After almost 6 months I am still amazed by the power of Slimming World

It feels like ages since I wrote a blog about Slimming World.  Now that I don't have to get weighed each week I struggle to think of things to write about.

This week, though, I feel like a miracle has happened to me.

I went to group last week to get weighed - it was the first time in two weeks - and I had put three pounds on.  It was a shock, as that's my biggest gain I've had during my Slimming World journey, but it was over two weeks and it was kind of deserved.  Actually, not kind of, very much deserved.

I can't remember now all the stuff I had eaten (hell, I can barely even remember what I ate yesterday), but I can remember what I ate in the 24 hours leading up to weigh in.  On the Tuesday, I had a bad apple which turned my tummy and sent me straight to the shop for a whopping caramel shortbread.  Literally, the caramel was like half an inch.  Then that night I had a slice of chocolate cake.  On the Wednesday, just before weigh-in, I had a chocolate orange brownie (which was worth every single syn, it was incredible) and I had a huge thing of rice and chicken for my dinner.

So just those few poor choices alone, not even taking into consideration the Easter eggs I had left that I'd consumed and the white bread I'd given in to, explained the three pound gain.

It was fine, though, because I was still within my target range.  The last time I'd got weighed, I just dropped into the bottom half of my target range.  The gain meant I was still half a pound within that range which was all good.

However, I knew I had a weekend away in the next SW week and would most likely put on more than half a pound during that.  That would mean falling out of my target range for the first time since becoming a target member and having just a week to pull it back before having to pay again.

I was a bit worried that I'd got so used to tossing it off a bit and not really focussing or trying that I would find it so hard to get 100% back on plan if I did fall out of the target range.

I tried my best this last week to be as good as I could on the days that I had no obstacles.  Thursday I had a fabulous day (until we had an Indian and wine for tea), Friday and Monday I was 100% on it and had no syns, Tuesday I was 100% on it and only used 10 syns, and Wednesday I also stuck to it 100%.

Saturday and Sunday, not so much.  I had churros with chocolate sauce, enchiladas, tuna melt, loads of alcohol and really sugary cocktails, proper Italian creamy ice-cream, waffles with maple syrup, Yorkshire puddings, proper gravy, caramel brownie...

I was so expecting to be expecting a gain but, weirdly, I actually felt like I'd lost weight.  My tummy felt flatter and less bloated than it did last week, and I just felt a bit slimmer.  I don't have scales at home so I couldn't weigh myself to check, but I definitely thought I'd lost weight.

And I had!!! I lost two pounds!!  TWO POUNDS!

It just goes to show that a couple lot of bad food choices on one or two days doesn't have to write your whole week off and send you into a downward spiral.  Four and a half days of my week were totally on it and they were obviously enough to undo the damage from the weekend and the last couple of weeks.  I also think the amount of walking and dancing I did on Saturday night played a big part in counterbalancing the naughty things.

So now I am back at my target weight, right in the middle of my target zone, and so determined to stay within that range.

The power of Slimming World is amazing.  When I was losing the weight, I did stick to it pretty strictly.  Of course, when I went out for a meal or for drinks, I enjoyed myself.  But I didn't just use my syns or have treats for the sake of it.  Now, however, I eat pretty much what I want - within moderation.  Since I've become a target member I have had an Indian a few times, I've had drunk McDonald's at least twice, Easter eggs, white bread - things I would not even think about eating before - and I've not put on a stone.

One bad meal won't make you fat, just like one good meal won't make you skinny.  It's all about striking the right balance and, at the end of the day, making sure you're happy.  Because if you're not happy, you won't enjoy what you're doing and will look for ways to sabotage.

You may also like: Confessions of a Slimming World target member