GRANDPARENTS ABSEIL!

My abseil (should I do it!!!) will include my husband.

In relation to my weight loss this year I am lighter than my husband in a couple of decades.  I can also get into his jeans (not together you understand). 

On top of that my weight in January was just slightly below the maximum weight to be allowed to do this abseil. 

And now the abseil ... he is down to do it too.  But he has no fear of heights so no big deal and I am petrified of heights!

I have googled and can't find another set of grandparents who abseiled down the Europa so we might be the first.

Will I do it?

UPDATE:

TODAY'S THE DAY!  Up and getting ready for our trip to Belfast.  The abseil is to raise money for kids in Donegal with autism to have access to valuable reflexology so if you can donate, please do
https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/catherine-mcglynn

MY WEIGHT LOSS CHART

I don't know about you but I love reading the details of people's weight loss journey and I know seeing how much per week people lost always engrossed me so I thought it apt I put mine here. 

Obviously during the first couple of weeks, having so much to lose, meant I lost quite a lot but then it averages out fairly evenly.

I worked out that over the 33 weeks it has taken to lose 6 stone 8 lbs I have lost so far, it averages out at just slightly over 2 and a half pounds per week.  Not once over those 33 weeks have I felt denied nor hungry so it just goes to show it can be done relatively easily.  UPDATE:  I have reached my goal of losing 8 stone (24th November and week 45!  And that is enough weight loss for me).

So here's my chart.

DATE (2016)        WEEK                    LOSS                      TOTAL LOSS                       

14 Jan                    1                              6 ½ lb                     6 ½ lb

21 Jan                    2                              4 ½ lb                     11 lb

28 Jan                    3                              3 ½ lb                     1 stone ½ lb

4 Feb                     4                              1 lb                         1 stone 1 ½ lb

11 Feb                   5                              3 lb                         1 stone 4 ½ lb

18 Feb                   6                              3 lb                         1 stone 7 ½ lb

25 Feb                   7                              4 lb                         1 stone 11 ½ lb

3 March                8                              4 ½ lb                     2 stone 2 lb

10 March             9                              1 lb                         2 stone 3 lb

16 March             10                           4 ½ lb                     2 stone 7 ½ lb

24 March             11                           3 lb                         2 stone 10 ½ lb

31 March             12                           2 ½ lb                     2 stone 13 lb

7 April                   13                           2 lb                         3 stone 1 lb

14 April                 14                           3 ½ lb                     3 stone 4 ½ lb

21 April                 15                           2 ½ lb                     3 stone 7 lb

28 April                 16                           3 ½ lb                     3 stone 10 ½ lb

5 May                    17                           2 lb                         3 stone 12 ½ lb

12 May                 18                           4 lb                         4 stone 2 ½ lb

19 May                 19                           3 lb                         4 stone 5 ½ lb

26 May                 20                           3 lb                         4 stone 8 ½ lb

2 June                   21                           1 ½ lb                     4 stone 10 lb

9 June                   22                           3 ½ lb                     4 stone 13 ½ lb

16 June                 23                           2 ½ lb                     5 stone 2 lb

23 June                 24                           2 ½ lb                     5 stone 4 ½ lb

30 June                 25                           1 lb                         5 stone 5 ½ lb

7 July                     26                           ½ lb                        5 stone 6 lb

14 July                   27                           4 ½ lb                     5 stone 10 ½ lb

21 July                   28                           ½ lb                        5 stone 11 lb

28 July                   29                           2 ½ lb                     5 stone 13 ½ lb

4 August              30                           2 lb                         6 stone 1 ½ lb

11 August            31                           3 lb                         6 stone 4 ½ lb

18 August            32                           MAINTAIN            6 stone 4 ½ lb

25 August            33                           3 ½ lb                     6 stone  8 lb

1 Sept                   34                           2 ½ lb                     6 stone 10 ½ lb

8 Sept                   35                           1 ½ lb                     6 stone 12 lb

15 Sept                 36                           1 ½ lb                     6 stone 13 ½ lb

21 Sept                 37                           2 lb                         7 stone 1 ½ lb

29 Sept                 38                           1 lb                         7 stone 2 ½ lb

13 Oct                   39                           4 lb                         7 stone 6 ½ lb

20 Oct                   40                           MAINTAIN          7 stone 6 ½ lb

27 Oct                   41                           1 lb                         7 stone 7 ½ lb

3 Nov                    42                           3 ½ lb                     7 stone 11 lb

10 Nov                  43                           MAINTAIN          7 stone 11 lb

17 Nov                  44                           2 ½ lb                     7 stone 13 ½ lb

24 Nov                  45                           ½ lb                        8 stone and ½ lb – EIGHT STONE MARK HIT!

 

ABOUT ME

In January this year (2016) I was happy but fat.  VERY fat.  But my husband never once nagged me about it and I did enjoy my life.  Yes of course at times seeing myself in the mirror annoyed me but overall it didn't affect me or my life.  I had never been fat before but about 20 years ago it started and kept going until I landed at the weight I was in January.

Then a chance meeting with a woman I know a little changed that.

I was in the old Dunnes Stores in Letterkenny one dark, wet January evening when I happened upon this woman whom I hadn't seen in about 10 years.  We used to go to the same table quizzes so knew each other to say hello to and maybe a wee chat.

In Dunnes that evening she mentioned she and a friend were going to join a local Slimming World group.  I mentioned that I knew for years that if I ever joined a group I would budge the bulge but had never gone so far as joining.  I had always though such groups would be full of fatties (like me) bemoaning the fact they were fat and I figured I already knew I was but didn't feel the need to moan about it much less listen to others moanings too.  She said it wasn't at all like that, she having previously been part of such a group, and encouraged me to go with her and her friend and they would even pick me up and take me with them.  I got around that by muttering yes, well, sometime I will or words to that effect and she gave me her number in case I changed my mind and would join them the following evening.  I said my goodbyes and left the store thinking "fat chance of me going to any group".

But in the car something made me change my mind.  My husband was just pulling out of the car park when I told him to stop and wait a minute and I left the car and made my way through the store until I found the woman to tell her I WOULD go with her to the group.  I have no idea what made me do it, just something came into my head and gave me a kick up the bum and forced me into the store.

And am I ever glad it did!

The group she and her friend were going to was in a local hotel and then after a quick google at home we found there was a group nearer to our home.  I rang the woman to ask if she and her friend could change and go to that group but she couldn't as it was the night after the hotel one and she worked that night of the week.

Ah ha I thought, a way out.  Now I wouldn't REALLY need to go given it was more effort to get there.  Yes, I was that lazy about it.  A tiny bit further in a car was enough to put me off.  Oh dear.

But then that little thing in my head told me to just go to the group nearer me even if I would be alone.  I am not shy (on the surface anyway) but the thought of walking in there on my ownio was a little intimidating. 

Come the evening I arrived at the location and entered a group I am now so happy to be a part of.

From the outset everyone was friendly and welcoming and I actually enjoyed it!  This was pretty amazing to me.  Of course I didn't enjoy being weighed as I knew it was pretty damned bad but it was all so discrete and no-one but you and the person doing the weigh in saw or heard what my weight was. 

And I can't believe I am about to put it out there, but ...

I will say it loud now ... SIXTEEN STONE AND ELEVEN AND A HALF POUNDS!  Which is MASSIVE for a 5' 1 1/2" woman like me.  How on earth did this happen?!  Well let me see, crisps, Lucozade, prawn curries with fried rice and poppadoms and prawn sesame toast regularly played a bit part in it.

So that first evening I paid for a 10 week slot (getting 2 further weeks free for paying up front ... I DO love a bargain!).  I paid it all because I am so bloody mean it would kill me not to use it all so that meant I would attend for AT LEAST 10 weeks.  And I knew that having paid there was no bloody way I was going to go to group and find I had gained a pound or more! 

The group meeting after the weigh-in was great.  Lots of chat and inspiration from my fellow members and the group leader, also called Catherine. 

I didn't need to go to Slimming World or any other slimming group to learn about food and how to cook as I am a pretty good cook and know what piles on the weight and what is better for you so for me joining the group was all about unleashing my competitive spirit to help me lose the lard. 

I left that meeting and the first thing I said to my husband was "I want to get Slimmer of the Week next week!".  Yes, I am that competitive.  However, the following week I didn't get it and hugely disappointed until I found out that Slimmer of the Week is award to the person who has lost the most weight that week and had a loss of weight or maintained their weight the previous week.  Being a newbie I wasn't even eligible for it.  I did get it the week after though :-)  And numerous weeks after that.  My competitive spirit was ably fed by being awarded Slimmer of the Month for February, March, April and May too!

Although I didn't need any help in the food department, Slimming World has a very sensible way of helping people lose weight.  They encourage members to cook from scratch but for lazy days give advice on the best ready made food to buy.  And there is NO calorie counting!  That would kill it for me.  Imagine having to weigh every single thing you eat and then calculate the calories?  That would stop me in my tracks and make me give up.  The way SW operate is there is lots of 'free foods' (ie fruit, vegetables, lean meat and so on) and then 'Healthy Extras' to cover foods like bread, cereals, cheeses etc.  And then we have 'syns' of which you are allowed 15 per day.  This allows a wee bit of naughty eating or drinking (gin in my case) so that your life doesn't change so much it is hard to keep up.  Very clever this SW ethos. 

And here I am just seven months later and nearly 6 and a half stone lighter!  All that with ease and never once having felt starved or denied.  Joining that SW group has been one of the best things I have ever done.  I have never missed group along the way simply because I don't want to.  I look forward to it every week (well other than the weigh-day-dread!).  I have made new friends who have been an inspiration to me with their stories and I like to think I have helped them too.  I add my recipes to their facebook page and some have been very successful and enjoyed by members of my group.  And these people at my group gave me the warmest and most appreciated accolade this month by voting me 'Woman of the Year'.  I can tell you, that had me on a high for a while after.

Losing the lard has been so great for me.  It has made me get up of my previously fat ass and actually DO things again!  Things that I could never have even contemplated doing at the start of this year.

This blog will bring some of them to you along with my recipes and thoughts and ideas on losing weight easily. 

My 'Woman of the Year' award

ACROPHOBIA AND ABSEILING

Having a fear of heights is debilitating to say the least.  My fear is so bad I can’t stand on a chair without feeling dizzy and terrified and if I am up hills with steep declines, or cliffs, taking photographs, I nearly freak out if anyone comes anywhere near where I am standing (never near the cliff edge I might add) in case they brush against me and I tumble over.  My head literally swims and my legs go stone cold and useless and I feel the need to get down on my bum to make my way back down the hill.  Backwards.  Even open staircases are terrifying to me.  I was in Donegal Castle one time and wanted photographs of the upstairs room.  All well and good until I was coming down the open staircase: I had to wait until there were no tourists about to see me and walk down them backwards!

So, being so terrified of heights, why not abseil down a building?

Mad?  Yes, possibly, or more likely, probably.  A friend from my Slimming World group was telling me about a charity abseil which is taking place down the front of the Europa Hotel in Belfast and a voice in my head yelled: DO IT! 

If only the voice had stayed in my head!  Instead it popped out of my mouth and I, along with said friend and my husband, heard it!

My husband, who has no fear of heights but knows how I am with heights was somewhat taken aback to say the least and said “I will too”.  Trapped! 

Being Ms. Organised, I decided to ring the charity that operate the abseiling events in Belfast.  The woman I spoke to was fabulous in helping to (slightly) ease my terror at the idea of it.  Apparently only 2 people have baulked ~ and I really don’t want to be No.3! 

I also found out that in January this year I would have been just short of the upper weight allowed to do the abseil!  (Which is driving me on as I type).

So I decided to check out the videos which I knew would inevitably be on youtube, of folks who have abseiled down the Europa.  This action I have to say was totally against the advice the woman had just given me on the phone.  And no wonder she advised against watching them!  My eyes were popping out of my head watching them I can tell you!  However, instructive they were not.  So I watched a video by the America army training squad for abseiling and that was much more helpful.  I learned, for instance, not to “bounce” my way down as all good action films had taught me.  Not that I watch action films but we’ve all see adverts and excerpts.  Apparently “bouncing” can put too much pressure on whatever you call the yoke that holds you from the top of the building and it could break.  Needless to say bouncing will not be done by me.  Thank goodness. 

A glutton for punishment, I googled facts about the Europa Hotel, Belfast and:

1.       It is 51 meters high which is 167 feet. *faints*

2.       It is the second tallest building in Belfast (the Hilton being the tallest).

3.       During ‘The Troubles’ it was the most bombed hotel in the world.

4.       It has 13 storeys.  THIRTEEN.  I thought the descent would be from the 13^th floor until my son pointed out that it would actually be from the roof making it the fourteenth level of the building.

5.       The Europa opened in July 1971 on the site of the former Great Northern Railway Station.

6.       Bill and Hilary Clinton and Michael Portillo stayed in the same suite there.  At different times I hasten to add.

These facts might distract me when I am hovering at the top, with the instructor in a death grip.  I doubt it though.

NOTE: Any sponsorship money raised goes to bringing reflexology to children with autism in Donegal.  If you can sponsor please go to https://www.justgiving.com/crowdfunding/catherine-mcglynn 

My blog post on how reflexology helps the children with autism and a previous fundraiser for them: 
http://www.welovedonegal.com/blog/reflexology-for-children-with-autism