The Fast Diet continues and the BiBs voting closes ... how exciting!!

Well ... how nice is this?? Its 6.30 on Thursday evening and I am sprawled sitting on my sofa with my laptop - dinner in the oven, son #1 in the kitchen with his maths tutor, son #2 at football with my husband and all is well with the world!! Its very rare to find me able to do this sort of thing - luxury!!

I can now trawl the web to my heart's content, safe in the knowledge that there is a scrumptious chilli in the oven and I am up to date with everything that is important. Obviously I could be, at this very minute, hoovering or dusting or maybe tidying something ... but, for goodness sake!! I'm not Anthea Turner and it will still be there for me to do tomorrow ... or the next day.

Interesting news on the Fast Diet front. I had a bit of a naughty week as far as food went ( although I stayed true to my fast days ) because I had friends over for lunch one day and probably ate my body weight in Boursin, but ... my stats were really rather intriguing. Well ... when I say intriguing they are probably quite dull to anyone not on the Fast Diet, but  I thought I would share them anyway.

Although I put on just under a kilo in weight ( just under 2 pounds) my percentages were very different. My fat percentage went down from 44.9% to 41.7% and my muscle and bone percentages increased. I have definitely lost fat around my middle and I am hoping I have lost internal fat too.

The whole fasting thing has eased into a steady routine and I am able to manage my fast days well. I feel hungry, but it is not unpleasant. I tend to have a cup of tea when I get up, then I don't eat until about 1pm when I have a piece of fruit. I then wait until early evening to eat my 300 to 400 calories. I have bought myself a nice water bottle and am drinking way more water than I have done in years.

I feel so much more alert than I did before. My mind is clear and I can articulate my ideas far better than I did before. This of course sounds ridiculous and it may be purely my imagination, but this is how I feel! I am sleeping better, don't feel bloated and ( probably too much information this ... ) I have started having periods again for the first time in nearly a year. I can see this being a long term way of life.

Its strange that when you mention you are on a fasting diet some people have the reaction that you are mad, its not safe, its a fad. My brother in law, when I suggested he go on it rather than struggle to diet, said that he wanted something sustainable. For me, being on this plan seems far more sustainable than the " being on a diet" plan where you spend your whole time thinking about what you can't eat and what you are going to have for your next meal.. Each to their own though.

This week I have no plans to gorge myself on cheese and my hormones will be back to normal so hopefully next week my weight will be lower again.

On other matters the voting closed in the BiBs Awards. I still can't really believe that I was nominated for a national award. I don't know who nominated me, but if you are reading this ... Thank You!!!! Last year I reached the short shortlist for the video section of the BiBs and I don't think it really hit home how amazing it was to be up there. This year we will all find out who has made it to the top 6 on the 22nd May and I am so excited!! If I make it to the last 6 this time it will mean so much! To have my writing, my blog, recognised by a national award would be incredible. I am not, however, counting any eggs or chickens yet as I am up against some very good blogs. Cross your fingers for me??

Are you going to BritMums Live 2013? I am!!! Hope to see you there!

Are you going to BritMums Live 2013? 

I am going this year and have entered the Linky here so I can hopefully get to know some of the other lovely bloggers who will be there. Why don't you enter too ??

Name: Sarah

Blog: The Secret Life of an Unknown Housewife

Twitter ID:  @ugglymuggly       (it used to be @secrethousewife,but I stupidly lost my password.Doh)

Height: 5ft 

Hair: Blonde   

Eyes: Blue

Is this your first blogging conference?    

                                                                            

                                                                                                 

No. Its my second. I came to BritMums Live 2012.

Are you attending both days?

Yes I am and I'm really looking forward to both. This time I'm staying for the BiBs too as I'm on the long shortlist for the Lifestyle category. Will find out soon if I'm lucky enough to be on the short shortlist!!! But even if I'm not I'm looking forward to seeing who wins ... so many good bloggers!

What are you most looking forward to at BritMums Live 2013?

I am hoping to be able to meet up with some of the people whose blogs I read and who read mine. I am also really excited about hearing Katie Piper speak.

What are you wearing?

Probably purple jeans and pink laced cat boots (comfy & not as lary as they sound) and a weather dependent top ( I thought a top was advisable...)

What do you hope to gain from BritMums Live 2013?

I want to learn more about blogging. I hope I am not as shy as last year and actually have the guts to go up and chat to people. 

Tell us one thing about you that not everyone knows

I have dived with sharks whilst having my foot nibbled by a moray eel ...

Thanks for reading this! If you see me at BritMums Live I would love to have a chat! I may look like I know what I'm doing,but its all a facade!! I will be chuffed to meet you!!

From sunshine and cake to rainy days and Fridays.

Its been a funny old week ... I started off basking in sunshine with my friends at a local tearoom. It overlooks acres of farmland occupied only by the occasional horse and a fair proportion of bumble bees and flowers. We sat in the warm Spring sun sipping tea poured from a proper pot, complete with hand knitted cosy and loose leaves and luxuriating in the taste of freshly baked Victoria sponge.The three of us put the world to rights and planned the day when we could open our own bijou tearoom ...

What a dream that would be ... a quaint little place with assorted china, wild flowers in jam jars and the best homemade cakes, baked using eggs from our hens. We could have book club evenings, film nights (only black and white of course ...) and who knows what other cosy get togethers ... ho hum ...

Of course its not going to happen is it? But I can dream ...

From that sundrenched afternoon of happiness things seemed to go slightly downhill. Not terribly, mind you, but enough to give me a penchant for wine and and quite a sore throat from yelling at my boys. As you may know, my boys are teenagers now. They somehow managed to change from mild mannered, golden boys to rather hairy and often quite grumpy young men in the blink of an eye. I wonder when it happened sometimes. People tell you to make the most of when they are little because it doesn't last long and you nod sagely whilst thinking how ridiculous a thing to say. But of course its true ...

One minute they are snuggling up for a bedtime story and the next they are slumped on the sofa in only their underpants and the entire contents of a tin of Lynx.

Despite my earlier post revealing my plans for my son's revision things didn't go quite as planned. Despite getting an A for his maths and a B for chemistry he managed to get a U for Biology and has spent the week revising for a resit. Or should I say he has spent the week avoiding doing revision. I think that I could probably get an A if I sat the paper now as I have been the one doing most of the studying. I have made him sit with me going over the paper again and again.

Did you know that if they fail end of year exams they get given their paper back, complete with all the correct answers for the retake? To fail a resit you have to be either totally stupid because you just don't understand the questions or answers ... or totally stupid because you don't sit down and learn them. I can now tell you about the nitrogen cycle and how to clone a pink iguana ... two skills I never thought would enter my life. We shall see if the child has passed or not next week.

It never ceases to amaze me how selfless parents are. Even I, who am not a natural parent, being of a more selfish and self-absorbed disposition than the average mother, find myself putting myself last when it comes to my boys. From the moment my first son was born I found myself doing things like change his nappy, feed him ... before I did things for myself, like lie down before I fainted from the pain of a cesarean  I remember the awful moment when I realised that nobody else was going to look after this little bundle of pinkness ...

Even though I would rather sit slumped infront of a black and white film with a glass of merlot and a bowl of sweet chilli crisps, I find myself heading off in all weathers to watch football in weather as horrid as this ...

Last night was one of these evenings. The weather had changed from balmy bliss to something akin to the Siberian Wastes. Although we have entered the second week in May, MAY  I was wrapped in a ski jacket, scarf, gloves and woolly hat. Even then I was freezing cold, soaked to the skin and losing the will to live.

I do realise, reading this back, that my enthusiasm for motherhood would appear to come a poor second to my liking for wine, cake and generally sitting about having a good chat with friends. This would probably be an accurate appraisal of the situation. But, let's face it, I still do all the right stuff, don't I? I may not like it, but I do sit down and work out revision timetables. I do stand on touchlines watching endless hours of mindnumbing ( obviously purely because of the weather ...) football. I do cook and clean and get up at the crack of dawn to ... well ... to have some time to myself actually. 

So ... its important to be able to do that ... have time to yourself. The realisation of that truth was one of the things that helped me get through my PND. You can't just be a mum all the time ... for me that way lies madness. 

My week has ended as it began ... almost. With friends for lunch, sadly indoors as the weather was so blowy today, but still warm and enjoyable, just like the afternoon at the tearoom. I love cooking for friends ( or just opening packets of cold meat, salad and cheeses, ok, ok like I did today...) An afternoon spent with like minded women who make me smile prepares me for any grumpiness the boys can sling my way. Come on fellas ... I'm ready for you!

If you liked my post maybe you would consider voting for me?? I am shortlisted in the BiBs Awards in the Lifestyle Category amazingly!! If you click here you can read all about them and then look for the blue link to  Vote for the 2013 BiBs now

Please vote before 12th May for The Secret Life of an Unknown Housewife!!

Thank you!!!!!

xxx

The Fast Diet ... week 5 and life is feeling fine!

Its a lovely sunny day and my mood is sunny too. Not only did I spend all yesterday afternoon planning my lessons for this week, leaving me feeling rather satisfied and smug, but I have lost weight and lowered my BMI. Woohoo!!

Since I have been on Dr Michael Mosley's 5:2 Fast Diet it has been, as they say on the telly, a journey! I have just about got myself to the the right place with the whole thing, after a month of experimentation. And, at last, the weight is starting to come off. Not only that, I feel so much better in myself. I have lost that bloated, fat feeling and feel so much more alert in myself too.

The interesting thing about eating a reduced calorie intake twice a week is that I don't feel the need to overeat the other 5 days. In fact it has made me more aware of what I am eating and I am enjoying a far healthier diet purely because that's what I fancy.

Yesterday I made flapjacks ( blinking delicious I am told!!) for my Book Club. I didn't eat any as it was my fast day, but had thought that I would have one this morning with my coffee for breakfast. But, actually, I'm not bothered. I've given them to my boys as part of their packed lunch and I had a bowl of porridge instead.

I have read interesting reviews on the Fast Diet which are scathing, but for me the diet is working. It fits in with my lifestyle, is flexible, does not deny me the enjoyment of food and has resulted in me feeling a lot healthier, cleaner ( if you know what I mean?) and generally happier.I don't think being hungry twice a week is a killer and you'd be amazed at how filling a big bowl of salad can be at only 50 calories.

I have put my stats on my Fast Diet page on the tabs above, but over all I have lost a couple of pounds and 2 inches off my waist. All good. I am looking at this as a way to live my life forever - not as a quick fix fad.

If you are just starting or about to start? Good Luck!! Experiment to see what suits you and keep going if you don't lose weight immediately. Its not all about weight loss, its about a healthy life!! And as I said at the start, my life today is looking decidedly sunny. Woohoo!!!

     I am so thrilled to be on the shortlist for the Lifestyle Category of the BiBs. If you could take the time to vote for me by clicking on the badge to your left I would be really grateful!! Voting closes on 12th May. Thank you!!!

Kids' Football and the loneliness of the long distance mum.

One down and one to go ... I am talking about football here. As mum of two boys who are football mad I spend most of my Sundays from August through to about now swathed in outrageously michelin man stylee coats, thick scarves, beanie hats and gloves. I long ago gave up trying to look glamorous or, to be frank, even vaguely attractive. The name of the game is to make it through an hour and a half of brain numbingly cold football without developing frost bite or the latter stages of hypothermia.

I share the touchline with a group of other parents whom I would probably never recognise during the summer months. We have no idea what colour hair each of us have, no idea as to the shape of each other's faces. All we have in the way of recognisable features is a set of desperate eyes and occasionally a blue tinged nose peeping over the top of a woolly scarf.

We share a love of our children and a stoic acceptance of our fate. A fate that involves hours of frustration in the cold, interspersed by the occasional shaft of bright sunlight when the boys win ... or even just score.

There is also quite a large level of guilt. This is generally brought on by tournaments. Tournaments take the whole football thing to another level. A tournament means more than an hour and a half on the touchline ... it means possibly a whole day. This involves provision of drinks, snacks, flasks of coffee and a generous amount of chocolate ... and then of course there's the picnic for the kids. The day usually starts with an inordinate amount of optimism regarding the outcome of the competition, but as the day stretches on a parent usually finds themself wishing for losses. After all, if the team loses we all have to go home ... earlier. Unless the fiendish organisers have introduced a "Plate" competition. This is for the teams who have lost everything. Instead of having to go home to a warm house and a nice lunch they get the chance to keep on playing for a plate trophy ... along with all the other bad teams ... How lovely.

So the guilty parent outwardly enthuses about the team's performance, whilst internally they are selling their soul in the desire for it all to be over...

Don't get me wrong ... watching your children play sport can be magnificent. Winning a game can be the most exciting feeling and seeing their faces alive and alight with the joy of victory is just wonderful! But it doesn't seem to happen that often. And spending your weekends acting as taxi, supporter and then psychoanalyst can wear thin after 8 months.

Therefore it is with joy that I can say that Son #2's season has finished today. They have avoided relegation and yet won't have to cope with a tricky higher division either. Of course there will still be friendly matches well into the summer and training will continue for a while, but the pressure of having to attend every single match, no matter the weather and no matter that the opposition plays in Outer Mongolia, is over.

Now I just need Son #1's season to come to a close as well. Then I can gather my strength and spend 4 months preparing the the next season. I am thinking of treating myself to some thicker long johns and possibly a hip flask.

 Hello!!! Please can you take a moment to click on this badge and vote for me in the Lifestyle category of the BiBs?! I have been shortlisted and voting will close on the 12th May. I am so thrilled and excited!! Thank you!!!

Please vote for my blog which has been shortlisted in the BiBs Awards 2013!!!

A little while ago I put a badge up on my blog asking my lovely readers to nominate me for the BiBs and ... to my amazement and eternal gratitude ... some of you did nominate me and because of that I have been shortlisted in the Lifestyle category. Whoooop whoooop!!!

The BiBs are a national awards ... Brilliance in Blogging ... and are run by BritMums, the largest Parenting site in Britain. There are 16 blogs on the shortlist for each category and the voting now begins!! On 12th May the voting stops and the top 6 blogs for each category go through to the Finals where the judges will decide on the winners. Those winners will be presented with their awards at BritMums Live 2013, a huge blogging conference in London, complete with champers and spotlights!!

There are some amazing blogs up for the awards in various different categories, everything from photography to travel to inspiring blogs to new blogs.

So now ... if you like my blog ... I wonder if you could take a moment to vote for me?? Please!!! All you have to do is click on this badge below and you will be whisked away to the Land of Awards where you will find lists of blogs. If you scroll down mine is under Lifestyle.

If you look for the blue link that says:

Vote for the 2013 BiBs now!!  Click and you will be taken to the voting page.

                                                               

I hope that's not too convoluted ... Its pretty self-explanatory really ... and I would be so chuffed if you did vote for me. Thank you lovely reader!!! x