Yeah for Lockdown ending and getting back to a new normal. Being able to return to the gym is a BIG deal. But this hasn’t stopped me from a health transformation during lockdown. This post is about how I lost 2 stone with clean eating and exercise during lockdown.
My weight over the years
My weight has been something that has caused me much unhappiness since the age of 16. Until the age of 37 I battled with weight gain and weight loss and have been as heavy as 16 stone. I attended slimming world approximately 200 times, some weight would go, but it would always go back on with a bit more.
My worst point was when I was 30, unhappy at work, unhappy with life and I was 16 stone in weight. Easily a size 20 and I hated myself.
I quit the corporate world in 2015 to set up Mrs Mummypenny and my life transformation part one began. I paid for three hypnotherapy sessions with my good friend Heather Hall in Hemel Hempstead that guided me on the journey towards getting my weight under control. Within six months my weight has reduced from 14 stone to 11 stone and I was a comfortable size 10-12.
The Winter of Discontent
Fast forward to the winter of discontent. Sept to March 2019/20 was beyond awful. 2019 was the worst year of my life, far far worse than Coronavirus 2020 has been since March. I ended my marriage and my ex refused to leave the house that I now own.
My weight spiralled. I turned to food and sugar as a comfort. As the only way to control life. I spent money to get away every other weekend to escape the prison of my house. I went on holiday several times. By Christmas 2019 I was back to a size 16 and 13 stone. Yet again I hated myself and I hated my life.
Gaining Control of Me
March 2020 saw me gain control. I paid the divorce settlement my key to escape the prison and my life transformation part 2 began. Lockdown also began four days later.
I immediately stopped binging on sugary food and started cooking healthy, often vegan food from my Mindful Chef deliveries. (Refer a friend link we both get a £20 credit if you sign up using this link!) I learnt so many new recipes and was encouraged by my reducing waistline every week.
I started a fitness challenge rasing Money for Grief Encounter in May, determined to bike, run or walk 500km during the month. I got to 400km and then my body gave up. But by this time I had lost 1 stone.
My Body and Mind Gave Up
Every virus that sat hidden in my body came out to play and my body and mind gave up. I was bleeding constantly, I had shingles and strange rashes, coldsores, I was tired, sleeping 12 hours a day. My body was no longer in fight or flight mode so my adrenal and immune system gave up. (This is my assumption, as all the medical tests have come back negative!)
I had to stop and let me body and mind recover. I started therapy, human based psychotherapy and dealt with my mental health. I had some incredible PTSD Rewind therapy and by the end of June and after just three sessions I was feeling wonderful.
Clean Eating Detox
I decided to reset my body with clean eating. From the middle of June I started a fairly strict clean eating plan. My last drink was a bottle, yes bottle of Rose champagne that one of my angel friends Marianne had given me for my decree absolute arriving in June.
For three weeks I ate just clean food. this meant cutting out seven things, all alcohol, caffeine, meat (but I did keep eating fish for the protein and health boost), gluten, sugar, dairy and acidic food.
This sounds extreme but there was a lot I could eat. Rice noodles, all vegetables, pears, papaya, blueberries, brown rice, herbal tea, tofu, seasoning, spices, vegetable vegan curry. Meaty vegetables like aubergine, cauliflower and mushrooms were my friends. And I must commend the vegan/vegetarian range at the co-op that tasted amazing when I needed something different to eat that was easy to prepare. And I love violife vegan cheese!
Sugar cravings!
By day five the tiredness and sugar cravings were at their peak, the only solution was to sleep. Did you know that sugar is more addictive than cocaine? I discovered kundalini yoga, with Reborn Yoga over Zoom. Coincidentally the wed sessions were all about detox, perfectly timed for me.
The cravings soon ended and I kept going for three strong weeks. I weighed myself by the end of the three week and I had lost another stone. My total weightloss was 2 stone and I was back down to 11 1/2 ish stone and a comfortable size 12, sometimes a 10.
Shopping and Cocktails
I rewarded myself with a trip to newly re-opened John Lewis and got some amazing 70% off Mint Velvet clearance bargains for my life transformation all in sizes 10 and 12. Thank you Katherine, the mostest wonderful personal stylist for helping to choose wonderful pieces.
I also headed into London (so nice when quiet) to see my friends at Revival Retro vintage shop to choose two dresses. I walked to Estiatorio Milo’s Greek fish restaurant near Picadilly and had my first cocktail since detox, a gin cocktail with thyme and chilli (amazing) and had some sea bass sashimi.
I am slowly introducing new food back into my diet but am still caffeine free, and mostly meat free. I am not alcohol free in any way, so obviously I am back on the sugar as well from the booze. Although its mostly gin that I am drinking, very clean alcohol.
Clean eating works!! Obviously my three weeks was hardcore and was needed after exhaustion and illness, but even if you can do a week its worth it.
Let me know how you get on!
