Off to Cornwall

14st 3lb. I do believe I am now 2lb less than when I last went to Cornwall eons ago! Never mind, at least I'm not more. I have packed up a picnic for the journey - a ham sandwich, an apple, a banana and some sesame snacks. I have bought goodies for the girls but only 2 of each so that it would be "not fair" if I ate one. We shall sing along to CD's. I am looking forward to seeing my Mum again and hopefully exercising her dog with some invigorating walks by the sea.

Another day with nothing in the diary. I wrote a list as long as my arm to do and left "Blog" until last as my treat. I have had a busy day and have achieved alot - I am going away with a fairly tidy house for once, washing ironed and put away, car tidied out (only because I have to lend it to my sister in law while I borrow hers) and some baking done for Bruce whilst I'm away.

Anyway, I know I've always been against faddy diets (in fact you could be forgiven for wondering what diet I actually follow!) but there have been a couple of articles in the paper recently, one of which made my ears prick up as a possibility. The first one, which isn't for me but has some valid philosophies, is the Jesus diet - spiritual dieting is apparently gaining converts with groups being held in churches around the UK. Surprise, surprise - it's come over from America. Over the water, the groups are called, Weigh down, Thin Within, The Hallelujah Diet, The God Diet, etc but over here we need to be a bit more subtle apparently and the groups are called Fit for Life Forever. It works on the principle that, to tackle weight issues you need to address the root causes such as unresolved pain and low self esteem. As we have discussed previously, there is alot to be said for that. I love the bluntness of one comment: "No more blaming genetics, the food content or stress for our weight gain. The main reason for being over weight is overeating." Say it as it is! Anyway, Jesus would have lived on nuts, lentils, vegetables, beans, bread, water and red wine - a mediterranean diet effectively but with meat on only very rare occasions. So, lots of wind and hunger. Not for me.

However, the one that caught my eye is the feast/famine diet where you eat what you like one day and eat sparingly the following and then alternate. Now, on closer inspection the "eat what you like" day doesn't exactly advocate steak & chips followed by rich chocolate mousse and a cheeseboard, but it does allow more flexibility than a usual diet. The famine day would be tougher as you need to eat between 20% and 30% of the recommended intake to lose weight. This diet is supposed to have had fantastic results for asthma suffers in particular but it also lowers blood sugar levels, improves mental health and a low calorie diet extends life expectancy. Win. Win. The trial was done on 16 patients all over 14stone - they ate 20% of their normal intake one day and a normal healthy diet the next over a 10 week period. They all lost between 10lb and 30lb, far higher than expected.

The reason I think this could work for me is that, even if you are hungry one day, you know you are going to be able to eat normally the following day. Even over Christmas, if you time it to hit Christmas day, you can have a good scoff on the day and be abstemious on Boxing Day. I am sure a little tuck in to the Celebrations on Christmas Day could be allowed. Anyway, I am going to be the guinea pig and, starting Monday, I am going to alternate days - starting with the pig-out (kidding!).

In the meantime, I have some strict cliff walks to complete if I am to get near my being down to 14stone target for November by Tuesday!

Away until Monday, when I will be back I promise - no skiving off or avoiding anyone!

E xx