Katie ♥ Matt (IDST)

I’m going to hold my hands up; I haven’t made it to weigh in this week for a number of reasons really. 

1) I’ve been in London for a few days and the timing of the trains meant we missed the morning meeting 

2) We had an business meeting, which meant we couldn't attend t the evening meeting.

   If I’m doubly honest I’m also pleased because although I wasn’t naughty whilst we were away, I wasn’t as good as I could have been, there were a few cocktails and a scampi and chips incident on Monday night after we came out of the concert, I can’t lie, I really enjoyed them!

Katie & Lucy London selfie!

  Still it’s back to my Slinky mission and today it was back to my morning porridge and fruit, I think a treat every now and again is fine as long as you go back to the diet straight away.

Breakkie of porridge grapes and banana

  Lucy and I went to London as we had tickets to see Matt Goss. Anyone that knows me well (or is even just a casual acquaintance) will know that I LOVE Matt Goss, I have done ever since I was young and in some ways I consider him my first love because he was the first boy I wanted to be my boyfriend. In fact he’s the reason I wanted to be a journalist, I remember watching a behind the scenes programme about “Smash Hits”, which was my favourite! The programme showed the journalists heading off to interview popstars and it dawned on me that if I became a journalist I could one day meet Bros!

 I did become a journalist and one day I did get to interview Matt Goss. I think out of all the people I’ve ever interviewed (the clanging you can hear is me dropping names) Michael Buble, Gary Barlow, Olly Murs and JLS. Matt Goss is the only time I have ever been at a loss for words! There was him and me in a studio and he said “would you like me to sing for you first”, I said yes and then all I could do was stare at him, because deep inside I knew my 12-year-old self was screaming her head off! I remember thinking I’m going to have to explain why I’m staring, I explained what a fan I was and his exact words to me were “would it help if I hugged you” I thought that’s not going to help at all, but I REALLY want you to touch me! Truthfully the interview was a mess, because I could barely string two words together, but I felt like my years of university and 3.30am starts had all been worth it! 

  It's always weird when you get to meet someone who's poster adorned your bedroom wall and I had Bros posters EVERYWHERE! My Dad even drank copious amounts of Grolsch so that I could have bottle tops on my shoes. I realise that statement will mean nothing to anyone below the age of 30!

   My love for Matt hasn’t dwindled at all over the years and seeing him perform on Monday reminded me that I really am capable of achieving whatever I want. Alright at 12 years old deciding to become a journalist so I could meet my favourite popstar was quite a statement to make! I think as I then became a fan of NKOTB, BLue, Bon Jovi and a million other bands, I wanted to pursue my ambition because I like talking to and meeting people, whether they're famous or not and I have only ever really wanted to do something that involved me entertaining, whether it was through the written or spoken word. Back in the day Kirkby girls didn’t work in radio, in fact the radio station my career started with didn’t even exist, so I’m not really sure how I ever thought I was going to do it, but do it I did!

  What it’s done is remind me that even though my weight loss might not be as quick as I would like, I am achieving something and I am getting there. It’s easy to let comments such as “you probably wont ever lose all your weight” or people who just generally try and knock my confidence get to me. I know what I’m capable of and I know however crazy what I want to achieve may seem, when I really decide I want to do something I find a way to make it happen! So even though it took me 15 years to meet my idol, I did it, I'm just hoping it doesn't take me 15 years to get to goal! I've just always been slightly sad that there's no photographic evidence, because I forgot my camera, I like to think Matt and I will ways have studio B at Mansfield 103.2 to look back on (well I will!)

Matt Goss or Mr Trinder as I like to call him ;)

It's On Like Donkey Kong (Other computer games are available)

Whoever tells you that losing weight is easy, is (in my opinion) one of three things

1. An idiot
2. Someone who has never tried to lose weight
3. Trying to sell you something!

Losing weight isn’t easy it’s really bloody hard and staying focused and on track is the hardest thing of all. I get so upset by magazine articles who have some half naked celebrity on the front saying they've lost a stone in a week and then when you buy the magazine and read the article they've basically lived in a cave in the middle of nowhere for the week and only eaten mung beans (I don't even know what a mung bean is let alone have ever eaten one!) It's irresponsible and not a fair representative. 

  Then there's those people (and we all have friends like these) who say "I've never had a weight problem and if I think my clothes are getting a bit tight, I just cut back for a week" This statement is usually accompanied by them shoving a cream cake in their gob as you do your best not to hang off the other end of it as you know that even being in the vicinity of the cake means you've indadvertedly consumed the calories too.

  Then there's those who promise you the world and all you have to do is sign up for their amazing boot camp / diet / pills that will have you  a size 10 within the month. All it costs is 5 easy payments of £99.99 per month and the magic is yours. I must admit the picture of the lady in the cycling shorts and vest top stood sticking her tummy out as far as it can and looking sad compared to the lady (who always looks like her younger sister) in a bikini with abs of steal, a tight bum and weirdly bigger, faker looking boobs makes it tempting to sign up!

  But truth be told, they're all rubbish! The only way to lose weight is to stop stuffing your gob and move around a bit more than you probably do! 

It was back to the scales for me this morning to assess the holiday damage and in fairness it wasn’t too bad, I’d put on 2 pounds, which I can live with and most importantly do something about!

  The 30^th October will be mine and Lucy’s one year Weight Watchers anniversary and if I’m honest I’m probably not quite where I’d like to be, I think I’d seen myself being a few more stones lighter. BUT and this is the thing for me, I am lighter than I’ve been in a long time and the majority of the time (high days and holidays excluded) I’ve stuck to my slinky mission. In fact I try not to see it as a diet, but a way of life!

 I remember when I first started Weight Watchers, a girl I know started one of these ridiculous half a cucumber diets, where you have half a cucumber on a Tuesday, a grain of rice for your breakfast and only drink chilled water whilst humming "Papa Was a Rolling Stone". She looked me squarely in the eye as she nibbled on a bit of cucumber and said “this is a way of life baby” and I remember thinking there’s no way on this earth you’ll stick to that for longer than half an hour and sure enough she didn’t, pretty soon it was a case of the only way is Haribo!

  So although there have been some minor mishaps along the way, I believe that however long it takes me, I will eventually get there cos this is a diet that allows for the odd slip up and the fact we are human. I've lost 10% of my body weight and have a keyring and certificate to prove it and I'm in clothes I haven't worn for years and generally a dress (in some cases 2) less, so for me that's an achievement!

  That said Lucy and I have set ourselves the target of having lost another stone each by our Slinky anniversary, so for the next month we’ll be really going for it, there will be no mini treats. I’ve tried to be as realistic as possible with the target I’ve set myself. Essentially I need to lose 2 pounds a week and because I know me, I know that if I say I’ll go to the gym everyday that wont happen, so realistically I reckon I can fit in twice a week with my work and my Cyril walking schedule!

  So wish me luck and hopefully when I get on the scales next week, I’ll have chipped away a bit of that pesky next stone! Plus when I do reach that target, I'll get to treat myself to something pretty! Now what should I buy? I'm thinking maybe one of these  http://www.anniehaakdesigns.co.uk  my plan is to get one for each stone I lose, so I never lose sight of exactly what I've achieved and how far I've come! Plus she does amazing jewellery!

I Get Knocked Down.....but I Get Up Again

So my holiday naughtiness resulted in a weight gain of 3 ½ pounds last night. I’m not too down hearted about it, even if our Lucy did only put on half a pound all the time we were away! It’s not an insurmountable amount of weight to re-lose and I am focused on what I’m doing, so I’m sure next week I’ll be woo-hooing as I get off the scales.

 To keep me out of trouble (for trouble read fridge) I bought a couple of magazines on my way home and I reached the conclusion that actually you just can’t win! Over the years I’ve had a whole myriad of abuse, such things as  “my boyfriend thinks you’ve got a big bum”, to which I replied “well he clearly doesn’t think at all if he’s dating you” (high five on the comeback) And my favourite,  “you made sandwiches for *****” the last bit of abuse was slightly more involved and from a woman who I lovingly called Vile Scabby Fanny (or VSF when I was e-mailing friends with various tales of her craziness) The long and short of it is, everyday she made sandwiches for this person, sometimes lovingly placing them in front of him with an accompanying packet of crisps and other times throwing them at him without a word. It became quite a past time to see what it would be! This one day she walked in with nothing and stormed past, when questioned about the lack of sandwiches, she merely replied that she’d heard “that slag Katie has made you sandwiches” I wouldn’t mind, but I’d never even made him a brew let alone a round of sandwiches.

  My point is that the magazine (edited by a woman I might add) was full of abuse and it just made me think that celebrities must pick these up and just want to cry – they get a huge  amount of ridiculing, even if it isn’t sandwich related.

  The articles were things such as: some girl from “Geordie Shore” was moaning about how much weight she puts on during the show – well they do drink their body weight in Jagerbombs (300 calories a time if you’re interested) so it’s going to take its toll!     

Chloe Madely was criticised for tweeting a picture of her amazingly flat stomach, apparently she’s promoting a bad body image because she’s TOO SKINNY! I think she looks great and have tummy envy!

Posh Spice had been spotted out in the same outfit twice – yes you read it correctly twice! How very dare she go out in a pair of jeans and a black vest top on more than one occasion. I love Victoria Beckham, I think she looks great, plus she’s a working mum of 4, maybe some days she just needs to get dressed and get out the house quickly before one of her kids puts sticky fingers on her.

  There was a whole section on Jennifer Lopez and her “Britain’s Got Talent” outfit, I must admit I did think she was channelling her inner Cher circa “The Turn Back Time” video, but hey if I had that body, I’d go to the supermarket in that leotard thingy (do you call it a leotard or is their a more fashionable name?)

  Then my favourite type of article “how insert name of reality TV star here lost 3 pounds on a heartbreak diet”

  The bashing wasn’t just reserved for the women in fairness, they did a piece on how former heartthrobs had got less hot – Mr Big now has a belly and a beard, John Corbett (SATC Aiden) now looks like D’artagnan and Matthew Perry now looks older than he did in “Friends” (well it did finish 9 years ago and I’m sure we all look older than we did then!)

  By the end of the magazine, I felt a bit fed up, it would appear that it doesn’t matter what you do, someone always wants to criticise? Why? I’m not sure I even know the answer, or indeed if there is one. So this is what I’ve decided to do, I’m starting a grateful journal and everyday I’m going to write down 5 things that have been good, even if it’s just something as simple as I saw a robin in the garden.

  I'll leave you with this song, it has some great lyrics, that Baz Lurhman chap knows exactly what he's doing!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sTJ7AzBIJoI

My grateful journal