Hi there: life update and restarting my weight loss journey

*Removes some cobwebs, whilst cat runs after a spider* Well hello there! I am sure by now you were wondering if this blog was ever going to see another update. Surprise! I’m back!

Well sort of… I am not going to promise to write every single week, as I know that my CFS (Chronic Fatigue Syndrome) does not always allow me to do so – don’t underestimate brain fog. However, I do plan to most more frequently than twice a year haha. And why? Because I now actually have the time, the head space and a reason to do so!

Up until mid-June I was juggling 4.5 days of work with completing a post graduate degree in Digital Curation and trying to do even a little bit of work on my PhD (still working on this…). Add a 5 hour (2,5 to and 2,5 fro) daily commute to that pre-lockdown and you can probably see why I did not exactly have any time or energy to blog.

However, my new job, which I am to start in October, actually has me working from home so that leaves a lot more time and energy to work on different things! Huzzah! Time to dust off this blog, make some progress with that PhD and actually get back into planning.

So…what’s my reason to get back into blogging? I can’t say my life is particularly interesting at the moment as Birmingham is going back into local lockdown as I write this. So don’t expect any outdoorsy adventures, because there are going to be none (I’m high risk: I don’t leave the house unless I 100% have to!).

So why then? Well to be frank: accountability. Like, I need to lose these Covid kilo’s so I can fit back into some of my clothes lol. Yeah… like almost everyone else I have gained weight… And it was not just being stuck in doors that did this… It was also the stress of finding a new job during a global pandemic. I had two job interviews lined-up in March and then lockdown happened, causing them both to be postponed indefinitely. And let me tell you, it’s been one hell of a struggle finding a different one.

I’ve always been someone who handles stress really well, but apparently when it comes to unemployment… well, not so much… I can now honestly say I have a new standard to measure stress against: “I am so stressed it is giving my cat bladder problems”. Poor Pancake has been having a right old time peeing because she picks up on my stress, the poor thing! But don’t worry I am doing all I can to make sure she gets better!

So, basically this means this blog is going back to its roots. I created it in May 2016 for the exact purpose of helping me lose weight, so we are just starting right over again ;).

For now, my weight loss journey will mostly involve adjusting what I eat as finding an appropriate workout has been a struggle… You know that feeling that makes you genuinely feel great when you have done a workout as the adrenaline and endorphins rush through your body? Well turns out that for CFS suffers it doesn’t work that way. Research suggests that our body either doesn’t create endorphins, or does so only in a small amount when we exercise. As a result, if I do anything high intensity I feel absolutely awful and cannot do anything intensive for days on end. So no Chloe Ting 2 week shred for me… >.>

Walking has always been a great way for me to get my exercise in without too much backlash… which is great, but not during lockdown. I have, however, found a series of Youtube videos with “walk 1 mile at home” workouts so I will be doing those. The key will be to build this up and not immediately start doing them every day… Which I have to say sounds depressing. I mean, my brain is like: it’s 15 minutes of walking in place with some sidesteps… Like… seriously? What’s so freaking hard? And my body just goes like: try doing this two days in a row and I will make you SUFFER! <– yeah I made that mistake… Not doing that again.

So healthy food it is! As always, I am being helped in this by my lovely Herbalife coach Kim van der Laan. She introduced me to the Herbalife shake + herbal supplements years ago and they really have made a difference. I take the sake every morning and the fiber supplements 3 times a day. Kim’s coaching has been extremely flexible, and she really adjusts it to my needs. I can reach out if and when I need her, but it’s also okay if I need to take a step back. Honestly, I cannot recommend Kim or Herbalife enough to those who want more energy and to create a healthy lifestyle. If you are interested, let me know and I am happy to answer any questions or bring you in contact with Kim.

In the next blog I will go into more detail about my current and target weight, weight-loss plan etc. so stay tuned for that.

As always thank you for reading <3.