Guest Blog by Amy Keep.

I am in a similar situation to a lot of other mums out there…

I have a very strict budget to stick by, can’t get out of the house due to kids and hubby’s working commitments and I desperately want to lose weight.

On March 23rd of this year, I made the commitment to myself that I would work within those restrictions and lose this weight I’ve been carrying since my baby (who is now 4!) was born. So far, I’ve lost 26 kgs and I’m hoping to lose another 4 by Christmas.

I started with small changes.

1. No Take Out And NO CHIPS!

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No take out unless it was Subway or the Red Rooster meals with roast chicken NO CHIPS!

2. I drank more water.

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I increased my water to 8 cups a day, with at least one cup at lunch and dinner. You just can’t drink lots of soft drink, coffee when you’re drinking 2 litres of water.

3. I slept a lot.

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I made sleep a priority and aimed for 6 8 hours a night and those were always the weeks I had the better weight loss.

4. I chose healthier food options.

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To tackle the food, I implemented a number of different things one at a time (I’m sure spanning it out over time helped me to keep losing the weight steadily instead of plateauing, and stick with it). Once I sorted out what the healthier options were, I’d stock up when they were on sale.

5. I switched everything over to the ‘lighter’ choices.

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I read the nutritional information on everything and chose those with fewer calories and less fat. (Some ‘diet’ ice creams had more calories than a chocolate Paddle Pop pays to check!)

6. I capped my snacks at a maximum of 90 calories.

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Again, it came back to checking the nutritional information. I did this for every snack we already ate, and hunted out new ones. The Weight Watchers desserts all fit under that limit so I could still have something sweet!

7. I dropped my sugar intake.

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I replaced sugar in my cooking and coffee with one of the substitutes available.

8. I started eating regular meals, watched my portion size and stopped eating when I felt full.

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I was terrible for never eating breakfast, and skipping meals. I now can’t eat anywhere near as much as I used to and I often don’t finish everything on my plate.

9. Exercise!

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Exercising was the hardest because I hate exercise and I ‘thought’ I didn’t have time for it. I tried mornings (I’m not a morning person!), afternoons (bugged by kids the whole time), and so nights after the kids are in bed it was. I started with 40 minutes 5 days a week and an elliptical bike (Deals Direct $99). I kept an eye on the sales and later picked up an exercise bike from Big W for $200 and another month or so later, a rowing machine from Aldi for $199. Adding the new equipment helped me avoid plateauing and getting bored (as did live streaming TV from the internet). I also started with Wii Fit and eventually bought Wii Active 2 which had a more extensive and motivating exercise program that I enjoyed.

10. I also kept my weight goals sensible.

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I started off by aiming to lose 10kgs, and then get below 100kg, then another 5kgs, etc. By keeping my goals small, it felt more achievable and I didn’t get disheartened as easily as looking at the big number (38kgs total eeek!).

Weight loss for me has been about gradual changes and small goals towards achieving a healthier body and life. My kids and hubby have noticed the difference and I’m loving my new body and looking forward to achieving my next goal 30kgs!