Beth is well on her way to her target weight with exercise and the basics of the Slimming World weight loss program

August 4 2007

Beth

-City & country: London, England
-Age: 32
-Weight before diet: 233 lbs.
-Weight now: 173 lbs.
-Target weight: 163 lbs.

Beth loves her carbs and not totally eliminating carbohydrates from her diet hasn't hindered her weight loss progress. By following the basic principles of Slimming World and staying physically active, she is now a stone's throw away from her goal. Beth describes some of the challenges she faces as she loses weight and a number of her motivations that help keep her on track.

-What finally made you decide to start with a weight loss program?
As clichéd as it sounds, I was tired of being fat and tired of being all the things that, for me, go along with being fat. Which is to say, tired of being tired, out of control, disgusted, and angry. I was so tired of it all that I started my diet at what some people would say is the worst time ever – at the end of November, the very beginning of the holiday season. I didn’t want to wait until January 1. I didn’t want to last-chance eat my way through December, and I didn’t want to loathe myself every day of the month in the process.

-What type of weight loss program are you following?
I follow what is known in England as Slimming World – I do their online program, www.bodyoptimise.com. I use the basic principles of their program (I’ve never really worked out their whole “Syn” thing – and besides, I can’t stand that name) combined with some things I’ve learned about myself and about dieting after at least 15 years of gaining and losing weight. I also gave up diet Coke, which I used to drink like it was my job. I really think it’s the gateway drug to sugar – I crave sugar a whole lot less when I don’t drink it.

-Why did you choose this weight loss program?
I’m a carbaholic, and this program theoretically allows you unlimited carbs on what’s known as the Green Choice. But I don’t allow myself unlimited carbs – the words “all you can eat” strike fear in my binge-eating heart. So I usually measure out my pasta when I cook it at home, though I do tend to eat lots of rice at lunch (which I buy from a Japanese carryout and don’t measure out). I also liked that fruit on this program was unlimited (including bananas and grapes), and I really do allow myself to eat as much of it as I want. Yesterday I probably had a good 7 or 8 servings of fruit, maybe more: bananas, strawberries, cherries, plums, nectarines, grapes.

-How long have you been on your weight loss program?
Eight months

-What kinds of physical activities do you like doing to help you lose weight and stay fit?
On previous diets I have always done a lot of running, but because of an injury I’m not allowed to do it very much. Which I spent a lot of time complaining about, because running was the only exercise I really liked. But I’ve gotten over it, somewhat, and I walk on the treadmill (very boring, but very necessary), use the elliptical, do yoga, swim and lift weights.

Actually, I don’t swim very often, but I’m trying to change that. And I walk absolutely everywhere that I can and have time for, including – sometimes – the hour from my flat to my office. I love walking around London and I love my iPod, so it’s not really a chore.

-What were the most difficult obstacles you had to overcome or are still overcoming?
My job is a huge obstacle – the hours are appalling, there’s always cookies and chocolate around, and there are huge amounts of lunches and parties and situations where you have no or very little control over the food you’re being served. There is also travel, and – at least one night a week – a very late night or even an all-nighter. Nothing makes you (or me, really) want to eat more than being exhausted.

Other obstacles: Myself. Seriously – sometimes I don’t think I make my job (of losing weight) any easier by getting so angry and frustrated with myself, but I’m working on that.

-How do you keep yourself motivated?
Not easily. These days I can shop pretty much anywhere, so sometimes I’ll buy myself new clothes, but in the beginning it was very hard, because I was losing weight but it didn’t seem to be having any effect on my appearance or clothing size. So then I would try to remember how much better I felt about myself doing something about my weight (even if nobody else could tell), and how hard it would be to start over again if I gave up. I also love to buy weight loss magazines – as much as I loathe the genre, I still enjoy the illusion that if I read the magazine cover to cover maybe I will find the secret magic tip I haven’t come across in 16 years of stalking diet magazines. I also like reading the success stories. And pretending that I might ever cook some of the recipes.

-Do you have any weight loss tips for our readers?
None that nobody hasn’t already heard, I’m afraid. I guess the one that’s worked for me – and that I’m still working on – is “everything in moderation” (and by everything I do mean everything – from chocolate to exercise.) And don’t ever let yourself get too hungry.

-Do you think it will be easy to fall back into your old lifestyle pattern? How do you prevent this from happening?
It would be so unbelievably easy. I think about how easy it would be almost every day, and I think that’s probably not a bad thing – it means I’m aware of it, so maybe it won’t happen. As for preventing it, if I get too off track – go off piste, in ski terms (I don’t ski – maybe this winter! – but I like the term) – I try to go back to basics for a couple of days. I also try not to eat out more than once per day, which I know sounds ludicrous, but it would be very easy to do otherwise with my job/lifestyle.

-Do you have a favorite Web site or blog that helps or inspires you to lose weight?
Writing about problems on my own blog, A Sense of Scale (http://asenseofscale.blogspot.com), has sometimes helped me sort them – and as an added bonus, I’ve gotten quite a lot of support from the readers and commenters.

My current favorite blogs are Dietgirl (www.dietgirl.com), Body of Work (http://elasticwaist.com/body_of_work), and PastaQueen (www.halfofme.com). And although she doesn’t post there anymore, I still sometimes dip into Tales of the Bathroom Scale (http://dietchick.blogspot.com), kind of the way you flick on the TV, see a movie you love has already started, and get sucked back in again.