COMPETITION TIME

Hello my lovelies,

As a thank you to everyone who has supported my blog and Facebook page since I started it I am going to run a small competition. 

Once I reach 1000 likes on my FB blog page I am going to give away a copy of The Hairy Dieters 'How to love food and lose weight' book. I purchased the book over Christmas and the recipes are fabulous and so suitable for anyone on the Weight Watchers program.

If you would like to enter the competition all you need to do is go to my FB blog page by clicking the link  >>HERE<<  and follow the steps mentioned in the pinned post!

The steps are as follows

1. Like this Facebook page

2. Like and share the pinned competition post

3. Tag 2 friends who you think would like the page/blog and would like to enter the comp

Once we reach 1000 likes a WINNER will be chosen.

Until next time,

Grá :) xx

Welcome 2015 welcome....

Hello my lovelies :)

It has been a LONG time since I have blogged I know! I always say I’ll write a post but then I end up doing a quick little post on my FB page instead! However since I have had a busy Christmas and haven’t posted on the FB blog page I said I’d dust my poor blog down with a post!

Firstly, I would like to wish you all a very Merry Christmas and a Joyous and prosperous New Year. I hope you spent the holidays with those you love and care about. I hope you all enjoyed yourself but most importantly I hope you are not all beating yourself up about how ‘bad’ you were over the holidays and how ‘fat’ you feel now!

I personally went off plan after Mass on Christmas Eve and I returned to the plan on January 1^st. Initially I hadn’t planned on such a long period off but I am glad I took it! 

My boyfriend Temi was also home for Christmas this year which was amazing! He is still around for another few days before he heads back to the Netherlands but it has been so nice to just have him around.  Anyway I’ll give a quick overview of my Christmas holidays below :)

On Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and St. Stephen’s Day I volunteered myself to help out in Limerick Animal Welfare which is only 10miles away from my home. I spent the most wonderful 3 days with the most adorable dogs, I never cleaned so much dog poo or washed so many kennels but I loved it! What I especially loved was the long walks with the dogs!

  Me and my darling Gilbert

Gilbert, Tarzan & Chilory

Johnno & Foróige

If anyone is interested in volunteering or donating to LAW here is the link to their Facebook page >>LAW<<.

I enjoyed every mouthful on Christmas day although I did not go crazy! I had some chocolates, trifle and my beautiful dinner but in the past I’d have had double the amount so because of that I am happy.

On Saturday the 27^th I had a family wedding *just like last year*. I was feeling sick that day however (sore throat, cough and so on) but I still had a great day especially as my boyfriend was there too unlike last year when he wasn’t home for Christmas.

I remember the wedding last year and how amazing I felt in my dress. This year I didn’t feel so amazing and that is because I am about 22lbs heavier. The spanx were well and truly on however I just felt uncomfortable with my stomach in the dress but thankfully in the pictures a well placed clutch bag hid that! However my boyfriend did hear me mention it a few times (I shot him down straight away when he asked me about it) and in the coming days we had a good chat about how 2014 was not my year weight loss wise. I don’t speak about my weight or WW to people I know don’t have or never had an issue with weight. If someone brings up my weight or something like that I get very defensive and I close up! This is what happens with dear old Temi, God bless the boy he is a saint to put up with me at times! But anyway after me speaking about the year and Temi giving me reassurance that no I don’t look like ‘two tonne tessie’ or a ‘heifer’ as I said it put me in good form! I hadn’t told him that I rejoined WeightWatchers before Christmas because I suppose I was in the mind frame that no one needed to know *ie Temi* until I lost what I gained to feel better about myself. That however was silly as by telling Temi I’d have his support and positivity to help me! Anyway I feel a lot better since we spoke about me and how slightly crap 2014 has made me feel!

After the 27^th, Temi and I divided the coming days between catching up with my family and friends at home and then visiting our friends in Cork and then back to visit his family. 

Me and my friend Mary at the afters of another wedding

We spent New Year’s Eve with his family and then went out for a few drinks which was super nice. It was an enjoyable few days especially catching up with our friends but it didn’t leave me much opportunity to get back on plan but that was okay because I knew that by the very latest of January 1^st I would be back on plan.  As I said I will start 2015 as I want it to continue à following WeightWatchers and oozing positivity :)

I’m back with Temi and his family since yesterday will stay at his until he leaves for the aiport on Tuesday morning (sad face). I’ve got all my food prepped and weighed with me so there will be no excuses. We went to the cinema to see the Hobbit last night and I enjoyed the treats I bought with me instead of buying junk there. Satisfied :)

Before Christmas I rejoined WeightWatchers as I finally found a class I could make most weeks (and if I couldn’t make that one I’d make another one in Co. Cork). Anyway I’m definitely looking forward to getting back to meetings, I’m going to go tomorrow morning to a class in Ennis since I’m here and just want to get back to meetings so it’ll be eight days until my next one, an added day to work hard :)

I’m also beginning my FINAL Teaching practice on January 12^th! I can’t believe I am almost finished my post grad! On March 30^th I will be sitting my final exam and then hopefully my September 2015 I will be in a wonderful classroom with some wonderful children! Oh the excitement! 2015 is going to be a great year I can just feel it! I bought myself two things I’ve wanted with AGES to help me during 2015 and they are:

The Hairy Dieters First book purchased from >>HERE<<

and the Fitbit Charge purchased from Currys 

If you want any further information on the Fitbit products just visit >>HERE<< .I’ve wanted one since they first came out so for me the investment was worth it.

No new year’s post can be complete without the mention of resolutions eh! This year I am not making a list of resolutions instead I am just thinking about some of the things I would like to achieve. Back in August I posted about the things I would like to achieve in 2015. The post can be found here >>HERE<<. I have already signed up for the Hell and Back challenge on February 1^st (probably not a great idea during TP but it’ll be worth it) and I have signed up for the half marathon. Only problem with the half marathon now is that I have decided to not continue with running. Over the last 12 months my knee has gotten worse and worse and it is because of running. It is an issue I have had with a long time but I am known to push myself past what I am able to do and then end up injured so after a long think I decided I’d give up running and focus on all the other sports and activities I am into! So I won’t be running the half marathon I’ll be power walking! As the year progresses I will hopefully add more things to the list but for now I like the list I have.

Anyway that is definitely enough of a rant for now! Fair play if you actually read it all I do ramble a fair bit so I do apologise but that’s me!

May 2015 be a great year for us all. May we be blessed with good health and fortune. May we reach our goals and most importantly may we all be happy with ourselves.

Until next time,

Grá :) xx

September brings new opportunities and new challenges

Hello my lovely readers J

Just back from a great week in the Netherlands! I won’t lie long distance relationships are HARD but when you finally get to see the person it is all worthwhile!

I also had my Irish oral exam with college last week and it went great so that definitely has kept me in high spirits all week J

Also stood on the scales this morning with my usual fear of ‘’OH MA GAWWD I bet I’ve gained another 10lbs as usual’’ and wanna know what I did a happy dance I’m up like 3lbs…3 frickin lbs! That to me is amazing J J I won’t lie I had a few too many ‘share’ chocolate bars which I so obviously didn’t share! But most of the meals I ate were free or almost free on Slimming World EE/ Weight Watchers f&h so in reality I went off track only abit so BOO YA happy days J

 

 

By the way this seriously was the best way to spend my Friday night ;)

 

Anywho, September 2^nd already, it is crazy how fast the year goes by! Soon enough we will be planning for Christmas and then New Years and then we’ll be into 2015!

Personally I’m happy to welcome September in! As much as I enjoyed my Summer it was just abit too hectic for me in terms of monitoring my weight and doing my usual exercise! I like getting back into a routine!

September is the start of a hectic few months for me – I have my second teacher practice starting in just 3 weeks and it will last for 5 weeks! Before and after that I’m back to work in my local Primary school *starting tomorrow*. I won’t lie I’m excited about getting stuck into my workload as it means I am getting closer to finishing!

Hell all I have to do before I finish in April 2015 is complete:

·         3 weeks of classroom observations

·         10 weeks of teaching practice

·         1 project

·         1 Irish exam

I mean four items to tick off the list and then I am FREE. Well maybe not free but free from college, but then the real life decisions need to be made and some I am not looking forward to but that’s life I suppose and not all decisions can be easy to make.

Anyway there is a point to this post I promise you I’m not just going to rant and rave on *Okay slight lie I will rant and rave but for a purpose* J

 

So anyway September brings about the start of Autumn *well technically August did but we all deny it and say it is still Summer*.

The lovely trees that began blooming in Spring with beautiful leaves are not beginning to change colour and soon the trees will be bare but before long the cycle will begin again! Just like us! January 1^st brings about lots of resolutions to become a better person to lose weight etc and for many people by June the resolutions have fallen to the side and by Winter they are regretting the choices they made and plan a new set of resolutions for the coming year, a life cycle just like that of the beautiful trees.

Not sticking to resolutions is not a sign of weakness it can just be a sign that we made resolutions that are just a tad unrealistic. I mean I’d never stick to a resolution if I set myself a challenge of loosing 4lbs a week or something unattainable like that! Set small challenges for yourself and you will succeed.

So anyway I’m calling on all you lovely people to make a challenge for yourself for the month of September *or from now until Christmas* J

Like I mentioned earlier September is bringing a routine back into my life which I love. With this normal routine in mind I’d love to set myself a separate challenge from now until December 31^st . I’d like to see myself back to where I was or as close as possible to my lightest weight which was in fact December 2013. Now if I don’ achieve it I’ll get over it, I might be aiming a little too high considering I’ve a lot of college work as well as life commitments to deal with but God loves a tryer! J

I’ve another family wedding the end of December just like last December, with the same family that saw me at my lightest and flooded me with compliments and well if I’m honest I’ll be dammed if I’m turning up to that wedding not looking as good as I did last year! So if that isn’t motivation I don’t know what is!

Anyway sorry back to my September challenge, I get a bit carried away I know :P I’m not setting myself a number of lbs to lose as that stresses me out instead it is all little habits I want to change or get back into! I’m already a great water drinker but if you are not set yourself the challenge of drinking 2lt of some good old H2O a day!

 

 

For me my September challenge is:

 1.       Zumba twice a week (Highly achievable) *The last 8 days of September will be difficult with TP but I will try my best*

2.       Gym 3 times a week (I got lazy recently so 3 times a week will be a good achievable number) *The last 8 days of September will be difficult with TP but I will try my best*

5.       Ensure I run 2 times a week (At the gym – treadmill)

3.       Say something positive about myself everyday (even if I feel I look like a bloated pregnant heifer)

 

 

So there is it my challenge for September. As I said I will be try my best to achieve all my targets. I particularly like my 3rd point as I can be a very negative person when it comes to me. I judge every aspect of my body and appearance. I will put myself down many times. I guess many people would say low self-esteem. Don’t get me wrong tho in front of other people I will not put myself down, in front of other people I seem to ooze confidence which in fact is all an act! But while I might criticize myself I will never allow other people the opportunity to do that to do!

 

Anyway so my rant has come to an end. I have to go and plan lots of teaching related stuff :)

I hope you all will set yourself some form of a challenge for the month ahead, it doesn’t have to be weight or exercise related it can be anything :) I’d love to hear about the challenge you decide on also J

Until next time,

Grá J

 

 

 

 

Hello....Is it me you're looking for....?

Is it too early to start making a list of things I want to do in 2015?!

I know some people are probably thinking I should enjoy the remainder of 2014 before thinking of  

2015 but it's important to have goals that you want to achieve!

So as of August 21^st 2014 my goals for 2015 *so far* are: 

1.       Run my first half marathon --> The Great Limerick Run May 2015, I’m already registered for it J

2.      Take part in and complete my first ever triathlon --> I

 e-mailed a club about 20miles away asking about joining

3.       Hopefully take part and complete the 'Hell and back'  challenge :)

4.       Complete my teacher training  degree

5.       Get a Primary school teaching job

6.       Continue to be happy and healthy

The following 2 goals are ones I want to achieve some day…maybe not in 2015 but definitely by 2016

1.       Qualify as a Zumba instructor à I already know all the details to do this just need to find the time

2.       Do an evening course on Nutrition à Course already picked out again just to find the time

Notice how I haven’t included anything about reaching my ‘ideal weight’. In December 2013 I said 

‘2014 will be my year to get to my ideal weight’ and you know what it hasn’t been!

I haven’t written a proper blog post since the end of 2013 and you want to know why? I felt ashamed, 

too ashamed to admit that I gained some weight. Also I felt like a hypocrite because I gained weight! 

Don’t get me wrong, I didn’t gain ALL 5st 8.5lbs, I gained about 1.5 stone. 

This was down to a 

variety of reasons à getting injured and not exercising, a lot of parties and events, all of which were 

close together and I just never lost what I had gained during the previous get together before the next. 

Not being able to go to a WeightWatchers meeting regularly was the big problem though as I really 

need the support of the group and also the fear of being weighed in by someone else!

But and it’s a big BUTT *excuse the pun ;) *I’m like yeah that’s life, no point crying over spilt milk! 

2014 has been a great year for me apart from the weight gain

·         I’m the fittest I’ve ever been :)

·         I’ve almost 70% of my teacher training completed *roll on April 2015*

·         I’ve made some amazing friends this year

·         I had an amazing time down in the Gaeltacht with college where I felt confident in myself

  One of the many great nights in Dingle                                                              Dún Chaoin, looking out to the                                                                                                                                                              Blasket Islands

·         I’ve had people come to tell me how I’ve inspired them to make a change and get healthy :)

        · I’m happy :)

·         My facebook page ‘Adventures of a Melting Diva’ has over 600 likes à I mean 600 people actually 

took the time to look at something I started just because. Amazing feeling :)

>LINK<

So while I might not be where I had planned in terms of my weight, I’m where I want to be in so 

many other areas of my life, and isn’t that what is important?! What good would I be at my ‘’ideal’’ 

weight if I wasn’t happy or doing what I love?!

I’m back losing weight now which is a good thing. My fellow WeightWatchers please don’t judge me 

for this * :P * but I had to join Slimming World BECAUSE there is no evening WW meeting at home 

for me to attend. The Slimming World plan is basically the SAME as filling & healthy with a few 

differences. So while I’m being weighed in at a Slimming World class, I’m tracking using both 

systems.

If any of you lovely guys are on Instagram I post most meals *stating WW and SW values* :) You’ll 

find me at ‘Gra_Adventuresofameltingdiva’ :)

>LINK<

Anyway this is possible the biggest mish-mash of a blog post I have done to date and I apologise for 

that! It was very much unplanned. I decided to take a break from prepping for my Irish oral exam on 

Saturday *wish me luck, I’m super nervous* and this blog post is the end product of my break :)

I’m delighted to have written this post as now I’ll hopefully get back to blogging regularly as I’ve 

ousted my ‘shameful’ weight gain!

Isn’t it amazing how the number on the scales can really play havoc with one’s mind!  It’s awful isnt’ it!

Anyway my lovely readers, if there are any of you left since I’ve abandoned you all for soooo long, 

have a lovely day and hopefully I’ll have another post for you all soon :)

Until next time

 Grá :)