The one step forward week (of two steps back)

It’s very strange.  Normally if I so much as inhale near a pudding, it means no loss – or a gain.  Reader: I had two helpings of Eaton Mess over the course of the weekend.  I was very careful with the booze and had a modest helping of P’s delicious Asian food.  But I also keep getting waves of queasiness which meant that lunch on two occasions was just a small bag of Ritz crackers (small: good, crackers: bad.  Reader, what do you eat when you feel a bit sick and need something to settle your stomach but that’s also diet-friendly?). 

The strangeness is that I appear to have lost 1lb.  I’m certainly not knocking it but I am perplexed, bemused, bewildered.  I’m also wary as I may well pay for it next time.  Not to mention that I’m not entirely certain it’s the case – I’m bad with numbers and I wonder if I put the wrong weight last week.  Hmmm.

This brings my total loss to 1st 11.5lbs in 22 weeks.  S-l-o-w.  I think it’s unlikely now that I’ll make 2st before I go away in 4 weeks, given birthday week (more of which below).  I look at my supposedly motivational trollbeads bracelet with its single bead on and it makes me sad.  It really needs some friends.  It’s going to have to wait – I’m 2.5lbs off my 2st and don’t expect to see it any time soon.  And I certainly won’t make my target for my holiday which would be another 10.5lbs – that’s light years away.  Or more literally, next year.  That was supposed to be a realistic target!  Wow, did I ever fail at that. 

So, the birthday week.  Well, weekend.  Well, couple of days. I was saying ‘week’ as that’s a WI period.  Rather neatly, I next WI next Wednesday.  That is the Night Before Birthday (when all through the house, not a creature was stirring.... oh, wait) when after work P and I will be going for 2-3 cocktails, followed by dim sum for dinner at Yauatcha.  Now, as birthday meals go, it’s not too bad – no rich sauces, no mammoth portions, no pudding.  But cocktails?  Not so good.  Although I’ll have to walk c4 miles in to work due to the tube strike, walk to the hotel bar for cocktails, then walk to the restaurant, then walk back to a station to start a convoluted trip home.  But as we know, exercise has no impact on my weight. 

The following day I’m buying doughnuts from Bread Ahead for the family (salted caramel and honeycomb anyone?  Yes, me too), then my two little nieces are coming over with my mum for lunch (dim sum again – different place, something of a coincidence because they LOVE dim sum and we have a good place near us).  Then down to Suffolk and pizza for supper (and wine) with a doughnut chaser.  I then have afternoon tea the following day with my best friend and god-daughter (in lieu of breakfast and lunch but still).  That’s it.  Although I’m sure we’ll have a bottle of fizz at some point, usual service will then resume.  I know this looks a lot, but actually I’m trying really hard not to turn it into a whole week of hedonistic over-indulgence.  But obviously I’m going to put weight on.  We’ll be hiking – but see above. 

Then I have to put my back back into it to try and lose that birthday present of extra blubber in the next 3 weeks before we fly.  My prediction is that I will lose the weight I put on in birthday week but it will take those 3 weeks – so, in all likelihood, this is my flight weight.  As it were.  I need to start thinking calmly and practically about clothes for holiday on this basis, rather than lying awake in the wee small hours fretting myself into a frenzy over it.  I need to try stuff on (I HATE doing this) and work out what I need to get.  I don’t want to, but I must.  Better now than a last-minute panic, exacerbated by nothing-fits-panic.