In a new weekly feature, Her.ie newbie Liz is going to share her weight loss journey. She’ll be filling you in on fighting temptation, her willpower struggles with the cocktail menu and taking painfully slow steps towards regular exercise. All in the name of a dress. _____________________________________ Hanging on the wall at the end of my bed is the constant reminder I plan on shedding nearly two stone this year. I also plan on marking the trials and tribulations of ‘trying to be good’ – the favourite saying we all tout, and quickly replace when a cake is put in front of us. Week 43: If the size fits… This was a week of challenges. From a leaving party and hangover food to weekend drinks, I knew I was facing an uphill battle. But I was going to try the 80:20 rule. Where I knew for 20% of the week I wouldn’t be following a healthy eating plan. Unless wine counts as a food group, I’d need to be strict with my food for the rest of the week. It was a case of having my cake and eating it too. Oh and exercising. That little nugget. So I went out running, very slowly, but running. I went to some dance classes. I lifted weights. And I enjoyed myself. I went out for drinks, shared a pizza to fight the hangover and then ate popcorn in the cinema. When I’ve had a night out, my only comfort is bed and food. Since it was a work leaving party, I knew we were all going to be a little worse for wear. I also knew if I didn’t indulge then I’d end up being dangerous… Then something really great happened. I found a voucher. It’s hard to beat a shopping spree that doesn’t cost a cent. Except this voucher was about to run out in the coming weeks and I hadn’t a notion what I needed. I knew I’d be able to find something, just wasn’t sure what. That’s when I realised I hadn’t done the dreaded shop in months. The jean shop. Anyone who’s reading this and has to find jeans that don’t give her lap spread (where you sit down and your thighs double in size) will know the pain of jean shopping. I’m also pretty tall, so that means you have to try every pair on in the shop, just in case your ankles are exposed. And so it started. I decided to head into town two hours before work. To buy one pair of jeans. I walked into my old reliable, picked up three different nice but casual pairs and made my way to the dressing rooms. I can’t tell you how much I hate jean shopping. The wriggling, hoisting, pulling and half the time your thighs are barriers to the zip even making its way to your tummy. Then something beautiful happened. All the sizes I had brought in were too big. I had to put back on my dress and go out, and take a smaller size. And what’s even more unusual? I loved my shape in two pairs of jeans. So I bought them both. As reminders that if you work hard, eat well and do a bit of exercise you will see results. I’m now 3 weeks back on track, which means if I can keep this up for another 3 weeks, maybe other people will start noticing a difference too. And because the scales never lie, I wasn’t as nervous to hop on this week. I was down a pound and it felt great. This week’s stats look a little something like this… Height: 5ft 8 Starting Weight: 174 lbs Current Weight: 164 lbs Weight Loss To Date: 13 lb Goal: 148 lbs Feeling: Determined The Dress in Question… NOW FITS!!