How to loose weight and change your lifestyle. ( I lost 3 stone in 6months )

Weight loss.

I'm going to write this in sections - so anyone who's been asking me to write about my weight loss, can look at it as a reference and start making the changes I did . I get asked a lot through my Facebook page about it, and so it's time I write it all down.... Any questions just leave me a comment below!

( me before the 3 stone weight loss - hiding behind my boys ) 

I've never believed in fad diets, before now I've been on slimming world twice and yes I lost 2 stone each time, but I also put it back on straight after stopping going! The reason is : it's a business and they WANT you to keep going back! It doesn't allow for things such as good oils unless its In fish, They promote carbs with everything and all you can eat potatoes & pasta, I mean come on! Is that something to be promoting? Starving your body of essential things and then chucking loads of carbs into it? I think Not!

( another picture before I changed my life- I remember that day because I'd been in hospital for 3 weeks really poorly and I remember thinking " one day I will make sure I never feel this ill again and I'm able to walk unaided) see the chair in the back? Yes , I was so weak from illness I had to sit or be wheeled .

Before i changed my diet : 

The first thing I did was increase my water intake to 2.5 litres a day, if your not drinking enough water (you can add slices of lemon or lime) your body will be retaining water all over your body and this is known as Water Retention. When I started drinking the amount of water my body needed , I lost around 5lbs in the first week alone. 

After I'd been ill, for almost 18 months, I really wanted to change I joined slimming world as a Vegan minus soya - it was tough! Short story - lost about 1.5 stone ,   Then 6 months after I'd put most back on because the 'diet' wasn't suitable for me, and now I can see why! It's completely a business plan! 

(A brief smile for Seth as he took this at Christmas, this was during my illness - all the medication / time in hospital had made me pile weight on, I felt so ill that I didn't really care to be honest - so sad)

Time for a huge change.... 

I'd been searching around for an answer for so long I felt bitter about being unable to eat what I wanted , no soya or cheese was a real misery for me at mealtimes, but after Christmas '12 I decided to embrace my allergies and be a happy Vegan minus soy! 

Cutting out a drug : SUGARS / Sweetners that are refined or made. 

The first change I made was cutting out refined sugars (Since ive never been a fan of sweetners i didnt need to do that, but id suggest you cut sweetners out completely ) I used to literally crave something mega sweet after I'd eaten a main meal, and throughout the day, it is a drug, a powerful drug at that too! 

I'm shocked more people don't actually realise it , but once you remove it from your diet it changes the way you eat completely ! You taste things with a clean palette, you enjoy things so much more than you did before ! 

I will warn you though, you get withdrawals, I had terrible head aches and sweats - as did Pauly! Giving up things like Chocolate for him were the hardest I think . 

No sugar, happier food! 

So once I'd kicked my sugar habit (I felt so many vile withdrawals that I mentioned!) I noticed that I was tasting things in a whole new way and that I no longer had to have a high of sugar to keep my mood or body happy. 

The one thing i vividly remember is how different Nakd Orange Cacao bars tasted! Completely different! Before they just tasted of one flavour and now? I could taste everything as if it were eating indivual pieces of different food - crazy!

(Me yesterday - 3 stone lighter exactly - still working on my health / weight / fitness )

Eating more raw foods . 

The next thing I did was change my diet to a 80% raw diet , think about this one , before judging it......

You can still have raw chocolate, raw cake, raw everything really if you're willing to put in the time, and effort! If foods are raw they have all the natural enzymes in tact and they are able to fuel your body in a hugely different way . 

( Top; half way through my lifestyle change. Bottom : me at 2.5 stone gone !)

When your thinking about the food you NEED to consume, think about your 'calorie' choice intake, and carb intake too ( when I was at slimming world, they promoted "No calorie counting "  .... " no portion size control" ...... " unlimited carbs on a green diet") 

It was total rubbish! Think about the amount of calories you need to function, but also for you Burn the fat off your own body ... For me it's around 1400 calories a day. I'm not a massively active person, I don't walk 10-20 miles a day, I don't run everyday, I don't burn off the RDA of 2,000 calories. 

Carbs? Again, not being massively active, ( yes I go to work , am on my feet all day running around after patients and then my children ) but I don't Need a ton of carbs. Carbs are everywhere too! From blueberries to brownies - they are there! I eat on average around 100-150g of carbs daily. 

But think about your timing of foods - carbs are a fuel - use them when you need them , not after 7pm , unless you're going on a massive hike or run . 

I'm going to write about everything else in weeks to come, as there is so much to say and different topics ! 

What's the hardest thing for YOU to lose weight? Leave me a comment and I will try and help . 

Laura x

Yesterday - feeling happy climbing mountains - in every sense! You CAN do it! You just need the right information! 

Shropshire , Wrekin Organic Wholefoods - health shop specialising in organic fruit, vegetables, juicing , vegan, raw food . Veg box delivery within Telford, Wellington .

If you live in Shropshire there's a shop that I discovered thanks to my friend Erica called Wrekin Organic Wholefoods- which is located in Wellington. (Behind the old music shop that has sadly closed down . ) - just off Tan Bank. 

The shop is a humble little thing, run by two of the loviest people you could meet that are inspiringly passionate about food, health, having a happy clean lifestyle through the nutrients  you fuel your body with. 

Calm & Roy the shop owners deal directly with all suppliers ( they were explaining to me and the boys ,)  they were also explaining they , like me, feel totally frustrated that eating clean and healthy costs so much . We agree!!!! 

Feeding a family of four isn't cheap when you want an organic Wholefoods diet . 

Their answer was to set up Wrekin Organic Wholefoods, to try and help people have local access to Organicly produced , meat , vegetables , cheese, raw milks, organic free range eggs, everything organic, lots of vegan foods, vegetarian foods , but also specialising in allergy diets for people who suffer from food allergies . 

They stock all my favourite brands, Orgran, Meridan, Biona, Nutiva, Nakd, Trek, and many others . They aldo stock lots of local brands too, which is brilliant for food miles.

 Wrekin organic Wholefoods also do a veg box scheme where you basically tell them what you want in it before Wednesday evening, and then the Thursday they go to a local Organic farm and collect it for you then deliver if you're local enough ! 

As soon as our organic veg runs out we will be stopping our supermarket shops and focusing on getting it directly from them and the farmers as I don't trust super markets ( Wholefoods Market is slightly different ) but I'd rather support local people anyway . Especially since Roy and Calm are so unbelievably passionate and excited about what they are doing . 

Pauly and I said yesterday that sometimes we feel like we are going crazy with all the propaganda in the ' media' and around the world, that we feel WE are deemed the crazy ones , looked down on because we want a cleaner, natural, healthier life away from medical intervention and the fast paced , uncivil , unconscience - food obsessed world we've become . We want to give ourselves and our children, who are developing at a rate we can't believe the best chance for optimal health , and we know and believe that we're doing the right thing . 

Roy is also a nutricianist, and has been for decades, he has such a deep understanding of how to heal your body with food and nutrician that his energy is infectious - and he has so much passion about what he does . So he's able to give great advice and recommend things and changes you can make to have the best output from your body . 

They also have a little corner of books and CDs for sale which is brilliant as I'm always trying to learn and reeducate myself about the foods we think are safe, and healthy, mostly they are as I've never really been one for lots of unhealthy-ness , it makes me feel emotionally unstable , lethargic , weary, tired, and lots of other things! 

This place isn't just a food shop, it's a really enchanting inspirational humble oasis of informed choice, thoughtfulness and amazing quality food and drink . 

What's your favourite local health shop ? How do you prefer to buy ?