talkhealth Blog

Hmmm…today has been an interesting one in the Highlands – and a few lessons have been learnt!

The first is never to veer off the walking path you are supposed to be following. The second is never to sit on a moss covered rock in the rain. The third is to make sure that your coat pocket doesn’t have a hole in it. And finally, I have learnt how much I can push myself and how far I have come. Oh, and Mr WLB is learning too…he actually said, “Don’t worry, I don’t expect you to talk, but just listen to me.”. This was said as we were walking along…he has learnt that I am a grumpy cow when I am tired and that I do not, under any circumstances, ‘do’ conversation whilst I am exerting myself!

We decided to go on a forest walk today to see some ancient oak trees – not that I could spot an oak tree in a forest full of other trees…actually, I could…if I wasn’t so busy looking down at my feet and willing them to keep going!

This forest walk looked beautiful. We checked out the route – with marker posts – and thought that it looked okay. Three miles, a loop – which I like…nothing worse than going as far as you can and realising that you have to turn around and do it all over again! It was clearly signposted and nothing could go wrong as far as I was concerned.

So we set off. I swapped my outdoor jackets to see if the other one was less binbag-like and sweat inducing…it turned out that it wasn’t. I stuffed my pockets full of tissues as I am still suffering from an awful snotty nose and bad chest. I even got out the walking poles.

The scenery was stunning. We were in a gorgeous glen with beautiful colours – you can really see where the inspiration for the tweed and tartan colours come from. There were gorgeous trees, a lovely river, a great viewpoint…and then a sign.

This sign informed us that there was a diversion. Apparently one of these ancient oaks had decided that enough was enough and had fallen over and blocked the route. So we set off over a bridge, and followed the diversion. On the other side of the bridge Mr WLB suggested going in one direction…I said that this was a silly idea as that was the loop and therefore if the path was blocked in a clockwise direction, it would of course be blocked in an anti-clockwise direction.

So we took another path in the other direction – yes, at my insistence. So we set off…the dog – who was loving the surrounding, me in my outdoor gear – already soaked to the skin but not cold as I was exerting myself, and Mr WLB – who was loaded up like a pack-horse with the rucksack and the camera. And we walked alongside the river…and we kept walking…and we kept walking…and we walked a bit more. Now, at this point in time, my legs were getting tired but I decided to stay quiet in the spirit of getting out there and enjoying the atmosphere.

We walked a bit more, over another bridge and then I began to notice buildings on the other side of the river…buildings that we had passed in the car on the way to the woods for the start of our walk. I imagined that there would soon be a bridge back over the river. So we kept walking. There was no bridge. At this point I got a little concerned as the path seemed to veer off away from the river…and away from where I thought that our car might be on the other side of the river. I did contemplate walking through the river, but I am not that stupid!

Mr WLB, sensing that I was flagging, suggested that he jog ahead to see what lay in store for us. The fact that he could still jog at this point was incredibly frustrating…but he weighs half of me, so I let that go! This time next year, I will fecking jog that path with him! So I decided to perch my buttocks on a rock. It looked like an okay rock…fairly dry despite the downpour…but I didn’t notice the moss – which acts like a sponge – and as soon as I sat down I was soaked right through to my knickers.

There was no point in getting up though, as the damage had been done. It just meant that the rest of the walk was spent with me looking like I had taken a shite in my pants…it was an amusing sight I would imagine. It also meant that my legs froze and needed a very hot shower to defrost!

Needless to say, we decided to cut our losses and turn back. So that loop I had hoped for was not to be…and we trudged back along the same path. We were treated to that fine rain that Scotland does so well…it looks like nothing, but soaks you to the skin. We were also treated to quite a downpour at one point. Eventually we reached the bridge we had crossed. Mr WLB muttered something about ‘telling me so’ regarding the other direction…he did say it quietly though – I think he was concerned about walking over a fast flowing river with me behind him!

Once on the other side of the river, I just plodded on. Eventually I realised that my jacket pocket had a hole in it…my snotty used tissues were nowhere to be seen. They are biodegradable, so shouldn’t cause too much harm, but I hate litter with a passion and am contemplating trying to recreate the walk to go and collect them! My unused tissues were wet now…so it wasn’t a pleasant walk back to the car…with a snot and sweat streaked face. A couple of walkers passed us and bid us ‘good morning’ and then quickly said ‘good afternoon’…I said something along the lines of, “Well, it was definitely morning when I set off…I have no bloody idea what time it is now though!” Nice to be spoken to by a stranger though…where I live it would likely be, “Give me your purse and phone, fat bitch!”, rather than, “Good morning.”

Eventually Mr WLB gave me a thumbs up signal…he had walked ahead with the dog as I am a terrible exercise companion, and had spotted the car in the distance. So I trudged on and have never been so pleased to see Freddie Freelander – apart from when I nearly wrote him off but the garage eventually put him back together again!

I made it – a massive walk, and I made it. Mr WLB made a comment about me not throwing a tantrum and how impressed he was that I just gotten on with things. There was no choice really. I could sit there and complain, but ultimately I still had to move my legs and get back to the car. It was hardly a situation for a Highland rescue…just a case of a fat girl who had taken the wrong turn!

It did make me realise how far I had come in that respect…improving my body is improving my mind and my demeanour…I doubt that I will ever be sickly sweet and lovely, but I am not quite so much of a bitch – at times!

So that’s it really. A fairly energetic day that was finished off with a nice hit shower…and a little prayer that I had made today’s dinner last night. I tucked myself up in bed and read a book this afternoon / evening. It was a good one – The October List by Jeffrey Deaver – written backwards…as in the last chapter comes first…there were some pretty bloody good twists and turns that had me literally gasping out loud. I do love reading, but when you can read a whole book in an afternoon, it becomes an expensive hobby!

I couldn’t go without a few scenic pictures for you…

Breakfast: Tomatoes on cheesy toast (HEA, 2 x HEB and 3 syns for an extra slice of cheese).

.Lunch: Cold leftover roast potatoes, tikka chicken and salad.

Dinner: Aloo gobi with Bombay roast potatoes.

Snacks: Fruit, two packets of French Fries (8 syns) and a mini Green & Blacks bar (4 syns).

Another good food day. Toast topped with cheese topped with tomatoes for brekkie. Lunch was lovely – leftover roasts, with chicken tikka and some salad…salad is kind of growing on me now! Dinner was a kind of aloo gobi concoction – I did mine with broccoli and cauliflower a d added green beans, baked beans, tomatoes and onions…along with garlic and the spices. I made my Bombay potatoes with a difference and made them as syn free roasts with the spices on them and they were lush.

Exercise: Walking…quite a lot of it…some of it planned, most of it unplanned!

Thank you for reading,

Weight Loss Bitch xxx

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WeightLossBitch

On a health and fitness driven journey to lose over 32st / 448lbs / 203kgs – yes, it is a considerable amount – I am committed to losing my excess weight without the aid of weight loss surgery, diet pills, or quick fixes…as there aren’t any! Changing my eating habits and building up my fitness levels, along with addressing the ‘head issues’ will be crucial in order for me to achieve my goal. Living in England as a 31 year old super morbidly obese woman can be challenging to say the least. I have been shouted at in the street and verbally abused far too many times to mention; hence the name ‘Weight Loss Bitch’…the day I am just called a ‘bitch’ instead of a ‘fat bitch’ will be the day that I know I have cracked my weight loss! With many reasons to lose this weight I am documenting my journey for a number of reasons. Firstly, I would like to keep a record of the ups and downs, the highs and lows, and the challenges I face with such an enormous task to tackle. Secondly, I would also like to inspire and encourage other people who are in a similar situation and to show them that significant amounts of weight can be lost naturally…with a bit of motivation, hard work, dedication and will power. Thirdly, all of the blogging, Facebook-ing, Tweet-ing, Pinterest-ing and YouTube-ing keeps me occupied and keeps my fingers out of the fridge!