely gesture from your grandson.

Hi to everyone else, I have run out of time.